Bozoma Saint John is the Chief Brand Officer at Uber.
I feel like we should do a regular birthday thing for UpNaira users actually...ah, drop a comment with suggestions.
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Showing posts with label Strategy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Strategy. Show all posts
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Birthday Boz
Bozoma Saint John is the Chief Brand Officer at Uber.
I feel like we should do a regular birthday thing for UpNaira users actually...ah, drop a comment with suggestions.
Get email updates.
Order Big Girl and Big Boy.
Monday, January 26, 2015
On Telecoms in Nigeria, by Etisalat Chairman Hakeem Belo-Osagie
Source: IT & Telecom Digest
These issues have to do with the fundamental question as to how there'll continue to be a competitive market. How do you have competition in a market where you have one operator that is dominant?
That is an issue in the marketplace; and issues of anti-trust and issues of fair competition will be very important. And how as a country we look at these issues – because these are not issues that we are used to; for many years, the problem was one of just get the (phone) lines going; just bring the investments in, we will deal with other problems.
Now, we've got to the level of investment is in, the lines are in; how do we have proper competition? How do you prevent one operator from using his position to adversely affect others and to deny that competition? Because in a normal market, if you have bad quality of service, then there should be an incentive for the companies to do better. The fact that we have bad quality of service – and it has been on for a while, there's some improvement, but not enough – tells us that more regulation is probably required, of a tougher sort than has been on.
Now, it will be very strange for me, it sounds strange for me as an operator advocating tougher measures. But the fact is that clearly some of the (regulatory) measures are not effective enough if we are not seeing improvements in the quality of services that we require.
And therefore my own position is that all the telecoms companies have to give the necessary respect to the regulators on obeying their requirements on customer service for service quality, because I think that frankly speaking the regulator has been fair in the way in which they have approached us on these issues.
So that is one very crucial issue that will affect us going forward. The second is that I think that the mobile phone companies, we have wasted a lot of money in not cooperating as much as we should have among ourselves. Again, we have a regulator that hasn't forced us; which is good. But if you don't do something yourself you should not be surprised if people step in to force you to do it. And I think that the mobile phone companies should not allow that situation to arise.
Let me give you an example: here we are in an industry that has been there for about 13 years; we ought to have used each other's infrastructure; each one of us has built an infrastructure of base stations; there are environmental issues with the base stations, the disfiguring of the cities. But it has taken us all 13 years to now get to a position in which we are now selling all of these base stations to a company and we will end up using each other's base stations. But it should not have taken us 13 years to do that.
Because if you think that capital investment that went into four different groupings, really that is capital that was badly deployed. That's one point. We have the same situation with fibre lines; each one of us may have built fibre networks that I'm sure are not being fully utilised.
Again, we should have been in a situation where we are using each other's; and therefore no company should be allowed – the fact that built fibre lines, to deny others the use of those fibre lines; or to prohibitively cost the use of those fibre lines in a manner that you effectively try to eliminate others by the way you price the fibre lines.
Because basically the land on which the fibre is built, the rights of way, the land on which all these base stations are built; they are all national assets that any company should have use of them; but you don't really have any right, in my view, for total ownership of them and to do what you like with them. They are national consideration and of greater importance.
So I think that as a group, and as an industry, we need to more and more to ask ourselves the question what kind of industry does Nigeria seek in 10 years' time?
And how do we as an industry go from where we are today to that destination in 10 years' time.
The last 10 years we have simply grown as we have liked, and said our objective: capture market share. There was a phase for that – as I said, when our objective was get the phones out, as many people as possible, no worries too much about the costs; no worries too much on issues of quality of service, and just get the investment in.
We have now got to move to a different phase; and that phase is saying how do we get high quality of service at all times? How do we get the mobile phone used for education, for health and payment systems, in universities, electricity bills; how do we get this instrument that we now realise can do so many different things, how do we get to all the services of the economy, to make it a more robust and more effective economy?
And some of these issues are beyond what the mobile phone companies are able to do; they are national economic issues. Therefore I think what we need to do is to agree between the industry and the government, almost like a 2020 vision or 2025 vision, of where that whole industry is; and what is the plan, how do we move the four mobile phone companies, plus the related companies, from where we are today to where we want to get to tomorrow; in that six to 10 years' time.
That issue will also affect the question of indigenisation, it will affect the issue of jobs for Nigerians, it will affect the issue of how do we enable Nigerians to capture a fair share of e-commerce business as well. Because all of us, the four mobile phone companies, we engender related companies – sub-contractors, data centres, music applications; a whole range, the scratch card business, and so on and so forth; how do we get opportunities for Nigerians?
Obviously in the first few years a lot of Nigerian companies will not be as efficient as foreign companies; and foreign companies have had that first mover advantage over them. In some cases they were able to grow because they were protected in their own home markets. Now we have to ask the question: what is the level of support or protection that we give local companies to enable these local companies to build capacity, to build these applications; for us to build companies that can employ large numbers of Nigerians so that the benefits of telecoms are spread throughout the country.
