Rowan Spazzoli

Strategist. Lecturer. Consultant

Strategy Webinar Resources

For anyone tuning in to my webinar today, here is the list of resources. Below you’ll find the slides I’m using as well as all of the various organisations and tools I refer to. (I’ll update this post with more info after the webinar)

The direct link to the stream can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqrnhemvjHk

The topic for the webinar is  “Strategic Thinking: Solving Global Challenges” and will cover some of the most important strategy tools that I teach at the University of Cape Town, applied in a global development context.

Slides for the webinar

If you’d like a copy of my slides, follow the link below:

GC Webinar_ StrategyDownload

Part 1: Defining Strategy

  • Battle of Isandlwana: http://www.thisiskzn.co.za/reliving-battle-isandlwana-fugitives-drift-lodge/

Part 2: Rumelt Framework

  • Good Strategy/Bad Strategy: http://goodbadstrategy.com/
  • Bulungula incubator:  http://bulungulaincubator.org/

Part 3: Strategy Tools 

  • Map the system: http://mapthesystem.sbs.ox.ac.uk/resources/
  • Theory of Change:  https://www.povertyactionlab.org/sites/default/files/3.%20Theory%20of%20Change%202014.03.10.pdf
  • The Clothing Bank: http://www.theclothingbank.org.za/

About Global Changemakers

A big thank you to Courtney and the team who have put this together. Details about Global Changemakers are below 

Global Changmakers is one of the world’s largest youth empowerment organisations headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland and represented in over 180 countries – from refugee camps in Europe to sprawling cities in Asia, indigenous communities in South America, islands in the Pacific and beyond – by 1000 of our ‘Global Changemakers’. These changemakers are young people who work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within their communities, countries, regions and across the world and whose work has benefited over 4 million people to date.

Follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more updates and info on their work. 

Image is intro slide for the webinar

Blog: 330/365. Click here to read about my #365of25 journey
Song of the day: Opposite the Other - High Hopes
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Remember: your environment shapes you

Today I had a conversation with one of my former students (let’s call her Cath) about careers, which included a discussion on yesterday’s blogpost. We ended up specifically speaking about the convergent nature of how we decide our careers, and how your environment shapes what is (perceived to be) available to you.

This point came up in two dramatically different ways.

The first was that Cath works for a literacy NGO where she has been teaching children to read. One of her students told her that he wanted to work as a shop assistant at a discount retailer when he was older. When pressed with why he wanted to do that, he explained that his mom liked this particular retailer and it was the best place he’d ever seen.

In other words, all the information available to him was that this was the ultimate career to strive towards. And the reason that this was frustrating for Cath was that as soon as she explained how many other options were available to the child, he lit up at the ideas that existed

The second, in a great twist of irony, was that Cath has been wanting to change her career path. She dislikes the current trajectory (accounting) and would love to be involved in education. Whenever she talks about education, she lights up like a Christmas tree. And she shows her spark.

However, everyone around Cath is following the accounting path. All her friends and classmates. And her family expect her to go down that path too.

So in the same way that her student’s environment points them to working at a discount retailer, her environment points her to becoming an accountant.

And the best way to get out of this?

Incorporate influences into your environment. Have people show you there is a world outside your bubble. Find teachers, friends, mentors or role models.

And this applies to Cath’s student too. One of the best ways for them to dream bigger is to have influences like her in their life. And exposure to people from their community that have gone on to do incredible things.

We must never forget that our environment shapes our decisions. And that we can influence this environment to help us find and reach our goals and dreams.

Image was taken at Khayelitsha Mall last week friday

Blog: 328/365. Click here to read about my #365of25 journey
Song of the day: Younger - Opposite the Other 
(this song fits the theme of this blog post quite nicely)
(And it's by former UCT students)
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My Webinar on Strategy with Global Changemakers

Ever wanted to hear me deliver a seminar?

If your answer is no… then…. um… that’s okay. My feelings aren’t hurt or anything.

But if your answer is yes, then you’re in luck!

