# Before You Work in Any Big Company — Watch THIS (Ex-Glovo Manager Speaks)

An episode of [The Peswa Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1781537541), 12 Oct 2025, 1 h 23 min.

Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/110e1ce70/podcast/play/117753106/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-2-31%2F421135846-44100-1-505faca79c4be2f6.mp3

Send a text From researching animals to leading some of the world’s biggest brands — Emmanuel Koduah’s career journey is nothing short of extraordinary. In this episode, A Manager of Glovo Ghana and current Yango Manager shares his hard-earned lessons on thriving in the corporate world, building strong cultures, and what separates top talent from the rest. You’ll learn: •How to stand out in multinational environments •The mindset that drives success in corporate Africa •The power of culture and talent in shaping winning teams If you’ve ever dreamt of making it in the global corporate space, this conversation is your blueprint. Simplify cross-border payments with WeWire — the smarter way for businesses to send and receive payments in local and international currencies across 80+ countries. Empower your business with fast, secure, and seamless global transactions. 🔗 Start today at www.WeWire.com Click the link below to support the show—every bit of support goes straight into helping us create even better content, reach more people, and share more incredible conversations. Support the show (click here) -- https://www.buzzsprout.com/2423582/support 📩 Connect with us: • Follow Bill on Instagram: @billcobbinah • Follow Klenam on Instagram: @mightymanklenam • Follow us on all socials: @thepeswa 📢 Subscribe The Peswa on all Platforms: https://linktr.ee/thepeswa Get access to amazing royalty-free music for your projects — sign up for an Uppbeat account using the referral link: https://share.uppbeat.io/cy9fcqqxj4tg Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more conversations like this! The Fresh Patch Podcast - Where Good Pets Get It. Welcome to the Fresh Patch Podcast where we talk about everything, from dog... Listen on: Apple Podcasts Support the show

## Transcript

[0:00] What he said was that always make sure that you offer your
[0:02] national service where there's a high probability of being
[0:04] retained. Try as much as possible not to
[0:07] stay too long in one institutionwecan.com was
[0:11] exceptional, and it was just me. People don't want to leave.
[0:14] When they even leave, they reminisces value and premium
[0:17] placed on employees, two things to succeed in scaling up a
[0:20] business. And I'm sure we'll come to that.
[0:22] Just to say the premise global is coming in fresh fresh never
[0:25] been in the Ghanaian markets and they are picking out their team
[0:27] and they picked you and three others yes to start yes all
[0:30] right so how does it go intense I.
[0:32] Grew the performance culture at global is super high such that
[0:37] there were so many cases of employees and colleagues having
[0:40] to leave you've. Been at Echo, you've been at
[0:42] exporting, you've been at global, now you're at Yango.
[0:44] Yango had been approaching me for about a year before I left.
[0:49] Even the corporate space to succeed is is not that easy.
[0:52] From my experience, there are three types of employees.
[0:54] I would say if given the chance, be a doer.
[0:57] Much better than be a talker because you see they are always
[0:59] found out. Empty stable stays clean, but
[1:01] there's no income from an empty stable.
[1:03] So hard work brings money brings wealth, work also brings profit.
[1:07] But the wise ones. Now with this you determine your
[1:10] skill of growth. What's your take on spirituality
[1:13] and business? Maybe this probably is the most
[1:15] important part of this whole engagement.
[1:23] Hi guys. The conversation you're about to
[1:25] listen to is a very exciting conversation.
[1:30] It's a conversation with the current country manager of Yango
[1:34] and he touches on his journey through various multinational
[1:38] companies and speaks on certain things that have impacted him as
[1:44] he's worked with these various companies.
[1:48] And it's a really great episode, especially if your business
[1:52] owner, you want to learn from how these multinationals do it
[1:55] or if you're even in the corporate world, you want to
[1:58] learn from how to be able to scale up, how to able to do all
[2:03] in the corporate environment. And this is your conversation.
[2:06] So enjoy, Emmanuel, thank you for coming.
[2:12] Thank you for also having me here, Yes, and I think you guys
[2:16] are doing a great job here. Oh, thank you very much.
[2:19] Yeah, we're trying our very best actually.
[2:22] You know, you are the first person who is not the founder to
[2:26] actually join us on this podcast.
[2:29] Usually we have found this, but looking at your profile and we
[2:34] realize that we need to get you on here to speak to our
[2:38] audience. Because you've been at Airtel,
[2:42] you've been at Expoking, you've been at Global, you've been at
[2:46] now you're at the angle and it's a very impressive profile and
[2:50] I'm sure there's much you have to share with us.
[2:53] But how would you describe yourself professionally?
[2:56] Like if you say I'm over the years, what because you've been
[3:01] through a number of companies, how professionally how you
[3:03] describe yourself as what you do?
[3:08] All right, I think I'm privileged, you know, to be the
[3:12] first non founder, you know, to be on this show.
[3:16] Yeah, I I and I don't take it lightly.
[3:19] Yeah. So thank you, you know, for
[3:21] having me here. And the founders are doing a
[3:23] great job. I mean, I follow a number of
[3:25] them. And it's not easy to be a
[3:27] founder out here in Ghana. I would say that I am a
[3:34] continuous learner. Yes, if there's one word to
[3:38] describe me, I'm a learner and that is why I always strive to
[3:44] expose myself to these different sectors and industries because I
[3:49] believe that as human beings, we have the capacity to grow.
[3:54] And to grow you need to acquire some knowledge that would help
[4:01] advance your life. OK.
[4:04] And for me, each sector that I've gone into in my career has
[4:09] been very well, you know, thought out, OK, planned.
[4:14] And they've each contributed to where I am, you know, today and
[4:19] to my growth. OK.
[4:21] I see. So would you say that early on
[4:25] in your life this is something you wanted to do or how early
[4:30] would you say maybe you took that decision that this is a
[4:32] career path you want to follow on?
[4:35] I had always wanted to be a medical doctor because not by my
[4:41] own desire or will, but because my parents, you know, wanted me
[4:47] to be a doctor, to be the first medical doctor in the family.
[4:51] The normal guy you see, you see. But feet or gut had other plants
[5:00] so my brother now is a medical you know your.
[5:06] Younger brother, yes. I see exactly the, you know, the
[5:10] youngest of the brothers. So we are 4, three brothers and
[5:14] then one girl. So the last brother is a medical
[5:20] doctor now. But I couldn't still pass the
[5:24] the interview stage, you know, in school.
[5:28] Really. So you so you actually planned,
[5:31] Yes. And you were going for the I.
[5:33] Was going to become a medical doctor.
[5:36] Wow. So from presec so.
[5:38] Are you going to presec? Exactly.
[5:39] I read science, that's famous, good school.
[5:43] I read science there and then I follow through to the University
[5:47] of Ghana and during my time, so this was in 2003.
[5:54] So during my time you had to read the first year of
[5:59] biological of. The political sciences, OK.
[6:04] You know, for one year and then the second year you qualify a
[6:11] second year for an interview. Yeah, into the medical school.
[6:15] OK. And then once you pass that
[6:16] interview, you start, you know, the.
[6:20] Medical. School, school for, I think, you
[6:23] know, five years, yeah. So the requirement to go through
[6:28] the interview as a certain GPA? Yeah.
[6:31] And it depends on the quality of students.
[6:35] So it's not fixed. It could be 3.6 as a cut off
[6:38] point in one year and then the next year it's 3.7 or 3.4.
[6:43] OK. You know it changes Exactly.
[6:45] Exactly. So at the time I couldn't still
[6:50] pass the, you know, the interview stage.
[6:53] And looking back, I see this as a blessing in disguise because I
[7:02] don't like being around blood and the hospital.
[7:06] I don't. I didn't know then.
[7:08] I didn't know then. Yeah, I have.
[7:11] I have a certain very low affinity for anything medical.
[7:15] Medical. Wow.
