A Bit About Constance Kekana
Ms Nkgasha Constance Kekana is the Knowledge Manager in the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development, responsible for the implementation of Knowledge Management. At the 2024 Knowledge Management South Africa (KMSA) Imbizo, she won the Knowledge Management Champion Award for 2024, which was a fitting testament to her passion of knowledge management.
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Her drive to improve her skills led her to attain the following: Advanced Course in Knowledge Management; Programme in Project Management; and Advanced Management Development Programme, all from the University of Pretoria. She also studied the SAIM Programme in Business Management and Basic Archives and Records Management with UNISA.
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Ms Kekana enjoys mentoring in the knowledge management space and loves travelling. She also studied Floristry and Basic Dressmaking, which keeps her busy outside the office.
Interview with Constance Kekana
Congratulations on receiving the KMSA 2024 Champion award! Kindly share what this recognition means to you personally and professionally?
Let me thank everyone who voted for me. The award meant that all the hard work is being recognised, valued and appreciated. I have realised that my work has made a significant contribution to my department and government departments at large because I was voted by Knowledge Management South Africa members, not only my department officials. The award opened doors to bigger opportunities in my department and externally.
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Personally, the award will inspire, motivate my children and friends. They knew my struggles in this career and finally, I was rewarded for all the good performance, hardships and challenges I experienced. From here on, I believe that the sky will never be a limit for me as I believe there are still good opportunities coming my way.
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What inspired you to pursue a career in knowledge management?
I didn’t choose to be in Knowledge Management (KM). In 2008, I was appointed as a Business Intelligence Manager in the former Department of Land Affairs. I was later transferred to a Knowledge Manager post in 2010 through amalgamation of positions. I had to study Knowledge Management so that I can understand and implement it effectively.
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What do you view as the biggest challenges in the South African knowledge management landscape?
I think KM is not understood well in the workspace/government. It is not prioritised, it is treated as a nice to have discipline, resources are not allocated to ensure effective implementation of KM and delivery of targets; unqualified and inexperienced leaders are managing the knowledge management space, and so on. During meetings, knowledge management unit is always allocated the last slots and may end up not presenting/reporting and deferred to the next meeting, and so on.
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What do you believe are the key factors that contributed to your success in knowledge management??
Resilience - implementing KM was a trial and error, not giving up on many rejected/turned down opportunities to showcase my plans,
Passion - I had to be passionate about my work so that I can be an ambassador of KM and pass the knowledge in a positive, exciting manner that will ensure that the number of KM specialists can increase in government.
Hard work - I worked very hard, sometimes I would use my personal resources to ensure that I achieve my targets. I borrowed officials from other sub-directorates to assist in organising knowledge sharing sessions because I don’t have any officials reporting to me.
Good relations - Knowledge Management Committee, support, creating good relations with managers, learning about the department and the branch services. This is essential because it becomes easier to identify knowledge to be acquired.
How do you stay updated with the latest trends and advancements in your field?
Attending conferences, seminars, learning from other officials within the government space and reading books that would assist in improving my work environment. The challenge is most seminars are held during the day which clashes with operational duties/meetings.
Can you share a specific example of how your work has made a significant impact on your organisation or community?
After I received my award, two Head of branches (DDG’s) and most senior managers attended and participated in the knowledge sharing sessions, which encouraged the officials to cooperate when requested to participate. I received requests to mentor and train other government departments on Knowledge Management implementation.
What advice would you give to aspiring knowledge management professionals?
Don’t try to implement knowledge management if you don’t understand it because it will be very frustrating, study knowledge management, understand your organisation, benchmark with other organisations, ensure that you have a good relationship with your manager so that your implementation initiatives are not blocked. A lot of patience is needed, implementing knowledge management, one need to be selfless, very professional, have patience, good presentation skills and be a people’s person.
How do you foster a culture of knowledge sharing within your team or organisation?
Knowledge management week made a great impact in our department. It gave us an opportunity to showcase our services and now the whole department is on board and participating. We share knowledge by hosting knowledge sharing sessions, Community of Practices and knowledge harvesting roasting sessions. The Knowledge Management System used for capturing knowledge harvesting and handover reports that is on our KM portal can be accessed on the mobile phones outside the departmental network and we also market our services through Internal Communication Messenger (ICM).
What are some of the most exciting developments you see in the future of knowledge management?
DPSA is introducing new developments that I believe will create consistency in implementing KM in government. This will give government an opportunity to employ qualified leaders that will showcase their talents and capture institutional memory successfully.
Who has been your biggest mentor or influence in your career, and why?
Ms Tintswalo Bamuza, my former Department of Home Affairs manager. She was driven, professional and always had time to mentor us. She believed in my skills and always encouraged me to work hard. Ms Maroale Chauke and Nomonde Mnukwa are also on the list of professionals that I draw wisdom from, they are very focused and hard working. Gautrain and National Treasury are the organisations that I respect so much in terms of the work they produced in the space of Knowledge Management.