Connecting With Customers
I got a little enthusiastic with this week’s topics, so we’ve got to jump right into it. It’s a bit long today. I think it’s worth it. I hope that you agree. But before we do, we must pause to…
Category Strategy
Pragmatism and Hope
The Cape Town good news continues. This week the Goodman Gallery announced it would be hosting a show with the famed Ghanian sculptor, El Anatsui. The show, entitled Freedom, is a rare opportunity for South African audiences to see work that is typically…
Operational Excellence
Two weeks ago, I told you that the letter had written itself. Today’s letter most certainly didn’t. I have struggled. There are successes and joy in the world. There is tragedy. There is the additional complication that it is always…
What Future Do You Want?
Good morning I have been overwhelmed by the response to last week’s letter. Many of you shared it with people that you care about and they, in turn, shared it. Thank you for all the messages I received. Many of you…
Being You In Business
I am convinced that aeons ago the deities of the Kalahari and Antarctica came to a grudging agreement regarding Cape Town. The summer months would be time for the spirits of heat to dance through our streets. Some days it…
It Is Your Choice. You Can Choose.
Hello friends There’s a lot to say today, so let’s get to it… / STRATEGY The seeds were planted as I read London Business School Professor Gary Hamel and Michele Zanini’s Humanocracy. They note that 34% of US employees work in…
A Pan-African Imagination
This Tuesday is Africa Day and so I have turned to a Pan African Pantheon to inspire our imagination, for in the Pan-African tradition an inspired imagination is the precursor to expanded freedom. / STRATEGY Marcus Garvey stated, “A people…
How Degrowth Will Save the World
March is Cape Town’s best month. A less generous soul might say that it is the only few weeks of the year where Cape Town’s weather approximates its beauty. This work by Nigerian artist Ayobola Kekere-Ekun, although not about Cape Town, gives…
Apollo’s Arrow: The Coronavirus Context
Good morning everyone Thank you for all the messages I received in response to last week’s letter on burnout. It is clear from the number of messages that I received that everyone is taking strain. I will take cognizance of this…
Preventing Burnout
In my average week, I work with 8 clients for 90 minutes at a time. Then I have about 5 conversations with people who are interested in working with me, or someone connected to me wanting to think through a…
Businesses Are Not Machines, Nor Are You.
As South Africa came out of our fifth week of lockdown sometime in May last year, I took the decision to stop reading COVID news. I was frazzled by the onslaught of different theories and opinions. South Africa’s hard lockdown…
Abdullah Verachia’s Disruption Amplified
This week, I wanted to introduce you to Nigerian artist Ndidi Emefiele I loved her piece, Here as in Heaven which is currently showing in London’s Gallery Rosenfeld. Then, Sepanta Bagherpour, Nando’s CMO for North America, dropped me a note telling me about their undemocratic meal…