Do you have what it takes to compete?
Fundamentals Still Matter
Despite the rise of AI and emerging technologies, the consensus among the panel was clear: the foundational principles of marketing still hold true. Elizabeth described a great marketer as someone fundamentally interested in solving consumer problems, whether through products or services. This call back to basics echoed throughout the discussion. Core capabilities such as strategic thinking, business acumen, consumer understanding, creativity, and communication remain essential. These are not 'old school' skills – they are enduring ones. They form the foundation upon which new tools and channels must be layered.
Adaptability is Non-Negotiable
While the fundamentals remain, the game is undoubtedly changing. The convergence of media channels, the proliferation of big data and AI, and rapidly shifting consumer expectations all demand that marketers evolve. Sechaba highlighted the importance of staying intellectually curious and agile – constantly learning and adapting, and the panel encouraged marketers to embrace ambiguity, viewing it not as a threat, but as an opportunity for innovation. They emphasised the importance of experimentation, being willing to test, learn, and iterate in real-time while remaining grounded in human insight. Success hinges on crafting effective stories tailored to the right platforms and understanding the ethical considerations and legal compliance aspects of new technologies.
The Human Element is Marketing's Greatest Advantage
In a world increasingly driven by algorithms and automation, the human element is more valuable than ever. Marketing is fundamentally about connection – the ability to engage with people on an emotional level, understand their needs, and build genuine relationships is essential. The panel agreed that empathy, curiosity, and a deep understanding of human behaviour are the traits that will continue to set great marketers apart. They also stressed the importance of compassion in both leadership and marketing – the necessity of caring for the people being served and led.
The Skills Gap
The panel acknowledged a growing skills gap within the marketing profession and emphasised the importance of closing it. This call to raise the bar also extended to the broader industry. Panellists urged senior marketers to actively mentor and support emerging talent, while encouraging younger professionals to take ownership of their growth, seek feedback, and remain relentlessly curious.
A key takeaway was the need for marketers to clearly demonstrate their impact on business performance – not just through traditional marketing metrics, but by showing how marketing drives revenue, profit, and shareholder value.
CMOs at the Strategy Table
The panel also explored the evolving role of the Chief Marketing Officer. Far from being custodians of communication alone, CMOs are increasingly expected to lead growth and innovation across the organisation. To succeed in this expanded role, CMOs must build influence across functions, embrace data while not losing sight of intuition, and continually translate marketing activities into business outcomes.
Five Takeaways for the Marketer of the Future
Reconnect with Core Principles
Great marketing starts with understanding people, solving real problems, and communicating powerfully. Get that right before chasing the next shiny tool.
Stay Agile and Curious
Technology and platforms will keep changing. What matters is your ability to adapt, experiment, and learn quickly.
Lead with Empathy
Human connection is marketing's superpower. Build it into how you lead, how you work, and how you serve your audience.
Raise the Standard
Join professional bodies, seek mentorship, and invest in the development of yourself and others. We rise by lifting the industry as a whole.
Earn Your Seat at the Table
Speak the language of business – focus on delivering tangible business outcomes and demonstrate the impact of marketing initiatives. Prove how marketing drives growth.
This first webinar in the '2025 Marketing Masterclass' series offered both a reality check and a rallying cry. The profession is changing. Expectations are higher. But opportunity has never been greater for marketers who are willing to evolve, to lead, and to connect more deeply with both their audiences and their organisations.
