Goodbye to Mulalo Mushaisano

I would like to begin by saying that I did not foresee that I would be writing an article such as this one so soon. Nonetheless, by the time you read this, I will have left the Department of Library Services to join the Gordon Institute of Business Science as a Digital Learning and Design Specialist. Without sounding unusually downhearted, I would like to share with you some of my most satisfying experiences, moments, projects, and opportunities that I was blessed to take part in alongside my colleagues. 

My journey at the Department began with freelancing for the Learning Centre when I was still an undergraduate student  many, many, many years ago. I was tasked with creating a first-year orientation video. With the help of my fellow students, we came up with a script.  I then recorded the scenes and performed the required editing to complete and publish the video. Thereafter, I was offered a contract position while studying for my honours degree. The 3-month contract was renewed three times and, each time, I was granted the opportunity to work in different units and faculty libraries within the Department. This provided me with loads of insight and the ability to view and holistically understand the Department's role within the broader UP community. I believe that this is one of the main reasons I was able to amicably and collaboratively work alongside a variety of staff members. I left the Department for a year, until I returned to occupy a permanent position at the Learning Centre on the 3rd of January, 2018. There, my core role was that of an Information Specialist at the Information Desk. Another important responsibility was presenting our weekly training sessions, as well as student orientation initiatives. However, my responsibilities gradually shifted away from this. I occasionally revealed my other competencies, talents, and work which I was passionate about to my colleagues and managers. I was then awarded my own office where I became a multimedia designer (or what I called a "Digital Product Designer and Content Developer"). 

I eagerly confess that I began teaching myself how to design as a hobby back in 2009. I did so by watching countless YouTube tutorials. In addition to this, I am glad to say that I became better at design because of the access I was given to LinkedIn Learning, where I acquired over 60 related course completion certificates. At my fancy little office in the Learning Centre, I soon became responsible for creating training presentations, first-year orientation material and content, animated video tutorials, and much more exciting work. In consultation with numerous stakeholders, I developed the very first AIM Library module on the University's learning management system, ClickUP. We then proceeded to develop the Teaching and Learning Beehive, followed by the Teaching and Learning Roadmap. These were all incredibly exciting projects and these platforms continue to be used by thousands of students. After the success of the aforementioned projects, we embarked on a unique community project at Tuks Sport High School. They informed us that they required a method of using online and blended learning to solve their different teaching and learning challenges. After extensive research, I implemented Google Classroom at the school and trained the teachers and learners about how to use it effectively. I was then responsible for creating learning content for learners and delivering it through the platform. This was a very fulfilling project for me and I'm also certain that it benefitted the library's image significantly, as reflected in the feedback and compliments we received.

The aforementioned projects made me exceedingly excited to pursue even more collaborative initiatives. I assisted the Department of Research and Innovation to develop their interactive Postgraduate Lifecycle. Internally, I also started designing banners for our library's website to promote new products and services. In this period, the scope of my responsibilities widened once again. I began working with the Digital Scholarship Centre where I was mainly involved with the self-service focus area. Some of my responsibilities included creating the graphical components for the self-help portals, developing a knowledge base for our chatbot, and more innovative projects. However, my greatest experience arrived with the introduction of "Libby", our very own client-facing service robot. I worked so closely with Libby that several colleagues started addressing me as "Libby's father"! As flattering as this was, what happened next is an experience I will not forget. I and 3 other colleagues travelled to an international conference on robotics in libraries which was hosted in Germany. This was a life-changing experience and I was exposed to more technology and innovation than I ever thought I would encounter in my life. The Libby project and subsequent media frenzy opened even more doors for me. I was invited to demonstrate Libby at various institutions and address the value of robotics and artificial intelligence in the education sector. I spoke at progressive places such as Mooikloof Maragon, the CSIR, as well as the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls. These were all amazing experiences and I'm forever grateful for the opportunity. 

I have mentioned an extensive list of my activities and accomplishments. However, most of them would not have been possible without Gerda Ehlers, and Isak Van Der Walt. In addition to them, I had several mentors within the Department and also received unbelievable support from members of our Executive Committee. Our director allowed me to interview several staff members for me to collect data for my MSc Technology and Innovation Management dissertation. The dissertation was titled "Enabling Service Innovation in Higher Education by Leveraging Knowledge Management Practices". I'm proud to say that I passed with distinction and even got the opportunity to present my findings to the UP Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Tawana Kupe. I have had an unbelievable time at the University of Pretoria and achieved invaluable career growth. Although I am no longer a staff member at the time of writing, the Department of Library Services remains very dear to me, as does the University of Pretoria. I sincerely, and with so much gratitude, give thanks to everyone that was a part of my amazing journey. Thank you for the endless support and opportunities. You went from simply being my co-workers to being my friends, and most importantly, my mentors. So, as my generation would say: "DM me on the social media streets!".

Thank you,

Mulalo Mushaisano