NEWSLETTER www.sapcc.co.za
October 2019
SAPCC To Participate In Portugal Exportador On 27 Nov 2019 See page 7
SAPCC Celebrates Women In Business See page 2
Viseu Recebe O IV Encontro De Investidores Da Diáspora See page 8
Report on The Current Deadlock of The Draft 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)* See page 10
Emotional Intelligence: A Business Context
by Natércia Faustino - See page 12
Amorim Cork South Africa signs Porto Protocol See page 14
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SAPCC EVENT
SAPCC Celebrates Women In Business: 2 October 2019 On 2 October, the SAPCC hosted the second annual, Women in Business event at the Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club. The one hundred plus guests comprised leaders of national and international organisations, representatives of the DTI, as well as entrepreneurs from various sectors of business. This year, the panel comprised Janine Rebelo, Michelle Fernandes, Marisa da Silva and Maria Ferreira and was moderated by SAPCC director, Rui Marto. The four panellists demonstrated their innovation, professionalism and entrepreneurship. Janine Rebelo, Michelle Fernandes and Marissa da Silva’s family business, Infanta Foods were 3 of this year’s winners at the SAPCC Absa Business Excellence Awards. They were invited back to share their success stories together with Maria Ferreira. Janine Rebelo is the founder of Global Digital Transformation, a digital transformation company. She has also been nominated by the SAPCC onto the EU 4th Industrial Revolution Workgroup, working alongside various experts in technology to produce recommendations to present to the South African government. Maria Ferreira is the founder and CEO of Boardroom Appointments, a recruitment and human resources company was able to shed invaluable insight into the current job market and the challenges facing women. Michelle Fernandes co-founded the AfriMusic Contest. She shared her entrepreneurial journey that led to her starting the platform for this African music contest and
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accompanying its immense growth. She shared the highlights of having the winners over the last 2 years perform at the Eurovision Village in Lisbon and Tel Aviv, respectively. She encouraged other young entrepreneurs to believe in your dream, take action and stay the course. Marissa da Silva is COO of Infanta Foods, a family business started by Marissa’s parents. Infanta Foods is a manufacturer and distributor of raw materials and ingredients for the baking, confectionery, milling and biscuit industries. Marissa shared her experience building and internationalising this family business. She reminded the audience that part of the key to success is preparation and confidence in who you are and what you do. The panel discussion addressed various topics including entrepreneurship, leadership, technology, workplace transformation, family businesses, human resources, legislation, gender equality, internationalization, skills and good professional practice. The event also allowed for a Q & A session with questions from the audience. The SAPCC presented a gift to each of the panellists. The sponsors of the evening ZAP SAT were then called on to do a draw of two annual ZAP subscription packages, worth around 5,000 rand. These were awarded to José Vieira Pereira and David Spence. The guests then engaged in networking, a staple of all SAPCC events. Thank you to all the panellists and sponsors ZAP SAT. Thank you to all those that attended and to O Seculo de Joanesburgo and Voz for their press coverage. Photos: Nuno Simoes.
SAPCC EVENT
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11/7/19 1:08 PM
NEWS
SAPCC To Participate In Portugal Exportador On 27 November 2019 The South African Embassy in Lisbon has invited SAPCC director Rui Marto, to participate as facilitator of the Round Table (Café Temático) on Doing Business in South Africa at Portugal Exportador @ 15h00 on the 27 November 2019. Portugal Exportador 2019 is the largest Portuguese national event dedicated to business internationalization. For 2019 edition, the South African Mission was informed the focus will be on the regulatory environment, namely the process of establishing a business in South Africa, including the steps involved in setting up a local company.
The South African Embassy will have a stand at the event and will host one of the Round Tables “Doing Business in SA”. The South African Embassy will be promoting investment in South Africa and South African products. Portugal Exportador will take place on 27th of November at the Centro de Congressos de Lisboa in Lisbon. Should you wish to contact the SAPCC at the event please email Rui Marto at rui@sapcc.co.za . Visitors are attracted to networking opportunities. The event makes it possible to promote the exports of companies, sharing knowledge about foreign markets and exchanging business experiences. Over 120 local and international speakers will make up the different panels including Ana Alves, Head of Private Label at Sonae MC, Filipe Simões, co-founder of Frueat, Carla Pereira from DPD and Ricardo José Silva from Rangel.