These are big issues; and one of the things I have to commend our president for is that he has a very good head of NCC; he has a very good Minister of Communication Technology. Both of them –and this is rare – have had a long experience and education in the IT, telecoms and engineering market. That is unusual. And in that sense, I can't think of two people better qualified to chart the way to that destination. But I think that Nigerians need to understand they are taking us to a new phase in the development of the industry, which will require new instruments, new thinking and so on and so forth. And that if we are going to achieve all the benefits, we need this new strategy.
(More)
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These issues have to do with the fundamental question as to how there'll continue to be a competitive market. How do you have competition in a market where you have one operator that is dominant?
That is an issue in the marketplace; and issues of anti-trust and issues of fair competition will be very important. And how as a country we look at these issues – because these are not issues that we are used to; for many years, the problem was one of just get the (phone) lines going; just bring the investments in, we will deal with other problems.
Now, we've got to the level of investment is in, the lines are in; how do we have proper competition? How do you prevent one operator from using his position to adversely affect others and to deny that competition? Because in a normal market, if you have bad quality of service, then there should be an incentive for the companies to do better. The fact that we have bad quality of service – and it has been on for a while, there's some improvement, but not enough – tells us that more regulation is probably required, of a tougher sort than has been on.
Now, it will be very strange for me, it sounds strange for me as an operator advocating tougher measures. But the fact is that clearly some of the (regulatory) measures are not effective enough if we are not seeing improvements in the quality of services that we require.
And therefore my own position is that all the telecoms companies have to give the necessary respect to the regulators on obeying their requirements on customer service for service quality, because I think that frankly speaking the regulator has been fair in the way in which they have approached us on these issues.
So that is one very crucial issue that will affect us going forward. The second is that I think that the mobile phone companies, we have wasted a lot of money in not cooperating as much as we should have among ourselves. Again, we have a regulator that hasn't forced us; which is good. But if you don't do something yourself you should not be surprised if people step in to force you to do it. And I think that the mobile phone companies should not allow that situation to arise.
Let me give you an example: here we are in an industry that has been there for about 13 years; we ought to have used each other's infrastructure; each one of us has built an infrastructure of base stations; there are environmental issues with the base stations, the disfiguring of the cities. But it has taken us all 13 years to now get to a position in which we are now selling all of these base stations to a company and we will end up using each other's base stations. But it should not have taken us 13 years to do that.
Because if you think that capital investment that went into four different groupings, really that is capital that was badly deployed. That's one point. We have the same situation with fibre lines; each one of us may have built fibre networks that I'm sure are not being fully utilised.
Again, we should have been in a situation where we are using each other's; and therefore no company should be allowed – the fact that built fibre lines, to deny others the use of those fibre lines; or to prohibitively cost the use of those fibre lines in a manner that you effectively try to eliminate others by the way you price the fibre lines.
Because basically the land on which the fibre is built, the rights of way, the land on which all these base stations are built; they are all national assets that any company should have use of them; but you don't really have any right, in my view, for total ownership of them and to do what you like with them. They are national consideration and of greater importance.
So I think that as a group, and as an industry, we need to more and more to ask ourselves the question what kind of industry does Nigeria seek in 10 years' time?
And how do we as an industry go from where we are today to that destination in 10 years' time.
The last 10 years we have simply grown as we have liked, and said our objective: capture market share. There was a phase for that – as I said, when our objective was get the phones out, as many people as possible, no worries too much about the costs; no worries too much on issues of quality of service, and just get the investment in.
We have now got to move to a different phase; and that phase is saying how do we get high quality of service at all times? How do we get the mobile phone used for education, for health and payment systems, in universities, electricity bills; how do we get this instrument that we now realise can do so many different things, how do we get to all the services of the economy, to make it a more robust and more effective economy?
And some of these issues are beyond what the mobile phone companies are able to do; they are national economic issues. Therefore I think what we need to do is to agree between the industry and the government, almost like a 2020 vision or 2025 vision, of where that whole industry is; and what is the plan, how do we move the four mobile phone companies, plus the related companies, from where we are today to where we want to get to tomorrow; in that six to 10 years' time.
That issue will also affect the question of indigenisation, it will affect the issue of jobs for Nigerians, it will affect the issue of how do we enable Nigerians to capture a fair share of e-commerce business as well. Because all of us, the four mobile phone companies, we engender related companies – sub-contractors, data centres, music applications; a whole range, the scratch card business, and so on and so forth; how do we get opportunities for Nigerians?
Obviously in the first few years a lot of Nigerian companies will not be as efficient as foreign companies; and foreign companies have had that first mover advantage over them. In some cases they were able to grow because they were protected in their own home markets. Now we have to ask the question: what is the level of support or protection that we give local companies to enable these local companies to build capacity, to build these applications; for us to build companies that can employ large numbers of Nigerians so that the benefits of telecoms are spread throughout the country.
