Embracing excellence is not an option; it's an imperative

Disrupt or be disrupted. That's the new mantra driven by the fourth industrial revolution, the digital technology tsunami overturning established business practices in its rush to be bigger and better, while making sweeping changes to our professional and personal lives.

Ask Standard Bank or its employees how app-driven banking by Discovery Bank, Bank Zero and TymeBank has affected conventional banking.

There is no doubt that to thrive in this rapidly transforming world we not only need to ride the wave of change, we also need to embrace excellence as a professional ethic in light of globalisation and the increase in competition that comes with it.

However, globalisation and digitisation are not only about technology; they are also about the quick uptake of opportunities, innovation, agility in how we apply our skills, and responsiveness to rapidly evolving trends. Failing to do so will see SA slip further in global competitive rankings and exacerbate the already dire situation of our failing economy and high unemployment rate.

Undoubtedly, high unemployment and the inability to create jobs remain the biggest failures of post-1994 SA. While there are many factors that influence job creation, a key one is value excellence. This is the advantage that an employee brings to an employer.

With large numbers of graduates in competition for fewer job opportunities, the key question they should ask themselves is: "What compelling value can I offer a prospective employer?"

New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman once wrote: "Today, average is officially over." This is because in a world of increasing competition, and where one's unique value proposition is becoming the norm, being average doesn't cut it anymore. Surviving, and indeed thriving, in business, academic or professional spheres requires above-average and often excellent performance. Look around you: notice how individuals and organisations that are sustainable and successful offer better value. They have transcended being "average".

Higher education institutions, such as the University of KwaZulu-Natal, are custodians of tomorrow's leaders and need to make excellence a central part of their teaching and learning mandates. Likewise, students need to realise that embracing excellence will bring out the best in them because it taps into humanity's highest potential and drives us to improve our abilities. As former American football coach Vince Lombardi explains: "The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavour."

Universities bristle with potential, from the sports fields to the classrooms and research labs. Unfortunately, much of this potential remains stillborn.

So, how can we transform from being mediocre to excellent? It starts with choice. As the late psychiatrist Viktor Frankl said: "Humans are choosers."

We choose our destinies through our thoughts and then we create them in our actions. The Japanese nailed it down to Kaizen, a life philosophy about making small, incremental improvements on an ongoing basis.

In his book, Simply Brilliant: How Great Organisations Do Ordinary Things in Extraordinary Ways!, William C. Taylor shows how latter-day businesses have become successful through integrating excellence into their common business practices such as customer service.

Fortunately, technology has brought excellence within easy reach. Global best practice and role models can be readily accessed through online learning platforms. Online content has provided opportunities to learn from the best in the world and, in so doing, enable us to become our better selves.

Thriving in SA requires us to break the "entitlement syndrome". Despite its many promises, the government is incapable of providing the development and opportunities needed to enable growth. Revelations at the Zondo, Mpati and Mokgoro commissions show how state capture and cronyism have stripped value from our economy. Our education system doesn't fare much better. In its recent working paper, titled Struggling to Make the Grade: A Review of the Causes and Consequences of the Weak Outcomes of South Africa's Education System, the International Monetary Fund paints a dire picture of the country's basic education system.

SA's economic and social challenges deserve nothing short of the very best solutions and the most qualified officials to implement them. Poor service delivery, or a lack of it, at all levels of our social development value chain show that excellence, whether in the academy or in any professional endeavour, must prevail above all else.

It is no surprise that by upholding meritocracy, politically stable and economically successful Singapore recruits the sharpest minds to its civil service so that the most efficient service is provided.

For the sake of SA's growth and sustainability, it is imperative that a culture of excellence is embraced. Excellence is not a superhuman skill; it needs neither academic qualifications nor positional authority. The starting point is choice and then to commit that decision to action.