The Fundação AIP (Portuguese Industrial Association), in partnership with Novo Banco and AICEP Portugal Global will once again organize the 14th edition of Portugal Exportador, a trading event that aims to internationalize companies from Portugal and other countries. The main objective of the event is to get to know the available instruments and institutions supporting exportation and internationalization. International companies could find an opportunity for establishing contacts with potential partners and creating conditions to develop the best strategy for expansion.
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NEWS
Viseu Recebe O IV Encontro De Investidores Da Diáspora – sempre subordinados ao tema “Conhecer para Investir” - representam hoje os eventos mais emblemáticos e abrangentes que o Gabinete de Apoio aos Investidores da Diáspora (GAID) organiza, já com cinco edições realizadas - Sintra (Dezembro 2016), Viana do Castelo (Dezembro 2017) e Penafiel (Dezembro 2018), para além das duas iniciativas intercalares, de cariz regional, que tiveram lugar nos Açores ( Julho 2018) e Madeira ( Julho 2019). À semelhança da prática corrente, este quarto encontro conta também com a organização da Comunidade Intermunicipal Viseu Dão Lafões a que se junta a CCDRC - Comissão de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional do Centro.
O IV Encontro de Investidores da Diáspora vai ter lugar entre os dias 12 e 14 de Dezembro, em Viseu. A iniciativa, promovida pelo Secretário de Estado das Comunidades, é uma organização conjunta do GAID – Gabinete de Apoio ao Investidor da Diáspora, da Comunidade Intermunicipal Viseu Dão Lafões e da Comissão de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional do Centro, com o apoio da Câmara Municipalde Viseu, tendo como entidade parceira a Entidade Regional de Turismo do Centro. Viseu foi a cidade escolhida para acolher, este ano, o IV Encontro de Investidores da Diáspora, que terá lugar entre os dias 12 e 14 de Dezembro. Lançados sob a égide do anterior secretário de Estado das Comunidades, José Luís Carneiro, os Encontros de Investidores da Diáspora
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Existe, por parte da Secretaria de Estado das Comunidades Portuguesas, uma perceção clara da importância estratégica do empreendedorismo da nossa Diáspora, com milhões de portugueses no mundo, da sua expressão económica e do seu duplo potencial, enquanto origem de fluxos de investimento em Portugal e enquanto plataforma de divulgação e promoção de iniciativas de internacionalização de base local e regional. Num mundo cada vez mais globalizado, competitivo, inovador e exigente, este IV Encontro pretende, mais uma vez, reforçar e afirmar uma visão mais integrada do valor que os investidores da Diáspora representam e a sua importância estratégica na modernização e desenvolvimento das regiões e do tecido empresarial português, com a importância do peso económico global do empreendedorismo das Comunidades Portuguesas e do seu duplo potencial, enquanto origem de fluxos de investimento e de destino de iniciativas de diversificação de mercados por parte de empresas nacionais. Neste encontro, que contará com a presença de vários membros do Governo, participam investidores e empresários portugueses oriundos de vários países dos cinco continentes e, ainda, as principais instituições ligadas ao mundo da Diáspora, assim como Câmaras de Comércio Internacionais, Municípios e Empresas locais para, através de networking, encontrarem as melhores soluções de promoção de negócios e internacionalização de empresas portuguesas. Inscrições são através do correio eletrónico gaid@mne.gov.pt.
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ARTICLE
Report on The Current Deadlock of The Draft 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)* The current Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2010), which provides the blueprint for the country's energy sector, includes demand and technology cost assumptions that are 12 years out of date. That document is supposed to be replaced by the new Draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2019 that was tabled in Parliament in August 2018.
1. The IRP, a road map for the country transition to low carbon economy
In November 2018, the EU Chamber provided comments welcoming the high levels of renewable energy resources planned in the document while also pointing at the urgent need for clarity on some aspects of the new Plan (especially regarding the 3 years-gap in procurement that was enclosed in the new Plan).
However, several previous past initiatives were unsuccessful. The updated version currently discussed is therefore of very high stakes as many crucial assumptions used for the 2011 version are now obsolete (in the light of the very fast changes in energy technologies and prices).
An updated version of the draft IRP 2019 was then issued in March 2019, and unfortunately it still has not been validated. The current paralysis, with the delays in the consultative process within the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) and the recent failure by Cabinet (19th September) to approve the draft plan, have created massive economic uncertainty. Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe said that he was anxious for the document to be promulgated, as it would open the way for the procurement of new generation capacity, but did not provide a new time frame. President Ramaphosa also needs discussions to progress ahead of the November SA Investment Conference in order to inject investment confidence and credibility to his economic reforms.
