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Cape Town - He is only 41 years old, but has a clear vision of where to take the biggest media company in the developing world.
New Naspers [JSE:NPN] CEO Bob van Dijk, who had been in the hot seat for exactly 100 days on Wednesday, told Fin24 in an interview that he spent his time mainly on getting to know some of the businesses. "I knew most of the internet businesses because that's the side of the house that I come from."
He said the company has reinvented itself several times and Naspers has always stayed ahead of what customers want rather than be surprised by it. "I think that is very powerful and very much my ambition to take it into one of those transformations... of becoming a predominantly mobile company.
"Particularly in our markets mobile is going to be the predominant way for people to get access to the internet... we will be more of an operator in the internet space than we've traditionally been."
Van Dijk succeeds Koos Bekker, who reinvented Naspers from a printer of newspapers and books into an emerging giant in e-commerce and pay-TV.
In his 17 years at the helm, Bekker gave South Africa four of its biggest consumer inventions: M-Net, MTN [JSE:MTN], internet and e-commerce.
Although e-commerce will form a big part of the move into mobile, Van Dijk said there is no silver bullet.
"There is a lot of small things that you've got to do right. I've been hands on in the internet business for more than a decade at my previous companies.
"The challenge now is how to take a business that is upscale in many countries in the internet and how to run it in the best possible way."
On CEO remuneration, Van Dijk said his compensation will be based on growth and value of the company, "not unlike Bekker, but it's not the same as Bekker's structure... the same emphasis exists".
Bekker distinguished himself from his peers when he opted not to draw a salary, but to be paid in Naspers stocks.
"When a CEO gets compensated well, it must show that the company really grows in value... if there is not a good relationship between the two, you run the risk of the wrong incentives being set. In my case they will be well related."
Based in Hoofddorp in the Netherlands, Van Dijk said he spends 80% of his time travelling to Naspers hubs, in particular Cape Town and Hong Kong.
What can't you travel without?
My PC, mobile phone (he has a Samsung Galaxy and an iPhone), and my workout gear.
What motivates you?
I like building things and I like getting things on the rails that ideally make the world a little better, not so much what I get out of it, more that something happens that matters.
What about Bob @ home?
There's not a lot of Bob @ home, but when I am at home I like to spend time with my kids - I have two daughters, Eline (7) and Sophie (9). I love to cook, probably not very successfully, and I like to do sports.
- Fin24
* Fin24 is part of Media24, a subsidiary of Naspers. Naspers has a 34% stake in Tencent.
New Naspers [JSE:NPN] CEO Bob van Dijk, who had been in the hot seat for exactly 100 days on Wednesday, told Fin24 in an interview that he spent his time mainly on getting to know some of the businesses. "I knew most of the internet businesses because that's the side of the house that I come from."
He said the company has reinvented itself several times and Naspers has always stayed ahead of what customers want rather than be surprised by it. "I think that is very powerful and very much my ambition to take it into one of those transformations... of becoming a predominantly mobile company.
"Particularly in our markets mobile is going to be the predominant way for people to get access to the internet... we will be more of an operator in the internet space than we've traditionally been."
Van Dijk succeeds Koos Bekker, who reinvented Naspers from a printer of newspapers and books into an emerging giant in e-commerce and pay-TV.
In his 17 years at the helm, Bekker gave South Africa four of its biggest consumer inventions: M-Net, MTN [JSE:MTN], internet and e-commerce.
Although e-commerce will form a big part of the move into mobile, Van Dijk said there is no silver bullet.
"There is a lot of small things that you've got to do right. I've been hands on in the internet business for more than a decade at my previous companies.
"The challenge now is how to take a business that is upscale in many countries in the internet and how to run it in the best possible way."
On CEO remuneration, Van Dijk said his compensation will be based on growth and value of the company, "not unlike Bekker, but it's not the same as Bekker's structure... the same emphasis exists".
Bekker distinguished himself from his peers when he opted not to draw a salary, but to be paid in Naspers stocks.
"When a CEO gets compensated well, it must show that the company really grows in value... if there is not a good relationship between the two, you run the risk of the wrong incentives being set. In my case they will be well related."
Based in Hoofddorp in the Netherlands, Van Dijk said he spends 80% of his time travelling to Naspers hubs, in particular Cape Town and Hong Kong.
What can't you travel without?
My PC, mobile phone (he has a Samsung Galaxy and an iPhone), and my workout gear.
What motivates you?
I like building things and I like getting things on the rails that ideally make the world a little better, not so much what I get out of it, more that something happens that matters.
What about Bob @ home?
There's not a lot of Bob @ home, but when I am at home I like to spend time with my kids - I have two daughters, Eline (7) and Sophie (9). I love to cook, probably not very successfully, and I like to do sports.
- Fin24
* Fin24 is part of Media24, a subsidiary of Naspers. Naspers has a 34% stake in Tencent.
