CEOs and senior management from organisations in various sectors gathered on 5th April 2017 for the Digital Future Megabyting Session– a fireside breakfast meeting with an opening from Agrippa Mugwagwa, Executive Director of Retail and eCommerce at FBC Bank, and insights from AMH Group Managing Director Vincent Kahiya.
Steward Bank CEO Dr. Lance Mambondiani delivered a keynote address encapsulating key statistics and highlighting areas that senior management should address in order to respond to the demands of the digital age. “As long as we are not evolving our businesses to the tune of global trends, we are businesses of the past, not of the future. We have to evolve or die,” he emphasised.
With two companies in a race to become the first trillion dollar business: Alphabet (Google’s parent company) and Apple, the digital age is not slowing down.
Every business should be concerned with ‘speed to market’ and ‘costs of distribution’, service, and getting the product to the market. Digital platforms are valuable in the way they allow on-boarding of customers at a cheaper cost. Dr Mambondiani quoted Bill Gates as saying “banking is necessary. Banks are not,” asserting that legacy banks are forced to evolve due to market pressure and innovations.
Fintech is competing with traditional banks, service by service. Banking is a land of digital opportunities, and while every business will be tested as it evolves in the digital space, it is more important to adapt according to customer needs. “We are not living in the digital ‘era’ because digital is now. Digital is the present and it’s here to stay,” he concluded.
Digital Future 2017 will present key speakers from prominent organisations on the continent, further elaborating on ideas introduced at the CEO Megabyting Session.
Tumi Chaka, an Analytical Lead at Google, will present experience working in data analytics to highlight best practice analysis techniques for brand marketers. His expertise enables businesses to leverage their data and derive strategic insights for marketing strategies.
Sonia Sengupta, Marketing Executive for MNet’s Eastern and Southern African channels, will bring insights from her experiences as a Market Researcher for GfK, specialising in telecoms, consumer electronics and gaming sectors for the Angolan, Mozambican and South African markets.
Kalay Maistry, Business Unit Head at Magna Carta Reputation Management Consultants (South Africa), will present specialised knowledge drawn from over 20 years’ experience as a journalist and broadcast technical advisor. With experience as a Southern African correspondent at organisations such as Al Jazeera English, SABC, Talk Radio 702, ETV among others, Maistry will provide invaluable knowledge for media practitioners.
A host of local content producers and distributors will also be in attendance sharing their insights to local market dynamics and how best practitioners can get their hands wrapped around doing business online in Zimbabwe.
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Dr. Lance Mambondiani – is Steward Bank evolving or dying?