Growth in Focus - Dion Chang

Do you want to know what local business and industry leaders are talking about?   

Find out in this instalment of Growth in Focus, where Dion Chang, founder of Flux Trends, discusses the role of innovation can bridge  in unlocking the potential of the South African youth.  

As South Africa grapples with high inequality and rapid technological change, Chang, who has spent 17 years tracking disruptive trends that impact business models, proves that the right approach to technology adoption and skills development can transform challenges into competitive advantages.  

An economic divide leads to a technological divide 

According to Chang, South Africa faces a fundamental challenge that threatens to leave entire populations behind. "So, with the most unequal society, it's an economic divide. But increasingly, you're starting to see that the technological divide is the second wave. And if you've already left people behind economically, then there's not going to be any chance to catch up technologically." 

This technological divide manifests in multiple ways. Well-intentioned hardware provision often backfires. If a company sponsors laptops for students, "younger university kids or school kids feel like a target" for having valuable, at-risk items. 

Four-year degrees are four years too long 

Chang advocates for a fundamental shift in how businesses approach skills development and recruitment. "I think we're still stuck on credentialing or degree inflation." 

The solution lies in continuous, adaptable learning rather than traditional academic pathways. "I'm not saying that the academic background is completely obsolete. However, if we're talking about technology and the skills within that space, then those move very quickly and need to be refreshed constantly... I like the World Economic Forum model of micro-credentials." 

This approach recognises that career paths are becoming increasingly fluid. "We're squarely in an era where you thought your one skill set that was maybe sector specific, and company specific or division specific, that you would go into that lane, and that's where you would develop your career. Now, you're starting to see that much more often that people change lanes completely and go into a completely different sector that they never thought they would ever be in." 

“People need to be open to continuing learning and upscaling."

Dion Chang, founder of Flux Trends

The power of technology to reshape how we look at the world 

Chang emphasises viewing technology as a continuous service rather than a one-time purchase. "Technology is not a fixed asset that you can say, ‘Okay, we're done and dusted,’ and then we'll leave that. 

I do think AI and really good algorithms will cut down a lot of the stuff that we admired in 20th-century business models... the whole structure of that 20th-century corporate model, there are so many things within there that are obsolete, but we hang on to those things." 

Chang challenges fears about job displacement from AI and automation. "Generative AI has kicked up a lot of dust and a lot of knee-jerk reactions around how many jobs will be replaced. But if you go back even two decades, the rate of automation, that's happened... yes, some jobs will be lost, but then an equal, or even more jobs are going to be created." 

African innovation  

South Africa's constraints have created a unique advantage in practical innovation. "The innovation that comes out of Africa is much more solution based. And I think in the developed world, you have the danger of doing innovation for innovation's sake, so it looks sexy, it looks clever, but it's not that practical." 

Chang cites pandemic-era delivery services as an example: companies achieved what major retailers claimed was impossible—delivering to informal settlements without street grids—using simple WhatsApp-based systems. "They did it with relatively low-key technology, which is WhatsApp. It was a steep learning curve for both parties, but you know, to be able to do that, but then you started to see internationally really high-end luxury brands use that same low-tech kind of technology to service." 

Chang emphasises that customers now expect seamless experiences across all touch points. "People don't think about design flows enough. And I think consumers might not realise they need to demand that. But intuitively, they demand that quick, intuitive flow of things." 

Faster learning equals more learning 

Despite current challenges, Chang sees enormous potential in South Africa's youth. He advocates for micro-credentials as a pathway to unlock this potential. "If you look at the sort of micro-credentials model, you're able to upskill a large swath of the population much faster. So, not a four-year degree, but rather a six-month course or something similar. And then you also break down socio-economic barriers, gender, age, all of those kinds of things." 

The power of data, technology and human ingenuity 

When asked about investment priorities, Chang focuses on foundational infrastructure rather than specific technologies. His prescription is simple: "High-speed internet and cheap data... that would open the gates and the portals." 

Success requires focusing on practical solutions over flashy innovations, investing in foundational infrastructure rather than cutting-edge technology, and developing people's capacity to adapt and learn continuously rather than training them for specific jobs that may become obsolete.