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As the electricity infrastructure development plan for the country, the IRP is to be based on least-cost electricity supply and demand balance and is to take into account security of supply and the environment (minimize negative emissions and water usage). The National Development Plan 2030 took as a point of departure the IRP 2010–2030 that was promulgated in 2011 and which (among other) paved the way to the now well-known Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Programme (REIPPP) . At that time, it was also envisaged that the IRP would be a “living plan” to be revised by the Department of Energy frequently.
With the prices for Renewable Energy falling quickly, the environmental and cost tide has unequivocally turned against coal and nuclear. As such, the updated version of the IRP concludes that the cheapest, cleanest, most reliable and job-creating mix is a mix that achieves 67% of Renewable Energy (RE) in 2050. That same draft also envisages no new nuclear power plants, and greater reliance on renewables to replace older coal-fired plants that would be decommissioned by 2030. 2. Pressure for the release of the 2019 IRP is mounting across all energy markets. After several delays, the current draft IRP, which was updated by the DoE to incorporate the comments arising from the public participation process which closed in October 2018, was submitted to NEDLAC in March 2019.
ARTICLE Cabinet finally considered the much-anticipated update to the IRP during its meeting on 18 September 2019, but Minister Jackson Mthembu said discussions had not yet been concluded. Mthembu attributed the extension of Cabinet-level deliberations largely to the importance of the document, while insisting on the fact that it would be concluded “soon”. Meanwhile, President Ramaphosa is keeping an overly positive tone on the role of green energy, but the Department of Energy’s IPP office will remain unable to announce the REIPPP Bid Window 5 until the IRP is finalized.
to reach consensus on a final IRP. However, the recent deliberations at the Cabinet level show that opposition within the executive is still important, largely due to pressure from Unions on the exclusion of new nuclear, as well as the diminishing role of coal in the IRP. With ESKOM on the edge – what role for embedded/ distributed generation? The new IRP needs to take Eskom situation and the announced unbundling into account. Indeed, the Independent Power Producers (IPP’s) are expected to sign power purchase agreements with the new Transmission Company (that should fall under Eskom Holdings) but it will take a few years for the latter to be fully operational. In an effort to counter the rising electricity tariffs, the current draft IRP announced the unlocking of embedded generation market for an annual allocation permitted of 500 MW for small-scale embedded generation projects (SSEG) and to allow such generators to feed energy back into the Eskom and municipal networks. That first step indicates that there is a growing realization that, embedded/distributed generation and the customer form a most critical part of the solution to meeting the electricity supply needs of the future. 4. European partners in that context
3. Behind the IRP scenes - SA at the crossroads: Unless the government proves how the transition will be managed to minimize job losses, it will go nowhere. While the government has already articulated its vision on energy transition and backed this up with policy and implementation in the early 2000s, it has also been since then under constant pressure to slow down the pace of transition. Indeed, many reports are demonstrating that, aside from the environmental and health benefits, SA has much to lose economically if it delays its energy transition further. The London-based Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) reported that SA could lose as much as $124bn between now and 2035 if it does not follow the worldwide accelerating shift towards low carbon economy. Still, SA’s economic growth has long been associated with coal-fired power and transitioning away from this (90%) dependence on coal has proved to be very complex. As a matter of fact, the fourth round of the REIPPP suffered long delays (from 2015 to 2018) due to prominent resistance from groups with vested interests. In light of the heavy hand the unions play in the coaldominated energy sector, the expansion of the Ministry of Minerals to include Energy and Mantashe’s appointment was seen as an astute move by President Ramaphosa
Europe has been a long-standing partner to SA in supporting the ongoing energy transition. As such, major European partners (project developers, EPC and Development Finance Institutions) have invested massively since the first Bid Window of the REIPPP. The 27 new projects signed in 2018 under the 4th bid round REIPPP represented a total of R56 billion investment of which an important part were European direct investments. European partners remain in a ‘wait and see’ position for the finalisation of the IRP and hope for a green light soon with a clear policy. 5. EU-SA Partners for Growth (the Programme) to support further dialogue with SA government to share experience on coal exit strategy The European Union-South Africa (EU-SA) Partners for Growth Programme (‘the Programme’) aims at maximizing partnerships between the EU and SA in sectors that are key to SA. In light of the current debate around the IRP, the Programme will support further dialogue with SA to share knowledge on coal exit strategy and embedding generation market opportunities, based on Europe past experience.
