Umvoto Africa, a specialist earth sciences consultancy in Muizenberg, Cape Town, has been selected as the best company in southern Africa for young water industry professionals to develop their skills.

Umvoto, which has nearly 20 fulltime staff, plus at least four interns, competed successfully against much larger companies to receive this prestigious award from the Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA).

This ‘2012 South African Young Water Professionals professional development award’ was announced at a gala dinner on Tuesday 8 May in Cape Town, as part of the biennial WISA conference and exhibition at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

Umvoto initiatives that contributed to the award include:

Intern Programme: The Umvoto Intern Programme was started in 2002 to offer practical work experience and academic and professional training to students. To date, 52 interns from Africa and abroad have worked at Umvoto for periods ranging from a few weeks to up to six months.

Conference attendance: Young staff are mentored to build up their exposure through scientific papers and academic posters at conferences.

Publications: Umvoto staff are encouraged and supported to get published in scientific publications.

Mentoring: The company has managers who are dedicated to mentoring young staff. Dr Chris Hartnady, for example, joined Umvoto in 2000 as research and technical director. He had lectured or many years at the University of Cape Town, as Associate Professor in the Department of Geological Sciences.

Courses: The company has cooperated with the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences in Muizenberg since 2008. The company organises and runs courses (with support from Purdue University, Indiana, USA) at this Institute, and helps supervise students where possible; young Umvoto professionals also benefit from AIMS workshops.

“Umvoto believes that technical knowledge alone is not enough to guarantee a professional contribution in a chosen field,” says MD Rowena Hay, who founded the consultancy 20 years ago. “Most school leavers and graduates are not adequately skilled, technically or socially, to enter the workplace and make a positive contribution to the organisation and society.

To address this challenge, the company uses a three step approach:

1. Skills: Provide the necessary personal (‘soft’) tools and professional (‘office’) tools to effectively apply scientific knowledge;
2. Attitude: Build insight and capacity so that the individual can establish and maintain working relations with colleagues, clients and stakeholders based on respect for self and others; and
3. Knowledge: Build capacity for technical and scientific excellence in the fields of water, earth, environment, geoinformatics and social sciences. Hands-on practical experience is also offered in the field.

This approach enables young scientists and engineers to progress rapidly in their careers. It is particularly helpful for talented students who have been disadvantaged by inferior education, says Hay.