On Thursday 11 October at 2pm CET (that’s 3pm in South Africa) I’ll be giving a webinar for Global Changemakers as part of their free webinar series. 

The topic for the webinar is  “Strategic Thinking: Solving Global Challenges” and will cover some of the most important strategy tools that I teach at the University of Cape Town, applied in a global development context.

If you’d like to sign up for it you can do so here (or here: 
https://goo.gl/forms/omq9CPiQ5Gr6sfXE3). You’ll be able to ask questions on the sign up or during the webinar itself (or you can email me at rspazzoli@gmail.com)

The direct link to the stream can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqrnhemvjHk

The webinar is free and open to anyone, anywhere. So you’re welcome to invite friends and family to join in.

A big thank you to Courtney and the team who have put this together. Details about Global Changemakers are below (and updates will be posted to their Facebook page).

See you next week!

About Global Changemakers

Global Changmakers is one of the world’s largest youth empowerment organisations headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland and represented in over 180 countries – from refugee camps in Europe to sprawling cities in Asia, indigenous communities in South America, islands in the Pacific and beyond – by 1000 of our ‘Global Changemakers’. These changemakers are young people who work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within their communities, countries, regions and across the world and whose work has benefited over 4 million people to date.

Follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more updates and info on their work. 

Image is the information for the webinar 🙂

Blog: 323/365. Click here to read about my #365of25 journey
Song of the day: Man in the mirror - Michael Jackson

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The Friday Shoutout: FemWash

Today’s shout out goes to an amazing team of social entrepreneurs who are representing UCT at Oxford this weekend. They’ve done research and development work on a menstrual health and sanitation product for low-income African women, called FemWash.

They’re travelling to Oxford for the Map the System competition, which is for social entrepreneurs looking to make systemic changes in society. Myself and two friends were finalists in the competition last year and were given the opportunity to mentor FemWash before they headed out to England

A bit more background on Nyasha and FemWash can be found on recent Mail and Guardian article, which reads:

The multiskilled Nyasha Chimhandamba began her studies in Genetics and Biochemistry, earning an Honours Degree in Molecular and Cell Biology, and is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Inclusive Innovation at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business.

This graduate entrepreneur is the co-owner of FemWash, a feminine hygiene management product which she co-developed.

If you’d like to follow the competition, watch the live-stream or attend the final (if you’re in Oxford this weekend) you can do so on the Skoll Facebook page.

Congratulations to Nyasha, Ru and the FemWash team. We’re super proud of you and wish you the best of luck! 😀

Image is of Nyasha and I after her last practice pitch on Wednesday

Blog: 207/354

Song of the day: Muse-Starlight

 

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Right where I want to be

I’m absolutely exhausted and have been struggling to find the energy to write my blog post. So instead of writing anything insightful, I’d just like to take a moment to appreciate where I am right now with regards to my work/professional life.

Today I worked in four areas:

  • Behavioural economics and psychology
  • Teaching strategic thinking (applied to development outcomes)
  • Market analysis and strategy formulation for green economic development in Cape Town
  • Social entrepreneurship

The first was done in relation to my thesis. Despite it not being quite finished yet, some of my preliminary results will be presented at a conference on Monday.

The second was done at UCT when we met to plan the exam for this semester. It’s going to be an incredibly interesting exam.

The third was in relation to my consulting work on my green economic development project.

The last area was assisting with the submissions for the Oxford “Map the System” challenge. I’m the organizer of the South African leg of the competition.

I honestly am in awe of how fortunate I am to be working on all these exciting projects at the same time. I’m exactly where I want to be and I couldn’t be happier 🙂

Image was taken at Babylonstoren a few weeks ago 🙂

Song of the day: The Quiet - Roald Velden
Blog 159/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here
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The Friday Shoutout: The Bulungula Incubator

In February I attended the first Bertha Centre collective at the UCT GSB. The guest speaker was Réjane Woodroffe, the founder of the Bulungula incubator. She spoke about her personal journey and how she went on to found the incubator (you can listen to the audio from the session here)

Réjane’s story is really interesting. She grew up in the cape flats and studied a Business Science degree at UCT. After this she spent a few years in investment banking before founding the incubator.