This nine-part series is designed to offer practical, real-world insight for marketers navigating complexity, career growth, and creative leadership and as it unfolds, it promises to reveal how South African marketers can lead the way. To find out more about the next Marketing Masterclass, visit Daily Maverick Events. DM
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Daily Maverick
4 days ago
- Daily Maverick
SA praised for achieving second G20 ministerial declaration on SDGs
The Skukuza declaration noted that a host of global challenges and crises – including the economic slowdown, aid cutbacks and trade protectionism – had significantly hindered progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. South Africa has been commended for – largely – achieving a second G20 declaration last week to intensify measures to try to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, including by reducing illicit financial flows (IFFs), especially from Africa. The G20 Skukuza Development Ministerial Declaration from the meeting, which ended in the Kruger National Park on Friday, 25 July 2025, included two 'calls to action' – one for national and international measures to improve social protection, especially for low-income countries, and another to curb illicit financial flows. The declaration stressed the need to set floors (minimal levels) for universal and national social protection systems, which should primarily be financed through domestic resources, supported where necessary by international cooperation as well as non-government sources. The declaration also called for stepping up domestic resource mobilisation, including by combating illicit financial flows – particularly from Africa – especially the outflow of taxes from multinational companies to tax havens. 'Big achievement' Norwegian Minister of International Development Åsmund Grøver Aukrust, who attended the Skukuza meeting, said it was a big achievement to have secured a second ministerial declaration – just a week after the G20 finance ministers' declaration – 'when we're living in a world with very clear attacks on multilateralism'. 'So I would really like to honour the South African G20 presidency for bringing countries together and showing that multilateralism is still functioning and it's still possible to get agreements among very different countries,' he told Daily Maverick. This was a special achievement at a time of 'lack of trust among countries and brutal wars on all continents'. Norway is not a G20 member, but President Cyril Ramaphosa has invited it to participate in all the meetings of South Africa's G20 presidency this year. French support France is a member of the G20, and Thani Mohamed Soilihi, the country's Deputy Minister for Francophonie and International Partnerships, who is responsible for international development assistance, attended the Skukuza meeting. He said France fully supported South Africa's G20 priorities on development, including greater social protection; fighting illicit financial flows to mobilise more domestic resources to finance development; and how to protect global financial goods. He stressed the need for the rest of the global community to step up its efforts to address health issues, especially after the withdrawal of the US from international development assistance, mainly by shutting down its US Agency for International Development (USAid). Soilihi said it had been calculated that the shutdown would cost 14 million lives by 2030. Soilihi noted that the G20 development ministerial gathering had been a perfect place to talk about development issues because it included countries providing development assistance as well as the ministers responsible for development at home. He also convened a side meeting of several ministers of France's Paris Pact for People and the Planet ('4P'), which seeks innovative solutions to development problems. So far, 73 countries are members. US absent The US attended the G20 finance ministers' meeting in Zimbali near Durban on 18 July and thereby adopted its declaration, but did not attend last week's development ministerial. Norway's G20 sherpa, Henrik Harboe, agreed that the absence of the US would affect the impact of the declaration, but added 'that's just a reflection of where we are in the world, that the US did not participate in multilateral agreements this year.' He said it was nonetheless a great achievement that those who attended had agreed to the declaration. He noted, however, that Argentina had insisted on adding a footnote to the declaration, reserving its position 'on certain elements', but nonetheless not blocking its adoption. The chairperson's statement from the meeting included a declaration from Argentina reserving its position on 'all references to the 2030 Agenda' (which set the SDGs). Argentina added that it believed that addressing illicit financial flows lay beyond the scope of the G20 development working group and was better addressed in other G20 mechanisms. SDG challenges and crises The Skukuza declaration nonetheless noted that a host of global challenges and crises – including the economic slowdown, rising debt vulnerability, barriers to gender equality, aid cutbacks, domestic resource gaps, global supply chain disruptions and trade protectionism – had significantly hindered progress toward achieving the SDGs. 