The human touch will elevate organisations in the digital age
Despite the efficiency of technology, personalised effort will always matter, writes Abdullah Verachia
Twitter came to life recently when it was announced that history would become a compulsory subject in South African schools. What use is history, tweeted many. Why not focus on STEM? After all, aren’t science, technology, engineering and maths the skills to have? Others, however, claimed the human-centric abilities fostered by "the arts" would have more relevance for the future.
In the debate about technology and the humanities, no one said it better than Apple cofounder and technology doyen Steve Jobs: "Technology alone is not enough — it’s technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields us the results that make our heart sing." What Jobs knew is that the most successful companies in the technological era are those that understand the human element. They appreciate that technology is only an enabler; it is not a market disrupter. They understand that the human touch is critical to building sustainable competitive organisations. Unfortunately, ma...
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