*This paper was prepared and released by the European Union Delegation to the Republic of South Africa- Trade and Economics Division and published with their permission.
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Emotional Intelligence: A Business Context By Natércia Faustino*
Wikipedia defines emotional intelligence (EQ) as,
Natércia Faustino
"the capability of individuals to recognize their own emotions and those of others, discern between different feelings and label them appropriately, use emotional information to guide thinking and behavior (sic), and manage and/or adjust emotions to adapt to environments or achieve one's goal(s)”.1
According to Wikipedia, the term was first coined in the 1960’s by psychologist, Joel R Davitz and psychiatrist Michael Beldoch. The term gained popularity in the 1990s, through Daniel Goleman, author and science journalist. Now days, it seems to be the buzz word for anything related to building teams to life coaching. In re-reading that definition, it seems out of place in a business context. Some psychological mumbo-jumbo possibly? However, if thought about from a more practical perspective, really a useful skill to have in business. Consider an individual, let us call her Caterina, that as a business owner, you have encountered, that is able to put you at ease, navigate difficult discussions seemingly easily and fairly and more often than not, with whom a compromise can be reached. Then consider an individual 1 2
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that you have come across in the course of business, which is the opposite, let us call her Joana. A person that is unlikely to put you at ease and if dealing with her in a difficult context, is unlikely to favour a compromise. Caterina is the one more likely to have higher levels of EQ. In his article, entitled, “10 Qualities of an Emotionally Intelligent Person”2 , Christopher D. Connors lists and explains the ten qualities that people with higher levels of EQ have. These are: 1. Empathy; 2. Self-awareness; 3. Curiosity; 4. An analytical mind; 5. Belief; 6. Ability to discern between needs and wants; 7. Passion; 8. Optimism; 9. Adaptability; and 10. Desire for success for others and of self. Briefly distilled, empathy means that an individual is able to put themselves in the shoes of another. They can feel and understand from the other person’s frame of reference. Self-awareness is about understanding oneself. Basically, self-aware individuals are aware of the stimuli in their environments and their reactions to those stimuli. An eagerness to learn and improve coupled with passion, is curiosity. The ability to process and analyse information with a view to finding improvements and asking “why”, is the analytical mind. Believing in yourself, both present self and future self, is the essence of belief. Knowing the
Online: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_intelligence Online: https://medium.com/personal-growth/the-10-qualities-of-an-emotionally-intelligent-person-f595440af4fb
ARTICLE difference between what is needed to accomplish goals versus what would be “nice to have”, i.e. wanted, to accomplish goals allows individuals to prioritise correctly in the achievement of their goals. The old adage of ‘do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life” encapsulates passion. With passion comes a willingness to persevere and move forward. Having a positive mind set and mood captures the crux of optimism. It allows for increased opportunities, improved relationships and clarity of thought. Being able to recognise when to stay the course and when to cut one’s losses, is adaptability. It is the ability to make swift decisions to benefit your ultimate goal attainment. Lastly, an element of altruism is required to prompt success in others, but not to the detriment of oneself. That is the desire for success of self and others. The benefit of having EQ in business dealings, is that it allows you to scan the emotional environment and implement the best strategy for the situation. All business dealings come from an emotional basis regardless of the whether your business is an SMME or a global multinational firm. This is said because business dealings involve interacting with individuals, who are at the heart of it, beings of emotion. EQ can be said to be a manifestation of meta-cognition i.e. an awareness or analysis of one's own learning or thinking processes.3 Luckily, our emotional quotient (EQ) is not hard-wired. EQ can be developed and grown. Abhi Golhar4 outlines ten ways in which EQ can be cultivated: 1. Utilize an assertive style of communicating; 2. Respond instead of reacting to conflict; 3. Utilize active listening skills; 4. Be motivated; 5. Practice ways to maintain a positive attitude; 6. Practice self-awareness; 7. Take critique well; 8. Empathize with others; 9. Utilize leadership skills; and 10. Be approachable and sociable. So, in business dealings, communicate your opinions and needs in a direct way and respectful manner. When in
discussions or meetings, listen attentively. This means not just waiting for your turn to speak but understand what is being said first before responding. Be motivated. Ensure that your reserves of resilience are maintained. That makes goal setting and attainment easier and it means that in times of challenge, you can march forward. Be aware of your moods and that of those around you. Adapt your approach, your attitude, to take your mood and the mood of those with whom you are dealing, into account. Acknowledge your own emotions and the emotions of those with whom you are interacting. This self-awareness, along with trusting your intuition, allows for better assessment of a situation. Remember not to climb onto your high horse. Take criticism, objectively evaluate it and use it constructively. Show empathy. Put yourself in the shoes of those with whom you are dealing. It may just give you a different perspective on how to ensure a successful deal. Lastly, be approachable and understand the correct social skills to use, given the situation. Learn and know how to communicate clearly, verbally or non-verbally. Cultivating emotional intelligence should be viewed in the same manner as learning a new skill. With new skills comes the potential to grow business, increase profits and overall, be more successful. Couple that with an improved EQ and the stage is set.
