IS develops Business Processes video with Zambian bikes

17 Mar 2014
Tiki Mambwe, Zambikes sales manager on one of their bamboo bikes.
17 Mar 2014

The Enterprise Systems Education For Africa (ESEFA) project has developed a unique case study as part of its vision to roll out Enterprise Systems education in South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius, Namibia, Botswana and Uganda in 2014, and in other Sub-Saharan countries thereafter.

Some of the existing SAP University Alliances (SAP UA) curriculum which is based on a fictitious company – Global Bike Inc (GBI) – has been adapted to give it an African context and make it easier to understand than previous Eurocentric learning materials.

Karin Reissenauer (ESEFA project manager at UCT Department of Information Systems) says “We have incorporated a video of how a bicycle company operates into the Business Processes module, and have chosen Zambikes, based in Lusaka, Zambia, as our real-life model company. This will give students a context which is easy to relate to when learning about Enterprise Systems theory.” Zambikes is known globally for their custom handcrafted bamboo frames and the making of 1 bamboo bike = 5 jobs in Zambia.

Gwamaka Mwalemba, UCT Lecturer in Information Systems and ESEFA project team member, travelled to Lusaka with Karin in February 2014 to meet the Zambikes team and visit the factory and administration offices. Back in Cape Town the ESEFA project team then wrote the storyboard in preparation for the video shoot at Zambikes which took place a month later.

In early March, Gwamaka and Prof Lisa Seymour (HOD of Information Systems and ESEFA Executive Sponsor), together with a UCT TV film crew, spent 3 days in Lusaka with the Zambikes team making the video. Gwamaka said, “It was a great experience meeting and working with the Zambikes team – the whole journey was a huge learning experience not only in terms of understanding and seeing in action the core values upon which Zambikes was founded, but also the contribution they are making to society, their motto being “not only building bikes but changing lives” which synchronizes so perfectly with the overall objectives of the ESEFA programme.”

Image removed.
Prof Lisa Seymour (centre) with the UCT TV crew Lisa Drennan (Producer), Stephen Horn (Sound) and Dean Shamley (Camera), and Wyson & Mrs Nkwazi from Zambikes.

 

Image removed.(left to right) The Zambikes team meets the ESEFA team: Mwewa Chikamba, Paul Mulenga, Gwamaka Mwalemba (UCT), Tiki Mambwe, Wyson Nkwazi and Isaac Banda.