A Witsie. For Good
- Wits University
Jacob Modise, the Executive Chairman of Batsomi, a leading investment company which he founded in 1998, is a passionate Witsie.
He was the first black student in the School of Accountancy in 1983, completing his undergraduate and Honours degrees before doing his articles and passing his accountancy board exam on his first attempt.
Getting to this point was not easy for the boy from Ga-Rankuwa. Jacob’s father died when he was three and he lost his mother six years after that, leaving him in the care of his aunt, who already had nine children. Jacob knew that it was all up to him and from an early age, he applied for bursaries to pay for his school fees, first at a boarding school in Dennilton, a small town in Sekhukhune, Limpopo and then at a technical high school in Mamelodi, just north of Pretoria.
“At that time, the teaching of maths and science was not of a high enough standard for the career I had in mind, so ta few classmates formed a study group and taught ourselves from our textbooks”, he said.
His hard work paid off, and he received an Anglo American bursary that selected 10 pupils for degrees in Commerce and 10 in Engineering studies at university.
“What was incredible about this is that we were given a bridging year before we began our studies and were allowed to work across all Anglo’s operations in their mines and commercial businesses.”
“They paid us a stipend that covered all our living expenses, and they even helped with our applications for university places, helping me get a place at Wits University. Anglo paid for all my studies and living expenses while I was there”.
Modise said it would surprise people today to know that when he applied to study at Wits in 1982, he needed Ministerial consent, as a black student, to do so.
He loved his years as a student at Wits. “I had the privilege of getting to know Professor Margo Steele. Students who got distinctions in accounting and math got to tutor first-year students. I found her support amazing. I really think the fact that we had to teach ourselves at school, taught ourselves to be self-reliant, and helped us thrive at university”, he said.
After completing his honours degree in Accountancy, Modise worked for Deloitte, working as an auditor, completing his articles and successfully passing his Board exam on his first attempt.
But after this, while still working as an auditor, he missed the stimulation of Wits’ academic life and signed up for an MBA at Wits Business School, which he completed in record time.
Jacob Modise
In the years that followed completing his MBA and his time with Deloitte, Modise had a varied working life.
He headed the Corporate Finance Division at Eskom, he spent seven years at Johnnic Holdings as its Finance Director, and then as its CEO. He has also worked for Teljoy in the early days of cellular communication when “we spoke to each other on Nokia bricks”.
He spent six years as the CEO of the Road Accident Fund, trying to implement changes that would improve its function. He proposed and drove a campaign to institute a no-fault system, which would largely cut out the legal profession and save South Africa millions each year. But in the end, it could not be done because of a strong lobby against the proposal by interested parties. After this trying period, he founded Batsomi.
Modise has also played an active role in bodies such as SAICA (the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants and the IRBA (the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors). He was instrumental in getting the Thuthuka Bursary scheme off the ground, which funds undergraduate BCom Accounting studies for students who come from disadvantaged communities.
He also completed an Advanced Management Course at Harvard. “I have realised that Wits can produce young people who can hold their own anywhere in the world, even at somewhere like Harvard”, he said.
His varied career has set him well placed for running Batsomi, which is invested in a wide range of industries and takes an active role in their operations.
Modise says he has learned some important lessons during his career. “I would now tell my younger self to use my intuition when choosing business partners or who to work for. There are some battles you cannot win”.
He would like his legacy to reflect his passionate belief in the power of education. He privately sponsors students with their studies, and he would like to allocate some time to teaching and mentoring motivated young people.