Africa.com is looking forward to welcoming a team of students from Harvard Business School this week. The team of six students will be in Johannesburg for a week as part of a required first-year course at Harvard Business School called FIELD, which stands for Field Immersion Experiences for Leadership Development. Africa.com is one of 156 FIELD Global Partners spanning 13 countries around the world. Together they will host more than 930 students in all.  

“We are pleased to be working with Harvard Business School to provide students with a real-world learning experience in South Africa.” said Teresa Clarke, Chairman and CEO.  “We feel certain that the students will gather insights here that they would never be able to glean from a classroom discussion alone.”  

FIELD has three modules that run through the entire first year of the two- year MBA program. The first module focuses on developing individual leadership skills through team feedback and self-reflection. The second focuses on developing global intelligence by immersing them in a foreign country to develop a new product or service in country for their Global Partner organization. The final module brings all the lessons together by challenging students to develop and launch their own micro-business as part of a small team back in Boston.

Africa.com executives have been working with the team remotely in the months leading up to their arrival in South Africa. While in the country, they will pitch their ideas to the leadership team, conduct field research with consumers around Johannesburg and present their final recommendations to management.

Harvard is quick to acknowledge that this important learning experience would not be possible without the Global Partners.  

“We are extremely grateful to Africa.com and all the FIELD Global Partner organizations for all they do on behalf of our students,” said Professor Tony Mayo, the faculty head of FIELD. “The students benefit immeasurably from this experience and we hope the partner organizations do as well.”

About Africa.com   Africa.com is the leading Africa-related website with more than one million views every month from people in over 200 countries & territories. Our signature product is the Africa.com Top10 - we read all the Africa news so that you don't have to.  We curate and summarize the top ten African news stories of the day and of the week. Africa.com is also a one stop shop to help Africans put their ideas onto mobile websites easily and affordably.  For companies and bloggers who want to showcase their African identity as part of their website address. With offices in South Africa, Nigeria and the United States, Africa.com is dedicated to changing the way the world sees Africa.  

Media Contact:
Debra Winter
Tel: +27 11 881 5941
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

PRESS RELEASE BY PAARDEBERG SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE ON THE AUTHORISATION BY THE CITY OF CAPE TOWN OF A WASTE MANAGEMENT FACILITY UNDER THE GUISE OF AN AGRICULTURAL OPERATION It is with utmost regret that the entire community along Slent Road, Klipheuwel, Western Cape has learned that the City of Cape Town’s Council under leadership of Mrs Patricia de Lille, will rubber stamp a recommendation by officials to authorise a waste management facility, in an area where, until recently, the focus was on sustainable farm operations. Notwithstanding various submissions and please to the DA-lead council and finally submission of almost 300 individual petitions, the majority from xhosa-speaking farm workers, it all fell on deaf ears and was turned into nothing more than the dust generated on Slent Road by the monster trucks from Reliance Compost. And the plea to Council was simple, only a request to properly investigate the matter taking all factors into an account and to not arbitrarily decide on a matter that involves one of the City’s very own service providers. A service provider who was allowed by the City to operate illegally without any action taken.

A resident of the area had the following to say: “The Reliance composting plant is situated along the edge of the Winelands border, more specifically on the notorious Slent Road in Agter-Paardeberg, close to Paarl.  Notorious, because  the poor state of the road has caused many accidents, a situation worsened by about at least 2000 trips per month of between 15 and  30 Ton Reliance trucks and other vehicles generated by this site. But let’s look at the cost of the Reliance “greening” exercise:  According to their own reports, Reliance trucks do 96 trips PER DAY:  Should they adhere to their prescribed operating hours and days of operations, then one can (conservatively) estimate that about 2 000 trips per month is made, so about 23 000 per annum.  (Traffic volumes were measured a few years ago, in the meantime this operation has almost doubled the amount of heavy vehicles they have on the road).

