Dr. Mongezi Mdhluli is the Chief Research Operation Officer (CROO), reporting directly to the South African Medical Research Council’s (SAMRC) President and the CEO. Dr Mdhluli is a member of the Executive Management Committee (EMC), attends and participates at the SAMRC Board meetings, and contributes to achieving the SAMRC strategic goals, values and key performance indicators.  Dr. Mdhluli’s function is to provide visionary leadership, strategic management, and excellence in the development, implementation, management and oversight of the SAMRC strategic goals and objectives. He drives relationships with diverse groups of stakeholders including internal, national and international partners. He works with the President and CEO to develop and implement strategies and plans. He promotes good corporate governance through adherence to all relevant statutory legislation and regulations and apprises the President and CEO of potential strategic risks to the research operations. The Research Integrity Office reports directly to the CROO. He gives input into the setting of the overall organizational budget, leads an optimal team structure to achieve organizational mission, supports its growth and development and guides the team towards achievement of set goals within agreed budgets. Dr Mdhluli holds PhD in physiology and a Masters in Business Administration degrees. He started working at the SAMRC in 1996 to date.