Author Archives: Nilesh Makan

Vanilla ice was ahead of the curve when coming up with the lyrics of Ice Ice Baby. The lyrics in the following line of the song are: “Ice is back with my brand new invention”. While there are differences between them, invention, innovation and creativity are part of the same WhatsApp group, and all ofContinue reading “Alright Stop, Collaborate and Listen”

While the world has been changing at an exponential pace over the last decade, it doesn’t compare with the seismic shifts that have transformed our lives over the past year or so. With the advent of Covid, we have moved into a discontinuous and digital world, impacting society as a whole. As parts of theContinue reading “Strategic Agility – Strategy in the era of disruption”

This week has been one of the darkest in South Africa’s young democracy. The scenes of looting, destruction and violence are heart-wrenching. The complete disregard for other people’s property, belongings and livelihoods is unbearable to watch. High levels of youth unemployment, hunger, growing inequality and the lack of opportunities have been a ticking time-bomb. ExacerbatedContinue reading “Trying to find a little optimism is a sea of despair”

In photography, the Depth of Field is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects that are in sharp focus of an image. To clarify, this means that when you see a photograph where the subject is in focus with the rest of the image blurred out, there is a very narrow depth of field.Continue reading “Increasing our Depth of Field”

When the pandemic first hit in March 2020, there was this joke doing the rounds on social media. It went something like this: Who is leading Digital Transformation in your business: The Chief Executive Officer? the Chief Digital Officer? Covid19? Covid19 amplified the speed at which companies adopted digital technologies with the promise of hugeContinue reading “The great digital divide”

Fluidity is defined as the state of being unsettled or unstable. In other words, to have a sense of changeability.  Bruce Lee epitomised fluidity and practiced this ability to be in a constant state of flow which is a state of intense focus. Being focused is also knowing how to adapt and respond as necessary.Continue reading “Resilience in a world without rules”

As fireworks lit up the night sky on the 31 December 2019, as we hugged loved ones, families and friends, as the sound of joy and happiness rang through the streets, we ushered in 2020. There was so much hope and optimism for what the new year was to bring. My personal new year’s socialContinue reading “Pivotal”

At the University of California at Irvine, instead of assuming the best direction students would take to get to their classes, they just planted grass… They then waited a year, looked at where people had made the paths in the grass and paved the walkways there. This is a fantastic example of feedback loops thatContinue reading “Adapting vs Defining”

The journey to success, whatever success means for you, is long and it is likely going to take time to get there. On this journey, we may get lost along the way. It is for this reason that we should establish what our True North is. True North is a key concept in Lean processContinue reading “Finding your True North”

In a fast pace and ever-changing world, digital transformation is a reality that individuals and companies must embrace. More and more, people and businesses need leverage these digital technologies to become bionic. This notion of being bionic is key to embracing uncertainty. What does it mean to be bionic? In the 80s, there was aContinue reading “The Six Million Dollar Man | Die Man van Staal”