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29 August 2024
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Story Anthony Mthembu
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Photo Harmse Photography
Ross van Reenen, CEO of the Toyota Free State Cheetahs.
The Business School at the University of the Free State (UFS) recently hosted the CEO of the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, Ross van Reenen, for a guest lecture. Van Reenen presented the guest lecture in the Business School Auditorium on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus on 21 August 2024.
Reflecting on Van Reenen’s address
In a lecture addressed to an auditorium filled with UFS staff and students, Van Reenen’s talk was divided into several sections. Firstly, he spoke about the concept of the ‘black swan’ in reference to the book written by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, titled The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable. Referring to Taleb’s book, Van Reenen defined a ‘black swan’ as a rare event that has a severe impact, and the occurrence of which people try to explain. He used some examples to explore this concept as well as its implications, including COVID-19 and its impact on the world, and the tragic death of the people in the Titanic disaster. However, he delved deeper into 9/11 and the extent of its impact, saying that “9/11 was a major wake-up call in the world economy”. Van Reenen highlighted how some companies such as Barclays, for which he previously consulted, had to work to be up and running after the collapse of the Twin Towers in 9/11.
In addition, Van Reenen’s lecture also touched on the importance of the first ninety days of a job after an individual has been employed. “Those first ninety days are crucial, as you have to establish yourself in a company where you are paid less than you are worth,” Van Reenen said. As such, he gave the audience insight into what they could focus on in that time frame. This includes focusing on the small wins, as well as ensuring that you are working at keeping the team together, as the team is an integral part of an organisation.
Van Reenen concluded his address by speaking about his time as the CEO of the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, including some of the decisions he took to ensure the success of the organisation.
Critical conversations for an intellectually vibrant campus
2012-02-13
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Prof. Helene Strauss lead a discussion of Khalo Matabane’s film, Conversations on a Sunday Afternoon.
Photo: Amanda Tongha |
Our Bloemfontein Campus is set to become intellectually alive this year with a series of critical conversations hosted by our International Institute for Studies in Race, Reconciliation and Social Justice. The series of conversations promise an impressive line-up of prominent South Africans, amongst them Public Protector Thuli Madonsela and Nobel Literature winner Nadine Gordimer.
The first conversation for this year was hosted on 7 and 8 February 2012 with a screening and discussion of Khalo Matabane’s film, Conversations on a Sunday Afternoon. The discussion, led by Prof. Helene Strauss from our Department of English, looked at the ethics of conversing across cultural and other divides.
Speaking at the discussion Prof. André Keet, Director of our International Institute for Studies in Race, Reconciliation and Social Justice, said it bodes well for the university that it will listen to and view amazing intellectual work. He said, "The critical conversations directly speak to the human and academic project of the university."
The next critical conversation will be hosted on 21 February 2012 and will look at the politics of reconciliation.