Let’s take it a step further.  I call it “so-called” green waste because it also brings in much more than green waste. Pieces of plastic from waste have landed up in adjacent farmers’ lands, been ingested by cattle, and according to these farmers led to the loss of livestock and their lands unsuitable for grazing. This so-called “green waste” is carted in from far flung drop-off sites:   Mostly Wynberg, Ladies Mile (Constantia), Woodstock, Athlone and a few trips from Gordon’s Bay, Kraaifontein and Tygerdal.  When one conservatively calculate the distances these trucks travel on a daily basis one can safely assume that they do about 9 000 km’s on a DAILY basis, approx. 45 000km’s on a WEEKLY basis and about 180 000km’s on a MONTHLY basis - to take away waste from the City of Cape Town and dumping it in the Agter-Paardeberg on the border of the Winelands.. And THIS is what they call “carbon neutral”.

One cannot help but wonder WHY, when the farm on which this plant operates and which once proudly exported organic grapes to overseas markets, has been converted into a massive composting plant with monster trucks, massive industrial turners, screening machines and front end loaders blasting, revving, smoking, belching and polluting the air for most hours of the day (and often nights as well), Why is it permitted   HERE on the edge of the Winelands? Surely there are many alternative sites, closer to source on less valuable land and far away from anyone’s back yards? We know there are other more suitable ways of disposing of green waste, such as delivering it as mulch to many farms, who would use the mulch to improve their soils. Or biodgesting it for electricity production? Or both?

But then it becomes clear why, when you are made aware that Reliance in 2009 was awarded a sole contract to the value of R208, 412, 782.00 – to transport/remove waste from various drop-off sites and AWAY from the City of Cape Town. So, no – it will not make any sense for this operation to actually GO GREEN in the true sense of the word.  In first world countries, green waste is converted on waste/land fill sites or at least as close as possible to source.  In 2012 the contract was renewed.

Let’s look at the cost to people in this area:  Lives have been lost on the Slent Road (including Reliance employees), and numerous accidents, fatalities, injuries may be attributed to the presence of this plant and the impact their trucks have on the Slent Road. Seldom will you find public transport on this road – the taxis are unwilling to use this road - the only form of public transport is the local school bus service, which transports children who live outside of a 4km radius.  For the remainder of the small, primary school children walking unsupervised up to 4 km’s to school and back every day,  it is a perilous exercise while huge trucks and other traffic simply covers them in a thick layer of dust and makes them invisible – the school is situated about 1km from this plant and the road has no safe sidewalk.  

In an informal survey conducted by a student for the community, the response was overwhelmingly negative towards this operation –this included farm workers, school-children and their parents. Specialist studies and comments received which formed part of the report of the Environmental Impact Assessment practitioners for their client – Reliance - raised concerns regarding this operation at this specific site and the impact on immediate neighbours, including workers, farm workers and their children on this property. Conveniently, only certain aspects of these reports were addressed in the subsequent EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) report, in which specialist reports give a completely different picture of the operation: 

 An air quality assessment showed clearly that neighbours, site workers, farm workers and their children living permanently on this site is and will be susceptible to  upper respiratory complications due to pathogens being released during the composting process of 100’s of thousands of tons of waste. Pathogens generated by the composting process were found a few kilometres away. (A chicken farm over the orad closed its operations long before the chicken industry woes, due to unacceptable levels of Infectious Bronchitis in its broilers. This led to retrenchemtns and redeployment of workers The counter-argument from Reliance  was: “Only on-site workers will be affected”.  Families of farm workers (including their children) live less than 30m’s from this site and are not mentioned in Reliance’s counter argument.

And the Western Cape Government, in the form of Minister Anton Bredell,  was satisfied with- and echoed this response.  Now they have rewarded this operation with rights to further expand on this site.  Min. Bredell finds it just fine that this operation brings in a further 8000 t/month of green waste, 3000 t/month of pig, chicken and cattle manure, 40 000 t of grape waste (over a 3-month period annually) and a further 2000 t/m of rotting fruit and vegetables. The concern that the farm children may in all probability help themselves to rotting fruit – as kids sometimes do – is conveniently ignored.

