Western-style Management Pushes Africa’s Ubuntu Aside
Clive Chilvers / Shutterstock.com
Ubuntu has been a buzzword in African management-talk for two decades, but appears not to have delivered in African economies.
Category: Sector
A Sharapova Comeback? Perhaps
Reckless beyond description.
These were the words of former World Anti-Doping Agency president Dick Pound following Maria Sharapova’s shock announcement that she tested positive at the Australian Open for the banned substance meldonium.
Poignantly, Pound added: “Running a US$30m business depends on you staying eligible to play tennis.” He was referencing Sharapova’s position as one of the most marketable female sports stars on the planet.
The Price of Oil is Falling Again Because…Iran?
The price of oil is seeing its biggest decline today since February 23. The ostensible reason is that Iran once again reiterated it would only consider capping its output after it reached four million barrels a day, its pre-sanction output.
Getting Your Company to be ‘The Uber of…’ Something
Online marketplaces, also known as platform companies, are sprouting up everywhere and redefining business in every industry. “The Uber of ….” has become shorthand for tech startups looking to redefine the way everything is delivered, from legal services (Sydney-based LawPath) to Package deliveries (San Francisco-based Doorman), to Lottery services (Gibraltar-based Lottoland).
British Government Hell-bent on Privatising the NHS
Despite the exorbitant costs and cruelties of the US-style private healthcare model, the UK is moving towards a similar model. The US companies are poised to take control of the system.
Supporters of a single-payer healthcare system in the US frequently hold up the British National Health Service (NHS) as a model. However, the bitter irony is that the British are copying the most iniquitous elements of the US system, rather than the US emulating what is good about the NHS.
3D Printing Industrial Revolution
3D printing, sometimes called additive manufacturing, is the process by which three-dimensional objects are made from a single digital file created by 3D design software. What few people know is that 3D printing is about to transform the world as we know it.
The Next U.S. President Won’t Likely Dictate Energy Technology
There have been dramatic changes in the U.S. energy system under our current president – a big drop in the use of coal, a boom in domestic oil and gas development from fracking, and the rapid spread of renewable energy.
However, in terms of influencing energy technology deployment, the next president will have a lot less influence than you might expect.
Innovation Matters More than Ever
In their book Business Model Generation, authors Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur explore the power of asking “what if” questions. This is illustrated by the example of furniture giant IKEA. In 1960, it asked:
What if customers bought furniture in components in a box and assembled it themselves?
The idea was unheard of at the time. Today it’s common practice in the furniture industry.
Meeting Japan’s Ambitious Nuclear Power Goals
Five years after the 11 March 2011 Fukushima accident, which put Japan’s nuclear power industry under intense scrutiny, official policy is still a shambles. In June 2011, the then prime minister Naoto Kan announced that Japan was phasing out nuclear power in the long run only to backtrack a few days later. Current Prime Minster Shinzo Abe announced a restart of all reactors within three years in his 2013 New Year’s Address.
Who Benefits from the Energy Sector Mess?
The US-led petrodollar era is being surpassed by a multipolar oil age in the Middle East. The transition is permeated by fundamental change and financial speculation that is penalizing the roles of the US and China in the region.
