BEE Partner, South Africa Economy Watch

If the South African government wants to see the country become successful in the global environment, it needs the backing not only of the citizens of the country, but also of all the other key stakeholders. These include investors, business people, the trade union movement, as well as all financial and socio-economic institutions. Strategic thinking, whether at national or corporate level, depends on the ability of a government or management team to create and then harness a willingness amongst people to participate in outmanoeuvring the efforts of other countries and/or companies. Read the rest of this entry »

It is important for a government to fully understand the competitive dynamics of the global environment if it is to successfully take the country and its people forward. A political leader who is able to think and act locally, but is unable to do so on a global basis, is a liability to the development of the country. Advancing a country’s interests is all about economic and social development. A government that cannot create the right kind of climate for coordinated development is failing in its duty — not only to its electorate, but also to every single stakeholder. More and more national stakeholders throughout the world’s nations are beginning to demand this from their political leaders. Scotland is a good example. It has a mature, service-dominated economy with a proud tradition in all aspects of human endeavour far beyond its size or population. Yet the Scottish business sector recently challenged the nation’s political leaders, who themselves often call for domestic firms to become more globally competitive, to raise their own standards and play a greater role in assisting the country to advance its global competitiveness.” Read the rest of this entry »

The strength of a country and/or a business organisation, and therefore the strength of its strategy, is created by its human capital. At the heart of strategic thinking lies the purpose of preserving the environment: at the macro-level, preservation of the economy, whilst, at the micro-level, preservation of the industry participants. Few firms think about this. Individual agendas focus on maximising profits and, in neo-liberal market economics, maximising shareholder value at the expense of social values. Yet contributing towards industry and economic preservation benefits a nation in the long term and gives it economic strength, as well as the wherewithal for competing on the global stage. Read the rest of this entry »

In the New South Africa, it is interesting to align these six points with the concept of political neutrality, at least in the short t_omedium term. As an emerging nation builds itself and seeks to create for itself a desirable position in the world’s economic rankings, its entire focus should be orientated towards that purpose. Nothing should distract it from achieving its goal. Its resources, both human and otherwise, must be channelled into creating the right kind of society that will provide prosperity to the citizens of the country Political and social distractions channel resources away from the efforts of global economic and business competitiveness. The leaders of the country must be concerned with their own nation first, before they can deal with issues in other countries. Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s take a look at them and interpret each in terms of an emerging country like South Africa, which aims to become a competitive nation in the world rankings.

According to Sun Tzu, in a nation-state that is seeking to compete in the global arena, the development of a proper strategy is vital to the future welfare of the people of that country. Leaving a country’s economic future in the hands of a political manifesto may well satisfy the aspirations of a political few; however, the development of a non-aligned strategy has a better chance of serving a greater percentage of the population and taking the country forward in its economic growth. Read the rest of this entry »

If South Africa wishes to become a highly successful emerging nation, one that can seriously challenge for position in the world economic rankings and have its business corporations develop _agreater sense of competitiveness, a change in strategic outlook at both government and corporate level is required. This aims to outline the kind of approach an emerging nation like South Africa needs in order to enhance its competitive prowess at both national and corporate level.

Before a home-grown business organisation in an emerging economy can achieve a higher level of competitiveness, the condition_sin that country have to be conducive to competitive thinking.’ Read the rest of this entry »

Wing says that, since the time of Sun Tzu, the major conflict experienced throughout the world has remained the same, namely the struggle for ideological supremacy and the control of resources.’ In nation-states, and especially in the current global environment, _competition takes place for people, materials, technology and/or financial resources. A key principle in making one’s position unassailable is for the government of the day to view its nation as a complete and interdependable entity, and to take steps to ensure it survives as such. Sun Tzu said that it is not individually, but altogether, as a single and complete entity, that the people of the world face survival or extinction.’ Read the rest of this entry »

2. Global reach

Q Is South Africa’s reputation as a nation to buy into — whether the customer is a foreign investor, a tourist, a potential immigrant or from one of the other customer categories — strong and solid throughout the world? In this context, can branding be a powerful tool? Finland, for example, embarked on a successful campaign to enhance its image and position as a country associated with hi-tech innovation. It wanted to assist its companies to become more competitive in the United States, and used branding to improve its image. Read the rest of this entry »

The obvious starting point for the marketing of South Africa is to decide what the marketing objectives are. This presupposes that the right ‘product‘ has been created to suit the requirements of the target customers. What does the nation not just want, but need in order to attract tourists, investors, immigrants, etc.? Fancy slogans and logos will do nothing for the country if South Africa Inc., the product, is not right, and the strategists have not paid sufficient attention to what the country needs to achieve in this context.

