Course Overview

The convergence of AI, robotics and autonomous systems is progressively reshaping the nature of work in manufacturing. The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2025, finds that 86% of employers expect AI and information processing technologies to transform their business by 2030, while projecting a net creation of 78 million jobs globally as 170 million new roles emerge alongside the displacement of 92 million existing positions (WEF, 2025). Evidence that this transformation is already generating measurable economic value is emerging: Industries most exposed to AI report over three times higher growth in revenue generated per AI-augmented worker (PwC, 2025). At the same time, these new technologies are disrupting labour markets globally.

For South Africa, this general-purpose technology transition carries particular urgency. The manufacturing sector contributes approximately 13% to gross domestic product and supports more than 1.6 million jobs, yet faces acute readiness challenges. Global evidence suggests that industries prominently represented in South Africa's manufacturing base, including automotive, chemicals, clothing and textiles, face an estimated 16% displacement in employment as a consequence of AI-based automation (World Manufacturing Foundation, 2023), while the skills required in AI-exposed occupations are changing faster than in less exposed roles (PwC, 2025). This intensive one-day masterclass equips senior manufacturing leaders with evidence-based frameworks, strategic tools, and contextualised insights to lead this transformation, grounded in the latest international research and calibrated for South African realities. The central question is not whether AI will disrupt manufacturing, but how organisations can navigate this general-purpose technology transition to make workers more valuable, not less.

Course Facilitators

Dr Kruschen Govender
Kruschen is an experienced strategy consultant and academic working at the intersection of disruptive technologies, business model innovation and manufacturing studies. He possesses a unique blend of experience in applied research, innovation, and strategy consulting. His interdisciplinary research interests include; Industry 4.0, Business Model Innovation, AI Strategy and Sustainability Transitions. He has led multidisciplinary consulting projects for an array of clients across EU, the UK, and Southern and East Africa, e.g. government agencies, multilateral organisations, large corporates and SMMEs. He is currently an academic faculty member at GIBS Business School (University of Pretoria) and the Toyota Wessels Institute for Manufacturing Studies (TWIMS). In his current academic role at GIBS/TWIMS, he leads the Future of Manufacturing teaching and research programme. He is also a Director at Thinked, a mission-oriented technology and strategy consulting agency.

Dr David Francis
David is a specialised labour-market economist, with experience in academic research and policy work. With over a decade of applied research experience, he has a deep interest in the world of work, and in harnessing academic research to tackle complex labour market challenges in the real world. His research and policy expertise focus understanding and addressing unemployment, and multidimensional inequality, in the South African labour market. He is currently Academic Head: The Future of Work, at the Toyota Wessels Institute for Manufacturing Studies (TWIMS). He holds a concurrent appointment as a Senior Researcher at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies, University of the Witwatersrand. He has previously worked as a development consultant, and a policy and budget analyst at South Africa's National Treasury, where he worked in health and social policy. He has a PhD in economics from Wits University, an MA in development studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and a Bachelor of Social Sciences in economics and history from the University of Cape Town.