Natércia Faustino is an ad hoc contributor to the SAPCC newsletter. Her areas of interest centre on psychology in the workplace and improvements in interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships. She was formerly Processing and Quality Assurance Director for the Finance and Accounting Services Sector Education Training Authority (FASSET). She also held the position of Acting Risk Officer, chaired a number of bid evaluation committees (BECs) and was a member of a number of BECs. Her responsibilities included overseeing the disbursements of grants approximating R160 million. Natércia previously worked as the Education and Training Manager at a global professional body for 6.5 years and ran her own consultancy before joining Fasset. She holds masters degrees in International Relations and Industrial Psychology. She is currently studying towards her PhD.
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Online: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metacognition Online: 10 ways to increase your emotional intelligence. Found at: https://www.inc.com/young-entrepreneur-council/10-ways-to-increase-your-emotional-intelligence.html 4
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NEWS
Amorim Cork South Africa signs Porto Protocol Portuguese cork producer Amorim is to help spearhead the Stellenbosch wine region’s commitment to fighting climate change after Stellenbosch became the first wine region in the Southern Hemisphere to sign the Porto Protocol, a global initiative originating in Portugal aimed at reducing carbon emissions and fighting climate change in agriculture regions. This important partnership announcement was held on Wednesday, 23 October 2019. As one of the founding signatories of the Porto Protocol, Amorim South Africa looks forward to playing a major role in driving this initiative in South Africa, with Stellenbosch taking the lead and showing a commitment to one of the world’s greatest issues. For Amorim South Africa’s MD, Joaquim Sá, “As the first designated wine route in South Africa and home to our South African operational center, Stellenbosch is an important region for Amorim’s business of distributing cork stoppers to the local wine industry. Being a supplier of a product that is so synonymous with wine, Amorim sees itself as a partner to the wine industry, sharing its aspirations, vision and concerns. There can be no doubt that climate change is currently a major concern of the
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wine industry globally, and as one of the world’s leading wine producers South Africa has to show a commitment to addressing the issues of global warming and geographical instabilities. The Porto Protocol, which originated close to Amorim’s head-office in Portugal and of which we are a leading partner, provides a platform for wine producers to tangibly show their commitment to battling climate change and reducing carbon emissions throughout their value-chain. In conjunction with Stellenbosch Wine Routes, Amorim will help mentor the ideals of the Porto Protocol among the wine and tourism communities who we hope are currently getting on-board and signing the Protocol to show their support and commitment.” Photo: Mike Ratcliffe (Stellenbosch Wine Routes), Alan Winde (Western Cape Premier), Tania Oliveira (The Porto Protocol), Joaquim Sá (Amorim South Africa MD) all attended this important partnership announcement held on Wednesday 23 October 2019.
