The 2024 instalment of the annual Empowered Administrators Conference (EAC) on 19 and 20 September showcased how this signature event has empowered its delegates with versatility and confidence. To measure the impact of the training provided to delegates, the EAC organising team sent out calls inviting delegates to facilitate and direct the conference programme. Unsurprisingly, within days at least six administrators had submitted their motivations to be afforded roles in the conference. It is no easy task to facilitate a conference attended by almost 200 peers from eleven different institutions, but the administrators proved that the conference is indeed a space for them to learn not only from expert presenters but from one another as well.
It was therefore this spirit of empowerment that defines the EAC which saw Jade Mthiyane onboarding new Mcees from other institutions so they would all bring new perspectives into the conference. “We cannot be talking about empowerment but not cascading some of the skills to our delegates. MCeeing helps one with confidence and we saw how confident the new Mcees were. These new Mcees were Cebokazi Luthulu from DUT, Portia Ntetha (DUT), Anusha Karamchand (DUT), Fundiswa Koyana (WSU) and Victoria Tyusha TUT. Training the Mcees was a phenomenal experience and I hope more people will raise their hands next year as this is one of the key competencies that one could add in their bio sketches”, said Mthiyane.
The active engagement of administrators at the conference created a very conducive learning environment for the administrators including those who were attending for the first time. Not only did these programme directors add versatility and flavour to the flow of the conference but they also proved a deep understanding of their professional space as they easily reflected on presentations, asked relevant questions, and interacted with the audience about the themes discussed. “Each year the EAC is anchored on a specific theme which serves as a springboard for the topics discussed and the selection of speakers allocated. This year’s theme which was Bold and Resilient administrators birthed the idea of having delegates take centre stage in the conference. In the true spirit of resilience, the administrators rose to the occasion and proved how bold they were. These administrators have mastered the art of audience engagement, public speaking, content analysis, and time management. We believe that by having administrators become this engaged is going to give confidence to line managers that the EAC is a relevant platform to send their administrators to learn these skills which are not taught in formal learning,” said Mbali Mkhize, the MUT senior director of Marketing and Communication and Founder of the EAC.
Having more hands on deck afforded the organising team time to mingle with delegates making sure that everyone gets a positive experience from the conference and MUT as a host institution. The EAC has unleashed the potential of office administrators and built resilience within them to believe in themselves.