Annual Research Report 2020

26 Ms Gail Motlhaudi Gail Motlhaudi’s early years of research at Sol Plaatje University were filled with knowledge capitalisation through the atten- dance of various workshops and seminars, which led to her be- coming the first nGAP lecturer to present at the School Research Seminar and to write a paper based on her master’s thesis, which was accepted and presented at the G-Forum Jahreskonfernz in Stuttgart, Germany in October 2018. Thereafter, Gail began to work on her PhD proposal on which she wrote a conceptu- al paper which was presented at the International Business Conference in Hermanus, Western Cape in September 2019. She presented another paper at the third International Conference on Entrepreneurship Development in September 2019 hosted by the Central University of Technology. Over the years, Gail has continued to attend various research workshops and present at SPU symposiums and nGAP CoP research meetings, which have all contributed to her research journey. Gail indicated that she looks forward to completing her PhD, graduating, and continuing to grow as a fully-fledged scholar. Mr Abongile Zweni Abongile Zweni’s academic journey started at SPU on 1 December 2018 when he was appointed as an nGAP lecturer in Financial Management. In 2019 he began his PHD journey with the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, in the field of Public Administration, focusing on Public Finance, where he developed a Budget Management Model for Selected South African Municipalities. Abongile indicated that the academic journey is very challenging particularly when one does not have support from experienced aca- demics. However, he stated that it is vital to have a clear vision and mission on how to build your academic career, and it is important to manage your time effectively as an emerging academic. He also added that using emotions as an emerging academic will not get you far in this field/industry. In addition, he stated that engaging with the nGAP scholars was very helpful for his research journey. Abongile’s major highlights for 2021 include submitting the complet- ed PHD thesis to the institution. He has three papers that are under review in DHET accredited journals and has presented an abstract for an international conference in February.