oTunes: My favourite times at Orange Academy (Part 1)

Here's to the crazy ones...

I am having the time of my life at Orange Academy; Africa's foremost practical school of Idea and Brand Management. At Orange, nothing is predictable. From the legendary notoriously peppered rice called "The Bit**" to lecture rooms under witty code names, Orange Academy is not for regular homo sapiens. Creativity is the hallmark of this place. A visit to Orange is sure to leave you with an indelible impression. Conformity is a sin here. The school was founded by Kehinde Bademosi A.K.A "Kenny Brandmuse" who is the Chief Imagination Officer. Kenny surmises of himself "Whenever I help someone realise their creative self and I see that big smile on their face, I know my job is done. That's why I was born".

I am currently enrolled in the Integrated Brand Experience (IBX) course; the flagship programme built on a lofty vision to build professionals who understand the logic and magic of brands. The programme is an action-learning programme where students referred to as inmates are equipped with practical tools and concepts necessary to create the next big brands. Its only in Orange Academy where passports are mugshots and a class room is called a war room or a ping room. The presentation room is called shrine. In Orange, answers are not promised but you are sure to be imparted with inspired wisdom. The school boasts of a credible faculty of seasoned brand and marketing professionals who are principals of leading multinationals. These people are in their several rights idols of no small measure. These folks are on top of their game. It is in this same school that I have the awesome privilege of being the Class Governor of the 10th stream of the IBX. The choice to be at Orange Academy is one of the most satisfying decision I have made in my life.

A prominent member of the faculty at Orange Academy is Franklin Ozekhome. Franklin brings meaning to madness and makes craziness insanely cool. He is very unconventional. His pedagogy is unlike any I have experienced. But for want of adjectives, I choose to play his resume low. He is the founder and CEO of Identiture; a New York based Sensory Branding + Future DeSign™ agency. Franklin heads the marketing team at Insight Communication; a leading branding and communication firm in Nigeria with a robust footprint across Africa. There are people who operate under a constant bombardment of strokes of genius and I dare say that Franklin is such a soul. His lecture on Trends; hunting and forecasting left me thoroughly amused.  

My amusement was short lived as I have been under a cloud of paranoia. Some of the insights he shared have provoked some thoughts within me. Not only that, it appears that I have become acutely curious about many-A-things. He didn't provide any answers (something I and others are having to get used to with all the facilitators at Orange). I once read in The Goal; a much touted literature written by the legendary physicist; Eliyahu Goldratt that the best method of pedagogy is one by a notorious philosopher; Socrates. This method does not seek to provide answers but by asking questions and providing insights, learning takes place in a more surreal manner. The Socratic method often referred to as Socratic dialogues is by design a conversation. This method is an antithesis of what obtains in most classrooms today.

I doubt if Franklin would agree with me but I have a list of four questions that I consider to be crucial in understanding trends. There are possibly more fundamental questions to be asked but I believe that these questions are sure to move one closer to understanding the concept of trend.

Four Questions

1. What is the secret of the brands that we love? What is the core of their being?
2. How relevant is Charles Darwin's theory of evolution today? 
3. What can we learn from the various cases of disruption and how should we deal with competition and the forces of change?  
4. What does the David and Goliath archetypes teach us about innovation, strategy and management?

Image Credit: Orange Academy