Chantell’s interview with 567 Cape Talk, 8 October 2019

by Vulpes Vulpes

On Wednesday 8 October, Chantell was on her regular spot as a trends analyst for Kieno Kammies on 567 Cape Talk. On this occasion, Chantell provided arguments for the controversial proposed changes to the South African education system that would see learners able to leave school with a certificate at the end of Grade 7 (about 14 years-old).

Chantell points out the strategic decision-making already needed of learners at that age, highlights some uncomfortable truths about the current education system, and clarifies the big 'ifs' needed to be in place for the new proposals to work.

She also explains how

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Chantell’s interview with 567 Cape Talk 3 July 2019

by Vulpes Vulpes

On Wednesday 3rd July, Chantell was on her regular spot as a trends analyst for Kieno Kammies, the weekday breakfast show host on 567 Cape Talk. On this occasion, she spoke about education in South Africa and whether it is lacking the levels of innovation needed to address the radically changing world of work.

She also touched on the flags mindofafox are watching in this regard.

You can hear it as a podcast on the Cape Talk website here.

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A tale of two centuries

by Clem Sunter

Imagine you were asked in 1919 what the narrative might be for the rest of the 20th century in terms of major developments. You might well have said that cars and planes were going to revolutionise transport and change where and how we lived.  You could have anticipated the radio transforming the way we got our news and were entertained. 

Pushing the envelope, you might have added that pictures would accompany sound one day and captured the idea of television. Unless you had extraordinary powers of foresight, you would not have played a scenario of the rise of computers, the internet and cell phones in the

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Fox Bytes 21 – the mad-about-sport issue

by Vulpes Vulpes

Not for sale!

Britain has a football problem. The Football Association (FA) - which oversees British football - has 91 000 affiliated clubs in 1 100 leagues. Most are ‘grassroots clubs’ in small towns and cities. Because of funding cuts to local authorities, pitches and facilities are becoming neglected. Last year, more than 147,000 grassroots matches were postponed because the pitches were unplayable. So in April this year, the FA announced it was selling Wembley Stadium - the ‘home’ of British football - to raise funds to invest in grassroots clubs.  It was as if the Queen were selling the

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Fox Bytes 20 – the animal analogy issue

by Vulpes Vulpes

Flying cow art by the legendary Barry Downard. Used with permission. See more of his work here.

 

Like cattle to the slaughter

Nothing says you’re successful in business like a corner office with a view. For everyone else, there’s the bullpen. And you don’t want to be in the bullpen. Successful startups usually begin with everyone packed into a small office space. That’s not bad at first because everyone knows everyone else, and you’re all excited to be part of something new, agile, and exciting. But as companies grow, staff get bigger and a corporate culture takes hold, an ‘altogether’

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Fox Bytes 19 – The spin issue

by Vulpes Vulpes

This is going to hurt. Saying “we need a turnaround strategy” is a little like saying, “we need some water”…because you’re on fire! It is a scream of panic wrapped in jargon whisper. It’s also the start of a game of pain. Essentially a turnaround strategy is an admission that the direction a company has gone is wrong, hence the need to turn it around. The ‘wrongness’ is normally shown in successive losses, declining market share, persistent negative cash flows, or loss of employees or clients to competitors. The possible causes are numerous, but usually point towards bad management, a muddled strategy, and a blindness

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Fox Bytes 18 – The, like, seriously chilled issue

by Vulpes Vulpes

Icebreakers no longer needed. A dramatic and unfortunate game is playing north - way up north - and it’s pitting economics against the environment. Last month, the Arctic Ocean - normally a no-go area for all but the bravest of sailors in specially-constructed icebreakers - saw the first ever container ship slip alone, and somewhat gingerly, through its seas.  The Venta Maersk sailed from Vladivostok on Russia’s east coast to St Petersburg on the Baltic coast. So what made the Venta Maersk’s trip possible? In brief: global warming. The area of the Arctic Ocean covered by ice

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Fox Bytes 17 – The make-believe issue

by Vulpes Vulpes

Funny money

Whereas some games have been around since humanoids dragged their knuckles across the plains of Africa, others have only emerged since those knuckles have wrapped around cellphones. Imaginary money is one of them. Standard (fiat) currencies such as pounds, dollars and rands are issued - and, importantly, backed - by central banks or governments. But they’re not the only way of paying for things.  Over the last couple of years, cryptocurrencies, also called digital currencies, have become increasingly accepted by people and merchants as a means of payment for goods or services. Bitcoin, Ripple, and Ethereum are probably the best known. But there

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Fox Bytes 16 – The extremely dangerous issue

by Vulpes Vulpes

A massacre in the wings

A cat-and-mouse game is about to become a massacre. For the last 7 years, forces of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria - backed by Iran and Russia - have been pursuing rebel forces holding out in towns around the country. The towns, and the civilians within them, have been mercilessly bombed into submission; those civilians left alive then flee to the next town.  Western countries, and Turkey, have provided patchy support for the rebels, and, at the same time, tried diplomatic means to negotiate a peace. They have failed. The rebels, now reduced to a ragtag bunch including

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