Katlego Malatji’s Dedication To Touching Lives Through Engineering

By : Mbali Mbatha

ProjectOne Engineering’s young and vibrant CEO Katlego Malatji strongly agrees with other entrepreneurs about the market access that getting into bed with Innovator Trust has opened them up to by introducing them to industry market leaders. Open as they might be to growth, business owners are not always aware of which areas in particular they need to give high focus on in order to take their businesses to greater heights, which is one of the reasons why Katlego appreciates the guidance and support of Innovator Trust.

Pretoria-based ProjectOne Engineering is a company that builds their client up from the design to the actual construction of their manufacturing facilities. They also have training and mentorship programs where they upskill their clients as a means to maximize their productivity

Katlego and her team have innovated ways to incorporate ICT into their engineering solutions in futuristic ways, bringing her artificial intelligence and virtual reality experience obtained from the United States of America as well as the United Kingdom into South African manufacturing companies.

Katlego is a pro-woman leader who has always ensured that a skills balance within her team is maintained across both genders. As the world evolves, more and more women are graduating across all the fields of engineering but opportunities themselves still remain male-centric, which is why Katlego has given herself as well as her team the responsibility to not shut the doors of opportunity to female engineers.

“We also have internships for engineering graduates who are keen on gaining practical working experience

One of our passions is to capacitate STEM graduates through the mentorship programs that we have on offer” says the solutions-driven leader who is determined to give graduates employability status as much as she is also giving them all the ammunition that can help them get the ball running should they have entrepreneurship aspirations. Giving back sits very closely to Katlego’s heart as someone who has been fortunate enough to be exposed to big engineering corporations across South African borders. Girls in STEM particularly are of high interest to Katlego who says that there are girls in disadvantaged communities who excel in STEM subjects at the High School level but do not necessarily have enough access to information to have a clear picture of just how much opportunity there is in STEM careers.

She and her team have undertaken to visit both primary and high schools in order to educate girls about various STEM career opportunities. They also visit University students as they have found that some Engineering and STEM students are not so informed about what actually awaits them in the real world once they obtain their qualifications. “I did not see a female engineer until I was doing my in-service training

I feel that as a young student, coming into contact and interacting with someone who is living your aspirations solidifies everything.” says Katlego who goes on to highlight the possible impact of bringing back initiatives like the Take a Girl Child to Work under a STEM banner as girls generally already have access to females working in teaching, nursing, etc. The general consensus is that there is an opportunity for corporates and SMMEs to collaborate in finding creative ways to introduce young girls to STEM careers because the skills transfers between corporates and SMMEs that are actually practicing within STEM can go a long way in preparing girls for life after University.

Katlego and her team have been recognized through awards in the Engineering industry but what has really warmed her heart is being able to create employment and giving back to the community. Although the number of girls that have been mentored and the companies that have been impacted by ProjectOne Engineering can be quantified, Katlego says that individual success stories are what urges her to never stop.