Integral Business Strategies in Turbulent Times – A Workshop by Pundutso and Trans4m in Harare
Over 80 senior business leaders as well as high levels representatives of other sectors of societies followed the invitation to the latest Pundutso-Trans4m workshop in Zimbabwe, with a particular focus on integral solutions to business for Zimbabwe’s challenging economic environment.
Under the leadership of the core team of Pundutso Center for Integral Development – Dr. Passmore Matupire, Dr. Elizabeth Mamukwa, Dr. Josh Chinyuku, Dr. Andrew Nyambayo and Wellington Mutyanda – in cooperation with Trans4m Geneva, a workshop was convened for senior business leaders in Zimbabwe to share how the Integral Worlds approach could be employed to address major systemic failures within the Zimbabwean economy.
From the outset, and based on Trans4m’s integral perspective, such systemic issues were lodged not only in the local business environment, but linked to global imbalances, on an economic, social, cultural, ecological, and structural level.
With Pundutso members Matupire, Mamukwa and Chinyuku setting the scene, exploring imbalances on a local level, Trans4m co-founders Prof. Ronnie Lessem and Prof. Alexander Schieffer shared with the audience the fundamentals of the Integral Worlds approach and its application to business around the world. The Trans4m presentation was enriched by brief contributions of two new members of the Trans4m Da Vinci PhD Program, Smart Zongololo, General Manager, Best Food Processors (part of Schweppes Group), Zimbabwe, and Olugbenga Awe, Group Head, Agric Finance, Heritage Bank, Nigeria.
Intertwined by active dialogue with the audience, the Pundutso presenters concluded the presentation with an illustration of concrete applications of the Integral Worlds approach to the Zimbabwean business environment, with three concrete cases from within the Zimbabwean industrial sector, forming jointly an integral ecology:
- Passmore Matupire introduced Integral Ubuntu Leadership to the audience, as applied to the Zimbabwean ART Holdings, as an application to individual leadership styles;
- Liz Mamukwa made the case for local knowledge building capacities via the Calabash of Integral Knowledge Creation, based on a real life organisational case in Turnall Holdings, and
- Josh Chinyuku applied Integral Worlds to an industry as a whole, via his approach to Industrial Ecology as a shared approach to ensure industry survival in turbulent times
The conference was addressed by the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Hon. Mike C. Bimha, MP, who, in the last minute had to cancel his personal participation due to other pressing commitments. On his behalf a representative of his Ministry delivered not only the speech (full text see below) but expressed, in a short, personal ex tempore speech the importance and relevance of the integral approach for Zimbabwe.
The workshop, which was animated in a lively and highly professional way by MC Victor Marawu, CEO of Vertical Momentum, ended with an emotional statement of Chief and Senator Musarurwa, who invited Pundutso and Trans4m to present their innovative ideas to the Zimbabwean Council of Chiefs.