These are big issues; and one of the things I have to commend our president for is that he has a very good head of NCC; he has a very good Minister of Communication Technology. Both of them –and this is rare – have had a long experience and education in the IT, telecoms and engineering market. That is unusual. And in that sense, I can't think of two people better qualified to chart the way to that destination. But I think that Nigerians need to understand they are taking us to a new phase in the development of the industry, which will require new instruments, new thinking and so on and so forth. And that if we are going to achieve all the benefits, we need this new strategy.
 |
| Hakeem Belo-Osagie |
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Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Financial Markets, an excellent, excellent introduction
Trust me, you will want to spend a few hours a week taking this online course that is currently available at the unbeatable price of ... an internet connection. Financial Markets begins NOW, this week, and runs for eight weeks. It may get addictive, like my previous Coursera courses.
Prof. Schiller (Nobel Prize in Economics in 2013) who will be teaching the course, says in the introduction "finance is a very important technology.
It has a mathematical basis.
It has a intellectual underpinning that
makes
it a infrastructure for our, our whole
economy.
And I want this course to help people
understand this technology so that they are
not buffeted by it, so they can react to
the technology and its
opportunities constructively in whatever
walk of life they choose."
There will be a guest every week, and in week one it's Hank Greenberg (of pre-bailout AIG).
Get started with Financial Markets.
+Schiller,+Nobel+laureate,+Professor+at+Yale+University.jpg) |
| Coursera + Yale university. Financial Markets. |
There will be a guest every week, and in week one it's Hank Greenberg (of pre-bailout AIG).
Get started with Financial Markets.
Friday, January 10, 2014
How the leading Chinese Telecommunications Companies acquire innovation capability
By EKPUNOBI Victor, UWHUMVAKPOR
Uvie Larry, and CHIMEZIE Clifford C.
How did Huawei, ZTE, and all the other well-known telecomms companies achieve what they did? We will consider the companies along four dimensions: company aspiration, marketing, innovation, and management.
How did Huawei, ZTE, and all the other well-known telecomms companies achieve what they did? We will consider the companies along four dimensions: company aspiration, marketing, innovation, and management.
Introduction: ABOUT HUAWEI
Huawei is a Chinese multinational networking
and telecommunications equipment and
services company headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong. It is the largest telecommunications equipment
maker in the world, having overtaken Ericsson in 2012.
Huawei was founded in 1988 by
ex-military officer Ren Zhengfei and formed as a private company owned by its
employees. Its core missions are building telecommunications networks;
providing operational and consulting services and equipment to enterprises
inside and outside of China; and manufacturing communications devices for the
consumer market. Huawei has over
140,000 employees, around 46% of whom are engaged in research and development
(R&D). It has 20 R&D institutes in
countries including China, the United States, Germany, Sweden, Ireland, India,Russia, and Turkey, and in 2011
invested around US$3.74 billion in R&D.
In 2010, Huawei
recorded profit of 23.8 billion CNY (3.7 billion USD). Its products and services have been
deployed in more than 140 countries and it currently serves 45 of the world's
50 largest telecoms operators.
Introduction: ABOUT ZTE
ZTE Corporation (formerly Zhongxing Telecommunication Equipment
Corporation) is a Chinese multinational telecommunications equipment and systems company headquartered in Shenzhen, China. It is the world's fourth-largest mobile phone manufacturer measured by
2012 unit sales[2] and the world's fifth-largest telecoms
equipment maker measured by 2011 revenues (after Ericsson,Huawei, Alcatel-Lucent and Nokia Siemens Networks).[3]
ZTE's core products
are wireless, exchange, access, optical
transmission and data
telecommunications gear; mobile phones;[4] and telecommunications software.[5] It also offers products that provide
value-added services,[6] such as video on
demand and streaming
media.[7] ZTE primarily sells products under its
own name but it is also an OEM, manufacturing some
products which retail under other brand names.[8]
ZTE was founded in
1985 by a group of state-owned enterprises associated with China's Ministry of
Aerospace.
1.
Aspiration level
Aspiration level is a soft index which is difficult
to measure—not like revenue or investment level which can be expressed clearly
by numbers.
Huawei’s
aspiration level
leads the pack. This company has
invested heavily in research and development, as seen in the high number of
patent applications – number 1 in 2009. Ren
Zhenfei, founder of Huawei, expects that Huawei’s development in future can go
beyond the dependence on single competition element including technology,
talent and capital; no longer rely on blind low-cost production. He expects
Huawei to become a business organization with high effectiveness, and
eventually grows into an international enterprise.
By comparison, ZTE’s culture is pragmatic,
controllable, invisible and tangible. Like Huawei, ZTE’s investment to R&D
is also about 10%, but they are more cautious about entering new areas. Before an obvious market potential is
visible, they are extremely cautious to present to market, and every further
step has to be verified by visible market potential. We conclude it has a
moderate aspiration level, which is also heavily rooted in the company’s
history and culture.