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Living in Resilience by Learning from Failure By Tony de Gouveia*
Previously, we looked at how to promote Resilience amongst women. In this edition Tony de Gouveia we look at the relationship between Resilience and Failure. It was hugely significant that the April 2011 edition of the prestigious Harvard Business Review was entirely devoted to the topic of failure -- how to understand it, learn from it, and recover from it. It spoke about resilience -- the capacity to rebound from failures and disappointments -- and the importance of speaking to ourselves from a positive attitude that interprets experience as events rich with lessons and opportunities to learn and move on. This is indicative of a growing focus on resilience and related concepts within a field known as Positive Psychology. Resilience is about attending to the positive possibilities which present themselves, about the ability to move on from what hasn't worked, staying aware of our individual gifts, talents and strengths, and encouraging ourselves to keep moving forward. Just reflecting on this understanding of Resilience, the associations with the challenges of entrepreneurship and self employment become self-evident. Many of us, even successful people, struggle with negative Self Talk (Inner Critic) that tells us that we are not smart enough, talented enough, attractive and sexy enough,
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etc. This negative Self Talk holds us hostage, inhibits our expression, creates fear and anxiety, and sometimes blocks our most creative output. It is an internal force that blocks the development of resilience by assuming and predicting bad outcomes. It distorts our perception of neutral situations by projecting a negative outlook. The good news is that positive psychology is giving serious attention to resilience as a field of study. We know that what we say to ourselves, and what we think, determines a lot about how we feel. Now, the new brain science has provided another perspective on the power of what we say in our heads. It tells us that our mind makes up a story about our experience that we tell ourselves over and over again. These narratives are made of past associative memory and current life circumstances, and how we interpret them. If we constantly interpret our world as a glass half empty, we will likely keep experiencing it that way. Peter Guber who in the 1970’s made a film on Muhammad Ali (the Greatest) referred to a story Ali told him. He talked about a fight he was in where he was knocked down— “flat on my butt,” he said. “And I thought, OK. What’s next?” He got up and won the fight. When you don’t get up, he realized, there’s no way you can win. In fact, getting knocked down is part of being in the business. It’s inevitable. But once you know you can get up, no matter what, you become stronger and resilient. Interestingly, when we think about child development, we take resilience for granted. We readily accept that as kids grow they learn by making mistakes and practicing over and over again -- everything from learning to walk, ride a bike and learning to read. However, as adults we cringe at the thought of making mistakes when we are challenged with new material to master. We want to be seen as always competent, even before it is practical. As a trainer, working with MBA students, supervisors and managers, I
ARTICLE have noted the pressure people impose on themselves to know their new job tasks before it is possible (In fact this is one of the weaknesses of applying Affirmative Action inappropriately). Learning takes time. Learning involves metabolising new information. We cannot be right at every opportunity but that does not doom us to failure, just to being human. History reminds us about the successes that have accompanied times of failure. A recent book by John C Maxwell called Failing Forward has chronicled some of these stories in the form of interesting life lessons about failure. One of the most poignant for me was the fact that the Wright brothers should not have been the first to achieve flight in an aeroplane. Dr Samuel P Langley and his pilot Engineer Charles Manley were commissioned to do so but gave up after two attempts. The rest is history‌ Walt Disney was initially fired from a newspaper job for his lack of creativity and went bankrupt several times before he created Disney Land. Einstein had a hard time learning to read and was seen as not too bright by many of his early teachers. Thomas Edison, who was unsuccessful in his initial numerous experiments to improve the light bulb
is quoted to have said, "I have not failed 700 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 700 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work." So it is encouraging for us to read in the Harvard Business Review that we need to revisit the "F" word, "Failure," and stop making 'mistake' a dirty word. We would each do well to dispute our Negative Self Talk and tell our Inner Critic to butt out -- that it is not helpful, but hurtful, to be in its negative grip. Good outcomes result, instead, from telling ourselves to move on from momentary mistakes, that we can be, and be seen, as competent without being perfect, and that moving forward with our strengths is the path towards success and satisfaction. Let's remember that the shortest distance between our good intentions and the positive outcomes we want is positive Self Talk and the voice of an encouraging Inner Coach that has resilience as its name.
Tony de Gouveia is a Clinical Psychologist and Resilience Coach in Private Practice at the Akeso Clinic in Alberton. www.TonydeGouveiaPsychologist.webs.com Acknowledgement: Beth Weinstock PhD
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NEWS
Estão abertas as candidaturas ao programa de inovação aberta da cidade de Lisboa SOL Mobility. O SOL – Smart Open Lisboa é um programa open innovation de aceleração internacional, promovido pela Beta-i e que conta com o apoio do Turismo de Portugal, no contexto do programa FIT – Fostering Innovation in Tourism, que tem como objetivo dinamizar novos projetos disruptivos de base turística e estimular o ecossistema empreendedor. Podem inscrever-se startups com protótipo funcional do produto ou MVP e equipas fundadoras estabelecidas, que respondam aos seguintes desafios identificados pelos parceiros do programa: estacionamento inteligente, e-mobilidade, mobilidade digital & personalizada, gestão de frotas & ativos e gestão de tráfego. Candidaturas abertas até 15 de Dezembro de 2019.