'Currently only 35% show adequate progress with 18% being on track and 17% making moderate progress,' it said, adding that financing the SDGs would now require 'a quantum jump from billions to trillions of dollars'. The ministers adopted a call to action towards 'inclusive, resilient, and sustainable development through Universal Social Protection Systems with special priority on Social Protection Floors'. These nationally defined social protection systems and floors should include access to health services and safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene; basic income security; nutrition and education for children; basic income security for those unable to earn sufficient income; and for the elderly. The declaration also called for stepping up Domestic Resource Mobilisation – raising development at home – by combating illicit financial flows ; implementing effective tax, customs and excise systems; and increasing national savings, trade and investment. 'Efforts to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation continue to be severely undermined by IFFs, base erosion and profit shifting and harmful tax competition, which erode the revenue bases and deprive governments of vital resources for sustainable development, particularly in the context of declining Official Development Assistance,' the declaration said. Call to deliver The ministers called on developed countries to deliver fully on their aid commitments. The Call to Action on illicit financial flows is a set of 10 voluntary and non-binding high-level principles for combating them, including addressing tax avoidance, tax evasion and tax crimes and tackling illicit financial flows; and promoting international cooperation for the recovery of stolen assets. The ministers also agreed that a road map for implementing these measures should be drafted, to be presented to the 2027 G20 presidency for further consideration. The ministers failed to agree on and so did not adopt a call to action on the third main deliverable, which South Africa had hoped for from the development ministerial, to establish an Ubuntu Commission of experts to decide how to protect and strengthen Global Public Goods. Global Public Goods are those which benefit all citizens of the world, says the IMF. They can include a stable climate, scientific knowledge, and disease control. Asked if the consensus on a declaration – especially on illicit financial flows – had been achieved at the cost of avoiding concrete agreements, Norway's Aukrust noted that there was no clear definition of illicit financial flows which everyone agreed on, and that complicated efforts to address them – as did the fact that a 'lot of creative tax planning is going on in the world' and there were also still tax havens and differing tax regimes among countries. 'And those who can buy expensive lawyers can then create company structures that avoid tax.' He noted that some of these tax schemes were illegal, while others might be strictly speaking legal, but were still draining resources from developing countries. 'The fact that we now have a sort of a game plan for doing G20 work on this, that's very important in itself,' but he suggested it would be hard to reach consensus on a road map because of differing perspectives on illicit financial flows among G20 countries. He also noted that the G20 development meeting had operationalised and advanced some of the conclusions from the recent Financing For Development Conference in Seville, Spain. 'And that's very positive.' 'Special victory' for SA He said that this had been a special victory for South Africa because former President Thabo Mbeki had chaired the United Nations Economic Commission panel, which investigated illicit financial flows from Africa, and reported in 2015 that they were causing an outflow of capital from Africa of at least $50-billion a year. But there had since been little progress on illicit financial flows, so it was a major achievement that the G20 as a whole had now agreed to tackle the problem. Norway's G20 sherpa, Henrik Harboe, was a member of Mbeki's IFF panel back in 2015. Asked if Norway and other aid donor countries could step up to fill the aid gap caused by the withdrawal of the US, Aukrust said the problem was that it was not just the US, but several European countries that were reducing aid. 'So we need to think differently and we need to think smarter. We need to have more private investment and we also need to work more for domestic resource mobilisation. And these are all the key factors in Norway's development policy and issues that we are bringing to the table, combined with still being a large and reliable partner.' He stressed that Norway itself was not reducing its own development aid, constituting one percent of its gross national income, beyond the 0.7% target set by the OECD, which few countries were meeting. Soilihi said 'We need to channel more resources because there's been a financing shock, and this is why we want to work as a group, first with the European Union, because we have the capacity to bring meaningful financing when we work together, and second of all, within the community of the 4P, which is a political community of now 73 member states from all continents, all revenues, all income levels, and we have with this group a powerful tool to bring meaningful solutions to the table, bridging the gap between the North and the South.' Soilihi noted that the G20 member states produced 75% of global trade and 90% of global GDP. DM
Daily Maverick
4 days ago
- Daily Maverick
Broken promises — how SA's Seta system leaves young job seekers behind