At Datang, the high aspiration level is fulfilled through the
government’s financial support, not though market. Quite a large part of the
research funding of Datang is from the central government’s budget. This kind
of aspiration level is not sustainable, because it is sustained largely by
external funding support.
Eastcom suffers from
lack of sufficient aspiration level. From the very beginning, it was an OEM
factory and more than ten years later it is still an OEM factory. Even
employees at the company despise its overwhelming interest in making money and
shortage of pursuit of core competency.
When UTstar gained sudden ascendancy, many people envied its success. But it declined just as fast, and many think
it’s because it failed to build core competency and core product. This
opportunism, coupled with a disordered management, led to its short-term success
story.
2.
Marketing Capability
Marketing capability simply means market
judgment.
Huawei and ZTE
go together on this one. They are both very good at marketing, in fact they
are overwhelmingly skilled. We know that Huawei and ZTE are persistent in
R&D investment, but they are also very careful in investing in R&D:
every decision has to be verified by market demand, confirmed by market
potential. The typical example is their strategy of “encircled cities from
countryside”.
Around the early 1990s, the two
companies perceived that although the Chinese mobile market was mostly occupied
by multinationals, these big companies had no time to take care rural market
and marginal region. Just because these niche markets were ignored by the big
competitors, or more exactly were despised as lower end market by the MNC,
Huawei and ZTE decided to develop self-owned product to meet the demand for
rural telephony and marginal network. The breakthrough started from these niche
markets and then based on the small breakthrough, they nibbled the rest market
little by little.
With regard to the two companies Eastcom and UTstar, we have to admire
their excellent market view. Eastcom was a very small telecom equipment
manufacture before the early of 1990s, but they’re aware the tendency when
technology evolves from fixed line to mobile, and grasped the opportunity by
first working as OEM and agent for Motorola.
3.
Learning And Innovation
Learning and
innovation are very crucial in all telecommunication industries, and depend heavily
on R&D i.e. Research and Development. All companies willing to make
progress always have a group of people or a department working on the research
and development. The future of the company might not be certain with the
absence of R&D.
The R&D in telecommunications
can be divided into three layers. The first is the physical layer of research;
they are the basic algorithm research which can make revolutionary change in
telecom industry. The second layer is the software development, for example
chip design. The third layer is the application development.
The latter two layers demand
large amount of brain labor to test many changes of software. Whereas the high
cost of R&D labour in developed countries limits their activities, Huawei
takes advantage of the abundant labor resource, continuously investing in the
second and third layers of development by sustained testing and adjustment, and
finally realizing technology improvement again and again.
Huawei’s hi-tech
enterprise is termed “knowledge-labor intensive” by the Chinese. Knowledge-labor refers to that labor who
grasps professional knowledge. The strategy fully takes advantage of the human
resource of high-tech industry in China, while also avoiding the most
challenging technologies, since one has to admit that the current Chinese
research level still cannot overcome the core technology.
Generally speaking, the
observation and discussion with Huawei and ZTE tell me that their catch-up in
technology learning is totally relying on their own development. The most
common method is that they import foreign technology or product, then deploy
large amount of engineers to imitate and modify. This is called “technology-borrower.”
Management capability
Management capability is heavily
correlated with innovation capability. Successful R&D is absolutely not
simply adding up talent and capital, neither is it an issue that can be solved
by FDI. An effective and sustainable R&D demands continuous catch-up in
technology, from the beginning it requires an accurate market sense, then it is
going to involve an organization’s comprehensive decision making capability,
finally follow-up project management and logistics management are also
necessary. Conversely, poor management
will eventually neglect talent and waste capital.
Huawei learns a lot from western
countries. From 1992, Ren visited
companies in the US, European countries and Japan, including Alcatel, Siemens
and other leading companies. After visiting Hughs, IBM, Bell Innovations and HP
in 1997, he proposed a reform plan after deliberate consideration. The proposal
laid foundation for Huawei’s global operation strategy. The proposal presented
by Ren was not based on the “Chinese way”, but “integrating global resource
into Huawei’s network” based on global perspective.
From 1998, Huawei decided to
focus on IBM as its learning model and strategic partner in the path to become
an international enterprise. Huawei firstly defined its transformation from
telecom equipment manufacturer to telecom total solution provider and service
provider, in order to fully take advantage of full scale products line.
In the following five years,
Huawei invited 50 IBM management consultants to work on the Huawei project in
order to improve internal management and business procedure, by investment 50
million USD. In addition, Huawei set up a 300-employee management engineering
department to handle implementation of IBM’s recommendations.
ZTE: There are many studies about Huawei’s
management, but few about ZTE. One of the reasons is that Huawei’s “wolf”
culture is certainly attention-grabbing, but the “golden mean” of bull culture
from ZTE is much less attractive.