[7:16] Yes, yes, yes. So so I continued on to read
[7:20] another course after the failure for this medical school.
[7:24] Animal biology and conservation science.
[7:26] OK, so after my lecture pulled me in after school, so offer my
[7:32] national service where he also worked.
[7:35] So he was a lecturer and also, you know, he ran an NGO.
[7:39] OK, Yeah. So we worked there for about two
[7:43] years. OK, doing animal biology.
[7:46] Exactly. I'll spend time in the field
[7:48] research. I'm, I'm really curious to how
[7:51] you ended up here. You started this way exactly.
[7:54] Yeah. So we'll be in the field, we go
[7:55] for grants and then we do field research, OK.
[7:59] And it would be about animals, birds, you know, mainly birds,
[8:05] but other wildlife. Yeah.
[8:07] So I roamed, you know, I roamed a lot of regions in Ghana.
[8:11] Wow. Yeah.
[8:11] Doing. Research I spent.
[8:12] Months in the north, yes. Spent months in the shanty
[8:15] regions, yeah. Doing research in the Bush.
[8:18] Intense. Really.
[8:20] But. Yes, yes, yes.
[8:21] Yes, yes, for this was your national service.
[8:23] Yes. And then two years after.
[8:25] OK, Yeah. So.
[8:26] You're doing three years, Yeah. Yeah, in the Bush and thing in
[8:29] the Bush. And things and all that.
[8:31] But I was happy and fortunate because at the time it wasn't
[8:35] easy to get a good place in schools to offer your service
[8:39] because we're being paid a part of the service skill.
[8:43] Oh really? Yes, that's good.
[8:45] So this was in 2008, yes. And there was the opportunity to
[8:52] be retained. Yeah.
[8:54] I got this very good advice from a senior colleague of mine at
[8:59] the time when I was in school. What he said was that always
[9:02] make sure that you offer your national service where there's a
[9:06] higher probability of being retained.
[9:08] And this was in my final year. He told me this.
[9:11] So I was always on the lookout not for a fancy place because
[9:14] you could work in the bank at the time and then not be
[9:17] retained. Yeah, you could work in there,
[9:19] but work at a place where you can be.
[9:22] Retained in the high probability that would be retained, Yeah,
[9:25] that's true. So I worked there and I was
[9:27] retained and I had a number of colleagues who after service
[9:31] find their way home but. This This happens a lot.
[9:34] Even now. A lot of people go to fancy
[9:36] places or people with big names, but then you end up realizing
[9:39] you after the year. They just put you out and then
[9:42] they bring in a new batch of people.
[9:44] It's pretty good that. Was one of the best.
[9:47] In fact, I've had two solid advice of first mini advice that
[9:51] I've had, but two that I think have influenced here.
[9:54] I'll share the second one. Alright, as we go.
[9:56] So, yeah, so I worked there for two years after service, and
[10:00] then somebody said that Reggie Mano Grey was hiring, OK,
[10:08] Looking for, you know, sales people for their developments,
[10:12] you know? That was back then.
[10:13] Back then they were into, you know, the real estate.
[10:17] Yeah. So I applied and I got.
[10:21] You got the job. No sales in a background, no
[10:23] estate, no developed. You still got the job.
[10:25] Background. I still got the job and I worked
[10:31] you know there I think for a year.
[10:33] OK. Then from there again somebody
[10:36] said, hey, ETA is recruiting it's and one thing I've come to
[10:40] learn is your next phase is always linked to somebody.
[10:49] Your your transition to a next move is always linked to
[10:57] somebody. Yes, somebody, you know, once
[10:59] said that the blessing of God, it comes from God through man to
[11:04] man, as always. Yeah, so.
[11:07] And I've been very careful to maintain such relationships
[11:12] because through relationships you hear about things, you're
[11:15] exposing those things, and then you are, you know, you're able
[11:19] to transit well. So I applied, you know, for ET
[11:24] al. And I got a job.
[11:29] It was around the time that ET al was was trying to launch the
[11:34] mobile money service in Ghana. OK, yes, you know, to rival
[11:38] what? MTT had at the time, yeah.
[11:40] ET al money. So I was part of the.
[11:42] Sort of the first set. Of team members, you know, for
[11:46] that it was ET al. Taught me a lot, really taught
[11:50] me a lot. Exposed me to analytics, you
[11:53] know, applying data and insights to your work.
[12:00] And it exposed me to working with other cultures.
[12:05] Yeah, I see, you know. But how did that yes.
[12:08] How? Because you know, one of the
[12:10] things about Ghana people say is that it's hard to get jobs.
[12:15] And I'm wondering, you've already, at this point, you've
[12:18] already talked about three companies and there's a number
[12:21] we are going to talk about as well.
[12:23] I mean, you've mentioned that you should try to maintain
[12:27] relationships and get to know people and that's linked to a
[12:32] person, you getting a job or you move into the next phase.
[12:35] It's always linked to a person. But based on your experience
[12:38] now, are there some tips you can give anybody who maybe is trying
[12:42] to do we say, well, I apply for jobs, I tried to go for
[12:45] interview, this doesn't work out.
[12:46] Other things maybe you've seen over time that you think really
[12:50] works out just before we delve into the Airtel story.
[12:55] One, whatever chance or opportunity you get now excel in
[13:01] that opportunity. That's number one for.
[13:05] Me. That's like capping momentum,
[13:06] right? Seizing the moment.
[13:08] Seizing the moment, yeah. Capping momentum, yeah.
[13:11] Seize the moment. I wouldn't have been referred or
[13:15] recommended to these at that place of employment if I wasn't
[13:20] good OK at what I was. Doing at the time.
[13:24] That's true, yes. Seize the moment.
[13:27] Whatever opportunity, as the Bible says, whatsoever your hand
[13:31] finds to do, do it with all your mind, because there is no
[13:36] devices, no wax. Yeah, in the grave where you go
[13:39] E. Essentially what the Bible is
[13:40] saying is that there are seasons.
[13:43] There will be a time where you will not be able to enjoy this
[13:46] moment. So seize the moment.
[13:49] Wow. Yeah.
[13:49] So for me that's of course there are other tips and all that, but
[13:52] if you seize that moment and you build relationships, that's also
[13:55] another thing. You build relationships, then
[13:59] the relationships and the opportunities you've seized and
[14:05] excelled at the 2. OK, coming together.
[14:10] To move you to your next place. Beautiful, beautiful.
[14:13] That's good. So so your time at Airtel.
[14:15] Yes, yes, it was, it was fantastic.
[14:17] I remember some of you know, the projects that we launched was
[14:21] first in Ghana, the NFC payment system where there was something
[14:26] that you stick to your phone and then you just go and then you
[14:30] tap and then you get an alert on your mobile money.
[14:33] OK. To.
[14:36] Finished. Finished the payment.
[14:37] Wow, that's OK. We launched this at Malcolm,
[14:40] Yeah, a number of their outlets, also at KFC, and I was leading,
[14:47] you know. The team, yeah.
[14:50] I was an individual contributor at the time, not a manager at
[14:53] the time, but I had contract staff.
[14:56] OK. Who I was, you know, working
[14:59] with with to ensure the success of this and it was quite, you
[15:04] know, successful. Unfortunately, after after we
[15:07] transitioned to new rules in other companies, I think that
[15:11] projects was was not continued. But how?
[15:14] How do you move from coming from Reggie Mano, Yes, into Airtel
[15:19] and now you're leading tech and your background is animals.
[15:25] So where what happens between Reggie Manuel and Airtel that
[15:32] makes you able because you've been doing sales, but now you're
[15:35] in Airtel and you're basically moving with the tech team.
[15:39] The transition there, was it how?
[15:41] How was that for you or what things enabled you or did
[15:44] something happen there to make you be able to handle Airtel?
[15:49] OK, so how to enter is what I shared Excel in.
