Leadership

Guided by experience. Driven by purpose.

Development@Work is led by Mark Burke, a strategic advisor and institutional development specialist with more than two decades of practice across South Africa and the African continent.

MB

Mark Burke

Director & Lead Consultant

Development@Work · Est. 2000

Areas of Expertise

Strategic Planning Organisational Development Programme Design & Management Digital Transformation Monitoring & Evaluation Higher Education Strategy Regulatory Institutions Economic Development Facilitation Change Management

Contact Mark

iburkem@developmentwork.co.za
+27 (0) 82 413 3921
Johannesburg, South Africa
Get in Touch

A 25-year record of institutional leadership

Mark Burke is the Director of Development@Work, a specialist development practice he established in 2000. His work spans strategic planning, organisational development, programme design and management, digital transformation, monitoring and evaluation, and complex multi-stakeholder facilitation — delivered across public institutions, regulatory bodies, universities, and development-oriented organisations throughout South Africa and the African continent.

With more than 25 years of practice, Mark has developed a distinctive capability at the intersection of digital transformation, regulation, higher education, and economic development. He understands institutions not only as structures to be reorganised, but as complex social systems shaped by leadership, culture, mandate, and context — and his work reflects this understanding.

Mark leads each assignment in close collaboration with a trusted network of specialist associates and collaborators, enabling Development@Work to bring together the right mix of expertise for each engagement while maintaining strategic coherence and continuity.

His work is guided by a long-standing commitment to a single purpose: helping institutions that carry public responsibilities to define what matters, build the capabilities that matter, and deliver results that matter — for the public good.

"The creation of value in an organisation is thus an extension of its values."

— Mark Burke, Director

Strategic depth across four domains

Digital Transformation

Research into South Africa's digital research infrastructure; e-Government M&E frameworks; knowledge management systems for public institutions.

Regulatory Institutions

Strategic planning and implementation support for competition authorities across South Africa, Namibia, Swaziland, and East Africa.

Higher Education

University strategy, institutional design, and system-level capacity building across South Africa, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Palestine.

Economic Development

Industrial development research, export promotion strategy, enterprise support, and sector development for public economic institutions.

Selected recent assignments

View All Assignments
February 2026
School of Economics, University of Johannesburg
Developed a 3-year strategy for the School of Economics, College of Business and Economics.
January – March 2026
SARChI-ID, University of Johannesburg
Development of a 3-year strategic plan for the South African Research Chair in Industrial Development.
Oct 2025 – Feb 2026
USAASA & USAF
Developed a revised 5-year strategic plan and annual performance plan for the Universal Service and Access Agency of South Africa and Universal Service and Access Fund.
Aug 2025 – Feb 2026
Wits School of Governance
Development of a 5-year strategic plan for the Wits School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand.
March – October 2025
Central University of Technology
Development of a 5-year strategy including a Resourcing Framework and Transformation Plan.
May – September 2025
East African Community Competition Commission
Development of a 5-year strategy for the East African Community Competition Commission.

Strategic leadership. Associate-based delivery.

Mark leads Development@Work's strategic direction and takes personal responsibility for every engagement, bringing 25 years of institutional knowledge and strategic experience to the work. He does not work in isolation.

Development@Work operates through a trusted network of experienced associates and specialist collaborators. This model allows the practice to combine strategic consistency and leadership continuity with the multi-disciplinary, scalable expertise that complex institutional assignments require.

Associates have been selected for their technical depth, institutional experience, and alignment with Development@Work's approach and values. They have worked alongside Mark on assignments in higher education, regulatory institutions, public administration, and economic development.

Personal Strategic Leadership

Mark is personally involved in every engagement — from the initial conversation through to delivery and review.

A Trusted Network of Specialists

A carefully selected group of partners and associates with deep experience in specific sectors and disciplines.

The Right People for Each Engagement

Each team is assembled specifically for the organisation and its situation — combining the right technical depth, sector knowledge, and facilitation skills.

Would you like to speak with Mark directly about your institution's needs?

We welcome direct conversations about institutional strategy, capability development, and programme support.