Messages at the Ceremony

Good afternoon fellow graduands, faculty members, and honoured guests.

My family, friends, classmates and professors know me as Kuben. I’m a highly successful entrepreneur with business interests in Southern Africa.

Thank you U21Global for giving me the privilege of addressing this distinguished audience this afternoon. It eclipses the honour of the meeting I had with the former US president, Bill Clinton, earlier this year and the Yum! Restaurants International Chairman’s Award for Development in Africa received in Vancouver, this May.

I am proud of all my classmates for having the courage and determination to embark on and complete the MBA voyage via the online medium. What a journey it has been from Organisational Behaviour to the Capstone Project! Many personal sacrifices were made and many challenges were overcome.

I want all of you to help with some recognition. Please stand up and applaud. Yes, applaud the graduands, applaud all the people who supported us during our studies, and applaud the professors and staff from U21Global. Thank you. We, the graduands, are indebted to our fellow classmates, our teachers, and our friends and family who have supported us.

A great benefit of online study was the immediate application of what we learnt to our workplace. What better way to reinforce the concepts that we were exposed to? My capstone project helped solve one of the biggest issues we had in our company and it is still guiding current strategy. Unionisation dropped from over 80% to 25% and is still falling. Operational metrics have improved dramatically. It is so good to see application of theory bear fruit.

I implore you to put into practice what you have learnt. Our education does not stop here. This does not necessarily mean further formal study but rather learning from your own efforts and from those of others in the business arena. Keep yourself informed. Do not be afraid to form your own opinions and strategies. Pressures in the business environment are tremendous and we are in an age of instant gratification. In the business world, we have to be equipped with the knowledge that would help in better, quicker and decisive actions, and there is no place for complacency.

The MBA degree does not automatically make you a leader. You must develop the ability to convince others to willingly follow you. Remember, Mark Twain’s character Tom Sawyer. To punish him his Aunt Polly gave him the task of whitewashing a fence. In a short time he had other boys queuing up and paying for the privilege of painting the fence. Tom was a natural leader.

I’ve been a successful entrepreneur for a long time. Allow me to share some things I believe led to my success.

1. Do not sit on the fence – be a risk taker. The old saying “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” is true. Taking risks does not mean being reckless. Analyse and try to mitigate risks. Understand what you are getting into but do not procrastinate.



2. Have a clear vision for yourself. In whatever vision you fashion, ensure one thing. See yourself as happy. Set clear goals. Act in a determined manner to achieve your vision. Having a plan no matter how rudimentary is better than having no plan at all. There is another old saying “Failing to plan is planning to fail”.



3. Take care when selecting your senior leadership team and other professionals that represent your company. This is the face of your company and we know appearances do matter.



4. Make the values of TRUST, INTEGRITY, and RESPECT the cornerstones of your business and your life. All stakeholders must believe that these values are not subject to compromise.



5. Failure is only a temporary setback. Learn from the mistake and take another risk. All businesses are inherently risky – success and failure are expected outcomes.



6. Business is serious but business can be FUN. Enjoy what you do and let employees also have FUN. Imagine in your mind my KFC stores where employees sing at work. FUN does not have to be singing it can be any fun activity. At PIKE FISH PLACE in Seattle employees have FUN by throwing fish at each other and interacting with customers in a REAL way. If fishmongers can have fun at work anyone can.

Dear Distinguished Guests, Graduates, Family and Friends,

It is an honour to have the opportunity to address you all today on this wonderful occasion. This ceremony is a celebration of achievement, of hardwork and of dedication and it is inspiring to be in a room with so many people who exemplify these fine qualities.

On behalf of the entire student body, I’d like to start by thanking our distinguished professors and all the U21 staff for their support, patience and expertise throughout our studies. Without you, we would not be here today.

On behalf of the entire student body, I’d like to thank our families and friends who have played a very significant role in our achievement. Without you we could not have achieved this degree. We understand and appreciate the sacrifices you have made through our absences and distractions while we studied these past years.

Last, but not the least, I’d like to congratulate all of the graduates here today on your fantastic achievement. Studying part time is more a marathon than a sprint. For most of us, it has taken 3 to 5 years to reach this moment and there are times when the end seems like a very abstract notion. When studying part time we have to juggle study with work and both have real deadlines, which quite often clash. One difficulty is deciding just how much time needs to be invested in each module to get the desired learning outcome. Another difficulty that I found most challenging was the 24 hour period in which we had to do our exams. It’s hard to stay focused for so long and to decide when enough has been done. My longest exam was 13.5 hours of work over a 23 hour period and it seemed an insurmountable task when starting out. I developed a technique of starting exams on Friday evening and working until 11pm. I would then go to the pub for a few beers and to relax after which I could sleep quite well. I’d then get up on Saturday morning and work until it was done. But it was an unusual feeling to be in the pub during an exam. Certainly, there were 17 difficult weekends when we took exams. Studying online adds further challenges in that all our discussions have to be written and our team mates can be on the other side of the world. Our challenges may be different, but our goal has been the same. So once again I congratulate you for this extraordinary achievement.

Through meeting these challenges, we have developed many new skills and the course materials have undoubtedly added to our enhanced knowledge. This personal growth is the greatest reward from the programme, which we will carry forward into our future careers and lives.

