INTERNATIONAL VISITORS SHARE THEIR INSIGHTS

The Dean of the Faculty of Business Management, Prof. Dr. Vida Davidavičienė, and Sigitas Davidavičius from Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VGTU) recently visited the University of Pretoria (UP) and specifically the Graduate School of Technology Management (GSTM).

VGTU is situated in the capital Vilnius of Lithuania. Their visit was part of an ERASMUS+ support and exchange agreement between UP and VGTU.

Many collaboration opportunities, joint projects, and scientific research were discussed during their visit. Some experiences in organising the process of masters and doctoral studies and the VGTU and UP GSTM were also shared and discussed.

During their visit, the VGTU team met with some of the following people: The Dean of EBIT Prof. Wynand Steyn, the Head of the GSTM, Prof. Elma van der Lingen, Prof. Leon Pretorius, Prof. Rudolph Oosthuizen, Dr. Dongdong Jiang, and PhD student Leonard Staphorst. Prof Vida explained the master and doctoral research at their Faculty and alluded to her interests in ICT, Industry 4.0, technology management and entrepreneurship supported by the work of Sigitas on quality, e-commerce, knowledge transfer, engineering management and so forth.

The VGTU team found their exchange with Prof. Rudolph Oosthuizen on systems and otherengineering management research very informative and invited him to take part in the BME conference at VGTU in early May 2023 in Vilnius.

Vida and Sigitas also had some time to appreciate the cultural and environmental values of South Africa during some short guided visits to local places of interest. “We are grateful for the reception and time we have given during the visit; we learned a lot about the specifics of higher education in the Republic of South Africa.” “The universities there offer excellent study conditions! The environment is inspiring and motivating! And the country itself is diverse and rich in technological innovations and natural resources. The people are incredibly helpful and always smiling.

We gratefully give credit to Prof. Vida Davidavičienė for giving us access to material on the visit to the GSTM as well and thank them for visiting us at the GSTM and sharing the lessons learnt.