The One-Eyed Man with Mike Stopforth

Lesley Waterkeyn and Dawn Nathan-Jones (you may recognise Dawn as one of the investors from Shark Tank SA) have a vision for economic growth by inspiring and supporting entrepreneurs to start and grow successful and impactful small businesses. They provide resources in the form of training, coaching and business tools through Over The Rainbow (www.overtherainbow.co.za), and we talk about their off...

In the wake of a series of protests, riots and lootings across South Africa and especially in KZN, many of us are trying to make sense of what we saw and experience. Those of us fortunate enough not to be caught in the middle of the unrest juggled misinformation, panic, a limp government response, and the visible and visceral impact on thousands of our compatriots who are already in dire straits....

We're back from a brief hiatus, in the midst of a trying time for South Africa and South Africans. Well, a more trying time - it feels like being and believing has been an uphill battle for years now. In this episode talk to Bridget McNulty about grief. About loss. About how we think about loss, respond to loss, and live with it rather than get over it. This episode is a bit out of the ordinary fo...

Chris Loker is the founder of https://Moksha.biz, a company that had its genesis as a wellness business encompassing a yoga studio, clothing line, retreats, international teaching, teacher training and workshop, and has evolved in time to an advocate and provider of the concept of “Leadership Yoga”. Leadership yoga has been advocated by Rosabeth Moss Kanter who specialises in strategy, innovation,...

Wayne Zwiers and Vutlhari Rikhotso are the CEO and CTO of Basalt - a leading South African fintech solutions builder (https://www.basalt.co/). Having spent decades watching clients and their agencies fumble over complex digital integrations and transformations, I'm always intrigued by service providers who seem to do things differently. I've known Wayne Zwiers for many years and have watched him g...

Ryan Bacher is the co-founder and MD of https://NetFlorist.co.za one of South Africa's earliest and now leading online businesses. Starting off as an online florist and enjoying significant success in the early days of e-commerce in SA, NetFlorist has continued to grow and innovate, and diversify its offering to adapt to changing consumer needs. Ryan and I sat down on e-commerce day (10 March) to...

This Leading on the Field series of conversations with key sporting personalities is brought to you by sports management specialists, Forwardzone (https://forwardzone.com). Kaitano Tembo is the current Head Coach of PSL club SuperSport United. He took up the position in 2018 after ten years in the club's leadership ranks, following a career that saw him perform for top Zimbabwean club Dynamos, the...

Thanks to sports management specialists, Forwardzone (https://forwardzone.com), and software development geniuses Platform45 (https://www.platform45.com/) for their continued support of the One-Eyed Man podcast. Desiree Ellis is the coach of the South Africa women's national football team, Banyana Banyana. She was awarded Confederation of African Football Women's Coach of the Year in 2018 after th...

This Leading on the Field series of conversations with key sporting personalities is brought to you by sports management specialists, Forwardzone (https://forwardzone.com). At the tender age of 18, golf prodigy Ashleigh Buhai turned pro after breaking almost every amateur record in South Africa. She was the youngest player (14) to receive full African colours, the youngest player to win the Ladies...

This Leading on the Field series of conversations with key sporting personalities is brought to you by sports management specialists, Forwardzone (https://forwardzone.com). Enoch Nkwe is the assistant coach of the South African national cricket team, the Proteas. A former professional cricketer himself, Enoch's promising career was cut short by injury. Rather than be defeated by this setback, he r...

A big thank you to Platform45 (https://platform45.com) for making this episode possible. Should we be jumping the WhatsApp ship? In this episode I talk to Nerushka Bowan about the recent panic over - and exodus from - WhatsApp. Nerushka is an emerging technology law specialist and legal technology innovator, and has been one of the more balanced and lucid voices in the noise around this interestin...

A big thank you to Platform45 (https://platform45.com) for making this episode possible. Styli Charalambous — Daily Maverick | CEO/Publisher The thinking behind the launch of print weekly DM168 In this episode I talk to Styli Charalambous, the visionary CEO and Publisher of Daily Maverick. In the midst of a particularly unpredictable time for media businesses (and the world at large, to be fair),...

Rowan Belchers — Lockstep | Founder Dismantling and demystifying some widely held misconceptions about CEOs In this episode I talk to specialist CEO advisor Rowan Belchers about what being a CEO really means, why the role is more important than ever in determining organisational success, and how modern CEOs are having to revise their views on leadership to adapt and thrive. Rowan is the founder of...