Could it be that the Western Cape Government still holds the rights of big, white business in higher regard than that of marginalised farm workers, who are not in a position nor have the means to fight for their Constitutional rights? I wonder whether the onsite and Reliance farm workers and their children have been informed about the health hazards of working and living on this site?  But even so – will they complain? Unlikely, as their jobs depend on keeping their mouths shut. A further irony then is that neither the owner nor any of his managers’ lives on this site ... could it be due to fears they may have for their own families’ health, safety and sanity? Do we as neighbours to this operation support the CoCT’s endeavours to minimise waste and landfill – yes, absolutely -  but when people’s lives are put in danger, when their health as well as their psychological wellbeing are placed in a secondary position because of “big money” and the true cost to the environment is this high, we say NO!  According to Reliance management alternate sites, far away from people’s backyards and actually closer to source, is just not financially viable. And yet we have been told  of fully financed alternatives, with payback varying  from 4-8  years, dependent on the technology employed, that have been put to the City?? And whilst workers, children, neighbours and farmers on the Slent Road have to endure constant noise, nuisance and choke on pathogen laden dust, the owner sits far away in his Paarl mansion and occasionally ventures with his Porsche onto the Slent Road and to the Reliance site.

After 100’s of complaints of non-compliances by Reliance over many years, illegal commencements, notices served against this operation, dust, noise pollution, uncontrolled fires, etc - it seems that the Western Cape Government and the City of Cape Town have made concerted efforts to protect this operation and to turn a blind eye to their many transgressions.  In this process the City of Cape Town has not only shown dismal disrespect for Land Owners’ and farm worker’s Constitutional Rights, but also made it clear that the “small people” still don’t count!” 

Residents truly believed that the City of Cape Town will also work for them, it now appears that they were wrong.

Johannesburg – December 2014 ‒ 21 ICONS South Africa in conjunction with its proud sponsors, Mercedes-Benz South Africa, will launch a series of activations and exhibitions at various consumer touch points around the country.

The events will demonstrate that the project has built an integrated, multimedia platform to impart key attributes and messages of extraordinary South African leaders of the past and present to the public and to connect with local and international audiences.  

The 21 ICONS project is an initiative aimed at documenting the lives of iconic individuals through fine art portraits, intimate conversations and short films, behind the scenes photography, written narrative as well as feature length documentaries into a truly converged visual experience to shape perceptions and transform societal norms, and impacting the communities around them. 

The first leg of the campaign kicked off on Saturday 22 November at the Cape Town and OR Tambo international airports where promoters handed out copies of the City Press, the projects chosen print media partner, and created awareness and hype about the ‘Me & My Icon’ selfie competition. Members of the public are encouraged to snap a selfie with a 21 ICONS collectable portrait poster inserted in the newspaper and post the picture alongside a short personal message to the featured icon on the 21 ICONS Facebook page. Readers can enter the selfie competition until 7 December 2014 and on 10 December an official draw will be held at Media 24 head offices and the winner of the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class will be announced. Each week the ten best entries are selected by the City Press editorial team and 21 ICONS South Africa will ensure that all the personal messages reach the relevant icon. Weekly prizes are awarded to the top three entries including Momentum Asset Management unit trusts, Nikon Coolpix cameras as well as 21 ICONS Season I collectable coffee table books. The 50 overall winners will then be entered into a lucky draw for the chance to drive away in a new luxury Mercedes-Benz C-Class. With an extended entry period until midnight on Sunday 7 December, readers can enter during this period using either the poster of Paralympian athlete, Zanele Situ who appears in this week’s issue or next week’s icon, writer Miriam Tlali whose portrait will be revealed. 

The airport activations will continue until Sunday 30 November and Monday 29 December at Cape Town International Airport and OR Tambo International Airport respectively where Season I’s unique short films and exquisite portraits as well as the latest Mercedes Benz C-Class will be on display.  

The winner of the ‘Me & My Icon’ competition will emerge from a lucky draw and be given the keys to a new Mercedes-Benz C-Class during the car handover scheduled to take place at The Victoria & Alfred (V&A) Waterfront in Cape Town on 13 December.

Supporting competition content will be aired on the V&A Amphitheatre screens ahead of the competition closing date and the Season I short films flighted during the competition period.   

Early next year the 21 ICONS project will also be showcased at the V&A for an extensive, full-spectrum indoor and outdoor exhibition.  

The promotions intend to encourage the community to actively engage with the icons and these platforms offer a unique opportunity to align the brand with a remarkable collection of South African leaders. 

About 21 Icons South Africa21 ICONS South Africa is an annual collection of photographs and short films of South Africans who have reached the pinnacle of achievement in their fields of endeavour. These men and women have been an inspiration through their extraordinary social contribution. It is not a definitive list and does not denote any ranking. 

