Nicola Smit

Examiner
DISC Type : cs

Acting Chief Operating Officer at Stellenbosch University

City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Overview

Nicola Smit is the Acting COO and a Professor of Law at Stellenbosch University, specializing in labour and social security law. Her career includes roles as Dean at two universities and she is a widely published author and co-editor of several legal books. People who have worked with her describe her as caring, dedicated, and efficient.

Personality Overview

Process Oriented

Unexpressive

Status Quo Seeker

Being observant comes to them naturally.  They are heavily focused on quality and prefer doing things the right way, even if it takes time. They are thorough and always follow a systematic approach.

Topics They Care About

Labour & Social Security Law
Her core area of academic specialization for over two decades. She pioneered the establishment of Social Security Law as a field of study in South Africa.
Academic Leadership
Has held executive leadership roles at multiple universities, including Dean and Acting COO. She advocates for a "leadership constellation" model to empower her team.
Mentorship & Development
Passionate about mentoring junior colleagues and students, with several of her former doctoral students now professors themselves.

Media Appearances

Nicola has no verified media appearances

Work History

6-2025
Acting Chief Operating Officer at Stellenbosch University
2017
Executive Dean at Stellenbosch University
1-2013 - 6-2017
Executive Dean, Faculty of Law at North-West University / Noordwes-Universiteit
7-1996 - 12-2012
Professor of Law at University of Johannesburg

Education

1998 - 2001
Juris Doctor (J.D.) from Rand Afrikaans University
1990 - 1995
Bachelor's Degree from University of Pretoria

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 29 Location : City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa Job Level : Leadership Designation : Acting Chief Operating Officer at Stellenbosch University
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Insights For Selling To Nicola

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Spend time addressing concerns around risk and change, they will have them even if they don't express them
  • Ask them which other stakeholders would be important for this purchase decision
  • Expect them to be slow and cautious, encourage them to ask more questions

DONT's

  • Avoid getting into storytelling mode, especially when they ask specific questions
  • Don't rely on relationship building even if they act pleasantly
  • Don't push them too hard to make fast decisions, give them time

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Nicola is

  • Low-risk, adoption by others are very important to them, followed by confidence in ROI.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Nicola

  • They don’t say no often, they push out the decisions or keep going around in circles.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Nicola move?

  • They do not like to rush and therefore can be quite slow in their decision-making.
  • Can Nicola take some risk or not?

  • They have little risk-appetite and prefer to take measured decisions.

You And Nicola

Personality Compatibility


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