Data scientist Palesa Molukanele joins Wunderman Thompson SA

Palesa Molukanele

After acquiring a master’s degree (M.Sc. - Cum Laude) in 2009 in biophysics, and as one of the first Black females to do so, no less, Molukanele honed her expert skills working at prominent South African corporates. She’s gained experience at CSIR, MBD Credit Solutions, Ernst & Young, Multichoice and more recently at Discovery.

Molukanele was enticed by the innovation, forward-thinking and quality of the work done in one of the country’s largest marketing services agencies.

Agency CEO Miles Murphy shared: “Palesa’s impressive reputation precedes her. She boasts noteworthy career accomplishments including a collaboration with the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam under the supervision of Prof. Rienk Van Grondelle (Amsterdam), Dr Raymond Sparrow (CSIR Biosciences – SA) and Associate Prof. Anton du Plessis (National Laser Centre – SA). This group effort led to the work being published in a few peer-reviewed scientific journals and some scientific magazines, too. This is no easy feat. She was also part of the award-winning team who created and successfully launched DSTV Now. This eventually led to the birth of Showmax. Palesa has established herself as a strong, analytical and visualisation professional. She has the distinct ability to simplify complex data sets and convey critical messages that enable impactful and actionable business decisions to be made effortlessly. Her appointment continues our commitment to our clients to provide world-class personalised marketing at scale to grow their brands.”

"While being a scientist by profession and working on challenging projects is intellectually satisfying, I’ve learnt throughout my career that simplicity is really the ultimate sophistication, especially in data, insights and analytics. I like to keep things simple. And I’m eager to demonstrate my skills while harnessing the team’s talents to bolster the value to our clients further. It’s a very exciting time in my career,” expressed Molukanele.