Kemal “Kaizen” Brown, a 4th industrial revolutionary
The Japanese philosophy of continuous improvement, known as Kaizen, has turned Kemal Brown into a fourth industrial revolutionary leading the charge for consistent change in this digital era.
Brown is the founder and CEO of Digita Global Marketing Limited (DGM) and chairman of the Digita Global Group, which spans communications, real estate, venture capital, technology, and finance. The multifaceted Brown is also an international speaker, a member of the Global Shapers Community, the Forbes Business Council, and a former academic.
Membership of the Global Shapers Community, a subsidiary of the World Economic Forum, gave Brown the chance to focus on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a greater appreciation of adopting digital transformation, and Jamaica’s need to be digital-ready. Fortunately for Brown, his extensive travels allowed him to experience diverse societies and ecosystems created at the intersection of human interaction and technology through digital literacy and robust digital infrastructure.
Coupled with this, Brown believes that a new pathway could be forged in response to the need to upskill for the digital era in Jamaica. Therefore, he is determined to make an impact by first steering Jamaica towards the “true north” of digital transformation through digital marketing and communications. As he puts it, DGM aims to be the “nexus between opportunity and the skill and knowledge gaps that exist locally by taking a global approach to digital transformation, especially in the vein of communication”.
DGM’s success is built on the overarching philosophy of Kaizen and a set of principles and processes codified as the “Digita Way” in homage to Silicon Valley giants like Apple, Netflix and Amazon. The process involves having an empathic understanding of the client’s persona to create impactful digital experiences by leveraging their knowledge of branding, design, marketing, and technology to achieve organisational goals on a global scale.
The DGM team is persistent in monitoring the industry’s pulse, keeping abreast of the tools, technologies and new approaches to adequately support their client’s needs. Brown also notes that his company’s ability to be agile and iterate keeps Digita as one of the forerunners in the industry.
He is convinced that public-private sector partnerships are crucial to solving infrastructural problems, such as affordable and reliable electricity systems, to complement the use and accessibility of high-speed Internet and broadband services. He also believes that removing high importation taxes, duties and fees on technological devices will facilitate greater access to these resources and even open the door to exploring the possibility of manufacturing these tools.
The CEO shared the idea of subsidising solar energy as an alternative solution to further encourage a sustainable digital infrastructure. He believes that leaders across all sectors should adopt digital leadership by implementing a consistent change framework that prioritises data and insights to inform future decisions and enforce policies such as remote work.
Additionally, Brown stresses that leaders must be true advocates for digital transformation and leverage technology as the “great enabler” that facilitates better experiences for society at large. For him, upskilling talent is a critical component of a digitally transformed society with educational programmes and curricula tailored to increase the workforce’s digital literacy and competence.
As a newly appointed member of the Forbes Business Council, Brown is pleased that the platform will allow him to extend his global impact, influence, and network. He sees the honour bestowed on him as validation that even though Jamaica is geographically small, we are “tallawah” and can meaningfully contribute to global problems.
Brown is looking forward to taking DGM public, via an initial public offering (IPO), leading to global expansion to diversify the group’s capabilities further, recruiting well-suited candidates for his management team and international board of directors. He is also excited to continue building out his real-estate holding and development company, Digita Properties, powered by cutting-edge smart home technologies and a service-oriented approach to real estate.
Guided by Kaizen, the Japanese philosophy which promotes a mindset in which small incremental changes create an impact over time, Brown looks forward to being a catalyst for positive change for Jamaica and the rest of the world.