Most of the ZTE employees who
have been working for them are still with them since the past ten years. ZTE
always steadily occupies and expands in the market. In 2000, when IT industry
was suffering winter, ZTE kept it as another high speed year; from 2001 to
2003, when other Chinese companies including Huawei tried to freeze hiring or
even laid off many people, ZTE still kept hiring many new employees. This shows
a very high management capability.
Huawei and ZTE are quite
successful when facing management transformation. Huawei applies the western system which
manages people by a regulation and proceeding. ZTE follows a Chinese
Confucianism management model to manage people by relationship and bond. Both
of these two systems make it possible to motivate all the people in the company
to work for the enterprise by combined efforts, but not get collapse for their
own interest. Both have created a
management system which is supported or accepted by most of their employees.
From the case of UTstar, we find
that although they bought a handful of foreign companies, they failed to transform
the external knowledge into their core competency. Companies like UTstar
remained on the surface in their adoption of various technologies; they did not
manage to absorb and make these purchased technologies their own. It is not
because of wisdom or foolishness of the company, it is because of the
management quality.
Eastcom expected FDI could bring
technology improvement, and reaped tragic results.
All those other companies, like
Dragon, Huawei, and ZTE, that ever acquired core technologies mostly depended
on self development. These companies
started when the Chinese market just opened, in the background of limited
information and knowledge from foreign countries, they depended on their own
capability and university resources to develop their own technology.
Based on the 2011
paper: A COMPARISON STUDY OF THE CHINESE TELECOM INDUSTRY, by Hui Yan, Aalborg University, Denmark.
The three authors are
undergraduate students in the Department of Electrical Engineering at Bells
University of Technology. They studied
Hui Yan’s paper and prepared this summary under my supervision for the course CEN 302: Introduction to
ICT. - Tosin Otitoju
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Treasures from DLA
Sometime in March this year I was opportune to attend the Daystar Leadership Academy (DLA). It was the Basic Leadership Class. I had a fulfilling experience I must confess. Firstly, I had always wanted to do this, so having it ticked off my goal list was very satisfying and secondly because of the knowledge gained and the enriching networking opportunities.
As fulfilling as it was, it was a stretch program. There were rules to be followed, tests to be written and most especially mindsets to be changed. It took me incorporating early attendance (which was mandatory) with my regular morning school runs. We were taken on courses like Personal Transformation, Success Habits, Excellence Oriented Organization, Organisational Growth, Project Management, Systems Development, Family Success, Delegation Strategies amongst others.
An article would not be adequate to do justice to all I’ve learnt, but I would share some key ones in this post. I also encourage as many as can attend this Leadership/Management Program to do as well or any other recommended ones. If not for the certificate, it would be an opportunity to gather so much knowledge in a short time on leading people or an organization.
The first lesson that dawned on me at the beginning of the program was the essence of leadership. I learnt that there are many misconceptions about it which has somewhat resulted in the abuse of it over time and in many settings, from homes to organizations and the government.
It is not about titles, but about the tasks performed
It is not about status, but about service
It is not about consumption, but about contribution
It is not about cohesion, but ensuring cooperation
It is not about intimidation, but about inspiration
It is not about manipulation, but about motivation
It is not about lording over people, but loving people
It is not about being a celebrity, but a role of responsibility
In other words, if you are performing relevant/key tasks, serving sincerely, contributing valuably, enhancing cooperation in a team and inspiring or motivating some person other than yourself, if you never knew it before, you have been leading. I for one, used to think (while I worked) that since the organization’s organogram didn’t place me in a “specific - titled” role, then I wasn’t being challenged to develop my leadership potentials and couldn’t give so much as a leader. However, I discovered that in the capacity with which I had somewhat influenced individuals, junior colleagues, peers and teams towards the achievement of a goal, I had served as a leader.
Another lesson I took away from the program, is that SUCCESS IS WHO YOU ARE. In essence, your nature determines the success that can be achieved. It is not merely in the doing but in being. That is why sometimes we see some people whose status or achievement we covet, and the first thing we try to do to succeed like they have is just copy exactly what they do. This often leads to frustration in the long term because we are somewhat working against our nature.
To do something you have never done before, you must become someone you have never being before. The first point of call is changing or developing your person, and then the doing will automatically follow. More often than not, your person is tied to your mindsets; for the journey from grass to grace is an Internal Trip. The challenge here is to so work on your inside, challenge and correct those wrong or limiting mindsets, discover truths, develop your mind, that your outside would be struggling to catch up with it. Even if the outside isn’t changing in the short term, in good time, it will align.
The last but definitely not the least of all my take-aways is the bit on Self Improvement under the Success Habit Course. I am a freak, fanatic, stickler (what other vocabulary is there?) for personal development. I believe in becoming a better you and not settling for the status quo, challenging yourself continually. So it was quite interesting to learn more on this. One of the major activities on self improvement is reading /studying. Earl Nightingale said many years ago that “one hour per day of study in your chosen field was all it takes. One hour per day of study will put you at the top of your field within three years. Within five years you’ll be a national authority. In seven years, you can be one of the best people in the world at what you do”. The tasks with this are to identify that area you want to be good at and then develop the staying power to keep at it. I study an average of 7hours/week now, but on different interests. However, I intend to pick my area of passion and make sure, I top up on it regularly.