[15:53] And yeah, then when you enter, you have to have a learner's
[15:57] attitude, OK? Even if you have prior
[16:00] experience of the area you're going into, then attitude to
[16:03] absorb like a sponge. And then not just that execute,
[16:08] because knowledge itself doesn't.
[16:13] It's not the harvest. OK.
[16:15] Knowledge is the seed, the harvest is execution.
[16:19] OK, so yes, you acquire as much as you can, but then action is
[16:23] what leads to the harvest. Or harvest, yeah.
[16:27] Yes. So a learner's attitude.
[16:29] I didn't have any telco background, Yes, at all.
[16:33] No experience in that field. But I had sales.
[16:38] I had a mind to learn, so that was what I, you know, the main
[16:44] pushcha that I had in the interview and yeah, and I
[16:47] displayed how I can be of benefit to the team.
[16:52] So yeah, in a tech environment now, you're able to flow with
[16:56] them. And I mean, you were telling us
[16:58] about how that after that product didn't work, both
[17:01] things. Did you ever have like a
[17:02] managerial role? Did you move up with ETO?
[17:05] Yes. So I started first of all as a
[17:09] as a business officer and then to a business partner and then a
[17:13] business, you know, a business manager within the autonomy, you
[17:18] know, space. And with that I had smaller
[17:22] team, some were not, you know, full time, you know, again, some
[17:28] were sales, sales team members and all that.
[17:32] Yes, but I won't say that managerial role in terms of the
[17:38] latitude is as big a managerial role as I had in the succeeding,
[17:45] you know, companies. Yes.
[17:46] OK. So from Airtel you're going to X
[17:50] booking. Yes, booking.com.
[17:53] Booking.com. Yes, booking.com.
[17:56] So actually before Airtel, I was pushed.
[18:01] So that was my first poaching experience, OK, to work with
[18:07] Aya. Aya.
[18:08] So Aya Technologies yes was a Ghanian owned tech space and the
[18:16] goal was to launch a payment system.
[18:20] Or. Platform and all so we had these
[18:23] small devices you know that we would give to the regular mobile
[18:28] money agents and with that device they can dispense airtime
[18:32] and do other transactions on yeah so I was with them for
[18:38] about two years but. Tell us, how is the poaching?
[18:41] How is the poaching experience like?
[18:43] I I, I'm wondering I'm I've not been poached, maybe, maybe
[18:46] they'll poach me. You see?
[18:49] How was the experience like? Yes.
[18:50] So again, essentially people know from people what you are
[18:56] doing like recommendation, recommendation and then they
[18:59] speak to them that hey, there's this guy who's doing so well and
[19:03] mind you had been part of this payment systems at Airtel.
[19:09] Yeah, you know that. I you know.
[19:13] Yes. So so so they had heard about it
[19:17] and they were also trying to launch something similar but
[19:23] with point of sale devices. OK.
[19:25] Yeah. So.
[19:29] They talked to me, they engaged me, they shared what they can
[19:32] offer and I was like, OK, let me try this out 'cause that again
[19:38] was going to be my first full skill managerial role in terms
[19:43] of the reach, the latitude and extent, you know?
[19:46] Yeah. Yeah.
[19:47] So what what made you take that offer?
[19:50] It's, it's 'cause what was it? Maybe the ex for the experience
[19:54] or is it for the money or what was your deciding factor that
[19:59] was maybe you could have seen the Airtel climb up the ladder,
[20:02] But what finally made you say, hey, let me go for for this
[20:06] offer, yes. I've been in Airtel for four
[20:09] years, and this brings me back to the second advice that I told
[20:15] you I was Kevin. Yeah, you may sound a bit, Yeah,
[20:20] a bit controversial, but I think it's worked for me.
[20:23] It may not work for everybody. OK?
[20:25] What the senior colleague said was that try as much as possible
[20:31] not to stay too long in one. Institution I see.
[20:41] Especially when you are now. Yeah, I see.
[20:47] Because he said that you increase your earning power most
[20:55] often by more than 50% if you move.
[21:02] Really. He said that in most companies
[21:08] we are promoted. So there are two types or two
[21:13] ways to earn more. OK, through promotion or through
[21:17] annual reviews. Annual reviews have a budget
[21:21] limitation. It's a very small, various
[21:23] almost, you know, very small. And then for promotions,
[21:29] depending on the skill of promotion and the type of role,
[21:33] you can be moved to another band, higher role and all that.
[21:36] You could also earn more, but generally speaking, those who
[21:40] are brought in as new employees for similar rules have the
[21:46] opportunity to bargain. To negotiate.
[21:48] To negotiate what you pay them. Exactly, you know then you who
[21:55] is within the company and it's a norm generally the exceptions
[21:59] and all that, the norm. So then his advice was that if
[22:03] you do your best, you seize the moment and based on the results
[22:10] that you've achieved and all that, you move to another
[22:13] company, OK, Of course, not just any company.
[22:16] You need to also weigh, you know a number of things and now you
[22:20] move then you have the ability or the capacity or the
[22:27] opportunity to earn more usually a 50% or more in some cases 33
[22:33] times and all that. So based on that advice, when
[22:36] this opportunity. Came.
[22:38] Yeah. Yes, I've been at Better for
[22:42] four years. I had learnt a lot and I felt
[22:47] that the, you know, the growth trajectory was isn't at the time
[22:52] so clear. OK, yeah, opportunities for
[22:56] growth also wasn't so clear. There was a great time I had
[23:00] there and all. I still have friends there who
[23:03] we've done, you know, nuisance with and all that.
[23:07] So that was the fundamental. Reason why?
[23:12] Yeah, reason why I decided. You know, to switch and, and,
[23:16] and the second bit was again, the opportunity to lead A-Team.
[23:21] Yeah, yeah. And then to lead a project on a
[23:24] wider scale, you know. So I was at Aya for two years
[23:29] and I saw a post on linkedinbooking.com.
[23:37] Yeah. I was like, well, I did some
[23:39] research about booking.com and realized that it was a mega
[23:44] multinational, you know, company.
[23:47] Yes, on the level of Google, yeah, YouTube, Amazon and all
[23:52] that in its own right. Yeah.
[23:54] Travel space. Yeah.
[23:56] I checked over 1000 applicants on LinkedIn alone because you
[24:01] can see the number of applicants.
[24:02] Over 1000 applicants are like, wow.
[24:06] I said here I applied through LinkedIn through LinkedIn.
[24:11] Really. There's some notion that
[24:13] LinkedIn applications don't really go through, Yeah.
[24:17] And I'll share a bit about LinkedIn because in recent times
[24:20] I've had a lot of people reach out the to understand how they
[24:26] can leverage LinkedIn better because they've seen some of the
[24:32] things that I do on LinkedIn or. Yeah.
[24:34] So yes, I applied and I was called for yes.
[24:40] And for multinationals, it's a series of interviews.
[24:46] OK. It takes it.
[24:48] Takes it. Takes a while it.
[24:49] Takes a while. I think it was over a period of
[24:53] months. Wow, yeah if I remember it was a
[24:57] bit around 3 months. Waiting just going to different
[25:02] interviews over three months. Over three months if.
[25:05] It's serious tension. Exactly.
[25:06] And generally speaking, it's normal for multinationals.
[25:10] OK. Now at this stage, I am a level.
[25:12] I am understand. I understand why, Yeah, even me,
[25:15] I keep others, you know, waiting because it's not just me, OK?
[25:20] There are other people involved and there are schedules and then
[25:23] budgeting, OK. A lot of a lot of things going
[25:26] to it, yeah. That you don't know, yes.
[25:29] So you know, I went through the application.
[25:33] OK. I went through the process and I
[25:37] came out successful. I was the senior market manager
[25:45] overseeing with a team I think around 12 countries.
[25:50] At the time, yes, I see. Was it a remote job or?
[25:53] No busy at the time we didn't have remote.
[25:57] Yeah. OK, it was a while ago.
[25:58] Exactly a while ago, 2017. OK, remember yeah, remote things
[26:04] came before after COVID. And all that.
