The Rezidor Hotel Group is one of the world’s fastest growing hotel chains, and a strong presence in emerging markets is viewed as critical to the group’s long-term success. Andrew McLachlan, VP for Africa & the Indian Ocean Islands, talks to Jayne Alverca about the factors that are driving the company’s stellar growth in Africa.

...and clear strategic thinking mean that after five years building a nationwide fibre optic communication backbone, Neotel is leading the migration to next generation communications. Dr Angus Hay talks to Gay Sutton about the steps that are making cloud computing available in South Africa.

Flinders Ports operates seven of South Australia’s ten ports, and with the recent boom in mining activity, has ambitious plans to treble its capacity in the next few years, as CEO Vincent Tremaine explains to Jane Bordenave.

Steve Hartley, executive director of private aviation specialist Empire Aviation Group, talks to Jayne Alverca about the company’s approach to maximizing asset value and the flight experience in the Middle East and beyond.

The last few years have seen an unprecedented increase in new development in Abu Dhabi, matched by a dramatic rise in competition within the industry. Elie Saikali, GMO of Dhafir Development and Contracting, explains to Gay Sutton how the company’s management and operational principles have given it an edge in this challenging marketplace.

Alan Swaby looks at a now thriving business that was once rejected as having no marketing potential.

Like evolution and survival of the fittest, the beauty of the free market is that it encourages new life forms. Take the case of Andalusite Resources in South Africa as an example. It is now sitting on a successful and potentially very valuable business because the once dominant life force became complacent and relaxed its guard, enabling a new life form to gain a toe-hold.

With the collective appetite of the world’s steel makers likely only to increase, there has never been a better time to be the hand that feeds them, as Becky Done finds out in discussion with Michael Jones and Victoria Sherwood of African Minerals.

austriamicrosystems, a designer and manufacturer of high-performance analogue ICs, has acquired the Texan manufacturer Texas Advanced Optoelectronic Solutions (TAOS).

The value of the deal is $320 million (approx. €226 million).

Starbucks Coffee Company has announced a new corporate structure to accelerate its growth strategy, which will take effect by the end of September.

The coffee giant, based in Seattle, Washington, currently has two business units, Starbucks US and Starbucks Coffee International (SCI), with 20 percent of its revenues earned overseas.

The new structure will include three divisions; the Americas, China and Asia Pacific, and EMEA, covering Europe, the UK, the Middle East, Russia and Africa.

Oil giant BP is to redevelop two oil fields to the west of the Shetland Islands, it has been announced.

The Schiehallion and Loyal oil fields have produced nearly 400 million barrels of oil since production started in 1998; and an estimated 450 million barrels of resource is still available. BP is planning to invest around £3 billion in redeveloping the two fields, with production scheduled to last until at least 2035.

The company said it would employ the latest technology to maximise recovery from the two fields.