GET TO KNOW...
On the lighter side of things, we ask the
industry experts what makes them tick. . . .
Frans Meyer,
Co-Founder and CEO of Alphawave Group
W
What would you describe as your
most memorable achievement?
Being involved in creating from scratch,
three successful niche antenna engineering
businesses that all compete and lead on
the international stage. This makes me
incredibly proud. It took many years since
it is difficult to get a business going – you
need the right combination of people,
timing and luck. And we managed to do
that three times since we started.
What first made you think of a
career in technology?
I was into maths from a very early age,
got a computer in 1981 when I was 15
and immediately jumped-in and enjoyed
figuring out and implementing complex
computer algorithms that could solve
problems, particularly rudimentary problems
at the time. Late in high school I became
fascinated with physical science, so science
or engineering was an obvious choice. I
chose engineering.
What style of management
philosophy do you employ with
your current position?
I really like the different, often complex,
personalities of the people I work with.
I strongly believe one should try to use
people in the positions that fit their skillsets
and personalities. I’ve also learned that
entrepreneurs are fully engaged and can
www.intelligentcio.com
get amazing things done if they are given
authority and autonomy to execute. I run
the Alphawave Group which is a technology
investment firm, so I am not operationally
involved with any business. I am a natural
delegator – so this position works for me. AI could be on the hype-curve at present,
but don’t be surprised if the hype actually
delivers fascinating results in this case.
What do you think is the current hot
technology talking point? I must admit that I’m not conventional in
this way. I play golf and have signed up for
the Cape Argus Cycle Tour and the Karoo-to-
How do you deal with stress and
unwind outside the office?
At the moment it is all about Machine
Learning and AI, of course. I get
advice from other experts in the
field, but it seems that some very
interesting problems could be solved
over the next decade, building on the
latest advances in these fields. ML/
“
I STRONGLY
BELIEVE ONE
SHOULD TRY TO
USE PEOPLE IN
THE POSITIONS
THAT FIT THEIR
SKILLSETS AND
PERSONALITIES.
INTELLIGENTCIO
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