Author: Editor
By Pieter Cronjé On 27 April 1994 South Africans flocked to voting stations to vote. Now this day is an annual public Holiday – Freedom Day. Chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission, Judge Johann Kriegler, BEFORE: “This is an insurmountable opportunity.” AFTER: “Maybe we were too stupid to realise this was impossible.” This quick flashback should remind us what a Herculean feat this was: The 1994 election had to be organised in four months, instead of at least one, preferably two years.There was only one staff member in December 1993, the chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission, Judge Johann Kriegler,…
Despite the South African Mountain Bike Marathon Championships taking place in Paarl this coming Saturday (1 May) being her first marathon race of the season, six-time South African marathon champion and team dormakaba cyclist Robyn de Groot is hugely motivated to add to her impressive collection of titles. “With last year’s event cancelled due to the pandemic and very few events so far in this season, preparations for the SA champs have been quite different. I have worked closely with my coach who has been a great guide in dealing with the lack of racing and I have been fully…
By Andre Ferreira Music has a power that is practically immeasurable. It transcends time and language, expresses and influences our emotions, educates and entertains and so much more. Scientists are also beginning to understand the impact music has on our brains. Essentially, the effect is massive and it has a particularly strong influence on the brains of children. The brain is the ultimate organ of adaptation, and music can help develop an infant’s brain. Music ignites all areas of a child’s brain progress and skills for school readiness, particularly in areas of language acquisition and reading skills. Learning a language…
On a beautiful autumn evening at the Glenelly Wine Estate in Stellenbosch, the French Government bestowed the title of Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters on the South African thriller novelist and screenwriter Deon Meyer … and it was clear that there can hardly be a more popular South African in the country of food, wine and love. The French Order of Arts and Letters, which was established in 1957, recognises “significant contributions to the enrichment of the arts and literature in France and abroad”. A former journalist, advertising copywriter, Internet manager and brand strategist, Meyer has published…
An unexpected, but hilarious touch was when the medal was “stolen”. The ambassador phoned the “Paarl police station”, who told him that their top detective, inspector Bennie Griessel, has located the stolen medal and that he actually deserves the medal. “Inspector Griessel” subsequently appeared on the scene and Deon Meyer agreed to share the medal with the renowned detective.
As the world continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses are increasingly turning to technology to stabilise everyday life – with security and access control being top areas of consideration. This is why dormakaba’s touch-free automated entrance solutions are recognised and sought-after by operators in several commercial sectors, including healthcare, education, retail and hospitality. Operators in these sectors are characterised by high intensity human traffic and this means an increase in risk of large volumes of harmful bacteria or viruses on the physical infrastructure, like doorknobs. The leading provider of smart access control and security solutions warns that infections small…
By Gloria Malan, director at Rubicomm Marketing on its own means little if it does not form part of an integrated strategy to drive sales. Similarly, PR makes no sense if it does not drive the right message to the right stakeholder at the right time. Unfortunately, these are the first two interventions which come under the axe when businesses feel the financial squeeze. And yet, they provide the most effective ways to create awareness of the brand and its products and services. It can be argued that investing in marketing and PR help ensure the long-term health of any…
The workplace whistle-blower isn’t a business liability, they are a window to the organisation’s soul. Stepping up and blowing the whistle on a corporate issue, ethics or concerning behaviour is a brave, bold move for any employee to take. It requires that someone invests their future into the courage of their convictions, taking the risk that they may face harassment or lose their job when they do the right thing. But, according to Nicol Myburgh, Head: CRS Technologies HCM Business Unit, companies should be actively encouraging this behaviour and giving people everything they need to blow the whistle as loudly,…
In this disruptive new world of work, organisational teams require support to become more efficient at delivering services. Critical to this is establishing a smarter level of integration across business units to better enable employees to fulfil their job functions regardless of their physical location. To be effective, companies require a system that enables them to track and manage all communications whether that is between teams or with customers themselves. This will help provide a clearer understanding of the immediate business priorities and how adept employees are at addressing key customer pain points. But beyond the technology, there is a…
Tadhole is a single seater golf cart aiming to reach a whole new market in the golfing world. Allowing players to play a round of golf with a cart, without worrying about being an even numbered group of players. Watch Tadhole in action at the Copperfield Golf Course.