EO South Africa Profiled in The Wits Business School Journal

EO South Africa member Ronen Aires, visionary CEO of South Africa's premier youth marketing services provider, Student Village, wove his particular brand of magic once again when addressing the Gordon Institute of Business Science's Spirit of Youth 2009 entrepreneurship event in June.

Ronen was invited by Programme Manager Phyllis Byars-Ameguide to address a gathering of 120 learners (80 percent of whom were matriculants and the balance 11th graders) who made up a select group of school leaders from 40 township, urban, independent and farm schools. The day-long programme comprised talks and a facilitated entrepreneur simulation workshop to give the youngsters some solid entrepreneurial grounding.

Ronen and media mogul, Zandile Nzalo, pioneering past Programme Manager for Channel O and founder of Zanenza Communications, were hand-picked as speakers because of their entrepreneurial trailblazing spirit and ability to motivate and inspire South Africa's youth to define and follow their dreams. Ronen, described as a "passionate thinker and a chronic doer," left a secure career as a key account manager at Investec to co-found Student Village and birth his inner fire for media, marketing and meaningful youth interaction.

t was, as always, an honour to be invited to address these young people,” says Ronen. “The power of mentorship is massive and magical and should never be underestimated. Sometimes all that differentiates a youngster choosing between a life of purpose or a life of hopelessness is by them becoming aware that while the world out there is indeed rife with challenges, the measure of a successful man or woman is not by how these challenges are avoided, but rather how they are met and transformed into a source of inner strength that can pave the way to unimaginably good things.