The short film-series documents the conversations between Steirn as the photographer and filmmaker and the icons. Each short film provides insight into both the subject and photographer's creative approach to the portrait. 

Season two of 21 ICONS South Africa is proudly sponsored by Mercedes-Benz South Africa, Momentum Asset Management, Nikon, Deloitte and the Department of Arts and Culture. Season two debuted on Sunday 03 August continuing for another 20 weeks, one of 21 short films will be screened every Sunday on SABC 3 at 20h27.  

On each of these Sundays, a poster of the icon’s portrait, taken by Adrian Steirn and his creative team, will be published in the City Press to form a memorable collection that everyone can own.Media partners include SABC 3, City Press (Media 24), Provantage and Mxit. 

Social Media:21 Icons engages with the public through:Twitter: @21Icons Website: http://www.21icons.com Mobisite: www.21icons.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/21Icons Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/21ICONS/ iTunes App Store: http://tinyurl.com/lf3cfzm Google Play: http://tinyurl.com/ovtcy45 

On behalf of 21 ICONS South Africa 

Ornico Launches The Media Report 2014  

Sandton, South Africa – Wednesday 26 November 2014. Brand Intelligence™ and media research company, Ornico, today launched its second annual edition of The Media Report. Aimed at helping brands, marketers, media companies and advertising agencies better understand the forces that shape the sub-Saharan media sector, The Media Report 2014 is an electronic magazine available free for download from MarkLives.com or Ornico.co.za 

With over a hundred pages of insights on Africa’s media and research industry, The Media Report 2014 includes contributions from amongst South Africa’s most influential editors and advertising personalities. Gareth Cliff, SA’s ‘enfant terrible’ of radio, talks about streaming media and the reinvention he and his team effected with CliffCentral.com.  

Undoubtedly the most influential and powerful woman in the media in South Africa, former Editor-in-Chief of Huisgenoot, You and Drum, Esmaré Weideman – the CEO of Media24 – speaks about her responsibility for the commercial success of Africa’s largest publishing group, and talks about freedom of expression, advertising, independence and media monopoly. 

Other contributors include Chris Roper, Editor-in-Chief of the Mail & Guardian, who answers questions about editorial independence and honest information. Herman Manson, founder and editor of Marklives.com, talks about the marketing site’s investigative approach to trade media. Anton Harber, Adjunct Professor of Journalism, writes on the fine balance that delivers autonomy in newsrooms and enables journalists to produce more interesting, impactful and useful journalism. 

The Eyewitness News Editor-in-Chief, Katy Katopodis, answers 15 questions on her life, her values, the hurly-burly of daily news, and media independence. But that’s not all. Paulo Dias of Primedia Broadcasting explains the difference between technology and trust in radio, while Lyn Jones, Marketing Manager of Continental Outdoor Media, explores effective out of home advertising in Africa. 

The theme of The Media Report 2014 is independence. “Despite the fact that media independence and open information are the hallmarks of democracy, what we’re seeing is that there is an ongoing attack on media freedoms both in Africa and across the globe,” says Oresti Patricios, CEO of Ornico. 

“The most recent findings of the World Press Freedom Index, which is undertaken by Reporters Without Borders annually, shows that media freedom is on the decline on all continents,” bar Asia. “Africa is one of the biggest culprits and the freedom index indicates that when it comes to media transparency, this continent is in real trouble,” he says.

“Independent media is critical to Africa’s growth, not only because the press can be a watchdog that reports on abuses of power, but also because it educates and informs. Media independence is important to Africa because the media sector plays such an important role in economic growth and social development. Which is in part why we’ve invested resources in creating this media annual,” says Patricios, who adds that this media annual will become a permanent feature of SA’s publishing landscape.

Download your free copy The Media Report here: http://website.ornico.co.za/newsletters/  

-ends-

ABOUT ORNICO:

Ornico provides Reputation, Media and Brand Intelligence™ research across the African continent, making sense of the tsunami of brand, advertising and media information flooding the media space. By collecting and analysing media data and brand publicity across many media channels, Ornico helps put marketing decision makers in the know about the most important strategic decisions they'll ever make regarding their brands. Ornico employs a dedicated team of over 120 people in offices in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana, and has clients that include many of Africa's top companies.

