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TEDGlobal 2012 and Radical Openness in Africa

Jason Haddock brings home insights from TEDGlobal 2012 - a vision in which the power of ideas can change the world, and more directly, add value to business in Africa.


Johannesburg, 03 Oct 2012
Sketch created during New Educational Paradigms for Innovation presentation - TED, 2012.
Sketch created during New Educational Paradigms for Innovation presentation - TED, 2012.

TEDGlobal was, as always, an intense and rewarding experience, according to Jason Haddock, Saratoga's head of Innovation, who was honoured to take up one of only 500 places available for the event in Edinburgh.

At the outset, the by-invitation-only conference brought together the world's most compelling speakers united only by a curiosity and open-mindedness. Based on the foundation of being "the powerful convergence between technology, entertainment and design" (Wurman 1984), it is no wonder that the impact of ideas and inspiration has extended beyond the conference itself.

Embracing new technology, they have shared content over the Web and, true to their motto, have gone on to give away their methods, formats, and even the TED brand.

Radical Openness/idea evolution

"How do we elevate the power of our open connections to the next level, and use that connection to drive greater impact on a personal level?" was the question posed at this year's TEDGlobal conference, and explored under the theme of Radical Openness.

Radical Openness is more than just a new form of jargon or catchy lingo. It is a profound and philosophical approach towards the world's problems that offers a huge divergence from the status quo. Performance philosopher and TED speaker, Jason Silva (in Forbes, 2012), talks of how ideas flow freely, mutate, and evolve - proving that opportunities for collaboration and openness are endless in today's ultra-connected world.

Radical Openness can be found within the concepts of open, peer-to-peer, shared, publicly available, free, interactive, real-time, personalised, and user-driven content. It also has the power to transcend technology to other aspects of life, such as government, education, entrepreneurs and just about everyone else. In technology, Radical Openness is credited with allowing small businesses to level the playing field between themselves and large corporates in global markets. In this sphere, social capital and influence are the new currencies over hierarchy and formal power.

Being radically open in African business

Africa has been identified as the last untapped market and is poised to be one of the largest workforces in the world. Haddock used his experience at TEDGlobal 2012 to reflect on how Radical Openness has added to his view on the future of business on this continent.

In his role at Saratoga, Haddock is able to take these ideas of innovation and Radical Openness and apply them in a variety of settings. Saratoga, a small company of only 60 people, works with large corporates. For Haddock, this placement has allowed him the unique opportunity to apply these principles to both micro and macro organisations.

"In order to prioritise innovation, there must be radical openness - which means letting go of entrenched notions such as proprietary, bureaucracy and hierarchy. In their place blossom the concepts of localised, personalised, user-driven, open, and sharing. In essence it is transparency, but what exactly this means can differ according to the environment, such as business or government," explains Haddock

South Africans certainly aren't lacking in innovation, which has a lot to do with our history of creating environments in which individuals are forced to find creative solutions to challenges. The flip side of this strength is that, according to Haddock, they appear to underestimate the potential impact of their involvement, especially when it comes to being part of the solution to global problems. South Africans tend to feel isolated from the developed world and miss opportunities to contribute to issues of global import. Embracing our "natural inventiveness" is the key to our successful integration into global business.

Taking on change

"As the world becomes interconnected, the ways we relate and learn about one another (and the rules about what we share) are changing." (TEDGlobal, 2012)

Haddock shares Silva's view that embracing a path of Radical Openness will lead to a new singularity - a huge change in the course of our history and evolution, likened to speech and the written word. Based on the current changes in the way we interact, share knowledge and ideas through technology, this will lead us to a new singularity. To do this, we must embrace a path of Radical Openness within all spheres of life - from business to government, self-publishing to changing society.

With all the potential that is held within Africa, Haddock feels strongly that it should be those living in Africa who take the lead and benefit from this opportunity.

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TEDGlobal

TEDGlobal is an international offshoot of the TED Conference in the US. With only 500 TED Global attendees being selected through an application process, this ensures not only a fascinating event, but that the social interactions between attendees are just as interesting and inspiring.

Related articles

TEDGlobal - http://conferences.ted.com/TEDGlobal2012/
Jason Silva, Radical Openness - http://vimeo.com/38260970
Steven Kotler, in Forbes - http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevenkotler/2012/06/26/radical-openness-a-trip-through-our-next-frontier-with-tedglobal-presenter-jason-silva/
Carole Cadwalladr, in The Observer - http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/jun/24/tedglobal-2012-the-more-you-give-away

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