[26:07] So we had our office at the stomach heights, OK and then
[26:13] would fly out in bed. That's also was a fantastic
[26:19] experience. I tell my friends and colleagues
[26:25] that there are some experiences that you have that leave a
[26:30] taste, a very sweet taste in your mouth such that you are
[26:34] careful which new experiences you know, now you come very
[26:39] selective. Yeah.
[26:40] Simply put, you will struggle to work for other companies because
[26:45] you've experienced life at a certain level in terms of the
[26:49] corporate space. Wow, booking.com was exceptional
[26:52] and it was just me. It's a company that when you
[26:56] check what people say after they leave and all that is always
[27:01] nostalgia. People don't want to leave when
[27:04] they even leave the reminisce apart because there's value and
[27:09] premium placed on employees. OK.
[27:11] So that's what you think made the company or the?
[27:14] Culture, the culture, the culture.
[27:16] OK, the culture. Two things to succeed in scaling
[27:20] up a business and I'm sure we'll come to that.
[27:21] Yeah. Talent and culture.
[27:24] Wow. Talent and culture, you never
[27:25] the two main things. Talent and culture.
[27:28] OK, fine. Mix of them.
[27:30] The culture at booking.com front.
[27:31] They valued employees. They rewarded success.
[27:36] There was very little or no discrimination.
[27:40] OK, They will fly out stuff no matter your color, no matter
[27:45] your market, your geography, fly us out on a yearly basis to
[27:51] attend a conference called BAM Conference in Spain.
[27:58] You know, I think one time we had it also and and the
[28:05] Netherlands, yes, Yeah. So Barcelona and then Amsterdam.
[28:09] Fantastic. And when you say talent, so
[28:11] booking what what about booking.com?
[28:13] They do it as a hiring talent acquiring.
[28:15] Talent hiring, hiring, retaining and developing OK 3 three things
[28:22] about talent hard top is better to wait and hard top than to
[28:27] rush and her mediocre average. Like BLC players?
[28:32] So hard top develop them, give them the room and the latitude
[28:37] to operate and then you retain, do as much as you can
[28:43] incentives. Sometimes it's not about the
[28:45] money. That's what most people don't
[28:47] get. It's not about it.
[28:48] It's important money bonuses important, but appreciating and
[28:54] rewarding celebrating success little awards here and there
[28:59] announcing what this team this market has done all these little
[29:02] things yes and being open and receptive to feedback.
[29:06] OK is is it was it was another level.
[29:09] So anyway with I was there for three years.
[29:11] I'd have loved to stay more, but COVID came and the travel, you
[29:18] know, space became, you know, very slow and all that.
[29:21] Even with that, they treated staff to, you know, to a certain
[29:27] level that most companies at the time.
[29:31] Wouldn't do. We're not.
[29:33] We're not doing. You hear a lot of news about
[29:37] layoffs here and there, but even when the travel space was the
[29:41] most impacted, we're still there, working, managing, you
[29:46] know, our portfolio and all that.
[29:50] Then there was a lot of talk about delivery, food delivery.
[29:57] During that, I was a boom, yeah. In food delivery.
[30:00] Grab, have Uber Eats, Yes, know that.
[30:06] Then again on LinkedIn. On LinkedIn, saw posts about
[30:11] Global. I didn't know about global had
[30:15] never heard about it about them. You know that that they were
[30:18] planning to launch in Ghana. So saw the posts that were
[30:22] looking for a head of commercial OK at the time, which wasn't so
[30:26] different from my senior markets manager, you know role, yes, it
[30:30] was yes, you know quite linked, but different industries yes.
[30:35] So I applied and. Another series.
[30:42] Another series of but that was faster.
[30:44] OK, because I think April had applied late.
[30:48] Oh really? I think they had gone through
[30:49] with a number of candidates and they were almost at the verge of
[30:53] settling for one candidate. Before you applied, you got the
[31:00] job. So I applied and then I got some
[31:03] messages on LinkedIn from the recruiter and I think from the
[31:06] hiring. Then they arranged for a.
[31:12] Session. Was it in person?
[31:15] In. Person and which was also out of
[31:18] norm because usually you'll be screened by HR before they pass
[31:23] you on to the hiring head or manager yeah and then whatever,
[31:27] but I think because of time constraint because they had
[31:30] moved very fast with other candidates and I was.
[31:33] Coming out they. Arranged an in person session
[31:37] with me and the hiring manager. Directly.
[31:40] Directly in Ghana. Strangely at the time he had
[31:44] flown into Ghana that week to set up, you know, the lunch and
[31:51] all that. So we had a meeting in a hotel.
[31:55] It was an informal interview. He had with.
[31:58] Him I had, he was impressed, you know, with what we discussed and
[32:04] all that. And then that's it.
[32:06] To all the. People that, hey, yes, I'm going
[32:08] for this guy and all that. So I think it took a month for
[32:12] everything to be finalized and I joined the global team exactly.
[32:16] So the founding team, we were I think four or five.
[32:21] OK. At the time global is so just to
[32:23] say the premise global is coming in fresh, fresh never been in
[32:27] the Ghanaian markets and they are picking out their team and
[32:32] they picked you and three others.
[32:34] Yes to start, yes. Alright, so how does it go?
[32:38] Me and three others, the senior team, OK, and we had I think two
[32:42] other people who were junior, yes.
[32:45] So we launched global. Global, a lot of hard work and
[32:52] intense. I grew lean.
[32:55] Hey. I grew lean of.
[32:58] I'm not. Yes.
[33:01] So just imagine me. Growing lean again?
[33:04] I grew, I grew, I grew very lean.
[33:06] Now I sit back and I look at my old global images and feel like,
[33:10] wow, this is scary because there was a lot of hard work.
[33:15] I was skipping, you know, a lot of meals and all that.
[33:20] But it paid off. At the time when we launched
[33:24] Junior, food was around both. Food was already in the market.
[33:30] Yeah. So they were the 2 main
[33:32] competitive food delivery companies.
[33:34] And of course, there were other small local, you know, players.
[33:37] So we knew that there was a lot of hard work that needed to be
[33:40] put in. Yeah.
[33:41] And again, I'm somebody who's super result oriented.
[33:44] OK. Super result oriented, OK.
[33:48] And so the hard work definitely paid off.
[33:54] And the team, we had a strong team, very strong team and we
[33:59] executed within a year. We had more restaurant partners
[34:04] on the platform than our competitors.
[34:07] Even though our competitors had been around a year plus more
[34:10] than we had been. We had more restaurant partner.
[34:12] We signed them up. Within one year.
[34:14] Within a year, more restaurant Ghana was performing better in
[34:20] terms of the skill of growth than other markets such that
[34:24] were featured quite regularly on business presentations within
[34:30] global. I did a number of presentations
[34:33] about how and why Ghana was doing So what magic are we
[34:37] doing? I've got that.
[34:40] I'm, I'm, I'm again, I'm only because you're coming from the
[34:43] travel space and you're entering into the food delivery space.
[34:49] Another transition, although it's still tech, it's a
[34:53] completely different industry. I would say to some extent
[34:58] again, and this time you are not just contributing, you are you
[35:02] are basically part of the foundation team and within a
[35:05] year you're able to understand the market, penetrate it and
[35:10] within one year you've set up global at this level.
[35:14] What, what were your main challenges like for you
[35:16] personally, some challenges you had personally transitioning and
[35:20] also maybe you can tell us what challenges you guys face as a
[35:23] team because we realized that Globe is not the first delivery
[35:28] company. We know later on Global story
[35:32] where Global exits scanner, but many have also had that same
[35:37] problem where they try starting this delivery thing and it
[35:40] doesn't work as it doesn't even get to the level that global go
[35:43] to. What do you think?
[35:45] I mean, I think I'm asking too many questions as they go by you
[35:47] let's you can start with personally for you transitioning
[35:50] in and then we go to how it was for Global as a team, for you
[35:54] guys as a team to penetrate the market.
