In this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, Wetility brand ambassador and Springbok rugby legend Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira discusses Wetility’s solar power products. Mtawarira began playing for the Springboks in 2008 and retired in 2019 after winning the Rugby World Cup that same year. In 2022, Mtawarira founded The Beast Wine Collection and is currently studying towards an MBA with Henley Business School. Mtawarira is also the brand ambassador for Wetility, where he champions the...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Head of First for Women Seugnette van Wyngaard discusses the importance of offering insurance products tailored for women. First for Women is owned by Telesure Investment Holdings (TIH), and before taking on her current role in 2018, van Wyngaard worked in several other positions in the group. In her lead role, Van Wyngaard is responsible for guiding First for Women’s growth by identifying market gaps and planning how to fill them. Van...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Absa CIB Managing Executive for ESG Msizi Khoza discusses how Absa CIB supports sustainability initiatives. In his current role, Khoza provides executive leadership over the firm’s numerous ESG-related initiatives. He also works with clients to help them access local and international capital markets that meet their financing needs. This What’s Next interview begins with Khoza discussing the pressures of his position, before unpacking the...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Cogence CEO Jonel Matthee-Ferreira discusses Cogence’s partnership with Discovery, and how it helps Cogence build superior financial products. Matthee-Ferreira joined Cogence in January 2024 and has assumed the roles of CEO and CIO immediately. Before joining Cogence, Matthee-Ferreira worked at Sanlam Multi-Management and Absa Multi-Management. In this interview, Matthee-Ferreira begins by detailing how her career has led to her current...

In South Africa, 45% of corporations are actively using GenAI. Unlock valuable insights into the use of GenAI and access recent research by World Wide Worx, Dell Technologies and Intel. To view the webcast announcement of the research results, contact [email protected] and we will send you the link.

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Amazon Web Services (AWS) Country General Manager for South Africa, Chris Erasmus, discusses the importance of AI technology. Erasmus is responsible for setting AWS’s local strategy and guiding its local growth. He is well-qualified for this job, as he boasts over 15 years of strategic, commercial, and operational experience. Erasmus begins the interview by unpacking why Amazon sees AI as an important technology. He discusses the three...

In this What’s Next in Finance with Aki Anastasiou interview, Fedgroup’s Michael Field unpacks the biggest challenges facing local investors. Field is the General Manager for Investments at Fedgroup and has worked for the company since 2011. Before working at Fedgroup, he gained experience working for Murray and Roberts, and MegChem Engineering and Drafting Services. Field begins the interview by discussing which factors investors must prioritise to mitigate risk when investing in...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, MediaTek’s Director of Business Development for the MEA region, Rami Osman, unpacks the key features of the Dimensity 9300 chip. In 2006, he joined Microsoft as a Corporate Account Manager, before joining Qualcomm as the Country Manager for Business Development in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) and Levant countries. Osman then took on his current position at MediaTek in 2014, where he leads the team that supports the MEA region’s rising...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, HONOR South Africa General Manager Fred Zhou explains what makes the new HONOR Magic Series smartphones disruptive in South Africa. HONOR is a leading global provider of smart devices and was founded in 2013. Headquartered in Shenzhen, China, HONOR has grown to become the biggest smartphone brand in the Chinese market and has quickly expanded this popularity worldwide. With the launch of two new flagship smartphones, Honor expects to grow...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, PEP Chief Executive Michael Silke discusses PAXI – PEP’s counter-to-counter parcel delivery service. Silke has over 21 years of experience in the retail sector – much of which has been with PEP. In his current role, Silke oversees all PEP’s departments – including Cellular, Financial Services, FMCG, and PAXI. In this interview, Silke begins by explaining why PEP decided to launch its PAXI parcel service. He then unpacks how the solution...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Microsoft experts John Press and Michelle Olivier explain how AI tools take Windows 11 to the next level. John Press is a sales and marketing executive at Microsoft Device and Partner Solution Business in South Africa. He has been with Microsoft for over 16 years and has gained experience across many of its departments, including Product Management, Category Management, Channel Management, and Business Development. He was joined by...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Comsol founder and CEO Iain Stevenson unveils Comsol’s new business-focused 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) product. Stevenson boasts 27 years of experience in the telecommunications industry, having founded Comsol in 1997. As CEO, Stevenson continues to guide the business's overall direction to ensure its continued success and growth. Stevenson begins the interview by unpacking the significance of Comsol’s new business-focused 5G FWA...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, MasterStart Chief Learning Officer Dr Alexia Cox discusses why it is important for South African companies to embrace innovative learning solutions. Dr Cox holds a PhD in Human Resource Management and Literature from the University of Stellenbosch, as well as a Masters in Art, English Language, and Culture and a Bachelors in Management Science from Leiden University. Dr Cox begins the interview by providing an overview of MasterStart’s...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, ESET Southern Africa Group CTO Adrian Stanford unpacks how AI is transforming the cybersecurity industry. Stanford is an experienced cybersecurity professional who bridges the gap between business and technical teams to deliver excellent outcomes. This is thanks to his strong ethos of curiosity and his passion for understanding how things work - both technically and commercially. He strongly believes that the starting point of any...

