Tag: optimisation

Whether it is the South African government’s newly signed carbon tax legislation or the EU’s ‘green’ import taxes, South Africa’s manufacturing sector faces significant challenges. These challenges are centered around sustainability and adapting to new environmental regulations.

No matter which industry your business finds itself in, advertising forms a crucial part of any company’s go-to-market strategy to help achieve a host of business goals - from influencing consumer behaviour or driving sales and revenue growth, to gaining a competitive advantage and expanding into new markets.

The global influencer marketing industry is set to grow to an astonishing $22.2 billion by 2025. If anyone ever doubted its staying power, this figure makes it clear: influencer marketing is here to stay. In fact, according to the latest The State of Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2024, this growth is not just a global experience. In South Africa, the landscape is evolving rapidly, with local brands poised to capitalise on this growth through digital strategies and meaningful connections with consumers.

In the dynamic landscape of contemporary business, team-based work and cross-functional projects are rapidly replacing traditional organisational structures, with an increasing number of leading-edge organisations embracing collaboration-driven models.

As the world’s second largest continent, the vast expanse Africa lends itself to remote operations, often hundreds of kilometres away from civilisation and the hub of infrastructure and supply such as energy. Industries like mining, minerals and metals often must contend with considerable energy loss or high transportation costs of diesel (for self-generation) due to these vast distances.

The time has come for South African telecommunication companies to face greater scrutiny. With data prices higher in South Africa than in many other African states, these companies should be more accountable to their customers. Yet this is not happening.

For many business leaders, the heat is on. They face inflation, supply chain disruption, labour shortages, and pricing pressures. Protecting margins while meeting customer needs and navigating economic uncertainty is crucial. However, many lack transparency and granularity in actual cost structures.

South Africa’s total energy capacity of 54.6 GW (excluding imports) should theoretically be sufficient for energy security and spare generating capacity, but it is not - as evidenced by record-level load shedding in 2022 and 2023. This was highlighted in the recently released Africa Energy Review 2023 report by PwC, which noted that the country is trying to remedy the situation by transitioning away from coal-generated power to renewables and gas – and even (to many experts’ dismay) nuclear.

For jobs to be created, new industries need to be created and for that, you need people. A unique opportunity for job creation is emerging with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), which is set to not only become a new growth area of its own but will also upend innumerable existing industries.

As the world becomes increasingly focused on environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives, IT departments are actively driving sustainability efforts. According to Enterprise Strategy Group research, a significant majority (93%) of IT decision makers consider a supplier's ESG programme when making IT purchasing decisions.