[35:56] So personally for you, how was it?
[35:59] I think it was a learning curve for me because, again, I was not
[36:04] coming from the delivery space. But prior to that I had read a
[36:08] lot, OK, about food delivery and that was what piqued my interest
[36:15] in joining a company like Global.
[36:18] OK. Yeah.
[36:19] Because of course, that was the, you know, the boom time of.
[36:24] Food. Delivery apps.
[36:26] So I had done a lot of research and learnt about what it
[36:30] requires for them to succeed, all the different levers and
[36:34] factors and all that. So I was quite well prepared.
[36:37] But I told you knowledge. Is a seed.
[36:40] The seed is not the harvest. The harvest is execution.
[36:43] Is execution. So with that I came in and of
[36:46] course you're coming into a company that also has its own
[36:49] way of working. So I also had to learn very
[36:53] quickly, you know, that the performance culture at Global is
[36:58] super high, such that there were so many cases of employees and
[37:05] colleagues having to leave. We couldn't.
[37:10] Yeah, keep up. Exactly because the demands are
[37:13] so high that you need to work hard and work smart.
[37:17] Wow. And so yes, for me, I had built
[37:21] that culture. OK, from the various places.
[37:24] From the various places, because again I told you deliver your
[37:28] best. Yeah.
[37:29] And then. So if you are used to being very
[37:32] resource oriented, it becomes your second.
[37:34] Nature, yeah, and then? You apply wherever.
[37:37] Wherever you are. Oh, beautiful.
[37:38] So yes, that helped me with my personal transition with
[37:46] businesses that go all that attempt to launch and all that.
[37:53] I think 1 fundamental thing is, is market research that has to
[38:00] be done. OK, Yes.
[38:02] And I can tell you that that was one thing that the company did
[38:06] research a number of markets and at the time they believed Ghana
[38:12] was good to launch in. And then two, the tech, OK, you
[38:21] need good tech, good tech. The product, the tech has to be
[38:28] solid. And that's one thing that Global
[38:31] did so well. The app is very intuitive.
[38:34] Yeah. The user experience, yeah.
[38:36] The support, yeah. Fund I, I think most people have
[38:40] shared that they hadn't experienced that level of
[38:44] intuitiveness of an app prior to Global coming in, coming in and
[38:49] all that. Yes.
[38:51] And then the talent, you can have great market research, you
[38:56] can have good tech, you can have great strategy, but the talent
[39:02] and the talent is what drives all this is critical to the
[39:07] success of any business. And that I think Global also did
[39:11] well. They attracted good times,
[39:13] fantastic founding team members. We are still.
[39:16] Very you inclusive. And all that.
[39:19] So it really helped us, you know, scale very fast.
[39:23] Yes, yes. That's quite good within a year.
[39:25] Yeah, within a year. And I had some former team
[39:28] members share very recently that they joined another, another
[39:34] company. I think about 3 or 4 of them
[39:36] joined another company. And apparently the company was
[39:40] very happy to have them because they had heard, they had heard
[39:44] about us. And we're excited that here
[39:47] they're having this crop of team members who did so well to
[39:51] skill. The Global.
[39:55] Yeah, business. And they're still doing very
[39:57] well because of what we imbibed together as a team.
[40:01] At global I see. So with global you are at that's
[40:05] Ghana. I know, yes, you moved again
[40:06] exactly to a different. Yes, yes.
[40:09] So I was in Ghana for a year, I was part of the team in Ghana
[40:15] for a year and I was approached by the team in HQ that here we
[40:21] have a market that's struggling, OK, and that Jumia is doing so
[40:27] well. With.
[40:27] Dominating it and all that. And we've seen what you've done
[40:31] with a team in Ghana. We are interested in sending you
[40:37] there as the general manager, OK, to oversee the business and
[40:42] turn things around. So they engaged me and I said
[40:49] sure, why not? Uganda, I've never been yes, and
[40:55] I'd want to go and test the waters.
[40:58] But the general manager in Ghana at the time, a very good friend
[41:06] of mine, made a point that I can't just leave.
[41:16] I can't just leave. There has to be some form of
[41:19] smooth transition so that the business in Ghana doesn't
[41:22] survive. Yeah.
[41:23] And of course, she was right. Yeah.
[41:26] You know, she's in charge of this market, and if it goes bad,
[41:32] her head is on the line. Yeah.
[41:34] So we came to a compromise, and I think that took a big toll on
[41:37] me. Big toll.
[41:40] The compromise was that I would be the general manager in Uganda
[41:45] and still act as the head of commercial in Ghana until we
[41:51] found somebody, somebody and a global.
[41:53] We don't just hire, at least at the time.
[41:55] Yeah, we make sure that we take our time and hire top talent.
[42:01] It took months, so I was doing at least every three weeks
[42:05] flying. To Uganda and back, Yes.
[42:08] Wow. Because yes, you try to lead the
[42:10] team remotely, know that, but your presence here and all that
[42:15] is also quiet. Yeah.
[42:16] So I would spend time in Uganda for two to three weeks and then
[42:20] spend time in Ghana for two weeks.
[42:23] And then go back and. Forth, I did this for what,
[42:27] maybe six months before we found somebody fire replacement, yes,
[42:32] before we found, you know, somebody here.
[42:34] It took a toll because it was total flight time of around 11
[42:40] hours. Every single time.
[42:42] Yeah, yeah, including airports. You know the waiting.
[42:45] Time, waiting time, and all of that.
[42:46] Yeah, from Uganda you go to Ethiopia.
[42:51] Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa and then to Ghana.
[42:54] And to Ghana, you. Do that.
[42:55] It was, it was, it was quite stressful.
[42:57] I can imagine. Quite stressful, but the results
[43:00] you know showed. So everything went well with
[43:02] Uganda. By God's grace, by God's grace,
[43:05] we grew very fast. OK.
[43:08] For me it was an interesting project because before that I
[43:14] had the privilege to build a team in Ghana, Uganda.
[43:18] I was taking over. OK, A-Team, that's.
[43:20] A different experience, different dynamics in a
[43:23] different market, different culture, No, a team that had
[43:27] been there for about two years or three years.
[43:31] So it was a different experience and I told you I'd love to
[43:34] learn. So I saw this as an opportunity
[43:36] to add more knowledge and all that, and a book that I would
[43:42] recommend for people in such transition in all stages and
[43:46] even for anybody in the corrupt in the corporate space is the
[43:50] 1st 90 days. The 1st 90 days, yes, written by
[43:53] her. That's a book.
[43:54] Fantastic, fantastic book. I think the name is Watkins.
[43:59] OK. Yes, yes, the 1st 90 days. 1st
[44:02] 90 Fantastic book. It would show you the path or at
[44:06] least try to teach you the path to smooth transitions between
[44:10] roles and it does more than that, show you how to make the
[44:15] most of your time in any corporate space or in any
[44:18] working environment. It's a fantastic book and that
[44:20] helped me and it still. Helps you.
[44:23] It really helps, you know, Yeah, so in Uganda we achieved some
[44:27] success. OK, great, you know, success.
[44:29] And we were on the path to becoming number 1.
[44:31] Then the team in HQ again said, hey, we're having issues in
[44:39] Nigeria. We are struggling.
[44:42] Nigeria. We've seen what you did in
[44:44] Ghana, we've seen what you did with the team, OK, Because it's
[44:48] never just one person, it's always a team.
[44:51] It's one I is a we and we've seen what you did with the team
[44:56] in Uganda. Nigeria, which is meant to be a
[45:00] super important market because of the total addressable market
[45:04] size and opportunities, you know for skill there the business is
[45:09] struggling a bit. Jumia is dominating there, is
[45:13] dominating by far. Wow.
[45:16] We have a number of the major restaurants signing
[45:19] exclusivities with Jumia Food, which means that they cannot
[45:25] work with Global. Yeah.