On a final note, to gather information is great, but to do with what-you-know is greater. I have tried to instill a practice of noting down action points from every book I read and training program I attend. The fewer they are the better and with deadlines. That way I can experience immediate value from a learning. I encourage you on this, as well as the pearls I have shared. On our own we may not be able, but definitely with God we can.
As fulfilling as it was, it was a stretch program. There were rules to be followed, tests to be written and most especially mindsets to be changed. It took me incorporating early attendance (which was mandatory) with my regular morning school runs. We were taken on courses like Personal Transformation, Success Habits, Excellence Oriented Organization, Organisational Growth, Project Management, Systems Development, Family Success, Delegation Strategies amongst others.
An article would not be adequate to do justice to all I’ve learnt, but I would share some key ones in this post. I also encourage as many as can attend this Leadership/Management Program to do as well or any other recommended ones. If not for the certificate, it would be an opportunity to gather so much knowledge in a short time on leading people or an organization.
The first lesson that dawned on me at the beginning of the program was the essence of leadership. I learnt that there are many misconceptions about it which has somewhat resulted in the abuse of it over time and in many settings, from homes to organizations and the government.
It is not about titles, but about the tasks performed
It is not about status, but about service
It is not about consumption, but about contribution
It is not about cohesion, but ensuring cooperation
It is not about intimidation, but about inspiration
It is not about manipulation, but about motivation
It is not about lording over people, but loving people
It is not about being a celebrity, but a role of responsibility
In other words, if you are performing relevant/key tasks, serving sincerely, contributing valuably, enhancing cooperation in a team and inspiring or motivating some person other than yourself, if you never knew it before, you have been leading. I for one, used to think (while I worked) that since the organization’s organogram didn’t place me in a “specific - titled” role, then I wasn’t being challenged to develop my leadership potentials and couldn’t give so much as a leader. However, I discovered that in the capacity with which I had somewhat influenced individuals, junior colleagues, peers and teams towards the achievement of a goal, I had served as a leader.
Another lesson I took away from the program, is that SUCCESS IS WHO YOU ARE. In essence, your nature determines the success that can be achieved. It is not merely in the doing but in being. That is why sometimes we see some people whose status or achievement we covet, and the first thing we try to do to succeed like they have is just copy exactly what they do. This often leads to frustration in the long term because we are somewhat working against our nature.
To do something you have never done before, you must become someone you have never being before. The first point of call is changing or developing your person, and then the doing will automatically follow. More often than not, your person is tied to your mindsets; for the journey from grass to grace is an Internal Trip. The challenge here is to so work on your inside, challenge and correct those wrong or limiting mindsets, discover truths, develop your mind, that your outside would be struggling to catch up with it. Even if the outside isn’t changing in the short term, in good time, it will align.
The last but definitely not the least of all my take-aways is the bit on Self Improvement under the Success Habit Course. I am a freak, fanatic, stickler (what other vocabulary is there?) for personal development. I believe in becoming a better you and not settling for the status quo, challenging yourself continually. So it was quite interesting to learn more on this. One of the major activities on self improvement is reading /studying. Earl Nightingale said many years ago that “one hour per day of study in your chosen field was all it takes. One hour per day of study will put you at the top of your field within three years. Within five years you’ll be a national authority. In seven years, you can be one of the best people in the world at what you do”. The tasks with this are to identify that area you want to be good at and then develop the staying power to keep at it. I study an average of 7hours/week now, but on different interests. However, I intend to pick my area of passion and make sure, I top up on it regularly.
On a final note, to gather information is great, but to do with what-you-know is greater. I have tried to instill a practice of noting down action points from every book I read and training program I attend. The fewer they are the better and with deadlines. That way I can experience immediate value from a learning. I encourage you on this, as well as the pearls I have shared. On our own we may not be able, but definitely with God we can.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Some Like It Hot...
Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold,
Pease porridge in the pot nine days old
Some like it hot, some like it cold
Some like it in the pot, nine days old
Though I had learnt this nursery rhyme way back in my elementary days, little did I appreciate its depth and reality. A recent happening left me with a lesson that brought back strongly the essence of the rhyme.
I’ve already shared this personally with so many but more assuredly, I will hold on dearly to this in my career as an Entrepreneur. Truth is, long before I took off on this journey, I’d learnt that businesses must focus on identifying and meeting needs. It’s about providing solutions to certain issues of the clients or customers. However, I have discovered even another dimension to meeting a need.
