Hollard, Tiscali World Online bring conductor, business guru Ben Zander to SA

Tiscali World Online and Hollard Insurance have teamed up to bring business leadership guru Benjamin Zander to SA.

Peter Laburn, MD of Hollard Insurance, says: "We were looking for a way to make a positive contribution to SA. As a company, we are optimistic about this country and its future in the world arena, and we wanted to contribute to growing the possibilities that exist here. I had heard of Ben Zander and met him last year. After spending some time with him I realised he is a true motivator and I was taken by his message and enthusiasm. I discovered in a book he wrote with his wife that he spoke about SA as a land of opportunity but had never been here. Now we are making that a reality."

Laburn says Hollard teamed up with Tiscali World Online because, as one of the largest Internet and cellular service providers in the country, it will provide access for thousands of business people through its portal to Zander`s distinctive teaching.

"Tiscali World Online values its subscribers and we provide them with a number of value-added services, including a monthly breakfast where we invite a leading business guru to address them," says Graeme Victor, MD of Tiscali World Online.

"A highlight of this year`s programme is bringing Zander, one of the world`s top 10 business gurus, to SA. A large portion of our base is made up of business people who are not exposed to the infrastructure of big corporations and this is an opportunity for them to learn more about running a business."

Tiscali World Online has found that a number of its subscribers are SME customers searching for ways to improve their business and, by exposing them to speakers such as Zander, the ISP is providing a value-added service that helps them develop their business knowledge and apply it in their companies.

Zander, who conducts the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, is an engaging motivator and musician who uses the orchestra in an inspirational demonstration of how a business can operate to liberate its full potential.

He shows that like the conductor, the power of a business leader derives from his or her ability to make others powerful. He says the players take part as a result of their own willingness and passion and that when leaders learn to encourage the same from their employees, business teams can learn to operate in a world without dead ends.

"Zander draws parallels between the conductor of an orchestra and the CEO of a company in the most unforgettable and entertaining way possible," says Russel Loubser, CEO, JSE Securities Exchange.

Zander will make two presentations at Theatre on the Track in Kyalami on Tuesday, 11 June and Wednesday, 12 June and will hold a gala event at Theatre on the Track on Thursday, 13 June.