[45:27] And enough it's affecting our growth there.
[45:32] We already the second placed food aggregator there, but we
[45:42] are falling. Far behind you.
[45:44] Know the mark. So they engaged me again.
[45:48] We spoke in my mind. I was like, I'm not done.
[45:51] I'm not done with. Uganda, yeah.
[45:53] I'm not done with Uganda and there's still a lot and I had
[45:57] built this bond with the team. You know, we're doing so well,
[46:01] we're enjoying our time there. You've had this time at Uganda
[46:06] at this time in Ghana and Nigeria will globe as well and
[46:11] now you're at Yango. I mean what?
[46:15] How was the transition for that also like?
[46:18] Yes. So Yango had been approaching me
[46:23] for about a year before I left to join them for different roles
[46:31] in different, you know, in some key markets, Yes.
[46:34] And at the time I didn't feel I wanted to take up that challenge
[46:43] because I felt that there was still a lot more work that I
[46:46] needed to do in global Nigeria. But in Q4, getting to the
[46:55] beginning of Q 4/20/22, I, I just felt that this was right.
[47:00] Yeah. So I re engaged them and then we
[47:04] started the conversation and then it took a few months but at
[47:08] the beginning of June 23 we finalized and then we agreed on
[47:13] a rule which was the country manager for Anglo Delivery and I
[47:18] jumped in and no regrets. 0 regrets.
[47:20] Isn't good. Totally, yeah.
[47:21] I mean, so, so with with your work at Yango, I think it's
[47:26] well, you and the team at Yango, the work that's been done so far
[47:30] since 2023, I think everybody in Ghana can see that Yango is now
[47:36] on top, especially when it comes to delivery.
[47:39] And on my way here, I even saw a younger rider with the the
[47:43] delivery bag, the bag at his bag.
[47:45] It's so obvious. And so with the experiences
[47:48] you've had so far at the various companies that you've been with,
[47:53] what things do you think influence this disability you
[47:59] bring on board with your team to go to scale a company to a
[48:03] certain level? What, what are the things, the
[48:05] main things that you think that 'cause this to happen?
[48:09] Yes, it's a fine mix of culture and then talent, OK?
[48:12] Every company, every successful company needs that.
[48:16] If you look at Google and then the famous thing about Netflix,
[48:22] it's the culture and the talent, Yes.
[48:27] And so that is what I believe has been the key driving force
[48:33] behind the success that you're talking about.
[48:36] And that's what people are seeing and all that.
[48:39] It's been a lot of hard work. So Yango Delivery launched full
[48:45] scale in 2023, at the beginning of 2023.
[48:48] Yango ride hailing has been around since 2019.
[48:52] Yeah. Yeah.
[48:52] So for the past two or more years, almost, you know, three
[48:58] years, we've been hard at scaling Yango Delivery.
[49:03] And thankfully, the success is clear.
[49:05] Is, is, is clear? Let me touch on talent and then
[49:10] I'll touch on the culture. So talent after a while as a
[49:17] manager, and I'm sure most managers would agree with me,
[49:22] you come to 1 conclusion. There are a lot of averages in
[49:27] town. There are a lot of averages
[49:29] around. And in fact, if you look at the
[49:33] five, you know, fingers, you find that it's called the bell
[49:36] curve. Yeah.
[49:37] Usually at the top, very few. And they have a lot more people
[49:41] at the bottoms and all that. So I always share this with
[49:45] people that to stand out, you need to about be above average.
[49:49] Yeah. To stand out in any area of your
[49:52] life because life, as they say, is a rat race.
[49:55] Yeah. We are competing against
[49:57] ourselves. We always want to be a better
[49:59] version of ourselves. We are competing against others.
[50:02] We are competing against time. Yeah, space.
[50:05] Yeah, against everything. So to stand out in life as a
[50:10] business, you need to do above average tense.
[50:14] Yeah. So to achieve above average
[50:15] results, you need to be above average.
[50:19] You cannot achieve above average results with average or below
[50:23] average mindset, attitude or strategy.
[50:27] OK. So now we are very clear on
[50:32] attracting top talent, OK. And so we take our time to
[50:39] recruit. You learn very fast as a manager
[50:44] that is better to take your time to recruit top talent than to
[50:49] hire and refire. OK to hire, fire and then rehire
[50:55] is time consuming. Hiring.
[50:58] Most managers will tell you it's one of the painstaking, you know
[51:02] tasks that you can ever do as a hiring manager.
[51:05] So it's always better. Of course, you will not always
[51:07] get 100%. Yeah.
[51:09] But after a while, you build the experience to identify who are
[51:13] top talented and for me, what stands out.
[51:16] One key thing that stands out or that I look out for in hiring
[51:20] top talent is the word ownership.
[51:22] Ownership, And let me share this, There's a lot of talk
[51:26] about entrepreneurs. Fantastic entrepreneurs are
[51:29] doing very well. I mean, there's a lot of great
[51:33] and a. Lot.
[51:35] Of tenacity. Yeah.
[51:37] That you need to succeed in this entrepreneur space.
[51:42] But I believe that there has to be also some appreciable amount
[51:47] of talk on entrepreneurs. OK, let's go into that.
[51:54] You know, you always have more people working in the corporate
[51:59] space, in businesses for others than for themselves, I think.
[52:04] We all agree on that, yes. You can't.
[52:07] Now we don't have more entrepreneurs than people
[52:10] working in nine to five employees and all that.
[52:12] Yeah. But what probably we lack is
[52:19] that skill sets that entrepreneurs have applied in
[52:26] the corporate space and that's where the term intra income.
[52:33] OK. So you are an entrepreneur at
[52:37] heart, in behaviour, in your skill sets and all that, but you
[52:42] are applying that passion, that energy, that sense of energy of.
[52:47] Ownership. The ownership in your space as
[52:50] an employee, OK. And with that, you always stand
[52:54] out. So that's the type of talent.
[52:56] I mean, that's the type of we should really look out.
[52:58] The type of talent that's in and again, they are generally rare,
[53:03] but the good thing is as a manager, if you develop talent
[53:08] and you and you kite starting with yourself, instilling the
[53:12] sense of ownership, you are fed during the course of
[53:17] entrepreneurship through what you are doing with the team you
[53:19] are building entrepreneurs. And the amazing thing is that
[53:23] with time, if they have the gift, may I call it the gift of
[53:27] entrepreneurship because not everybody has that gift.
[53:31] Now if they have that gift and issues, they leave your space to
[53:36] set up their business and because they have honed.
[53:40] That skill set they can apply. They survive, they succeed.
[53:46] But you need to create that culture that encourages
[53:49] entrepreneurship. So that's how we come into
[53:52] that's how. We come to culture because you
[53:55] can talk a lot about entrepreneurship in, but if the
[53:59] culture is like we took up, we discussed a lot about
[54:04] entrepreneurs, but then we don't create an enabling environment
[54:07] for entrepreneurs to succeed. Yeah, yeah.
[54:10] So we are killing them at the infants stage, at an innocent
[54:16] stage, Yeah. But if you have an enabling
[54:18] environment that drives innovation in the corporate
[54:22] space, rewarding success, celebrating success, being very
[54:29] tough on low performance, what you are doing is that you are
[54:35] developing entrepreneurs do hope your business succeed.
[54:39] And then once they leave, they also build the economy with the
[54:45] skill sets and alignment, culture and then talent.
[54:50] And you see that every business that's doing what they're
[54:54] scaling has that. That's why you have some
[54:58] multinationals that doted all these number of entrepreneurs
[55:04] have exited to start. Their own big.
[55:07] Start when you go back, there was a culture that enabled intra
[55:12] premiership OK and they learnt, they developed then.
[55:17] They moved out, moved out. So if so, how would you advise?
[55:21] I mean, there are a lot of entrepreneurs who are listening
[55:23] to us. What advice would you give them
[55:26] based on your experiences that you've gathered from all these
[55:28] companies as to how to create that enabling environment or
[55:33] what are some things means? Talk about rewarding success.
