For Dr Liile Lekena-Bayaga, Director: Strategic Planning, the three-day lekgotla marked an important milestone in a journey that began two years ago, when MUT started charting its strategic direction towards 2030. With IGNITE 2030 now six months into implementation, the focus has shifted from developing the strategy to testing how effectively it is translating into institutional action.
“The Lekgotla gave us an important opportunity to reflect on the first six months of implementing IGNITE 2030. We are now able to assess some of the assumptions we made during strategy development against the realities of implementation, identify emerging challenges and determine where our planning needs to be sharpened,” said Dr Lekena-Bayaga.
Dr Lekena-Bayaga said the experience was particularly significant for those closely involved in developing the strategy, as the conversations showed how IGNITE2030 was beginning to shape planning and decision-making across the University.
While substantial progress was made in developing the 2027 Annual Performance Plan (APP), the depth and intensity of the deliberations meant that the 2027 Institutional Operational Plan (IOP) could not be completed during the three-day session.
Rather than rush this critical stage, MUT will convene a dedicated session to finalise the IOP.
“The IOP is where our commitments become operational. It will translate the APP into specific institutional and divisional outputs, assign responsibilities, establish quarterly milestones and identify the evidence required to demonstrate performance. It is therefore important that we give this process the attention it deserves,” Dr Lekena-Bayaga said.
Finalising the IOP will mark the next critical step in MUT’s planning cycle, providing the practical implementation framework that will connect the ambitions of IGNITE2030 with the work undertaken across the University in 2027.
For MUT, the journey towards 2030 is therefore moving into a new phase, from defining the strategy to demonstrating its impact through implementation and measurable performance.