UCT students shine at The SAP Signavio Regional Challenge 2026

Each year, SAP runs a SAP Signavio Regional Challenge, one of the critical projects on their academic partnerships calendar. According to SAP “The SAP Signavio Regional Challenge represents a unique opportunity for students to work in teams, develop analytical thinking, experiment with real-world business technology, and prepare for the challenges of the corporate world. Through this experience, participants will be able to apply their knowledge in a practical, collaborative, and highly innovative context”. This year a total of 161 teams from 18 countries participated, with only four finalist teams selected to present to a jury in the final round held on the 26^th of May.

A team of five students namely Ayanda Ndlovu, Kendall Sables, Hlalanathi Mashimbye, Mangaliso Mcwabeni and Glen Nohaji who named themselves ‘Five Lanes’ from the Department of Information Systems at the University of Cape Town under the mentorship of Professor Lisa Seymour entered the challenge and came third in the finals. Five Lanes registered for the competition on 30^th April this year and fully committed themselves to tackling the challenge head on. In the first week of May the team attended a two-day intensive eight-hour SAP Signavio training workshop which covered among other topics BPMN2.0 and SAP Signavio Business Process Manager. The team felt that the training gave them a strong foundation to get off to a good start.

Following the intensive training the team members stepped into the roles of business process consultants, working through a real-world business scenario where they were required to analyse existing processes, identify inefficiencies and redesign and improve future-state process using BPMN modelling and simulation in SAP Signavio. Their solution involved mapping Boom Photography's current operations across four process areas, identifying ten inefficiencies that were costing the business time, money and client trust, and delivering a fully redesigned set of processes that replaced manual, fragmented operations with a centralised, automated system covering everything from online booking and digital contracts through to automated invoicing, payment tracking and AI-assisted photo editing. The team tackled the challenge by working very closely with each other, engaging critically with the case, and drawing on the guidance and support provided by their mentor.

The judges assessed the final submission on efficiency, cost reduction, cycle time improvement and the quality of BPMN modelling. The team members say they gained invaluable experience and thorough understanding of the importance of strong business processes to support efficiency, innovation, productivity and business continuity from the challenge. For the three team members who have already completed their undergraduate degrees at the University they credit their ability to rise to the challenge to the strong foundation laid by the Business Process Management and Enterprise Systems course in third year which exposed them to design thinking, process analysis and modelling. 

Competing against 161 entries from 18 countries and reaching the final four and ultimately making it to the third place is something the team is truly proud of. The team members say, “For us, this was more than a competition, it was practical exposure, a valuable learning experience and an opportunity to represent UCT with pride”.  

The team would like to thank their mentor who provided valuable feedback and guidance throughout the competition, Professor Lisa Seymour, their trainers Weston Washington and Jason Harris from SAP, Eduardo Baptista de Oliveira from SAP Academic Partnerships and the judges for their encouraging feedback on the final submission.