Teams are always your winning hand

January 13, 2024 Melanie Hawken

by Eldari Visser

A couple of months ago we had the privilege to go to the Kruger National Park in South Africa and we spent five days in glorious nature. Wow ,that was really a time of rest and we saw amazing sightings. I always get great ideas for my blog that directly correlate with our business life. Nature once again did not disappoint! Nature’s stories are so closely linked to our business world. I really think we could all just listen to her more. We can apply the lessons of nature and animal behaviour in business successfully. Here is a story for you that I hope brings this point to life.

Entrepreneur Advice from Linda Dempah / Build a determined team

March 8, 2022 Melanie Hawken

Build a determined team!…

“Build a determined team and jump right in!”

Linda Dempah is the founder of Adeba Nature in Cote d’Ivoire

Cultivating a coaching approach to support team members in 8 steps

November 28, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Anja van Beek, Talent Strategist, Leadership and Executive Coach

Over the years, the role of a leader and manager of teams have evolved. It is no longer a command and control scenario, where you give instructions and your team will follow. The pandemic has fast-tracked an agile and empowerment approach. Leaders need to be adaptive problem-solvers. This is due to the uncertainty and pressure over the past couple of weeks and months – there were no clear and obvious answers to issues and challenges and leaders did not have the luxury of telling their teams what to do. They had to be adaptive and guide them to figure it out for themselves.

4 actionable ways to end micro management and build trust with your team

November 15, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Lori Milner

“The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them.”

— Ernest Hemingway

Working from home has brought up many challenges - the main one being a pandemic within the pandemic namely ‘performance anxiety’. It’s this need to be constantly on for dread of appearing like you aren’t doing what you need to. Never mind absenteeism, we have gone to the other extreme to overdo presenteeism.

Quote of the Day by Kimberly Addison

October 7, 2020 Melanie Hawken

“Whether you want to start a business or fulfill a particular dream, you are going to need the help of people and your team to get there and vice versa.”

Kimberly Addison, co-founder, '57 Chocolate (Ghana)

Entrepreneur Advice from Brenda Katwesigye / Build teams and partnerships

April 20, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Brenda Katwesigye, co-founder and CEO of Wazi Vision Limited (Uganda)

Build teams and partnerships…

“I would advise other women to build teams, partnerships, and also find a mentor. Going it alone can sometimes stifle the growth of a startup”

Brenda Katwesigye, co-founder and CEO of Wazi Vision Limited (Uganda)

Entrepreneur Advice from Emma Kaye: Choose your team very carefully

July 17, 2017 Melanie Hawken

Emma Kaye, founder of Bozza (South Africa) — **Emma Kaye**, founder of Bozza (South Africa)

Choose your team very carefully....

“You can see your company turn in a heartbeat from just a couple of bad people. So the most powerful thing for me is choose your team very carefully because your team is you. Always employ people who are far better than you at what you do, and empower them.”

- Emma Kaye is the founder of the Cape Town-based company, Bozza, a Pan-African digital music distribution platform that provides African artists a formal platform to promote and sell their work. Bozza offers a service that is trusted and transparent, enabling artists to connect with fans who want locally relevant content via their mobile devices or desktops. It is the platform to discover the next generation of talent. Emma Kaye has a number of other seminal and enduring business and industry ventures to her name.

Entrepreneur Advice from Megan MacDonald: Don't do this alone

April 26, 2017 Melanie Hawken

Megan MacDonald, founder of SASA Designs by the Deaf — **Megan MacDonald**, founder of SASA Designs by the Deaf

Don't do this alone....

"Your team is critical - don't do this alone. Do your research - see who is already undertaking the problems you want to solve, and join them if you can. Even if you start something later - you'll be that much more prepared in the meantime. Figure out where your passion is in the process, and look for a team that can round out the pieces that don't drive you. Make sure you have some cheer leaders as you will feel like a failure roughly 90% of the time."

- Megan MacDonald is the founder of SASA Designs by the Deaf, a social enterprise established in 2011 to provide employment and fair wages to deaf women in Kenya. Megan is a veteran of the Fair Trade arena, she is committed to empowering women through market access and design. Having lived and worked in Kenya since 2008, Megan has experienced many of the factors affecting both country and personal development throughout Sub Saharan Africa firsthand. She believes that education and jobs are the key factors in promoting country development as a whole. Megan studied Sociology at Chapman University in Orange, CA and holds a M.A. in Development Studies from the University of Nairobi.