WWISE is an ISO consultancy, training, business solutions and systems development firm in South Africa that provides its clients with effective business processes and quality management solutions in preparation for ISO conformance.
The solutions it provides and implements allows their clients to compete favourably in modern competitive business environments, locally and internationally. Driven by a desire to be the leading training providers in Engineering, Finance, Business and Project Management; WWISE is on track to becoming the market leader in Africa.
The business today
WWISE is fully owned by Shabaana Ali, who has appointed Muhammad as Managing Director. 2018 brought about a new chapter in the WWISE story with a new office at Westend in Centurion. Fast forward to 2019 and WWISE has a staff compliment of 30 highly competent staff members and at least 15 sub-contracting specialists in various areas of Safety, Risk, Information Security and Energy. In the near future, WWISE will see its footprint expand with the opening of offices in Cape Town, Durban and Botswana. This is just the beginning of the company achieving its goal to be WW (Worldwide).
WWISE is a Level 1 BBBEE Contributor and believed to be the Leader in ISO Consulting, Training, Auditing, e-Learning, and Integrated Management Solutions and brags a powerful all-female management team (excluding Muhammad of course):
- Shabaana Ali – Owner and Legal Director
- Princess Bam – Business & Relationship Manager
- Maylee Hartzenburg – Senior Project Manager
- Mercy Modukanele – Office & Accreditation Manager
How did it start?
Managing Director & Lead Auditor of WWISE, Muhammad Abdullah Omar Ali, was born in Gaborone, Botswana. He currently holds a master’s degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Pretoria but is in the process of completing a Doctorate degree in the same field, with a focus on ISO management systems.
The inspiration for the company’s name came from Muhammad’s father who had a vision of Muhammad going global; therefore, the “WW” of WWISE stands for “Worldwide”. Furthermore, “ISE” stands for Industrial and Systems Engineers, which relates to Muhammad’s qualification and career.
Prior to founding WWISE, Muhammad worked for Automotive Leather Company a supplier to Daimler Chrysler and PBMR. The decision to start his own business came after The South African Quality Institute (SAQI) who acknowledged Muhammad’s knowledge of ISO management systems and his ability to motivate and train people. SAQI went on to encourage Muhammad to start his own company and granted him two projects as a start;1) to assist the Diplomatic Academy from the Department of Foreign Affairs to become ISO 9001:2008 Certified and 2) to train Acelor Mittal Engineers on the course of Certified Quality Technicians.
Challenges along the way
The company’s big break came in 2012 when ISF Services CEO Ian Funeka, referred Muhammad to MTN SA. By 2013, the company had grown from 2 employees to 15. However, starting up WWISE wasn’t always smooth-sailing. 2014 brought budget cuts which decreased the number of employees from 15 to 5. Muhammad and his remaining staff ultimately powered through and secured a training deal with Eskom’s Rotek/Roshcon. During this time, MTN came back on board and SABS requested their services. WWISE is now a key supplier to SABS, offering training to their up and coming auditors.
What do their clients have to say?
WWISE has an excellent track record in the industry and since inception, it has assisted over 90 companies – from large corporate companies to vegetable and poultry farms. For WWISE, no client is too big or too small. In addition to this, WWISE has also accepted over 20 students through graduate programmes, all of whom now work for large companies such as Transnet and Eskom.
With such an excellent reputation, built over years of great service, here’s what some of their clients have to say:
WWISE has worked with other projects including development of a Greenhouse Gas management system which included a web-based calculator, development of procedures and manuals for use by the staff to ensure correct and accurate emissions are reported together. We highly recommend WWISE on any projects that they wish to embark on and are delighted with the services provided to MTN to globally stand out as one of the leading telecommunication Industries in the world.
Willem Weber
MTN Group
World Wide Industrial and Systems Engineers CC have an excellent record with SAQI and a strong relationship to pledge the word of Quality and follow the First Principal of Quality, Customer Focus. Their services have been remarkable, and we appreciate their professionalism in assisting the growth of the African Economy. We highly recommend their services.
Venessa du Toit – Operations Manager
SAQI (South African Quality Institute)
“WWISE helped us establish an effective accrual Quality management System process to prepare our company to go through SABS Accreditation for ISO 9001: 2008.The staff is very friendly (esp. Maylee who worked with us to the end and beyond), and diligent. I highly recommend WWISE to anyone in need an Auditor.”
Grace Makhetha – MD
Women on Edge