Ornico - Know how. To grow.

CONTACTS: Oresti Patricios – CEO

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Twitter: @orestaki  

Mongezi Mtati – Marketing Manager

Call: 011 884 5041

Ornico Head Office: Tel: +27 11 884-5041

Fax: +27 11 783-6931

Twitter: @OrnicoMedia

Web: www.ornico.co.za

I spoke with Prof EN Barkhuizen from the Talent Management Blueprint Conference and asked her for some of the Key Takeout’s from the conference held on 16th and 17th of October which unpacked Talent Management and Organisational Energy and behaviour

‘Are we making a Difference? ’Was her biggest question for Industry Leaders.

‘There are Only about 100 scientific publications on talent management. ‘There are 32, 4 million people aged between 15 and 64 years (working age population) in South Africa.

Of these 13, 1 million (40%) were employed and 4, 5 million (3, 8%) were unemployed.

This report further pointed out that 41, 0% of the unemployed were students

15, 0% were discouraged work seekers.

38 236 doctors and 5 560 dentists.

The doctor-to-population ratio is estimated to be 0.77 per 1 000.

But because the vast majority of GPs – 73% – work in the private sector, there is just one practicing doctor for every 4 219 people.

(Source: RSA.info, 2014)

From the above stats, it is apparent that we clearly need to become more Talent Intelligent.

Other staggering Stats from hashtag Marius Meyer were the following:         

Human Capital is the biggest concern for CEOs (PwC).        

Only 18% of CEOs feel confident that they have the right people in place to execute strategy (CEB).        

Human Capital is the biggest risk in business (HCI Africa).        

Skills crisis is the top obstacle to economic growth.        

Strikes cost SA R 200 million+ per day.        

SA losing R12 billion a year due to absenteeism.        

Only 19% auditors feel they use HR optimally (CG Index – Institute of Internal Auditors)        

Only 5% employees understand business strategy.        

World-wide 13% of employees actively engaged.        

Companies with engaged employees outperform others by 202% (Dale Carnegie).

Companies with good HR Practices outperform others by treating HR as critical business function, these companies are 105% more profitable.

Average ROI on wellness programmes: 300%.

‘So what do we do about all this? ‘I asked like Dr Lynne Derman, who is a renowned expert in the field of organisational energy and whose Doctoral Study was the first to investigate organizational energy in the South African context.’

‘I am passionate about employee well being, in fact managing talent effectively gives business a competitive advantage.

Aligning Talent Management with Business Strategy is imperative. It is equally important to be equipped with the correct tools‘.

For more information on individual and organisational well-being visit goldfish-consulting

Link: http://goldfish-consulting.co.za/services/talent-management

Adding significant value to its already sterling reputation as a leading supplier of transformational business and individual solutions to the technology, consulting and financial services sectors, the Transformation Capital Group (TCG) has recently acquired Dracore Investments.Based in Honeydew, Gauteng, Dracore provides a diverse and dynamic set of market focused and business operational solutions to customers in the financial, data sciences, social media and communications spheres.

This provides its customers with the necessary resources and expertise to effectively manage their customer lifecycle at every level and maximise market penetration. The new management team of the enlarged TCG company is - Mike Eslick, Reg Bath, Richard Peasey, Chantelle Fraser and Francois Meyer. Dracore can now tap into TCG’s global resources and specialist skills to enable its visions to establish and develop all-encompassing business services and solutions for clients across Africa.

‘Most significantly, TCG shares our long term vision of developing sustainable business solutions by focusing on sustainability, socioeconomic empowerment, profitability and communal reinvestment,’ comments Chantelle Fraser. ‘I’m happy to report that we’ve already made significant progress and, with our combined market knowledge and innovative approach, we’re perfectly positioned to offer any enterprise, large or small, the very best solutions to optimise future opportunities and generate combined benefit to both TCG and its customer base.’

For more information, visit www.tcg-sa.co.za

Firstly we would like to thank all our fans, followers, friends and partners for your continued love and support. The emails you’ve been sending asking questions and the calls you’ve made show us how much you care for us and how important Red Diamond FM has been to you whether for inspiration, entertainment or the growth of your music career as an artist. We would like to assure you all that this establishment is permanent.

