Miriam Thobeka Zwane,  is in the limelight again as she has been voted as a finalist for the 2007 IT Web  IT Personality of the Year award, which will be held on the 7 November at Montecasino, Johannesburg.The co-founder and a director of Praxis Computing is one of five finalists for the award.

A panel of judges will interview the finalists on Monday, 15 October, and from there will decide the winner.

The award counts the likes of Mthunzi Mdwaba of Torque-IT and Axis Technology’s CEO Anthony Fitzhenry as its previous winners. According to IT Web, “ Zwane is able to bridge the gap that sometimes appears within the IT industry and the industries (SETA’s and donor and funding organizations) that we as IT professionals supply services and products to”. 

Zwane joined Praxis in 1993, a few months after the company was created and became a shareholder and partner together with Mish Middelman and Michael Haddad. With her involvement the company was able to grow steadily, providing services and products to clients such as the European Union of South Africa and the Nelson Mandela Foundation. Seventy-five percent of the staff is now made up of black employees, who contribute to the diverse ownership of the company. 

Zwane is not only known for her leadership in the IT industry, but also for her tireless community work. She has been instrumental in educating disadvantaged communities in IT, specifically training teachers from Ibhongo High School in Soweto. She also mentors at Life College where she provides leadership training and extra-mural activities for youth from disadvantaged backgrounds. Amongst her greatest achievements was the founding of the Babuyile Development Project, which helps ex-prisoners fit back into society. It aims to break the cycle of crime, punishment and repeat offences, and so far it has been successful.< 

In 2003, Zwane was awarded the African ICT Achiever prize for her exceptional contribution to ICT. In the same year she won the Diva Africa award.