Besides these challenges, studying online has many advantages. It allows our study to be flexible enough to accommodate our busy careers, our family lives and everything else we have to do each day. It allows us to study in a global classroom. You only have to look around the room to get a feeling of that. It allows us to be taught by top professors from all over the world. Online study was the only way it was possible for me to do an MBA without leaving my job - so standing here today I am very grateful to U21Global for being one of the pioneers in this new type of education.

In fact today is not really about the end of our degree programmes but rather a new beginning. If we think back to when we applied to U21Global, we had many reasons for wishing to begin an MBA. We wanted to grow, to learn new skills, to progress to the next level in our careers or maybe to achieve a higher salary. With globalisation comes not only great opportunities, but fierce competition as well. By investing in ourselves we hope for the chance to prosper in today’s modern knowledge economies. I hope all of the things we desire will come true.

I wish you all the best.
Thank you.

Good Afternoon, distinguished professors, fellow graduates, family members, friends, ladies and gentlemen.

I’m humbled and honoured to be given this privilege to address the graduating class; to speak on behalf of my fellow graduates.

Today’s graduation is something I’ve been looking forward to since I first embarked on this U21Global journey. But being awarded the Academic Excellence Award was something beyond my expectation.

On behalf of my fellow graduates, I would like to thank all our professors for their dedication and passion in bringing the subjects to life in unique ways. We always appreciate and enjoyed your “curve ball” questions that made us think “out of the box”… and for being gracious when we were late (more than once) in submitting our DBs and assignments.

I would also like to thank U21 Global for giving us (working professionals, busy entrepreneurs, homemakers) a solid and effective world-class online learning environment to pursue our dreams of acquiring skills and knowledge for our personal and professional development.

I remember taking my first subject “Organisational Behaviour” while attending the Beijing Olympics back in August 2008. The beauty of it was that I didn’t have to miss the classes and I thoroughly enjoyed the exciting “once-in-a-lifetime” Olympics moment!

My heartiest congratulations go out to each and every fellow graduate in the graduating class of 2011. Despite the many challenges each of us had to overcome, we persevered and have broken through!

There’s a sticker on my laptop which reads - “Tough times don’t last, tough guys do”. We overcame the seemingly many challenges and pressures thrown at us throughout our pursuit to finish this course.

There’s a sense of relief that the long arduous hours of studying and preparing assignments into the wee morning hours has come to an end. But with it comes a sense of achievement that we’ve reached a major milestone in our journey.

We couldn’t have achieved this without the unwavering support from our spouses and children and loved ones. They stood with us through this entire journey. They often encouraged us with well-meaning words like “Time flies, it’ll be over very soon.” I replied, “…not when you’re the one going through it.”

I want to thank my wife Aileen, for being the pillar and fortress in the home front, who almost single-handedly managed the entire household and our 2 kids schedule with such aplomb during the 2.5 years, so I could juggle between business trips and focus on my studies.

Today is also the time where we finally get to meet 2 groups of people – those whom we’ve collaborated with so well online but never got the chance to meet face-to-face, and of course, now there is a face to those "mysterious classmates" whose pictures were never posted on the student roster.

And who can forget our “good friend” Turnitin, who could sniff out even the most cleverly “re-constructed paragraphs and sentences”. I don’t think we’ll miss him much though.

In conclusion, allow me to leave you with a quote by Robert Kriegel, a New York Times and Business Week best selling author and Olympics and professional athlete coach,:
“People who use yesterday’s thinking in today’s game will be gone tomorrow.”

With “change being the only constant”, we need to reinvent continuously, demonstrate adaptability and stay relevant through innovation, creating value in our deliverables and driving productivity through collaboration.

I wish you all the very best and great success in your future endeavour.

Once again, my resounding Congratulations to the graduating class of 2011.

We did it!

Graduates, Families & Friends of Graduates and other Distinguished Guests,

In closing this wonderful and memorable occasion, I want to make a few brief comments.

First, I want to add my own congratulations to every graduate who has received an award this afternoon. Studying for any award requires enormous dedication, a lot of hard work and many personal sacrifices. This is doubly so when one is already busy in employment and has a range of family and other commitments. Each of you who has graduated today deserves special recognition for what you have achieved. Well done.

Secondly, I want on behalf of all graduates to say a public thank you to each of your members of family and friends who are here today for all the support they have given and for the sacrifices they have had to make while you have been studying for your award. It is pleasing to see so many family and friends here today. I trust you also share in the satisfaction and fulfilment that today represents. Thank you for your support.

Thirdly, I want to reinforce the fact that the awards conferred today are a reflection of the increasing globalisation and connectivity that is gathering more and more momentum throughout the world. The learning you have undertaken and the method of its delivery are at the forefront of this global trend. Your studies will equip you to become leaders in an increasingly digitally connected world.

Fourthly, I want to remind you that U21 Global is already more than 10 years old – and has enjoyed a decade of achievement in delivering high quality on-line graduate programs quality assured by some of the world’s leading research intensive universities.

Ten years on U21 Global remains a pioneer in educational innovation. It has been uniquely enriched by the diverse perspectives that only 10,000 students from 72 countries can bring. It has built strong connections with business and industry through its executive development and corporate development programs. Most importantly, U21 Global has built a strong academic reputation in its own right.

Fifthly, I would urge each of you who have graduated today to continue your association with U21 Global as members of our Global network and in doing so stay in touch with us. This is just one of many important ways in which you can continue to share your learning experience with others and reap the rewards of the distinctive global education you have received.

Finally, congratulations once again. I hereby declare today’s graduation ceremony closed.