New head for Deloitte Digital Africa

Gareth Rees

A specialist in rapidly bringing new products or services to market, Rees adds to the firm’s leadership team a wealth of experience in helping companies devise innovative strategies and business models to survive and grow in an increasingly complex and fast-changing world.

“New, exponential technologies are being introduced at fast and rapidly accelerating rates, leaving no business untouched. Because of this, companies everywhere that have been successful for decades, can now come under pressure from or even be unseated by a week-old start-up.

“Our digital transformation practice continues to help clients capitalise on these technologies to disrupt before they get disrupted,” says Rees.

Rees says that the rate and volume of technological breakthroughs heralds the start of the fourth industrial revolution, which will have a systemic impact on global business and create new opportunities for those with the right acuity.

“We are at a point where digital transformation shouldn’t merely be a part of strategy - it should be the strategy. Businesses that will continue to exist over the next few decades are those that have taken this to heart. Gareth’s appointment strengthens Deloitte Digital’s capabilities to not only provide clients strategic advice to guide them through these uncertain and fast-changing times, but also to build the technical solutions that back the strategy, and creatively drive their acceptance in the market,” explained Valter Adão, lead director at Deloitte Digital Africa and innovation leader for Deloitte.

Rees has been at Deloitte for four years and also heads up the firm’s rapid commercialisation practice, which identifies unique high-potential start-up businesses and rapidly scales them through leveraging skills, insights, support capacity and market access from across the Deloitte network. He also supports the firm’s corporate innovation and growth practice.