SMEs in South Africa
Vodacom & Accenture Join Forces for Bespoke Cybersecurity
South African telco Vodacom and Ireland-based IT services company Accenture have partnered to launch Vodacom Managed Security services through Vodacom Business. The partnership was publically announced yesterday via press release. Vodacom Managed Security services is a new solution that creates custom cybersecurity modules for small businesses in South Africa. According to Vodacom, South Africa has among the most cybercrime incidents in the world and a lack of sufficient investment in cybersecurity has led to this crisis. This is particularly true for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that simply don’t have the same human capital, technology assets, and financial resources as larger businesses. Vodacom Business and Accenture have launched the Vodacom Managed Security Services to o...
Unpacking the Economic Impact of COVID 19 on SMBs in South Africa
One in two small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in South Africa has yet to see revenues recover to pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest edition of Facebook’s Global State of Small Business Report. 50% of operational South African SMBs on Facebook reported that their sales in February were lower than the equivalent month last year. Some 74% reported that they were operational or engaging in any revenue-generating activities, while 8% of operational SMBs on Facebook expected challenges related to cash flow and 20% expected challenges related to demand or a lack of customers in the next few months. Continuing trends observed throughout the pandemic: Women-owned South African businesses have been hit especially hard. Some 71% of women-led SMBs (vs. 77% of men-led SMBs) on Facebook ...
Why Reimagined IT Strategies are Mission Critical for SMEs
Image sourced from IT Web Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have been severely affected by the pandemic – many of which are struggling to ensure continuity, let alone achieve sustained growth. However, the news is not all negative. We have also seen countless examples of entrepreneurs rising to the challenge and tackling the unexpected head-on. SMEs who move quickly to take advantage of new technology business models are not only keeping afloat but are actually thriving. According to an article by the World Economic Forum (WEF), SMEs make up 90% of formal businesses in South Africa. These businesses contribute 34% to the country’s GDP and employ up to 60% of the labour force. For this reason, it is crucial that these small businesses continue to embrace technology and digital solutions i...
Unpacking the Digitalisation of South African SMEs
In just a matter of months, the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world at the speed of light. Most businesses weren’t prepared and were forced to adapt to extraordinary challenges in order to continue with business operations –whilst battling to stay afloat. In South Africa, many businesses have opted for mass work-from-home policies for their staff, as businesses navigate through new ways of working as a direct result of the pandemic. Digital transformation has become the enabler, propelling businesses into the future. Technologies like collaboration and online meeting software have become a necessity through the transition to digitally enable remote working. The acceleration saw a broader...
