Eskom’s Meatball Sundae

I can’t help but feel that Eskom’s new online initiative, PoweringSouthAfrica.co.za, is a bit of a Meatball Sundae. When I read about it in a three-full-page ad in the Sunday Times last week, I thought it sounded like quite a good idea (the extravagance of the advert notwithstanding); and the site itself is not bad, although I think it needs a bit more participation by Eskom itself (they invite visitors to “Join the Discussion“, but don’t seem to engage in those discussions themselves – at least not explicitly).

But here’s the thing: When, on Tuesday, I wanted to check out the site, without the Sunday Times in front of me and not remembering the URL, I couldn’t find it. Eskom haven’t even linked to it from their main website, let alone invest in any online marketing or PR, it seems. I subsequently heard their radio advert on KFM, so they got through to me eventually.

New media in the Free State of Saxony

I’ve just returned to the academy in Gummersbach after three days in Dresden in the Free State of Saxony – the eastern most state in Germany. It included two days of sightseeing, followed by a day of meetings about the use of New Media, on Monday.

The Technical University of Dresden is doing some exciting work on developing e-learning platforms and programmes, and it would be great to use some of those tools for our young leadership programme, and for staff development in the DA.