In the eyes of the vast majority of people throughout the world we are today living in what is a new digital age, a period of time in which the growth in telecommunications, information and other technologies has had an immeasurable impact on the ways in which companies provide value to their customers. These companies are increasing utilising technology to develop strong, innovative value solutions on a continuous basis.

As a result of the boom in mining, the South American nation of Chile today holds a number of important titles. These include being the world’s largest producer of copper, 32 percent of the world’s production to be exact, its only, and therefore leading, producer of natural nitrates and its leading producer of iodine, rhenium and lithium.

They say that in order to get a job done well you have to get your hands dirty from time to time, and a truer statement was perhaps never spoken than when it comes to the mining industry. The sheer scale of the equipment used and the nature of the environments that are being operated in make mining a highly maintenance intensive undertaking. This inevitably results in a large concentration of dirt being produced.

When we last spoke to Roger Amelunxen, owner of Canadian-based Amelunxen Mineral Processing (Aminpro), in March 2012, he spoke about the raft of changes that has occurred in his field of expertise over the previous 15 years. Now, as we enter 2013, he is just as keen to discuss how the business has evolved in little more than 10 months since.

What would you do if you won the lottery? In the case of Nelson Mahadeo, he went into business for himself. A win of a couple of million rand in 2003 enabled him to say au revoir to his employers and set up Associated Marine & Industrial Inspection Services. By hiring a good team, he was able to get the business up and running in a short time.

Technology has yielded some great communication tools, but they are not relationship builders. Here, I share seven reasons why the personal touch will always be more effective than pixels on a screen.

Toyota now forecasts a net profit of $9.3 billion for the financial year to 31 March 2013. This comes on the back of profits being boosting by the yen falling as much as 15 percent against the US dollar since November 2012. A weak yen helps Japanese companies like Toyota which rely heavily on overseas sales.

The company issued the guidance as it posted a 23 percent jump in profit for the September to December quarter. The numbers mean that Toyota's earnings for the April to December period nearly quadrupled from a year earlier.

The fast-growing airline reported net profits of $42 million for 2012, up from $14 million in 2011. For the same time period the company revealed that revenues grew 17 percent, from $4.1 billion to $4.8 billion, while passenger numbers topped 10 million for the first time.