Paving the road to success with Absa and the Digital Academy

It’s astounding what you stand to achieve when you are only given the opportunity to do so.

For these three young coders, life took a turn for the better when they were selected to build a prosperous future for themselves with the help of Absa and the Digital Academy. Now they take their newly acquired skills into the real world, through their permanent positions at Absa – an incredible achievement that is set to better their lives, as well as the lives of every Absa consumer.

In partnering up with the Digital Academy, Absa is aiming to educate the youth of South Africa for this exact purpose: to develop raw talent with hands-on training that can be taken straight into the workplace.

Not only have these three high-fliers risen to the occasion, but they have taken the opportunities given to them with both hands and exceeded every expectation, allowing Absa to grow along with them. A beautiful collaboration to witness.

Gopolang Lekoto agrees that collaboration and networking has been crucial to his success story. “What I gained from the Digital Academy is the realisation that one must always keep learning and be willing to collaborate with others. The Academy has helped me meet and mingle with likeminded people.”

Growing up in the township of Kagiso in the West Rand has never held Gopolang back. In fact, his humble beginnings have only pushed him to work harder – a trait which has now allowed him to take on his dream job.  “My life, as a whole, is lightyears better than it was a few years ago, because I now have a stable source of income and have been able to address some issues at home which have troubled my family for a long time. At the end of my 4-month internship, I was ecstatic to find out that I was being promoted to a permanent position, in the department I had been pining for, Artificial Intelligence. Being given the opportunity to work on this felt unbelievable.”

Not only have these three high-fliers risen to the occasion, but they have taken the opportunities given to them with both hands and exceeded every expectation, allowing Absa to grow along with them. A beautiful collaboration to witness.

Gopolang Lekoto agrees that collaboration and networking has been crucial to his success story. “What I gained from the Digital Academy is the realisation that one must always keep learning and be willing to collaborate with others. The Academy has helped me meet and mingle with likeminded people.”

Growing up in the township of Kagiso in the West Rand has never held Gopolang back. In fact, his humble beginnings have only pushed him to work harder – a trait which has now allowed him to take on his dream job.  “My life, as a whole, is lightyears better than it was a few years ago, because I now have a stable source of income and have been able to address some issues at home which have troubled my family for a long time. At the end of my 4-month internship, I was ecstatic to find out that I was being promoted to a permanent position, in the department I had been pining for, Artificial Intelligence. Being given the opportunity to work on this felt unbelievable.”

Opportunities have been few and far between for female coders in the web development community, but Lenasia’s Sanusha Naidoo believes that her studies with Absa and the Digital Academy have given her the confidence to crush the stereotypes that were previously holding her back. “I am now an independent female developer with a strong obligation to be successful in all that I do. Getting this internship has built my credibility and opened up magical doors for me.”

Now Sanusha is Absa’s resident Creative Technologist, working on major projects and bettering the world of finance with her amazing skillset. “About a month and half into my internship, I was told that I was going to be made permanent and officially become a part of the team. The doors that this opportunity has opened up for me is bewildering.”