With youth unemployment at 45%, South Africa's Seta system struggles with corruption and outdated training, leaving many young people jobless. Experts are calling for urgent reforms and stronger NGO partnerships to bridge the gap between education and employment. With youth unemployment at 45% for 15- to 34-yearolds, South Africa continues to grapple with a persistent and deepening challenge to get young people into jobs. For many of them the transition from higher education into meaningful, sustainable employment is fraught with frustration, uncertainty and systemic barriers. This is why the Sector Education and Training Authorities (Setas) were set up: to bridge this critical gap by ensuring sector-specific skills development that are aligned to needs, and by facilitating workplace-based learning opportunities. However, as Daily Maverick has reported, the nation's 21 Setas have been crippled by corruption, governance issues and substantial institutional challenges that have hindered them from fully realising their mandate – and the biggest losers of this failure are the young people the Setas are meant to empower. 'I trained as a stenographer for four months, then they sent me to train as a clerk of the court for another three months. I worked hard to learn everything I could because the learnership was all I needed to complete my diploma in public management,' Ongeziwe Nota told Daily Maverick. The now 28-year-old went through the Seta-funded training in 2020, but five years later she says she has not been able to secure a job despite the workplace learning opportunity. 'I have not had a job since 2020. Every time I apply they tell me that I don't have the right skills and that I don't have experience. It's hard for me to understand because I thought that having done the programme at the Department of Justice, at least that would mean something on my CV,' she said. Asked whether she thought the learnership was enough to prepare her for entering the working world, Nota said: 'My training was not enough. I expected to be trained in different roles in the court, but they only took me to two places. I left without knowing anything about DV, maintenance or financial systems. But even the training I did get was not enough because no one wants to hire me.' System out of step with change Speaking to Daily Maverick, Ravi Naidoo, CEO of the Youth Employment Service (YES), offered insight into why the Setas have been ineffective in fulfilling their mandate, and a sobering assessment of the Seta landscape. At the heart of Naidoo's critique is a mismatch between what Setas deliver and what the labour market demands. 'Let's say there's artificial intelligence happening, people need to learn about new technologies. It'll take us four years to put in place a new curriculum. That's too slow. By the time it's out the sector has already moved on. The Seta system needs to be reformed. Right now it is very complex, bureaucratic and not properly aligned to the demand side of the economy,' he explained. In a fast-changing world, the Setas function like 'a supertanker when we need a smaller, faster boat', Naidoo said, drawing attention to how institutional inertia is stifling innovation. 'The Seta model is really an old, big industry, big labour, industrial model. It made sense in the 1960s, but it doesn't work now.' The problem was not simply poor execution, it was structural. Even with improved efficiency, Naidoo argues that the current vehicle is essentially 'the wrong vehicle'. Failure to pay stipends Students have also endured hardships due to the lack of transparency and funding by the Setas, which have various functions designed to upskill, develop and fund students in the post-school education sector. Daily Maverick spoke to a student from rural Ebuhleni village in Mpumalanga, who wished to remain anonymous. He was studying finance at Ehlanzeni TVET College and was scheduled to complete his training at Joy Home-Based Care in Barberton, Mbombela. However, he was unable to complete this in-training service because his stipend ended. Confused about whether it was his workplace or the Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority that had delayed the funds, he dropped out with only three months left. 'I was affected because I came very far. I was never able to complete the training; I owed my landlord three months' rent, the food was almost finished, and transportation was another problem. I left my furniture there in Barberton,' the student said. This had affected his passion for school: 'It feels like I have never done anything because I never got to the finishing line. I wanted a diploma, but I don't have it because I don't have a completion letter [from the workplace].' The Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority is responsible for education, training and skills development in the health, social development and veterinary sectors. Critical role of NGOs in strengthening Seta mandates Mandiphiwe Levani, the lead on emerging opportunities at the Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator, stresses that NGOs play an indispensable role in complementing the efforts of Setas to improve employment outcomes. Unlike rigid bureaucracies, NGOs often operate with greater flexibility and employer connectivity, helping bridge gaps between formal training and practical work readiness. Key contributions NGOs can make include: Enhanced data and outcome tracking: Harambee's SA Youth Platform, with millions of registered young job seekers, provides a transparent, digital repository to track learner