On this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, Telkom Group CEO Serame Taukobong discusses the company’s evolution into an Infraco. Taukobong studied at the University of Cape Town, where he completed a BSc degree in chemistry, and went on to study executive management courses at IMD in Switzerland, GIBS, INSEAD in Singapore, and the Wharton School of Business. In 2018, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer for Telkom’s consumer business, and he grew Telkom’s mobile business by over...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, CipherWave CEO Shamith Maharaj discusses CipherWave’s expansion plans for Africa. Maharaj has extensive knowledge in project management, network design, network activations, network operations, network management, IT management, and service assurance. Maharaj joined BCX in 2019 as the Executive for Data Networks before moving to CipherWave in 2023. Maharaj began the interview by discussing CipherWave’s new strategy and direction for the...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Hein Engelbrecht — the Group Chief Executive Officer at Mustek Limited — discusses the role of education and training services in ending South Africa’s technology skills shortage. Engelbrecht joined Mustek in 1997 as Group Financial Manager and was promoted to Group Financial Director in 2001. He was then promoted to Group Managing Director, and spent 14 years in this role before being appointed as Mustek CEO in 2022. Engelbrecht begins...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub discusses Vodacom’s huge success – both in South Africa and across the continent. In 2011, Joosub was appointed CEO of Vodafone Spain, before returning to South Africa to take the reins as Group CEO of Vodacom in 2012. He has held this position since and has led Vodacom from strength to strength, contributing to his reputation as a world-class CEO. In this What’s Next interview, Joosub discusses the...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Supersonic Managing Director Carolyn Holgate unveils her customer-centric vision for the ISP in 2024 and beyond. Holgate unpacks her vision for Supersonic and explains how the company will navigate the changing broadband landscape in South Africa. She emphasizes that because Supersonic is not a tier 1 ISP, the company can be more agile and deliver a superior customer journey to its users. As a result of this, Supersonic’s primary focus is...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Dimension Data CEO Alan Turnley-Jones discusses why the company is rebranding to NTT Data. Turnley-Jones held multiple managerial roles at BCX in the 1990s before joining Dimension Data in 1999. Turnley-Jones also held other roles at Dimension Data, such as Services Executive and Managed Cloud and Infrastructure Services Executive, before taking over the reins as CEO in 2022. Towards the end of 2023, Dimension Data announced that after 40...

In this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, Justin Hume – the Vice President of Mobile at Samsung South Africa – unpacks the newly launched Samsung Galaxy S24 flagship smartphone lineup. Hume has worked in the cellular industry since 1997. He first served as the Marketing Manager for Mobile Phones at Samsung Electronics for 11 years before joining Altech Autopage Cellular as its Marketing Director in 2008. In this interview, Hume meets with Aki Anastasiou to discuss Samsung’s newly...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Thato Matsio – The Impact Catalyst Head of Department: ICT and Education – discusses the Northern Cape School Connectivity project. Matsio has helped customers and organisations deliver ICT projects and programmes for the past 14 years while serving in a variety of important roles, including: • Acting Manager of ICT Operations and Project Management at the Agricultural Research Council. • ICT Project Manager and Senior Manager for Hosting...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Datacentrix Sales Leader for Digital Business Solutions, Phil Anderson, discusses the importance of embracing AI in business. Anderson is an experienced technology delivery and sales leader who is fulfilled by helping clients create more profitable, sustainable businesses through technology adoption. In this interview, Anderson outlines how new innovations in the AI industry can benefit South African businesses. Anderson then discusses the...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Andrew Allison – CCO of Red & Yellow Creative School of Business – explains how educators can keep up with the latest trends. Allison is a Chartered Management Accountant with a keen interest in the intersection of technology and marketing with education, transformation, and diversity. Allison begins the interview by explaining what it means for educators to be ‘looking around the corner’ and detailing how tertiary educators can be...