I am fortunate to be living in an apartment with a Nile view. I was born and lived here for most of my life. Like many other citizens of the busy city of Cairo, my daily routine is fully packed with professional and social commitments and obligations coupled with long hours of commute across town, especially in recent years with the continuous expansion and growth of greater Cairo in terms of size and population.
Being locked-in at home for the past 40+ days for different reasons, starting with the bad weather of March 12th, followed by the change of The American University in Cairo’s spring break dates to navigate the disruption caused by the coronavirus, and ending with the #StayHome #StaySafe #StayHealthy approach to limit the spread of the pandemic; I spent long hours working from home capitalizing on all possible technological tools and applications available while being privileged with an exceptional Nile view.
Looking at the Nile night and day for the past six weeks and thinking of how important it has been for Egypt for thousands of years economically, socially, and politically, as well as how inspirational this magnificent and resourceful river, the longest in Africa and one of the longest waterways in the world, has been for Egyptians, is mind-boggling. The Nile played an instrumental role in establishing in Upper Egypt, one of the earliest and most accomplished civilizations, which thrived partly due to its ability to adapt to the changing conditions of the river for agriculture.
Inspired by the history of the Nile and its invaluable role in establishing the great Egyptian civilization, The NileView article series is a platform that addresses concurrent issues related to the economy, business, education, innovation, and society at a time of continuous transformational change and disruption. With the developments taking place these days, the world is witnessing some unprecedented times that will probably lead to many changes in virtually everything. The emergence of digital leaders, learners, disrupters, influencers, and the like will become the norm. On that note, moving forward, the new norm will be in many ways different from what we were used to prior to the pandemic. This will obviously lead to a number of challenges but also create new opportunities as we navigate the next phase of digital transformation. There is no doubt in my mind that organizations around the world and across different fields and industries have already started to walk the talk and seriously consider embracing what digitization has to offer in terms of solutions and alternatives.
Since the lockdown came into effect in different countries around the world, many people started to work, study, shop, and get entertained from home. It became apparent that COVID-19 managed to quickly and seamlessly push for digital transformation, compared to what the Chief Information Officers (CIOs) and the Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) in different organizations around the world managed to accomplish over the past few decades in terms of effectively capitalizing on the potential of different emerging innovative technology platforms, a movement currently dubbed as the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
What we are witnessing these days, and especially since early March, is just the beginning of many changes that will happen to the way we do different things, and more importantly to the way we live. Science fiction is no longer fiction; it is real, and it is happening. The notions of social media, shared economy, and artificial intelligence which are now joined by social or rather physical distancing are becoming more up, close and personal. The traditional skills that we were proud of and excelled at are now being efficiently and rapidly executed by machines with the evolution and wide dissemination of the Internet of Things. Consequently, the most invaluable resource in any society, the human capital, needs to start excelling in various ways that would clearly differentiate them from machines. On that note, the notions of complex problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, discovery, emotional intelligence, and advanced data analytics are becoming a key skillset that societies should focus on. Accordingly, there is an urgent need to be knowledgeable and ready to function within this new reality and its associated ecosystem. We must find a place to not just survive but also thrive regardless of our profession in this increasingly competitive, agile, and changing global landscape that will probably unveil itself in the not too distant future.
Welcome to the inaugural issue of The NileView, a digital platform to share thoughts, views, and ideas about contemporary issues. I hope the articles will stimulate knowledgeable debates and a lively and constructive exchange of ideas and reactions through different communication channels. I will always look forward to receiving your feedback on the issues discussed and encourage your input on topics to be covered in future articles. I hope you enjoy reading The NileView.
About the author: Sherif Kamel is a professor of management, dean of the school of business at The American University in Cairo, and president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt.
24 April 2020
Issue #1
Very nice article :)
Hi Sherif, I retired from the U.S. Department of Education in 2014. We moved to Cape Elizabeth in 2017. My work at the Department included much international consultation and collaboration around the use educational technology with numerous countries and international organizations (in-country, online, or onsite). Since retiring I have also continued providing consultant services to several countries.
Now living near my daughter and grandchildren in Maine. It 's a very strange time in a new place for an "old-timer like me. Even Washington, D.C. seems like a very different place from a very different time for me. I don't know if we will ever go back, or establish a new "normal" for our families. Tech will play key role, I am sure, but how will we really get know more and understand our new world order? How will we learn to understand and live in a more multicultural world?