Red Diamond FM went through structural and organizational changes over the past two months. We decided to sit down and plan and strategize, we went back to the drawing board to revisit our mission which was to help unsigned musicians and start up record and music labels grow. Having than this, we chose to expand our media platforms in Red Diamond World for the benefit of South African musicians, in all genres. We are working on building a community of young celebrities who deserve to be celebrated because of the hustle they have put in towards their success.

Today Red Diamond FM is under the media division of Red Diamond World (Pty) Ltd (K2014198007), a South African tech company run by young innovative entrepreneurs. The company holds various major market shares in the South African technology industry and above that has founded two unique social networks and a world class eCommerce store.

The multimedia division of Red Diamond World aims to bring innovative internet radio, television and great features via the online magazine T·R·E·N·D·S. This division also assists unsigned South African artists get their music on to over 40 digital stores including iTunes, Amazon and Google Play.

The scope of involvement at this stage of the process transcends the traditional approach to multimedia. What Red Diamond World aims to achieve through its multimedia division goes beyond merely fulfilling the market’s need. Multimedia is a tool for social engineering and it is important that it is used for such. ‘Conscious broadcasting’ is integral to the vision of Red Diamond World. Today, technology has limited the boundaries which were yesterday exploited for much monetary gain. The music industry has become so open with much accessibility to music production that separating the entertainer and the entertained is becoming impossible. Social commentators have also expressed the coming age where genres will be done away with. Music is not the only multimedia division experiencing changes. The worlds of art and fashion have also been demystified through the embrace of pioneers who dare to legitimize the unusual- multimedia has no boundaries.

Red Diamond World is committed to furthering the cause of innovation and creativity. The aim is to bring entertainment to the entertainer. The recognition of upcoming entertainers is pivotal in all our initiatives. Music, art and fashion on radio, television and T·R·E·N·D·S will be geared at exposing fresh innovative expressions of multimedia today.

The underlying principal behind ‘conscious broadcasting’ is the philosophical belief that profit is NOT worth getting by using every means necessary. Red Diamond World understands the failure of unregulated capitalism. Good initiatives end up existing solely for capital gain when their pursuit for profit is achieved at the expense of the basic laws of humanity. Thus, ethical broadcasting is at the forefront of our multimedia division. We have taken great cognisance of the need to humanize every initiative we are involved in including the various companies who have aligned themselves with us. We aim to solidify the image of our partners as well as help achieve their goals in so far as we are able to. ‘Conscious broadcasting’ is geared towards broadcasting with a purpose. It is an ongoing balance of enjoying, shaping and gaining from our world.

Website: rediamondworld.com

Newly launched Indigenus is an evolved, standalone collection of planter designs with its roots in Africa  

It is sadly ironic that the natural allure of plants is rarely complimented by the vessels in which they are housed... Options do not stray too far from the typical Italian terracotta and its descendants, or variations on the glazed Chinese staple. Stylish contemporary planters for home, hotel and lodge are scarce. But all that is set to change with the launch of Indigenus, an evolved collection of contemporary planter designs that trade in the realm of beauty, as befitting their botanical occupants.

Indigenus is the brainchild of design entrepreneur Peter van der Post, who understood that there was a real need for desirable upmarket planters for both indoors and out, from his experience of running sister company Yin Design. Yin Design specializes in high-end planters that cater largely to the corporate office environment and events industry. With Indigenus, Peter’s intention is to create a premium global brand with South African roots that promotes high-end design in the specialized arena that crosses between interior design and landscape architecture.

To this end, he has commissioned custom designs from top South African designers as the basis and distinguishing factor of his unique collections. Indigenus launches by proudly presenting its first set of designs by award-winning designers such as Haldane Martin, Gregor Jenkin and Laurie Wiid Van Heerdeen of Wiid Design. In 2015, the Indigenus launch range will expand to include distinctive creations by renowned architects Stefan Anthoni and Greg Truen of SAOTA fame, and woven iterations by Philippa Thorne of Gone Rural.