Ian Fuhr — Hatch Institute | Founder How race relations and diversity are fueling business growth and prosperity In this episode I talk to Ian Fuhr, known to many as the dynamic founder of the Sorbet group, about his new project the Hatch Institute and its work in helping entrepreneurs build more inclusive, progressive and impactful businesses. Ian defines the work of the Hatch Institute with the...

Charlie Quirk — Google | Consultant Director of Strategy Why Kung Fu Panda should be in every leader's resource bank "One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it. In this episode I talk to one of my favourite internet friends, Charlie Quirk, about our mutual passion for cinema, the lessons we can all learn from the Hollywood, and particularly, the wisdom of the Kung Fu Panda anima...

Robert Mtshali — MobiWashSA | Founder Discussing perseverance and passion with Alexandra's Robin Hood "In this episode I talk to the self-proclaimed Robin Hood of Alexandra township, Robert Mtshali (and who am I to argue?). Robert is a serial entrepreneur who reached out to me on Twitter because he believed his story would resonate with you, and wow, was he right. After suffering unimaginable trag...

I just ended a 13 year relationship... with Facebook. Now, before you laugh (ok, you can laugh), this was a bigger deal for me than I'd like to admit. For over a decade I ran a social media business that relied heavily on the existence of Facebook - and its impact on companies and customers - to grow and thrive. Much of my reputation and self worth is wrapped up in the existence and success of tha...

Ronen Aires — CEO | Student Village How society and business is taking a new look at psychedelics In this episode I talk to Ronen Aires about the future of psychedelic medicine and innovation. I am admittedly ignorant on the topic, but have kept a keen eye on Ronen's journey into the subject over the past decade and wanted to hear more about how leaders and innovators should consider the growing i...

Kristia van Heerden — JustOneLap.com | CEO Uncovering why so many people have a dysfunctional relationship with money In this episode I talk to financial wellness evangelist and crusader Kristia van Heerden about her work on JustOneLap.com - a free online money university for traders, investors, and just about everyone else. Kris hosts the popular Fat Wallet podcast, a highly practical and tactile...

Gidon Novick — Entrepreneur How to innovate in the face of disruption and unpredictability In this episode I talk to Gidon Novick about his decision to launch a new airline in the midst of a global pandemic. Gidon is a well known entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist, and in his own words, a big believer in the potential of South Africa. He is interested in creating businesses that are both pr...

Jeff Large — Comealivecreative.com | Founder Is podcasting a bubble or a business? — Jeff Large (Comealivecreative.com | Founder) In this episode I talk to Jeff Large, purveyor and producer of profitable podcasts (my title, not his) about the burgeoning business of podcasting, and whether it's a viable marketing and sales strategy, or just hype. Jeff Large helps individuals and businesses establis...

Bronwyn Williams — Flux Trends | Partner Fixing the world and breaking echo chambers In this episode, my friend and speaking colleague Bronwyn Williams and I finally get around to solving all the world's problems, and in only 45 minutes or so. Bronwyn is a futurist, economist and trends analyst with over a decade’s experience in strategic management and foresight. She holds tertiary qualifications...

Lee LeFever — CommonCraft.com | Co-founder In this episode I talk to Lee LeFever, co-founder of Common Craft and author of the freshly released book Big Enough. I've been following Lee since my earliest social media (ad)ventures, and deeply respect the quality of Sachi (Lee's wife and partner) and his work, their articulation of purpose, and their deliberate commitment to designing a business that...

Dr Louise van Rhyn — Symphonia | Founder In this episode, I talk to Dr Louise van Rhyn, founder of Symphonia.net and the visionary behind the wildly successful and impactful Partners for Possibility programme. Louise holds a doctoral degree in organisational change, has 25 years' experience as a change practitioner with a focus on large scale change in complex social systems, and has worked with d...

Ntsiki Mkhize — MentHer | Founder In this episode I talk to Ntsiki Mkhize about her journey to social entrepreneurship and her passion for mentorship and the role it plays in uplifting and empowering young women in South Africa. Ntsiki previously achieved success as a finalist in the Miss South Africa pageant, and as a published author(My Hall of Mentors), and has used her platform and influence t...