Tag: Accenture

South Africa's data centre sector is expanding rapidly. New investment is creating opportunities for economic growth, digital innovation and regional connectivity. It is also positioning the country as a strategic hub for Africa's digital economy. The country now hosts nearly half of Africa's data centre capacity. The local market is projected to grow from US$2.16 billion in 2024 to US$3.40 billion by 2030.

The returns from digital transformation will remain elusive until business leaders confront an uncomfortable truth: the problem is not the Artificial Intelligence (AI), but everything underneath it. Consider this scenario. You lead a large retail business. Six months ago, you approved a significant generative AI investment to personalise customer promotions. The business case was compelling, the pilot results were strong and the board supported the move.

In a low-growth economy, organisations struggle to expand revenue. They therefore face increasing pressure to unlock efficiencies and do more with less. Consider a major South African bank. It recently celebrated a successful AI-powered fraud detection pilot. The results looked impressive. The system delivered faster detection, fewer false positives and measurable savings. Leadership felt energised.

The latest statistics from the International Labour Organization (ILO) reveals that in 2020, close to 9% of global working hours were lost due to COVID-19. This equates to 255 million full-time jobs – approximately four times higher than jobs lost in 2009 during the global financial crisis.

The cost of lost business makes up around 40% of the average cost of a large-scale data breach, translating in customer turnover, lost revenue due to system downtime and higher cost of acquiring new business due to reputation damage. This was the finding in a Ponemon Institute research study sponsored by Accenture.

The world over companies are facing enormous pressure under the ‘new or never normal’, as the COVID-19 pandemic is highlighting, and in some cases, deepening existing workplace inequalities. Gender mainstreaming in the workplace still has a long way to go and the time is now that we give it the attention it deserves – not only through women’s month, but throughout the year.

Some attempts have been made by the government and NGOs to advocate for more equal rights for women. Few months ago, President Ramaphosa announced his new cabinet in which half of all ministers are women. However, the private sector has been slower on the uptake. The world of business is still very much dominated by men.

COVID-19 has turned into a global crisis, evolving at unprecedented speed and scale. Experts don’t know how long it will take to contain the virus so businesses are challenged with not only preparing for the short-term, but also developing new capabilities and ways of working that will seamlessly enable longer-term changes to how they operate.

Renowned French philosopher, Paul Virilio once said; “When you invent the ship, you also invent the shipwreck.” How inevitable is this in technology today? Security professionals are having to work hard at putting in measures, best practices, mapping systems, lighthouses and beacons in order to reap the benefits of new innovations, all while managing potentially catastrophic risks.

The future of technology in Africa is going to be spectacular, if the recent AfricaCom 2019 is anything to go by! The thousands of delegates, exhibitors and speakers who came together to share ideas and thoughts on the future of technology in Africa brought new perspective - our continent is past being seen as having 'potential' and has entered an era of 'collaboration' where we can fully explore the opportunity in Africa.