Moreover, the people of South Africa should be brought into the process to support this initiative, and they have to be made aware of the importance of their role in trying to attract and keep customers for the country. Internal marketing therefore has a role to play in shaping the perceptions, beliefs and actions of the citizens of this country in a collective effort to make the country more competitive in the global marketplace. Read the rest of this entry »

The domestic investor is yet another class of customer. In June 2004, Allister Sparks, veteran journalist and political commentator, asked the following question: ‘Why do our business leaders seemso reluctant to invest in the new South Africa?’ In marketing terms, his question was really, ‘Why don’t our domestic investors want to buy South Africa, the product?’ Sparks quoted a figure of R392 billion — nearly a third of South Africa’s GDP — which is sitting in the balance sheets of South African corporations and that could be invested in the country. The truth of the matter is, as a custome_rof the country, a domestic investor is going to weigh up the kind of returns to be received and the risk to be faced before this ‘product‘ is consumed. Read the rest of this entry »

In each of the customer segments mentioned above, the ‘product’ has to be right so that the customer has a great experience of the country relative to the experience that can be gained elsewhere. For example, tourists not only want to enjoy the natural beauty and amenities of our country, but want to know that they will not be mugged on Durban’s beachfront, or attacked in their hotels in Johannesburg. They will also expect to be treated properly by customs officials at the various points of entry and exit. Should they embark on a tour of the country, they should feel confident that their lives would not be at risk owing to unscrupulous tour companies who put unroadworthy vehicles driven by inexperienced drivers on the road. Read the rest of this entry »

A well-known marketing adage states that a bad product will not last very long in the marketplace. No amount of sales, advertising or promotional effort will do it any good if people simply do not want to buy it. As any first-year marketing student knows, and in the words of famed marketing guru Philip Kotler, the marketing concept states that ‘the key to achieving organisational goals consists in determining the needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors’: In today’s bitterly contested global marketplace, countries have customers and competitors too. South Africa is no exception. Read the rest of this entry »

SUGGESTIONS FOR THE FUTURE

A number of salient issues and suggestions have emerged, which could form the basis of debate on the future of our country’s prosperity in the global arena:

Suggestion 1

Make The Art of War compulsory reading for all South African political and business leaders. It should also be part of the curricula in our business schools and universities, to help teach students to think strategically and competitively. Read the rest of this entry »

Scenario No. 5

At the end of 2004, Singapore announced that it would be increasing its technical assistance to Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam by approximately US$30 million. Viewed by its government as part of the Initiative for ASEAN Integration, an initiative launched in 2000, Singapore will be providing assistance of a technical nature, in which it has the expertise. Why should Singapore take su_ch step, and what are the implications for global competitiven_ess.

Firstly, Singapore has an interest in the stability and welfar_{e o}f its neighbours, since these poorer countries, along with Singapore help to comprise the region. Read the rest of this entry »

Scenario No. 2

During 2004, the likelihood of a pan-Asian integrated economic and free trade arrangement came a step closer to fruition. At the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Laos, a number of important linkages took place, which will have far- reaching ramifications for the intensification of global competition between nations, and globalisation in general.’ China signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with ASEAN (which consists of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) at the summit. This will soon be followed by Japan, India and Korea. Japan, Korea and China are also considering an FTA amongst themselves, whilst India is contemplating an FTA with China. What appears to be emerging is an FTA between Japan, ASEAN, China, India and Korea, or what is being touted as JACIK. Analysts are predicting the expansion of ASEAN into a broader Asian economic community. Read the rest of this entry »