03 APRIL 2023

The last VHS tape on earth

by Mike Stopforth: Entrepreneur and investor. Sometimes writer and speaker. Exploring how we lead, and how we should lead, in an increasingly complex world.

Buried in one of the cabinets in our living room are a pile of board games, thirty or so vinyl records, two archaic video cameras, and two Checkers packets filled with old VHS and VHS compact tapes. The tapes have moved with us from house to house, but it must be fifteen years or more since I watched anything on them.

Partly in the interest of cleaning that dusty cupboard and partly out of curiosity, I finally got around to contacting a digital conversion service here in Jo’burg to attempt to salvage some of the content on the tapes.

It’s a weird thing, carrying around all those memories in a Checkers packet, knowing they exist only in that analog form, susceptible to any exposure or loss, not backed up or accessible in any way other than on the tapes. Despite letting them gather dust for the last two decades, I was suddenly viscerally aware of their value and fragility. It made them mean more.

The conversion service was excellent (I highly recommend Freeman Productions), and it’s been a joy rewatching moments from my and my family’s past. Some are instantly recognisable. Some, I feel like I’m seeing for the first time.

Watching those old captures on a modern big-screen TV is jarring. The quality is awful. We are utterly spoiled today with the ability to capture moments and memories in high definition on devices that live in our pockets. Do I sound like a curmudgeonly old uncle? YES. But it’s true.

The gap between those of us who grew up in an analog world and those of you who were born into a digital reality is widening with every passing day. As we witness technology advancing at an increasingly rapid rate, “digital natives” and “digital immigrants” see the world in a completely different light.

The challenge is that we digital immigrants hold some valuable institutional experience and wisdom - experience and wisdom that is invaluable when combined with technology. So how do we bridge the divide? Digital literacy.

I have the privilege of facilitating discussions on digital transformation and disruption with senior leadership, excos, and boards of many of my clients. I consistently tell them the same thing. You don’t have to be active on Twitter to appreciate social media's impact on society and politics. You don’t have to own and trade Bitcoin to understand the impact of decentralisation. You don’t need a degree in data science to notice the impact of AI and automation on innovation.

There is a difference between being in technology and having a baseline understanding of why technological change is happening. It’s the difference between being a CA and having a decent understanding of financial strategy in business. What senior leader would neglect that responsibility?

It’s time we created more spaces for our digitally-native young talent to work with us - and even challenge us - in understanding and embracing the possibility of digital change.

Source: Beyond Binary works with its clients to unpack the impacts of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on their businesses by plotting their journey in terms of five distinct categories: Digital Denialism, Digital Enhancement, Digital Transformation, Digital Speculation, and Digital Disruption. Visit our web-site at: https://beyondbinary.co.za/.