South Africa is often described as “the rainbow nation” post the 1994 momentous change to true democracy. This marked a whole new era for South Africa to now builds true identity, and claim its rightful place in the world.As part of this change, the country was also thrown into the whirlpool of international turbulence with the concomitant Volatility,Uncertainty,Chaos and Ambiguity ( VUCA ) .There can be fewer markets in the world where the Leadership Challenge has been so great! So in this landscape what is the DNA of the South African Leader ? How successful are South African Leaders in effectively managing through the quagmire of political dynamism ,cultural diversity and business turbulence ……
We are just finishing week 22 of our calendar year , and here is a concise summary of the VUCA week for the South African Leader .
CR announces slimmed down cabinet, new blood, generational mix, 50% women representation, crucial CR allies in key departments????????????; CR targets growth & corruption with new cabinet????; Eskom insiders provide very limited choices to replace CEO????; inquiry hears of improper engagement between Transnet & China South Rail????????; nearly 60% of eastern cape households survive off social grants????????; SARB sees SA inflation expectations as encouraging????; SA ports gear up for strikes over pay, Transnet granted court interdict????; business body wants parliament to remove public protector????????; consumer confidence recovers slightly on back of elections↗; Shell plans SA oil expansion with purchase of oil block in SA waters????; Eskom bailout risks Moody’s rating says SARB????????; Sibanye now world’s no 1 platinum miner as lonmin acquisition approved????; anthrax outbreak among cattle in Lesotho????; producer inflation rises to 6.5% in April on higher fuel prices⛽????; Transnet forensic investigators confident of successful prosecutions⚖⛓; SA recorded surprise trade deficit in April????; western cape legislature members to undergo lifestyle audits????; internationally, Tariff man Trump strikes again, this time threatening to impose 5% tariffs on Mexican imports, followed by 10%,15%,20% & 25% in coming months – markets sink????????; china hits back at US with threat of its own, digs in for protracted trade war????????; UK car output crashes on Brexit induced uncertainty????↘; fears Brazil heading towards another recession⌛; Venezuela inflation hits average 130 060% through 2018????????; strong labour market boosts US consumer confidence????????????; race to succeed Theresa May centres on no-deal Brexit battle????; Africa’s free trade zone officially comes into force✍; Zimbabwe to compensate more than 700 white farmers????; Uber loses more than $1 billion through Q1????; indices, JSE@55650 ⬆; DOW@24815⬇; FTSE@7161⬇; R/$14.54; R/£18.38; R/€16.25; Bitcoin $8520; sporting front, woeful proteas crash to England defeat at CWC????; SA’s last hope, Lloyd Harris, crashes out of French Open????; junior springboks raring to go for U20 world champs????; Madrid on red alert, thousands expected as Spurs take on Liverpool in Champions League Final tonight @21:00⚽????(Thanks to Daniel Thomalla )
What key Leadership decisions need to be made this week ……..
For my organization i believe that the business leaders have been good at navigating business challenges. I’d say the same for other companies in the insurance and financial services sectors that i serve as a consultant. However , they have not been as effective at navigating political challenges and have not been effective at addressing cultural diversity.