The 2014 launch collection features jaw-dropping solutions for both interior and exterior application. All Indigenus designs are styled to suit indoors and engineered to weather the harshest of exteriors. All the planters are constructed from natural materials, such as sustainably sourced timber, iron and limestone, and handcrafted by master joiners and artisans as a warm riposte to mass-produced goods.

“From a quality and a longevity perspective, I am tired of artificial materials,” Peter explains. “Anything mass-produced is losing its lustre, and these are handmade; a person’s hand goes into designing and making these things and this gives them something more special.”

“I am no longer inspired by simply utilitarian manufactured objects and I would really struggle with pushing Indigenus through if it was just another challenger to an already over-saturated market,” Peter states.

Indigenus is indeed a standalone offering. This timely and magnificent solution to a need in the marketplace is matched with design integrity and local production authenticity.

Visit www.indigenus.co.za or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for enquiries. 

IMAGES:Images supplied by Indigenus & available in high resolution.

All plants supplied by Starke Ayres.Images by Micky HoyleProduction by Tina-Marie Malherbe [ENDS]PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY:Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd

One of South Africa’s foremost media intelligence service providers, ROiAfrica’s website www.roiafrica.com has just been listed on the Drupal Site, as “Editor’s Pick” for the ‘best looking” sites.

ROi Africa’s site was developed by Adappt UK, headed up by Jon Antony, combining technical expertise, creativity and passion. ROi Africa is a unique company with a unique site, which can inspire innovative use of the Drupal technology.

According to ROi Africa Managing Director, Tonya Khoury, “The ROi Africa site was developed specifically to drive traffic to start a sales conversation, but also to showcase the ability of the smart technology we provide.”

“We are honoured to be showcased by Drupal, and more importantly we are delighted at the ease of Drupal’s functionality to keep our content fresh and relevant,” she adds. Drupal, an open source content management platform, powers millions of websites and applications worldwide. Drupal is used as a back-end framework of at least 2.1% of sites worldwide.

Drupal allows non-technical users to add and edit content without knowing anything about web design. This is perfect for an organisation, like ROi Africa, which operates in the media industry, and need to constantly update their site to link back to main news and social media items.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

NAME: Tonya Khoury
TEL: 073 874 5377
E-MAIL: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
TWITTER: @tonyaroi / @roiafrica
FACEBOOK: /roiafrica
WEBSITE: www.roiafrica.com

Local digital marketing agency 'The Media Image' has been shortlisted for one organic search (SEO) and two paid search (PPC) awards by international body the 'UK Search Awards'. This international recognition comes at a time when many industry observers are operating under the assumption that the local digital search industry is several years behind their overseas counterparts.

In September 2013, search engine giant, Google, introduced an algorithm change called Hummingbird and began blocking keyword data from their tool 'Google Analytics'. This made accurate reporting a challenge for most search companies. In addition, and again in 2013, the search giant also launched its 'enhanced campaigns' pay-per-click (PPC) upgrade – making it a year of rigorous adaptation for digital marketers on a global scale.  

In the face of this year of change, many search and digital marketing companies folded. Many local agencies were already in the process of merging with larger, international bodies and others began merger processes after these updates occurred. On the whole, South African search marketing agencies are often considered to be several years behind their overseas equivalents and lacking in experience, but one of the primary reasons for this actually cited by insiders as being related to the lower internet penetration levels of the local market.  

Lower internet penetration, however, has not slowed all local agencies or businesses. The most successful search campaigns have capitalised on the growth of mobile marketing, display innovations, advanced attribution and measurement systems, as well as advanced marketing or strategically targeted PPC (pay per click) ads. The statistics show that globally, medium to large businesses have increased their online marketing budget for 2014 and will do so again in 2015 – and South African companies hoping to pull ahead of local competitors are doing the same.  

In the face of The Media Image's nominations for work on Gracewell healthcare, Virgin Active UK as well as international gaming operator Coral, co-founder and managing director Pete Brooke-Sumner had the following to say,

"TMI is very proud of the positive and continual impact we have made on the local search market. Beyond this we are particularly proud of our impact and recognition in the competitive UK market, where we have been short listed for three UK search awards, competing against some of Europe's top search agencies. We see this as testament to the fact that strong, experienced local agencies like TMI can compete and succeed in established foreign markets. We are excited to continue to innovate and drive awareness and growth in both the UK and SA markets”