For most of his entrepreneurial career, Christo Davel has worked at the intersection of finance and technology, even before “fintech” was a thing. Among other businesses, he founded what became Old Mutual Direct, 20twenty (South Africa’s first pure online bank), and 22seven – which is where we met. Disclosure: we have become friends and have worked together on and off since then. In that time, he’s used some expressions that struck and stuck with me. In this interview, I asked him about them.
Read morePurpose is positioning
Businesses and marketers have gone to quite bizarre lengths to differentiate their brands, products and services. But is it really necessary to define yourself in relation to others, or by what you’re not?
Read morePurpose is the new Mission Statement
Unlike mission statements, purpose may actually change the way businesses do business. And purpose will probably put mission statements out of business.
Read moreDo we lose our humanity when we put on our work clothes?
I once worked at a company where the marketing team had come up with an idea, for a corporate audience, that was overtly and deliberately socially and environmentally responsible. When they showed the idea to the sales team, one of the responses was that “corporates don’t care about CSR.”
Read moreTell your story by answering 3 questions
Some stories are complex. Some are muddled or muddied. Some are overwritten or under-edited. Or sometimes you're too close to a story to be able to see it clearly. In instances like these, it's helpful to simplify your story to the answers of just three questions.
Read moreWork with purpose
There's a lot to be said for having fun at work, and you should always have some, but even having a lot of it is not going to stop you from feeling a little empty.
Read moreWhat's deeper than data-based decision-making?
I'm not against data. We certainly should use it. But decisions made only on data can be narrow and short-term.
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