Venisha Nayagar

August 25, 2014 in Digital, Profiles
Venisha Nayagar, Sun International

Venisha Nayagar, Sun International

Name: Venisha Nayagar

Designation: Group Head: Technology Governance, Risk and Security

Company: Sun International

What do you do every day? I assist in the implementation of technology best practices, provide advisory on compliance controls and implement secure channels of working and detecting risk. I started and manage the privacy function for group globally, advising on technologies and processes to enable efficiencies. I work with multiple diverse teams and help ensure operations are risk controlled and secure. It’s a fun sexy industry I work in, so every day is a new adventure!

How did you get into the tech space? I studied Information Systems at university and loved the aspects of technology and cyber security so pursued a postgrad and certifications and started my career in IT Audit. I have loved sniffing risks and providing solutions to situations and have just grown from there… No looking back and I also love being seen as competent player in somewhat male game.

What was the best advice anyone ever gave you? People are everything! Treat everyone you meet with utter respect and professionalism as you never know who you may end up working with or needing throughout your career – words that have been so true in my profession as the market is so small and relationships are key.

What advice would you given someone wanting to get into the tech sector? Go for it hard, have a goal and don’t let anything deter you. It’s a fast-paced environment with the most change that can make or break an operation, but it’s a world that forces you to learn, adapt and explore. Keep your femininity and remember that being successful in this industry is about knowing your content and being confident in your ability to multi-task, think outside the box, be creative and having the perfect balance of assertiveness and adaptability.

What motivates you to get out of bed everyday? My life and all that I still want to do…and knowing the value I bring and fires I put out…its highly motivating!

Who do you want to be when you grow up? Grow up? Sigh why? I love the youth and energy I’m currently exuding and the fun memories that its created, growing up can wait a while more. 🙂

Find me on:
LinkedIn: za.linkedin.com/pub/venisha-nayagar/39/142/893

 

Lorraine Sefolo

August 19, 2014 in GM, Profiles
Lorraine Sefolo, SABC

Lorraine Sefolo, SABC

Name: Lorraine Sefolo

Designation: GM: IT

Company: SABC 

What do you do every day? I provide the strategic leadership and management of the IT Business Unit within the SABC. I am responsible for all the provisioning and back-office support of all IT systems for the SABC, from the network internal data runs on, to all the radio and television websites, to how we secure the electronic IP of the SABC as a National Keypoint, to the HR and financial ERP system. I am a very involved GM, so be it a business case or turnaround strategy for the services we offer as IT within the SABC, I’m involved with it.

How did you get into the tech space? While studying Industrial Engineering I bumped into a friend at a Checkers store and she told me she was studying IT and she was going to be a computer programmer. I had no clue what she was talking about, so she showed me the receipt from her purchases and said: “A program was able to create and calculate what’s on this receipt…a programmer wrote this”. I subsequently qualified as a Cobol Programmer, although I spent most of my career in the open server environment as a Certified Unix Solaris Engineer.

What was the best advice anyone ever gave you? My mom, growing up, showed me that if you lean with all your weight on a wall, if anybody removes that wall, you will fall. She taught me that I must have balance enough that if the wall is removed, I can still remain on my feet. It’s the mantra in my life. I always strive to learn, to work for all that I have achieved without waiting for someone to hand it to me. Of cause that’s not to say one is an island. And I’m grateful to those that have offered their help in my career by offering opportunities to work and make a difference, I am very thankful as I don’t believe that anybody owes any of us anything. God gave us talents and abilities to make a positive difference in this world, we must use them. It is this strong belief in God that has helped me discover my unique talents and abilities to charge my career to where it is and where it is headed to.

What advice would you given someone wanting to get into the tech sector? It is definitely the future. With the concept of the “internet of things”, technology is a part of our daily lives and offers so many rewarding aspects for those who are scientists at heart but don’t want to dissect plants and insects or mix up chemicals in the lab. The world has now become that very IT lab.

What motivates you to get out of bed everyday? To be honest, getting out of bed in the morning daily is the least pleasant experience for me, BUT I view my chosen career the way I view user problems – with excitement. I get excited about searching for an answer and watching how technology has, for example, made the world so small and enabled access to people one would have never had access to before via social networks, how it has also changed the way we study etc. I think I am wired that way…I think it’s called “geektisis”…J

Who do you want to be when you grow up? Tina Turner *straight face*

Find me on:
Twitter: @sefolol
LinkedIn: za.linkedin.com/pub/lorraine-sefolo/39/398/b50