[55:37] I don't know, perhaps there's maybe a list we could just run
[55:40] through for anybody. Yes, one, I would say that the
[55:46] service products you are building or offering meets
[55:54] market meets, it's very important because we may attract
[55:59] top, you know, talent. They have to be convinced, yeah,
[56:01] that I'm joining a company that I believe is offering something.
[56:06] Yeah, sustainable. I wouldn't have joined the
[56:09] companies that I joined if I didn't believe that what they
[56:13] are offering is a game changer. You know, I wouldn't have joined
[56:16] Young Good Delivery if I didn't believe that there was some huge
[56:22] success. That requires efforts, but
[56:24] there's some, you know, huge. Potential.
[56:26] Yeah, huge potential for success that that is at play.
[56:30] At the time there was no tech backed delivery platform at
[56:37] scale. Yeah, there was just local deli
[56:40] one. And.
[56:41] Even for the food aggregators, their concern was not on the
[56:45] last mile logistics. It was just regular food
[56:48] delivery within a certain radius.
[56:50] Yeah, but the meat is worse and last mile logistics as we speak,
[57:01] a good chunk share of the deliveries that Yango does is
[57:07] from restaurants. So we are even playing within
[57:11] the delivery space even though we don't list the restaurants on
[57:14] our app, they use the partner couriers that we have on the
[57:18] platform to deliver because they're not limited by radios.
[57:22] Food delivery apps will limit the reach of these restaurants,
[57:26] yeah, in certain, but we don't limit another.
[57:28] So, yeah, so their products has to be backed by market research
[57:33] and need. OK.
[57:34] Yeah, I'm saying this to build up to how to attract top, you
[57:40] know, talent and all that. And we have to be ready to also
[57:51] develop the talent that we attract.
[57:54] So yes, your product meets, you know, yes, and the tech is there
[58:01] to bucket. Then you engage the talent.
[58:06] And if I say top talent, I'm not saying where has some executive
[58:11] out there. It could be somebody who's just
[58:14] been working for a year or two, but there's great potential.
[58:19] They are exhibiting the sense of ownership during your
[58:22] engagement. You know, with them, they are
[58:23] clear examples of how they've done this with and all that.
[58:26] That's top talent. Bring them in, you develop them.
[58:29] You create that environment for them to succeed.
[58:33] The problem I find is that a lot of entrepreneurs just want to
[58:39] replicate products and services. I'll tell you a company that I
[58:44] worked for and I'm not name, but this is part of the the strategy
[58:48] that they had is I will not enter any market that we are not
[58:52] sure of a clear path to number one.
[58:55] Wow. Yeah, that's a mindset.
[58:57] It's a mindset. We'll do the research to know
[58:59] that if we spend this ABCD, if we are at best well, we'll be
[59:05] we'll be a solid to. Serious.
[59:09] We'll be a solid to. They need to be number.
[59:13] One, they need to within of course, time with a path to
[59:16] profitability and a path to market leadership.
[59:20] Wow, that's true. OK, yeah, two key things.
[59:24] So if the competition is rife, if the competition is stiff,
[59:32] don't go. And there are some companies we
[59:34] will exit. So they may be the first to
[59:37] market. They are not #1 they are closed
[59:40] number there and then new much fun, better funded businesses
[59:46] are. I realize that it's become too
[59:47] competitive. We have been lost at the exit.
[59:49] OK. And then they focus their
[59:51] energies on where they can solidify their base.
[59:55] But that's not what I see in most entrepreneurs.
[59:57] Oh, there's a delivery app called Yango that's doing so
[1:00:01] well and we've seen their. So now we have a proliferation
[1:00:06] of a lot of delivery. A lot of them.
[1:00:08] Some call me try to pick and I tell them that bro yeah I know
[1:00:15] you are doing I know you have very but I but I would give you
[1:00:19] this advice. You will burn cash.
[1:00:23] You don't have the tech to back. The protections, yeah, OK.
[1:00:28] You can't scale with this tech and it's expensive to build
[1:00:32] tech. Yeah.
[1:00:33] To build the platform that will help you scale you bank cash in
[1:00:37] order rather pivot or. Find a niche market.
[1:00:43] Niche market or find an area where the competition is not as
[1:00:46] stiff and also we have a lot of the lot of one man and then
[1:00:51] after a while the food, food delivery.
[1:00:54] If I'm to advise anybody now, I would say that this probably is
[1:00:57] not the best time to also, but we are seeing a lot of other
[1:01:01] entrepreneurs are launching food delivery asset.
[1:01:03] The margins are so thin, so thin and the commissions that you
[1:01:09] earn from these restaurants are so thin.
[1:01:11] Yeah, you can't sign these chains.
[1:01:13] Yeah, because the chains are logged in exclusivities with the
[1:01:16] big delivery apps. Yeah, they bring the volumes and
[1:01:20] all that. So, so you are going to just
[1:01:21] have regular small restaurants that will not entice demand.
[1:01:27] OK, So what are you doing? Yeah, you know, so yeah.
[1:01:31] So your products market fit. Yeah, very important.
[1:01:36] The talent to help you skill, very important or for the tech
[1:01:40] and the platform, very important.
[1:01:42] The culture, that's another issue.
[1:01:44] Most local companies lack the culture don't promote an
[1:01:51] enabling environment for employees of a certain caliber
[1:01:56] to thrive find intense politics in most local business
[1:02:02] everybody's trying to please one person, the owner or whatever
[1:02:07] What you do is that hey, then you are not running a
[1:02:10] meritocracy. I work hard, but because I not
[1:02:18] subservient to your interest or because I'm not in your clique
[1:02:23] of favorites, yeah, then my hard work is not notice.
[1:02:29] Now, let me throw this in here and I'm sure you are going to
[1:02:34] ask, but let me let me say this that even the corporate space to
[1:02:38] succeed is, is, is is not that easy.
[1:02:44] There are from my experience, there are three types of
[1:02:48] employees, OK, we have the talkers, we have the doers, OK.
[1:02:54] And then we have the wise ones. I've not I've not heard of this
[1:02:57] category before. The talkers OK the.
[1:03:00] Doers and then the wise ones. The wise ones.
[1:03:03] For a long time I was in the doer category.
[1:03:07] OK. Until again, counsel from a very
[1:03:12] important person moved me to. The wise ones.
[1:03:17] So talkers, they talk a lot, little results, no action.
[1:03:23] They are full of wet salad. They can conjure words to
[1:03:29] explain why something is not being done, why something is not
[1:03:34] going well and all that. And if you don't see through the
[1:03:38] lines, you'll be swayed, OK. Your business will feel will not
[1:03:41] thrive because the talkers are running the show.
[1:03:45] Yeah, the doers very focused on work.
[1:03:53] They work hard. But after a while, especially in
[1:03:56] big, big, you know, the big corporations, institutions and
[1:04:02] all that, performance doesn't always get you far, doesn't
[1:04:09] always get you promoted. Really, visibility is what to
[1:04:14] rather get you is important when you explain visibility.
[1:04:19] Visibility is ensuring in a good way, legal way for the right
[1:04:29] people. To know your name, OK To know
[1:04:32] your work OK, So that in a room full of opportunities when you
[1:04:38] are not there. Your name will come up so this
[1:04:41] OK. So that's why you mean by in
[1:04:42] large corporations? Large corporation, I think in
[1:04:45] small, you know, corporation, you can be working hard, but
[1:04:48] somebody, a talker may be taking or shine, ah.
[1:04:51] It's true because he's more visible.
[1:04:53] More visible with the vocal, more vocal.
[1:04:55] Your work. We can't just come here at your
[1:04:58] desk, you pick your bag, you are not building any relationships
[1:05:01] are not visible. That's what takes me to wise
[1:05:04] ones. OK, There are those who blend
[1:05:07] doing and then visibility. Wow.
