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By Antoinette van der Merwe, Chief Director IT
What a year it has been since I joined IT on the 1st of March! And in reflecting on my message for Prof Stan's Gazette and our year-end function, I was reminded of many of my favourite songs. As The Beatles might say, it's been a 'long and winding road' to reach where we are today, but we have navigated it together.
The jury is still out in terms of the theme song of 2024. At times, it felt like we were 'Livin' on a Prayer', but with every unexpected challenge, the IT team maintained the 'Eye of the Tiger', addressing each issue with focus and professionalism. And let's be honest, there were more than a few 'Highway to Hell' moments! We were definitely not the root cause for the numerous challenges we faced but even though 'we didn't start the fire' in Billy Joel's words, we addressed the challenges time and again with diligence and resilience. Our team remained steadfast, and our dedication never wavered.
It is with immense gratitude that I look back at 2024 – gratitude for the IT team's commitment, problem-solving abilities, and positive attitude. Many of the IT team have been calm in the eye of the storm, the 'Bridge Over Troubled Water'. I appreciate everyone's hard work, but above all, your kindness and compassion when the going gets tough. I am convinced that there? 'Ain't No Mountain High enough' to prevent this team from achieving our objectives. Therefore, we end 2024 and approach 2025 with confidence, knowing that, as Elton John says, 'I'm Still Standing' or let's rephrase 'We're still standing' —and indeed, we are stronger than ever.
I therefore want to highlight just a few of the amazing achievements that we can build on in 2025:
SUNLearn is 'Solid as a rock' with the work that has gone into the re-architecture of the split environments. The same can also be said for the network stability with upgrades on, i.a., Tygerberg and Wi-Fi almost everywhere on campus. Similarly, significant strides were made to improve SU's IT cybersecurity and governance.
IT is becoming a 'Smooth operator' by simplifying the IT Financial model, most notably abolishing the unpopular network registration and levies from 2025. Similarly, we now have a formal change advisory board for all ICT-related changes, with a system to support them.
'Anytime you need a friend' is appropriate because you can now make a Teams call from any device connected to Teams from anywhere in the world. The SharePoint Migration from legacy on-premise to the cloud has also been completed. And everyone needs a 'little help from your friends' occasionally – whether at the IT support desk or from the respective relationship managers.
(SUNStudent) Sprints turned into marathons, and I am sure you're probably hearing 'I will survive' by Gloria Gaynor in your head right now…. The IT team did not just survive but thrived to 'Keep on Rockin' in the Free World'.
Planning also started for the "Closing time" of legacy systems whilst the Identity Access Management Renewal project gathered momentum.
From the chaos of the perfect storm emerged the following:
ICT Operational Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery working group completed their work in three months to suggest policy changes and regulations.?
Documentation of the current architecture landscape so that we have a view of what we have and how we can manage the continuity of services if or when a crisis or disaster arises.
Unfortunately, we must say goodbye to two esteemed and beloved stalwarts, Joe Smit (after 38 years) and Albert Meyer (after 25 years). Their hard work, wisdom and numerous contributions have significantly shaped the IT team and our campus infrastructure and network as a result of their respective responsibilities. Their legacy will continue and they will always remain a part of the IT family.
As we close out this year, recharge and spend time with your loved ones. If you find yourself humming 'Here Comes the Sun', know you have most certainly earned it. In 2025, we will continue celebrating what is correct in IT and embracing opportunities by dreaming without constraints that are aligned with our vision of being a true partner on SU's digital transformation journey. Thanks to the IT team for your hard work and grit and for coming together as an 'unstoppable' team. In the words of Queen, 'We are the Champions,' and I couldn't be prouder to be part of this team."