On the website the incubator is described as follows:

WE ARE a non-profit organisation established in 2007 although our work in the area began in 2004 with the establishment of the eco-sustainable and award winning community owned, Bulungula Lodge (www.bulungula.com).  We are located in a remote rural area known as the Xhora Mouth Administrative Area which is based in the Mbhashe municipality on the Wild Coast of the Eastern Cape. The Mbhashe municipality is one of the poorest in the country.

And their mission is as follows:

OUR MISSION is to be a catalyst in the creation of vibrant and sustainable rural communities. We work with our community members from CONCEPTION to CAREER with an integrated development strategy in education, health and nutrition and sustainable livelihoods.  All projects are designed, prioritised, implemented and managed in partnership with our community and through traditional and elected leadership structures.

What makes Bulungula different 

Apart from being an incredible, award winning social enterprise, there are a few things that really stand out for me that make this organisation different:

  1. The founders live in the area with the community.
  2. Every 5 years, the founders leave the project entirely on its own to function for a few months. The reason for this is that they want it to be as sustainable as possible and not depend on them.
  3. The community is involved in the decision making and running of the project
  4. The organisation is owned by the community through a trust. All the profits are fed back in to the community directly
  5. The incubator focuses on all aspects of development. They look at everything from education to employment and health.

If you’d like to find out more about this organisation, check out this video (it’s only 4min and really amazing) or visit their website.

I’m really inspired by the work done at the Bulungula Incubator and can’t wait to see it continue to grow 🙂

Image is of the Storms River canyon in the Eastern Cape, taken when I visited the area in 2016 🙂

Song of the day: Roses - Chainsmokers
Blog 152/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here
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The Friday Shoutout: GreenCape

Over the past few weeks I’ve been given the opportunity to learn a little about an organisation called Green Cape. So who are they? As per their website:

GreenCape support businesses and investors in the green economy to remove barriers to establishment and growth.  We also support local, provincial and national government to build a resilient green economy.

So basically, GreenCape is an agency that pulls together all the actors in the green economy and catalyses green growth in the Western Cape. Their work spans a wide range of things, from waste management and renewable energy to green finance and water management.

If you’re interested in this kind of work I’d highly recommend checking out their website. Their market intelligence reports are fascinating and they’ve got really interesting news and career opportunities.

Looking forward to everything that comes from them in the future!

Image was taken at in Franschoek this week 🙂

Song of the day: Seinabo Sey - Younger (Kygo Remix) 
Blog 146/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

 

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The Friday Shoutout: Silulo

Today Luvuyo Rani gave a guest lecture to my Strategic Thinking class. Luvuyo is one of the founders of Silulo, an internet cafe, computer training centre and technology company based in the townships. It started 14 years ago out the boot of a car and has now trained 33 000 students, employs 200 people and has more than 40 branches. Luvuyo was recently awarded social entrepreneur of the year at the World Economic Forum.

I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Luvuyo speak in the class 5 times. He has also assisted with some of my entrepreneurial work and advised me on university projects. Every time I see him I learn something new.

Business in the township for the township

One point that Luvuyo emphasized today is that of building businesses in the township. And, importantly, building these to fill the needs of the township. The dominant narrative around townships is that they are places devoid of true entrepreneurship. Luvuyo proves otherwise.

And he’s putting his money where is mouth is. This month he’s launching a business incubator in Mitchells Plain. The objective of the incubator is to help scale township businesses and help them serve the areas where they come from.

I cannot wait to see the incubator come to life. I’m in constant awe of what Luvuyo and Silulo have achieved!

Thanks again for coming to talk to our students!

Main image was taken during Luvuyo’s talk. Image at the end of the post is a selfie with Luvuyo and his new General Manager, Bongiwe. This lecture theatre is where I teach every week. It’s pretty intimidating but I’ve gotten used to it 🙂

Song of the day: Rudimental - These Days
Blog 125/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

 

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