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LEGAL UPDATE
Turismo de natureza: Publicado em Diário da República o Decreto-Lei que cria o Programa Revive Natureza Foi publicado no dia 25 Outubro 2019 em Diário da República o Decreto-Lei n.º 161/2019 que cria o Programa Revive Natureza.
florestais e antigos postos fiscais. Esta lista poderá vir a ser posteriormente ampliada.
Este programa possibilita a recuperação de imóveis públicos, sem uso e inseridos na Natureza, destinados a exploração para fins turísticos.
O programa Revive Natureza tem como objetivos fundamentais recuperar os imóveis, criar emprego local e dinamizar as economias locais, através das redes de oferta e valorização dos produtos endógenos, constituindo-se como mais um instrumento de concretização dos eixos estratégicos da Estratégia de Turismo 2027, nomeadamente a valorização do território nacional.
O Revive Natureza será operacionalizado através de um Fundo Imobiliário Especial, gerido pela Turismo Fundos, tendo a seu cargo numa fase inicial a gestão de 96 imóveis do Estado, de Norte a Sul do país, entre os quais se contam, na sua maioria, antigas casas de guardas
Contempla uma verba de cinco milhões de euros, do Turismo de Portugal, para financiar a recuperação dos imóveis referidos.
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Push or pivot By Allon Raiz
Sometimes choosing the easier option is not the smartest option in the long run. “Pivot” is a word that’s certainly been making the rounds in entrepreneurship circles over the last couple of years. It was probably given a lot of momentum by the book The Lean Startup by Eric Ries which focuses on learning what your customers really want and continuously testing your vision, adapting it and adjusting it before it's too late. Although I believe it’s important that entrepreneurs have the ability and desire to pivot, the unintended consequence is that entrepreneurs may choose to pivot from plan A to plan B (which may be perceived as the easier route) instead of pushing forward in challenging times. Very often success on the current trajectory may be imminent, and opting to pivot might indeed end up being the wrong strategy. So as an entrepreneur, when do you pivot and when do you push? If you are unsure as to whether you should pivot or push, consider the following:
1. At which position are you on the product-timing curve? Ahead of its time Understand where your product or service is on the product-timing curve. You are more likely to pivot if you feel your product or service is too far “ahead of its time”, or choose to push through if you feel it’s only slightly ahead of its time. For example, if you were the first company to sell cell phones in the country before there was even a cell phone network, then it might be a good idea to pivot and sell other products as well until the ecosystem for cell phones has more fully developed. Its time If your product is “on time” and there is wide market acceptance of the product or product category, then I believe it’s always a better strategy to push through, but with more subtle pivots to market niches. We all have cell phones currently, and you could potentially look at new ways of packaging cell phone contracts that you could offer clients, for example, packaging the cell phone with insurance, etc. and this would be considered as subtle pivoting. Behind the time If you have the courage to admit that your product or service may be “behind the times” then you definitely need
to pivot. For example, if you are selling fax machines in the age of scanners or cell phones which are able to scan and send documents, then the right strategy would be to pivot.
2. What are your resources? Being conscious and creative around the resources that you may have at your disposal will determine whether you should push or pivot. Ask yourself the following questions: • How long can I keep pushing before my resources run out? • Do I have the internal resources required to pivot in the direction where I think I might need to shift? You have to evaluate what resources you have in terms of determining whether you actually have the ability to pivot or not.
3. Who can I leverage right now? Evaluate your network and determine who you can leverage to get your product to market quickly and profitably. This will allow you to push through with the existing product or service, but you will ironically also be pivoting your model in doing so. For example, ask who in your network has a distribution channel which you can utilise to get your product widely distributed quickly. You might have to compromise on margin to enable this, but it might just be the right strategy for your business instead of the long time it would take for you to build your own market penetration. If entrepreneurs always choose to pivot instead of pushing through during challenging times, they are highly likely to remain unsuccessful. Be cognisant of where your business is on the product-timing curve and, based on that, choose whether you are going to pivot or push through, keeping in mind that the easier option is not always the smartest one in the long run.
About Allon Raiz Allon Raiz is the CEO of Raizcorp. In 2008, Raiz was selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, and in 2011 he was appointed for the first time as a member of the Global Agenda Council on Fostering Entrepreneurship. Following a series of entrepreneurship master classes delivered at Oxford University in 2014, 2015 and 2016, Raiz has been recognised as the Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School. Follow Allon on Twitter: www.twitter.com/allonraiz.
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