The Star South Learning Academy has truly been life changing. A memorable experience where you get thrown into an ever-changing, extremely interesting business. Orchestrated in such a way as to ensure that you experience “the real world”, with all its challenges and benefits, with an amazing support team wherever your path takes you.

My experience so far has been great, interactive and hybrid learning is something new to me, the facilitators and assessors have been amazing in making sure we understand and feel comfortable every step of the way.

Over the short period that I joined Star South Fruits as an intern, the growth I have achieved personally, is unimaginable. Star South has given me the opportunity to work and study not only in just one field, but in a variety of fields within the company, namely commercial, procurement, logistics and operations. This broadens knowledge and provides a genuine feel for what piques our interests, that we might not have known before. I remember coming in on my first day, after graduating from Stellenbosch University, majoring in Agricultural Economics, and not knowing what to expect. Quickly I was embraced by friendly faces and warm welcomes. My initial nervousness immediately gave way to a great deal of excitement for the journey ahead.

From the get-go I saw this learnership programme as an incredible opportunity, especially for someone like me who chose a completely different direction in terms of studies. But I quickly grew to love this industry. It’s been an insightful journey thus far. I have learnt so much in different departments and I look forward to learning even more. I love seeing the bigger picture of the industry and to see how each small part of the business works together, like a well-oiled machine, to reach a collective goal.

Die Learnership was een van die beste geleenthede wat na my kant toe kon kom. Ek was lank opsoek na n geleentheid waar ek my kennis kon gebruik wat ek in Finansiële Bestuur gestudeer en by Star South kry ek net nie ondervinding in finansies nie maar ook in ander afdelings waar ek nuwe kennis opdoen. Ek word ook die geleentheid aangebied om verder te studeer aan Star South wat die deur oopgemaak gemaak het vir hierdie wonderlike geleentheid.

I was very unsure in which direction I wanted to go in my life or what really piqued my interests. It wasn’t until I started working at Star South that I realised what I am good at, what I am actually capable of doing, and most importantly, what I am passionate about. I have never experienced an environment where we are so privileged to study on the job and receive on-the-job training every day. The Learnership journey has been amazing! It’s opened so many doors for me, and my eyes, to so many things I never thought would intrigue me. I have learned so much about the workplace environment in general, business ethics and a lot about myself and what I want to accomplish. It’s been nothing but support from all our managers, mentors and assessors and I am excited to expand my knowledge and experience even further.

Before I started working at Star South Fruits, I was someone with a lot of learned knowledge, but with no sense of direction. Since I started working at Star South I’ve been challenged to get out of my comfort zone by putting all my knowledge to practice. I’ve learned so much, not only about the finance and fruit industry, but also about myself. I’m constantly growing, improving, and learning new things. I have always dreamed of working in a great, positive, and respectful work environment and the Star South Finance team really tick all these boxes. It’s nice working in a team where everyone feels equal and where everyone strives and motivates each other to do better, every single day. I’m very grateful for this wonderful opportunity and I’m excited for what the future holds.