progress from training to employment. This capability enables SetaAs to access accurate, real-time data to evaluate and refine their programmes. Employer linkage and work experience facilitation: NGOs facilitate critical connections between learners, educational institutions and employers, easing the challenge of securing workplace-based learning and internships – essential for skills application and job readiness. Finishing schools for work readiness: NGOs provide post-training practical skills, soft skills development and job readiness interventions. These 'finishing school' functions are crucial in preparing young people for permanent employment, especially where Seta or TVET programmes fall short. Innovation pilots and programmatic agility: Agile NGO models can test innovative approaches to skills delivery and employment support that, once proven, Setas could adopt or scale. This partnership facilitates dynamic responses to changing industry needs. By embracing collaborative frameworks, Setas can harness NGO expertise and networks to overcome current systemic shortcomings. Institutional challenges and the path forward Both Levani and Naidoo agree that reinforcing Setas to fulfil their mandate in today's challenging economic environment requires: Market-driven reform: Setas must improve their responsiveness to labour market demands through continuous engagement with diverse employers, including informal sector actors; Reduced bureaucratic burden: Streamlining administrative processes to allow for more agile decision-making and programme adaptation; Data-driven governance: Investing in robust data systems to track learner outcomes and inform evidence-based policy and operational decisions; Strengthened multi-stakeholder collaboration: Deepening partnerships with NGOs, private sector organisations, TVET colleges and youth themselves to foster holistic skills development and employment pathways; and Focused investment in high-demand sectors: Aligning funding and training curriculums with emerging growth industries that promise sustainable youth employment opportunities. For Setas to fulfil their mandate, Naidoo argues, they must shift from being enrolment-driven to outcome-driven. They must measure completion, work readiness and employment outcomes. But more than that, they need to work with agile partners like YES. 'You don't want to take away something that's working and replace it with something worse,' he cautioned. 'But you have to ask: If you were to change the Setas, what would you replace the change part with?' DM
The South African
5 days ago
- The South African
Why 85% of applicants don't comply with SPAZA shop fund
Four months since its launch, the R500-million spaza shop fund has failed to reach initial expectations. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition revealed recently that the spaza shop fund has attracted more than 10 000 applications. However, a worryingly low amount of spaza shop fund applications have meant compliance requirements. As such, applications have had to be split into two categories. The first group, made up of 14% who comply. And a second group of the remaining 86%, 'who do not yet meet requirements' but will be assisted. Experts say if you include South Africa's informal sector, the country's unemployment rate is actually closer to 10%, and not 33% as reported by Stats SA. Image: File A group representing the informal traders says government's 'rigid compliance criteria' is to blame for the low uptake, reports Daily Maverick . The fund is the brainchild of the Minister of Small Business Development, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams. And it came about following the 2024 poisoning of several young children. However, the South African Spaza Shops Association's Kgothatso Ramautswa, says it is 'deeply concerned' by the lack of compliance: 'This is not a reflection of spaza shop owners, but rather a failure of government to design a realistic funding support system. The fund is failing its intended beneficiaries. If 86% are non-compliant, the problem lies in the system, not the people,' Ramautswa says. South Africa's tax-free informal sector is worth billions, say economists. And the fund is a way to 'get them on the books.' Image: File However, in the face of such low compliance, the department says it will provide non-financial support. This will include assistance in applying for the necessary documentation through their local municipality for spaza shop fund applicants. The current maximum funding available per spaza shop fund is R100 000. And this is offered as a blended finance instrument, with a 50% grant and 50% interest-free loan. The debt portion of which is repayable with zero interest. As a reminder, the government's R100 000 per qualifying owner is made up like so. R40 000 for stock purchases, R10 000 for business training and R50 000 for infrastructure upgrades. As such, the package is designed to promote sustainability, competitiveness and regulatory compliance versus larger retailers. As of now, no spaza shop fund applications have actually been denied. However, in future they could be for the following non-compliance: Applicant is not a South African citizen. If the applicant is misrepresenting ownership or control of the business. Any fraudulent or misrepresentation documents in the application. Invalid or non-existent trading permit or a business licence. Use of funding for personal or non-business-related purposes. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