Couture is my first line of business at the moment. I’ve not kicked off fully yet since I’m still putting a few things in place and rounding off at the fashion school. All the same, after over 10 weeks we have mastered certain basics of dress making and started making some wears. I decided on starting with complimentary jobs, a good opportunity to introduce myself in the market place. I took this one job from a good friend, and went ahead to execute with what I look back in retrospect as a little understanding of her preferences. The job came out well; truthfully many saw it and commended my efforts. I put in a lot of hours to add creativity here and there. It was one of my first jobs for heaven’s sake; I couldn’t afford to make it simple. Lo and behold, I took it for fitting and despite encouragements that I’d done well on a number of notes, she said – “the style is not me”. And then it dawned on me, nothing satisfies a customer like the exact blueprint of their expectations.
This other dimension to meeting a need is in ensuring one knows the details in full of what the customer needs and wants. It’s about reading in between the lines when they are giving their briefs. It’s about asking; asking and asking….just know that client. It goes beyond the efforts you put in, the time you’ve sacrificed, the funds you’ve expended, all would be like nothing if the other party involved isn’t fully satisfied. So now, more than anything, I’m asking and learning about my client.
While sharing this experience with some loved ones, another perspective surfaced. The same lesson applies in the other relationships like in families, and with friends. We tend to give what we feel would be appreciated because that is probably what we may want if we were in the shoes. So a woman is giving her husband a big card that sings because she really appreciates it, but he doesn’t even like cards in the first place.
We would do our relationships and businesses good if we go this extra mile to research, discover, learn what exactly we must do, how we must do, when we need to do while providing solutions. Honestly, those experiences of spot-on-execution never leave us; they enhance relationships, boost our morale from positive feedback and increase our network base through referrals.
Leave your own personal preferences and know the category your customer, client, loved one belongs…for in actual fact, some like it hot, some like it cold, some like it old and some don’t even like it.
Pease porridge in the pot nine days old
Some like it hot, some like it cold
Some like it in the pot, nine days old
Though I had learnt this nursery rhyme way back in my elementary days, little did I appreciate its depth and reality. A recent happening left me with a lesson that brought back strongly the essence of the rhyme.
I’ve already shared this personally with so many but more assuredly, I will hold on dearly to this in my career as an Entrepreneur. Truth is, long before I took off on this journey, I’d learnt that businesses must focus on identifying and meeting needs. It’s about providing solutions to certain issues of the clients or customers. However, I have discovered even another dimension to meeting a need.
Couture is my first line of business at the moment. I’ve not kicked off fully yet since I’m still putting a few things in place and rounding off at the fashion school. All the same, after over 10 weeks we have mastered certain basics of dress making and started making some wears. I decided on starting with complimentary jobs, a good opportunity to introduce myself in the market place. I took this one job from a good friend, and went ahead to execute with what I look back in retrospect as a little understanding of her preferences. The job came out well; truthfully many saw it and commended my efforts. I put in a lot of hours to add creativity here and there. It was one of my first jobs for heaven’s sake; I couldn’t afford to make it simple. Lo and behold, I took it for fitting and despite encouragements that I’d done well on a number of notes, she said – “the style is not me”. And then it dawned on me, nothing satisfies a customer like the exact blueprint of their expectations.
This other dimension to meeting a need is in ensuring one knows the details in full of what the customer needs and wants. It’s about reading in between the lines when they are giving their briefs. It’s about asking; asking and asking….just know that client. It goes beyond the efforts you put in, the time you’ve sacrificed, the funds you’ve expended, all would be like nothing if the other party involved isn’t fully satisfied. So now, more than anything, I’m asking and learning about my client.
While sharing this experience with some loved ones, another perspective surfaced. The same lesson applies in the other relationships like in families, and with friends. We tend to give what we feel would be appreciated because that is probably what we may want if we were in the shoes. So a woman is giving her husband a big card that sings because she really appreciates it, but he doesn’t even like cards in the first place.
We would do our relationships and businesses good if we go this extra mile to research, discover, learn what exactly we must do, how we must do, when we need to do while providing solutions. Honestly, those experiences of spot-on-execution never leave us; they enhance relationships, boost our morale from positive feedback and increase our network base through referrals.
Leave your own personal preferences and know the category your customer, client, loved one belongs…for in actual fact, some like it hot, some like it cold, some like it old and some don’t even like it.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Think Global, Be Global
It’s another year end, just less than 2 weeks to a new one. And this is wishing everyone great compliments of the season. I know it’s been an eventful year for all with its ups and downs, the high times and the low, but I know more assuredly that it has endowed us all with lessons and discoveries like no other year. Let me use this opportunity to ask any who is willing to share any of theirs to please send me a mail (bukolaogunfayo@gmail.com) and we can have others read and keep to guide and to encourage.
It is a good time in the year to reflect, to review goals, especially in anticipation of other opportunities in the New Year. It is an appropriate time to be grateful too, thankful to the One beyond man who has kept and preserved. I’m sure if we think well, we’ll have a number of things to give thanks for, starting with the gift of life.
