A day in the life of this ‘human aggregator’
I'm often asked by people how I integrate all the feeds, apps and social media platforms that I do into my world? I don't think I'm that unique, when I look at others I 'stalk' online, but I suppose I may come across as a little unusual to most. This then is my...
The Meaning of the 21st Century
One of the most important books I have read in the last year is James Martin's "The Meaning of the 21st Century" (Buy it at Amazon or Kalahari). The subtitle explains: The Megaproblems of the 21st Century. You can hear me talking about it on a ClassicFM book review...
Conflict Transformation
This is from our archives - oldie, but goodie. Inc magazine (August 2005) had a short piece on conflict in the workplace, and a consultant that goes beyond conflict "management" and "resolution" to conflict transformation. Read the full article on "The Joy of...
Seven revolutions that will shape the world by 2025
The Seven Revolutions Initiative is a project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) to identify and analyze the key policy challenges that policymakers, business figures, and other leaders will face out to the year 2025. It is an effort to...
How to stop your staff leaving as the economy improves
Your best employees could very well have one eye on the door. Once the economic recovery begins in earnest they'll have plenty of new opportunities to choose from - and businesses around the world will begin to experience an exodus of talented staff. More and more...
2025 – Jobs your kids will be doing. Or perhaps not working at all?
If you’ve recently had a baby, you’re probably not thinking about their career? Mind you, as I reflect back on the birth of my two daughters, I think there was some thought and fantasy given to how they’d impact the world, and from time to time my thoughts became...
The Future of Health Care Customer Experience
Watch this is a powerful illustration of the Decisive Advancement in Customer Experience Methodology via Motivational Design. Chris Mahoney, Cynergy's Director of Health Care, helps us visualize the future of physician and patient experience. Motivational Design is...
What to do when rules don’t make sense: Mount from the right!
In the horse world, mounting your steed from the left side is taken as ‘the way to do it’. This conventional wisdom has lead to horses becoming accustomed to being mounted from the left, reinforcing an important conditioning behaviour concerning how horses learn....
Is this a Vodacom / MTN dirty little secret?
I have a simple question to float out there, that's been banging around in my mind for a few years now: Why has the iPhone (all versions) been so expensive in South Africa since it's launch? The question first emerged when I heard someone (when the iPhone was first...
TAG Reader will revolutionise our ability to seamlessly connect real life with the digital world
Most of us will have seen an advert, a TV programme or read an article with a web address which we wanted to visit, but then forgot the web address or just never got around to it because we are too busy. Now there is an App that makes linking real life content with...
Time changes our perception of what gender, gender roles and gender identity means.
I came across an article entitled Are Women the New Men? which prompted some interesting questions for me in a time of constant and rapid change. I believe both men and women are becoming more conscious of their gender identity; and what that implies in terms of...
A Short Blog on Books
It’s World Book Day. I know this because the bookselling people have come to the school to relieve us all of some more money (which I sort of don’t mind because it’s BOOKS, but I think they know this…..). And nothing gives me more pleasure than to see my eight-year...
What’s the right age to give a child a cell phone?
I recently heard that a kid, close to my heart, was getting a smart phone for his 11th birthday and I have to admit I was horrified. According to these international stats "Cell phones are kids’ new must-have accessory" Cell phones are the #1 form of communication for...
Heroic Leadership – A Summary
This post was first published on Pete Laburn's blog in Feb 2011 After living for seven years as a Jesuit seminarian, practicing vows of poverty, chastity and obedience to the Jesuit general in Rome, Chris Lowney was transformed into a corporate man as an investment...
What Bill Gates says about the New World of Work
This is an excerpt taken from Microsoft Organisation's executive emails and covers Bill Gate's thoughts on the new world of work ( #newworldofwork ) Over the past decade, software has evolved to build bridges between disconnected islands of information and give people...
What’s the social media fuss all about?
People are seeking friendships. There is no denying that the explosion of social media websites like Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter represent our insatiable appetite for connecting with people and even companies. The driving force behind the social media explosion is...
Short Study: Generation Y in South Africa
Over the last month Mike Saunders and a few associates ran a small study on Generation Y in South Africa. We interviewed 144 students with an average age of 18 years old. The gender split was 60% female and 40% male. The findings were quite interesting and echoed many...
6 Most Brilliant Leadership Strategies
Last month Geoffrey James provided me with the rare honour of guest posting my 5 Most Dimwitted Leadership Strategies on BNET's Sales Machine. Geoffrey is a prolific writer with a highly provocative and cynical nature reflected in his outspoken readers. Today's post...
The Sheen is off Charlie
If what we read is true then we might well have seen the last of Charlie Sheen and Two and a Half Men. Sheen’s inability to act like a normal human being has seen the plug being pulled on one of the most successful sitcoms of all time. It is a great pity as there will...
Africa’s mineral wealth – The most important development opportunity of the next two decades
Originally published on our South African company blog in August 2010, and updated here in March 2011 One of my personal passions is trying to work out how developing countries, especially in my home continent of Africa, can help their people out of debilitating...