Networks are the infrastructure for the transmission of information and ideas. A meme is what packages the ideas and information that is being sent. Coined by Richard Dawkins, a meme derives from the term ‘gene’ (the information carrier within biological organisms) and the Greek word ‘mimetismos’ (meaning something imitated). Therefore a meme is an informational [...]

Within the international risk community, there is growing concern on the approach and ethos being utilised when it comes to proper risk reporting. It seems that the monthly risk pack is often reduced to a tick-box exercise that gets one tenth of the focus and exposure it deserves. Most companies have established risk management programmes [...]

It seems that organisations these days can’t simply get away with having “just good people” to drive successful change and operational outcomes.  The key to driving performance does not lie in the pure formal structure either, but rather how the informal network of people, processes, resources and knowledge components get tied in together to create [...]

The way work gets done in companies is not always obvious from organisational charts. Often tasks, functions and process maps are only seen from a mechanistic perspective. Processes and task performance are improved and often changed by social and influential relationships found in a company’s shadow network. Increasingly, a growing body of knowledge about the [...]

Companies are continually searching for top talent to replenish their human capital requirements in order to cover their key man dependencies and to remain sustainable within very cut throat environments. Most of this talent will have to be mined from within the “Y” generation, also known as the millennial generation, as they are the fastest [...]

This week we are publishing feedback on our first workshop concerning system rationalisation and migration which seemed to centre around the ‘why’ or ‘how’ large organisations got into such a mess in the first place. We thank everyone who attended the workshop and hope they will encourage others, in both business and IT, to attend [...]

At the very onset of the book, I was met with my biggest challenge – teaching a concept that demands an untutored state of mind. My attempt to bring various non-business disciplines into the business world has been a stimulating journey. Innovation has become a generic and everyday term, in fact it is difficult to [...]

Despite concerted efforts by many financial institutions to capitalise on the emerging markets in Africa, it is not that easy to find success stories.  80% of Africans still do not have access to formal financial services as financial institutions continue to force traditional banking products into the continent.  These remain inaccessible and when they are [...]

Organisations have traditionally been viewed through a mechanistic paradigm. This view holds that organisations are like machines and are composed of parts lacking any intrinsic relationship to each other. It is however, fast becoming outdated in today’s highly connected world. Modern perspectives of organisations are increasingly moving away from this mechanistic paradigm towards a view [...]

As IT practitioners specialising in business consulting, we have been taught that the success or otherwise of business depends on three main components; Man, Method and Machine. Man is the human action and interaction on projects of change. Method refers to the techniques and intellectual tools that we use to solve problems. Machine refers to [...]