Startup Story
Taryn Marcus, co-founder of Reinvent CoLab in South Africa, prides herself as a devoted change agent and positive disruptor, with an enterprise perspective. She collaboratively works to create organizations where people perform better, feel engaged, deliver customer value, and have fun - all at the same time. Taryn has a special focus on methodologies that aid individuals, teams, and organizations build mindsets, skillsets, and toolsets to make continuous reinvention a competitive advantage. She brings almost two decades of Human Capital experience in both established and emerging markets, 15 of which have been at Executive management level for listed complex multinational (pan-African, Asia, Europe, Oceania, North American) organizations. Taryn is a registered Industrial psychologist and Harvard Business School Alumnus.
LoA spoke to the change-making Taryn Marcus about her drive to make positive change happen and her future aspirations for the business.
What does your company do?
In today's ever-changing business landscape, Reinvent CoLab specializes in helping clients embrace and thrive in change. With over 35 years of experience, we offer Reinvention Talks, Customized Facilitated Workshops, Organizational Effectiveness, and Coaching services. Our innovative approach combines mindset, skillset, and toolset solutions, empowering both individuals and teams to proactively navigate change and achieve sustainable success. Partner with us for a successful today and a thriving tomorrow.
What inspired you to start your company?
Having worked in organizations and on large-scale business transformation projects where change management was seen as something only associated with a project and as a punishment, which despite efforts there was always ongoing resistance to change. This led us to explore the WHY? and then specifically to understand the HOW? and WHAT? we could offer that would aid organizations and their employees to develop a change-embracing mindset.
“Our innovative approach combines mindset, skillset, and toolset solutions, empowering both individuals and teams to proactively navigate change and achieve sustainable success.”
Why should anyone use your service or product?
We believe that proactively identifying opportunities with our clients to disrupt themselves before their competitors do - to jump the s-curve - sets us apart. We assist our clients to identify their breakthrough questions and through experimentation we support our clients to build new mindsets, skillsets, and toolsets so that they can reinvent themselves over and over again.
Tell us a little about your team:
Claire Holden, co-founder, Reinvent CoLab (South Africa)
We are part of an international community of reinvention practitioners who have all been trained under the expertise of Dr. Nadya Zhexembayeva. Our small team is made up of myself Taryn Marcus and my co-founder Claire Holden. Claire, in addition to our reinvention practices, uses appreciative inquiry as the foundation of her coaching service that focuses on the strengths of individuals and teams, her work is designed to celebrate the positive core, empowering clients to unleash their full potential.
Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And do you come from an entrepreneurial background?
The journey is a new path, although my parents were both entrepreneurs, so from a young age I was always acutely aware of the rollercoaster journey the life of an entrepreneur can be. Thankfully I have a high-stress tolerance and the ability to understand that a 'no', just means 'no, not right now'.
“We believe that proactively identifying opportunities with our clients to disrupt themselves before their competitors do - to jump the s-curve - sets us apart.”
“We assist our clients to identify their breakthrough questions and through experimentation, we support our clients to build new mindsets, skillsets, and toolsets so that they can reinvent themselves over and over again.”
What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?
I would love to continue to collaborate with more experts in their fields (as an ongoing offering to our clients) and to continue to work across different industries. We always strive to identify the atom that needs to be cracked to help revolutionize our clients’ capabilities and boost how people perform.
What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?
The questions I have begun receiving from my children who are of an age where they are curious as to what their mother does every day. If I can inspire them to walk such a journey, it will give me immense satisfaction.
What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?
"Rejection is merely a redirection, a course correction to your destiny. - Bryant McGill"
Don't let anyone diminish your light, surround yourself with people that will keep adding wood to your fire.
Find out more:
Email: Tarynmarcus@gmail.com
Why LoA loves it…
Change is inevitable, but how you proactively and positively deal with that change is key to success in business. That’s where Taryn Marcus and her team come in, helping businesses and organisations to navigate change successfully, with workforces that thrive. Every business owner needs to deal with change, it’s part of the journey, and having the right advice and support is key to success. — Melanie Hawken, founder & ceo, Lionesses of Africa