Alec Hogg’s regular column covering investment, economics, moneycraft and, occasionally, something very personal.
Hi there, A year ago I visited the Huffington Post’s offices in New York. It was one of the highlights of forced gardening leave, and came en route to my annual course in Capitalism 101 with Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger and 30 000 Berkshire Pilgrims in Omaha. My fervent hope at that time was to … Read more
Hi there, During the late 1990s, the world went dot.com crazy. Any business with even a vague relationship with the Internet found a way to add the suffix to its name. I get the feeling that “disruption” is starting to attract the same kind of attention. People who wouldn’t know a Clay Christensen book if … Read more
Hi there, We’ve been getting a good feel of the radio studio at our new JSE offices. Witness the Biznews channel on Soundcloud.com where the fruit of our labour resides with some terrific interviews. Among those immediately springing to mind are Michael Jordaan on the week that changed his life; the double act of John … Read more
Hi there, South Africans are accused of taking too many holidays. We probably do. But long weekends provide breathing space, time to re-assess, reflect and contemplate. All of which can help us stop doing so much and sometimes even pick more appropriate pathways. Part of my break was spent having a closer look at my … Read more
A friend reminded me recently that the ANC is a bit like your favourite soccer team. You can get angry with the manager and shout at the players, but loyal supporters never switch their allegiance. His assessment appears to be widely shared in South Africa – at least if you believe the latest poll published … Read more
South Africans go to the polls in just over two weeks. With an unpopular leader, momentum swinging to the Official Opposition and the emergence of a populist party of young firebrands, the ruling ANC faces clear headwinds. Not so obvious, though, is the growing influence of social media which some creative South Africans are leveraging … Read more
By Alec Hogg Biznews.com has a very special reason to celebrate. Today, just nine and a half months since its debut, the website’s monthly Pageviews (see right) broke through one million for the first time. And it’s only the 17th. Thanks a million. You, our readers, are our customers. And our customers have shown us … Read more
Hi there, Yesterday brought an occasion to revisit Moore’s Law. That’s the famous prognosis published in a 1965 article by Intel co-founder Gordon Moore where he predicted during the following decade, in each year there would be a doubling in the computing power bought by each dollar. Many scratched their heads because when you do … Read more
Hi there, In the mid-1980s, I was a young man in a hurry. Addicted to ambition, hard work had landed me a senior position at the Sunday Times, which in those days was the biggest name in media. In among all those household names, columnist Jani Allan was like a Goddess. She always seemed terribly … Read more
During my years at the Sunday Times in the mid-1980s, columnist Jani Allan (right) was like a Goddess. She always seemed terribly out of place in the smoky, messy offices at the bottom end of Mooi Street – a slim, silent, mysterious creature with an acute fashion sense that heightened the way she contrasted with … Read more