Durban University of Technology’s (DUT’s) Information Technology alumnus, Sharmlin Moodley is flying the DUT flag high.
Born and bred in Port Shepstone- 120 km south of Durban, Moodley graduated in 2003 with a National Diploma in Information Technology. Since graduating he has progressively climbed the corporate ladder by holding a string of jobs with various companies and now holds a senior position as Partner within KPMG’s Digital Consulting.
KPMG is one of the world’s biggest accounting organisations and Moodley’s role involves assisting clients navigate digital transformation initiatives.
According to Moodley his position entails assisting clients with Advanced Data Mangement, Technology Business Management, Enterprise Architecture, etc. “My role includes assisting clients with CIO Advisory services, Advanced Data Management, Technology Business Management, Enterprise Architecture, Business Process Management and Procurement Transformation. I lead the IT Asset Management service across Africa, through which I assist clients maximise their investment in IT Assets. I also lead software license reviews on behalf of Tier 1 software vendors to ensure their clients are compliant with the software licenses they consume.”
Moodley’s career began at Standard Bank’s retail customers where he worked as a legal debt collector, after which he moved to Multichoice to work within their IT Helpdesk. He then joined KPMG’s Intellectual Property and Contract Governance team focusing on Software Asset Management (SAM), which was an emerging capability at that point in time (2006).
“Since then, I have become a subject matter expert within the Software Asset Management field, fulfilling senior SAM roles at Microsoft and Standard Bank, before returning to KPMG, where I now lead the IT Asset Management service across Africa,” Moodley said.
His success hasn’t been smooth sailing and he has had to face many challenges along the way like balancing work and family. Moodley notes that building a career comes at a sacrifice of personal family time. According to him, navigating this challenge has been, and continues to be something he actively works on in terms of creating a better work and life balance.
At the moment he is busy with his MBA and plans on using the learnings from this qualification, along with his business experience to explore board positions in the future.
“I am passionate about driving the Social Transformation agenda in South Africa, so I would like to play a meaningful role in helping corporates play a part in addressing this important aspect of our nation’s development. I am also passionate about knowledge sharing, so I would like to give back to society through part-time lecturing,” he said.
Moodley who recently gave a guest lecture to Information Systems students said transformation is one of his biggest passions and this was sparked by his time as a student at DUT.
“I entered the workplace in a time when South Africa was still in its infancy of dealing with transformation. My time at DUT (when it was still ML Sultan Technikon) exposed me to other talented students that did not have the financial opportunity to pursue a university degree. This taught me early in my career to not judge someone through their academic qualifications alone, but to consider the true value they have to offer. It also made me more aware of the uneven playing field which employees from previously disadvantaged backgrounds had to deal with in the workplace. As a result, I have been an active participant and voice for driving transformation. It also allowed me to relate better with people from different backgrounds,” he shared.
He also gave advise to students on the coronavirus, importance of creativity, innovation and urged them to become agents of environmental and social change.
“Firstly, to take great care in continuing to protect each other – the pandemic is far from over. Secondly, the acceleration of change as a result of the pandemic requires students to be prepared to enter a workplace where uncertainty and change is a constant, and a workplace where organisations are hungry for new ideas and innovation driven from the bottom up. Thirdly, be prepared for a lifetime more of being a student. The changes in the world require us to continue upskilling and reskilling ourselves to remain relevant in our capability to address the new challenges we face. And lastly, be an agent of change that drives not only an economic agenda, but also an environmental and social one as well,” Moodley concluded.
Pictured: DUT Information Technology alumni and KPMG’s Digital Consulting Partner, Sharmlin Moodley.
Andile Dube