For me, 2010 has been quite eventful. For instance, I was able to share regularly on FOOTSTEPS (this means a lot to me), I took a bow to paid employment, I got certified & inducted as an HR Professional and on another extreme, took on a skill in fashion. I can imagine what awaits me in 2011. However, I’m going to take my plans from a different angle this time around, which I believe some would need as well.
Sometime in November, I attended a conference in Lagos. I am very keen on personal development; in fact, I do plan to contribute significantly to the Education Sector sometime in the nearest future, which is what drove me to sit at the Syndicate session on Education. Amongst other things shared, one thing I took away from this meeting was a comment by the Speaker – Mrs. Susan Oyemade, “…you have to be a global teacher, you have to be a global pupil, you have to be a global housewife...” In other words, whatever you have decided to pursue, you need to do it with the world at large in mind, you need to think beyond the local environment, and you need to set a global standard (“world-class", as used in many circles) for yourself.
For a teacher, that’s an easy one. The delivery styles and the contents of the course material for instance need to be worked on, but one would wonder, how can a housewife be global? Well, what recipes is she working on in her food lab (kitchen), the same old ones with the same styles and the same ingredients? What looks does she have on the few times she’s out of the house for a school function or an outing with her husband? While one ponders on this, one has to agree there is room for everyone to think global and to be global. As we come to another season where we strategize for another year of our lives, we need to ask ourselves what our peers on the global scene are doing better. What are they using to make their work different that we can acquire; what skill have they gained that we can learn, who have they connected with to help them be all they are now, that we need to consider networking with as well (for this we could get their peers in our vicinity). Whichever way, something new and/or something different needs to be worked into our norm to position us globally.
A few, may just actually be ahead of their peers globally already. In Performance Management we refer to them as operating on the Exceed Expectation rating. These ones need to up the stakes, look at their superiors, whose standard they now need to work towards.
I don’t know what we all may have in mind for 2011, but as I challenge myself, I leave this challenge with you, position yourself to become GLOBAL.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
An Enabling Environment
I was opportune to revise with my daughter for her end of year’s exams sometime last month. One of the subjects for her class, General Knowledge covered a bit on Agriculture basics – types of soil. We studied the 3 major types (Clayey, Loamy and Sandy) and their uses. Just like most of us were taught way-back then, Loamy is the preferred for planting. It’s not that the others can’t allow for some form of growth, but definitely not anything good compared with what the loamy would do.
In the same month, there was an e-mail forward I came across, about a Nigerian family in Britain who had kids that were performing outstandingly beyond what their ages could ordinarily accomplish in academics. My colleagues and I discussed this seemingly chance happening but the consensus was that their being in Britain, in such schools and with such tutors, brought out the best in them.
These facts buttressed a learning - We thrive best in an enabling environment. Our potentials, our dreams, our plans are actualized best when we are located in an enabling environment; like a plant in the appropriate soil. A common saying I used to know goes like this – Apple trees don’t grow in Lagos. That means, there is place for everyone to come out in full bloom. My take on this is this - make sure you are located in your soil (your enabling environment).
However, beyond the physical environment, there is the mind-environment and association-environment. These as well must be supportive. To a great extent we even have better influence on them than even the physical. We can choose what goes on in our mind by what we feed it with and what people influence us by the choice of our confidants and friends.
A challenge then, could be in knowing when we are not in an environment that would be supportive to our potentials/dreams/aspirations. Also, when we are not and cannot move for some reasons, what we need to do.
In more advanced agriculture, each type of soil still has further classifications. Good farmers know which of these would give the best harvest for each crop. But first, they must know which crop they intend to cultivate. Same with us, the crop could be our dream, our plan or our potential. A previous article (Be Better, Know your SWOT -http://www.folafayo.blogspot.com/ ) encourages us to know our strengths, for therein lies our potentials. When we know our crop, it would be easy to tell if the soil would aid growth and productivity. If I dream to be an Olympics medalist in swimming, and there is no pool within my reach, that dream is likely to remain a dream. It’s either I travel regularly to where one is or I re-locate close to one. My challenge on this is for you to note your plans, begin to dream, discover your potential, then you can tell if where you are would help actualize them. If your environment won’t be enabling, then move.
There may be instances when we feel the timing or some other reasons won’t allow us move to our preferred physical environment. What do we do while we wait? We must keep our mind and association environment in top gear. In other words, these two must be “fertilizing” to our plans, dreams or potentials. Just like some fertilizers can be used to enhance the ability of the soil when not good enough.
The state of your mind must become conditioned to bring you to thrive. You need to feed it with information that would motivate and inspire. You can learn to shut out negatives by focusing more on what is positive and what you desire to be. For associations, we need to minimize interactions with those who put us down, who laugh at our dreams and spend more time with those of like minds, those who make us think beyond where we are to what we can become.
We need to get the environment right (mind and association included) to keep energies up, passions alive, focus strong, till we come to full bloom and achieve.
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