Unisa alumna empowers entrepreneurs

As she aims to help budding entrepreneurs master their business pitching skills, Unisa alumna, Sezanele Zondi recently published a book titled Mastering your business pitch. Zondi obtained a marketing qualification in 2009 under Unisa’s College of Human Sciences.

Sezanele Zondi

Zondi, who is from Mbombela, Mpumalanga, hopes to assist students, especially those who are interested in establishing their own businesses. She is currently finalising her distribution contract with Exclusive Books to have the book available in paperback format. The eBook is already available at the Amazon Kindle shop and can be ordered directly from the author.

She says: “The book aims to provide easy steps to follow when pitching a business idea. In the book, there are steps on how the entrepreneur can prepare to pitch. It encloses practical examples from other entrepreneurs who have been through the pitching process and have succeeded.”

According to Zondi, most entrepreneurs have excellent ideas but lack business pitching skills. “Having served as a panellist for several institutions who run business competitions, I have seen different entrepreneurs pitching for either funding or business support. Entrepreneurs usually have great ideas, but lack the correct skills to execute their pitch. In the end, they lose the potential investor; hence, the need to develop proper resources to be used by every entrepreneur.”

Zondi’s passion is entrepreneurship, which she believes can help to deal with unemployment in the country. This has led her to serve as a business mentor and coach for Fetola and other organisations such as Cherie Blare Foundation, National Mentorship Movement, The Tony Elumelu Foundation and National Youth Development Agency. She is also a member of COMENSA which regulates coaching and mentoring professions in South Africa.

“I am a business mentor, certified life coach, author and philanthropist. I hold several academic qualifications and have amassed vast experience in enterprise development, which I obtained from my current employer, MEGA, and previous employers, the Land Bank and Absa.”

Zondi ranks among the top 100 difference makers in South Africa. Community work is her passion, having founded the SEZ Foundation, a charity organisation, in 2005. She states that they advocate against teenage pregnancy and help to restore the dignity of a girl child.

“I hope to be a vessel of change and to help someone achieve his or her goals. This I will continue through coaching, charity work and the expertise provided in the book,” she concludes. “Education provides us with theorical knowledge, principles and tools but it is up to us to apply what we have learned to achieve our goals and to live our lives on purpose.”

*By Busisiwe Mahlangu, Communications Coordinator, Department of Institutional Advancement