Akademia appointed a new head of Marketing and Communication as of 1 November. This communication manager is not only a seasoned member of the Akademia family but also a strong and experienced management leader.

Zydèlia Venter is no newcomer to the institution. In her journey of six years at Akademia, she worked as, among other things, communication officer, manager, senior manager and is now the head of this dynamic support department. She holds an honours degree (cum laude) and a master’s degree in Communication Management at the University of Pretoria (UP) and is currently working on a doctoral thesis in strategic communication at the same university

With this appointment, the institution focuses on refining and further developing the existing strategies, systems and processes in marketing and communication to support Akademia’s strategic objectives. Whether to expand Akademia as a brand, recruit students, stimulate national conversation, tell the Akademia story, offer hopeful solutions or be of service to the community.

Venter started at the institution in December 2017, and she thought back with nostalgia to that time when she was one of only 50 full-time staff members. Today, the staff consists of almost 250 colleagues, while the marketing and communication department consists of a team of 25 specialists across various subsections. These subsections include, among others, a publishing house, a production house, a projects team, a recruitment team, a language office, student bureau and many more.

“My Akademia journey is full of firsts and as the first (and only) communications officer, I was tasked with the implementation of this independent higher education institution’s brand-new visual identity at the time,” Venter recalled. Today, the Akademia brand is well established and associated with excellence as well as a preferred home for students, staff and partners.

Other highlights include the planning and execution of the institution’s first full-fledged open day and first-year camp. Venter explained that in both cases the plans were big, but the hands were few, which meant that everyone stepped in and helped, whether it was one’s job or not. Both of these firsts exceeded all expectations and laid the foundation for many successful events thereafter. She continued by describing these events as “goose bump moments” and said that it was a proud moment when you realised that your contributions had future value.

More recent highlights include Akademia’s ten-year celebration in 2022, which she described as the celebration of a decade of pioneering work, and the university anthem written by Prof. Hans du Plessis. Venter explained that this song summed up the institution’s core in the space of three minutes.

“This involvement weaves you into the ‘heart’ of the institution while you are helping to shape the future,” Venter said. “It is a wonderful privilege to have experienced first-hand the growth of various facets of Akademia. Even more to be able to be an active part of the institution’s initial establishment phase, the growing pains and its future music,” she continued.

Venter said that in her new role she would focus on three life lessons in particular that she had learned so far at the institution, namely:

• If you have vocation-driven staff on board who support the institution’s vision, you can move mountains despite all the challenges.
• Do not underestimate the importance of beginning and the impact of small beginnings.

• Akademia’s classical education ideal is the blueprint of the institution’s character and is linked to the classical university system where education includes the mind as well as the heart. This ideal is interlaced in everything that is done and empowers the institution to deliver students who understand the connection between the parts and the whole while they are taking the best from the past to realise an impactful future.

Venter concluded by saying that she was excited about the future of this Afrikaans higher education institution, and that what had been developed and established in the past set the stage for an excellent future.

Marthinus Visser, managing director of Akademia, said that he was looking forward to how the Marketing and Communication Department would be further developed. “We wish Zydèlia all the best. We look forward to experiencing how the department under her leadership grows from strength to strength to establish the Akademia identity and essence in such a way that this institution will continue to offer hopeful solutions to future generations of Afrikaans-speaking communities.