[1:05:10] OK, within the company, within the institution, even out there
[1:05:17] and it takes me to LinkedIn. Yes.
[1:05:19] So we're going to talk our linkage.
[1:05:21] No, but if you have any. No, no, I mean, let's, no, I
[1:05:24] think we're having a good flow here.
[1:05:25] So let's just go into LinkedIn. You're like I said, visibility
[1:05:30] and then doing the work. So how does LinkedIn tie into
[1:05:33] all this? Good.
[1:05:34] Quite recently, I've been getting calls from colleagues
[1:05:37] that here can you guide us in building our presence on
[1:05:42] LinkedIn brand presence because you also have branded person on
[1:05:45] LinkedIn, Yeah, and all that. And I say, yeah, sure, why not.
[1:05:50] And the number one thing that comes out in our conversations
[1:05:54] is they are shy. They are shy to share.
[1:05:58] Stories, stories. I used to also be like that,
[1:06:01] that you said. I told the Dua they are shy to
[1:06:03] share their highlights. To be visible.
[1:06:06] And I'm like, then why are you on LinkedIn?
[1:06:07] Then leave. Because you're consuming news.
[1:06:11] The news of others. Yeah.
[1:06:14] Instead of putting out your own, yeah.
[1:06:16] Spent, in fact, what I've come to realize is that those who
[1:06:19] don't share on LinkedIn actually spend a lot more time on
[1:06:22] LinkedIn than those who share same principle of TV.
[1:06:27] You seen the movie stars and others, they actively No, no,
[1:06:31] no. They produce the content and
[1:06:33] then we consume. Sound interview.
[1:06:34] Watch their own. You don't.
[1:06:35] Even watch Yeah, news, Those who generate news, you think they
[1:06:38] watch? News.
[1:06:39] I doubt that. The same way social media, those
[1:06:42] who generate the content. So same for me.
[1:06:44] I go, I post, then I'm I'm off. Then you get a lot of the, the
[1:06:49] regular notifications and I go and check, OK, this place has
[1:06:53] sent Adm and I move on to my then I come back and I share
[1:06:56] something after some days, some weeks.
[1:06:59] So building your present brand presence on LinkedIn is very
[1:07:02] important because you are catching a lot of eyeballs from
[1:07:06] recruiters, from businesses, from colleagues, from what not.
[1:07:10] Why you on LinkedIn? What's the purpose of LinkedIn?
[1:07:13] Yeah, to promote your brand, to engage, to network.
[1:07:17] Actually, we've been able to close some businesses, some
[1:07:22] business relationships. Through LinkedIn.
[1:07:25] Wow. Yeah, they reached out a number,
[1:07:28] a number of businesses, a number of, you know, good working
[1:07:31] relationships are here. We've seen what you guys are
[1:07:34] doing at Yango delivery because we saw this post that you
[1:07:36] shared. We saw this and all that we want
[1:07:38] to engage on this level of partnership.
[1:07:41] Are you available? Can we discuss Sometimes the the
[1:07:44] global MD of a company will reach out that they are let my
[1:07:47] local MD. Engage you on that truly
[1:07:51] exactly. This is really powerful.
[1:07:55] Yeah. So, so that's ties in to the
[1:07:57] wise ones. Talkers do us wise ones.
[1:08:01] There are a lot of talkers, very few doers.
[1:08:04] I would say if given the chance be a doer, much better than be a
[1:08:08] talker because you see they are always found out.
[1:08:12] Or eventually it may, it may appear as do you are enjoying
[1:08:17] some, you know some form of success with the talking, but
[1:08:23] eventually time is a good revealer, as they say,
[1:08:27] posterity, hotel time. So eventually you have found a
[1:08:31] doer. If you even don't get that
[1:08:35] immediate joy or promotion eventually comes.
[1:08:39] But you see, it takes time. Yeah, it takes time.
[1:08:42] Yeah, but it will come. But because it takes time, you
[1:08:46] may have lost other important opportunities.
[1:08:49] So eventually results, yes, results would always speak.
[1:08:53] The Bible says in Proverbs. Yeah, 14 that work brings
[1:08:59] profits in Proverbs 14 again, the empty stable stays clean.
[1:09:05] Yeah, but there's no income from an empty stable.
[1:09:09] So hard work brings money brings wealth.
[1:09:12] Work also brings profits. But the wise ones.
[1:09:15] Now with this you determine your skill of growth.
[1:09:19] You determine how fast you grow because you are a doer, and then
[1:09:22] you are visible to the important people.
[1:09:24] This is lovely. This is a this is actually a
[1:09:27] really good gem and I'm sure would a lot of people listening
[1:09:31] now would really I appreciate it.
[1:09:33] But let me add this. Yeah.
[1:09:37] You should also be very careful that you don't sway too much
[1:09:43] into reversibility, because then what happens is that there may
[1:09:51] be some tendency for hubris. OK.
[1:09:55] Pride. Pride.
[1:09:56] Yeah. Arrogance.
[1:09:58] Yeah. Your cockiness.
[1:09:59] You may even become now more of a talker because you would
[1:10:03] assume that the visibility that now you.
[1:10:05] Yeah. So there has to be a fine
[1:10:07] balance. And that's why it's important to
[1:10:09] always know that you are not the sole factor in any success.
[1:10:14] OK? It's always a we simple.
[1:10:17] Setting yes, beautiful. I I think that we've gone
[1:10:23] through so far your experience at the various companies you've
[1:10:27] been and you've touched on the corporate house seals can even
[1:10:33] use talent and culture to be able to create a certain kind of
[1:10:39] business. Now want to move out to talk a
[1:10:42] little bit about you personally concerning spirituality.
[1:10:47] It's a question that you usually ask some of our guests.
[1:10:50] That was your take on spirituality and business.
[1:10:55] What do you have to say? Maybe this probably is the most
[1:10:59] important part of this whole engagement.
[1:11:02] Yes, I always tell people that life is spiritual.
[1:11:11] My life has been a life of favour, has been a life of
[1:11:14] favour. And the Bible, you know, and I
[1:11:17] keep referencing the Bible because for me that is life's
[1:11:22] manual. Even God, when he became man
[1:11:27] needed fever. Yeah, in Luke 2 says that he
[1:11:32] increasing wisdom and such and in favor with God and man two
[1:11:37] ways. Yeah, you need favor with God
[1:11:39] and man. If it's just favor with God, you
[1:11:41] will struggle on this side because I told you the blessing
[1:11:44] of God, it comes from God's to men to men.
[1:11:47] So you have favor with God. He was through that blessing
[1:11:50] your way, but it has to be a man who would activate that blessing
[1:11:53] for you. And therefore you need the favor
[1:11:56] of God and man and Jesus, God in person, because there's a
[1:11:59] principle of life needed to increase and you grow.
[1:12:04] Increase in favor. Yeah, because with every new
[1:12:06] level you need more favor. Yes.
[1:12:09] So increase in favor with God and man.
[1:12:11] So for me and favor, the Greek word for favor is the same as a
[1:12:16] Greek word for grace karis, and it means the divine influence of
[1:12:21] God in the heart, in the spirit, and it's reflection in life.
[1:12:27] So to be favoured means that there's an influence that
[1:12:32] affects you, that reflect in life beautiful.
[1:12:36] And that's why favour is always linked to hard work, to smart
[1:12:41] work, because that influence guides whatever you do.
[1:12:45] It changes your attitude, it changes your love for others, it
[1:12:48] changes your work ethic, your discipline.
[1:12:51] So when I see people who say they are Christians in the
[1:12:56] workplace and they exhibit like a physical work attitude and all
[1:13:02] that, I question them. It is a topic I think we need to
[1:13:06] discuss because there's there's frankly some notion that they'll
[1:13:11] be favored or be favored or be grace.
[1:13:14] And you hear people say that Christians don't really work
[1:13:16] hard. They always feel like, OK, we
[1:13:18] should pray, pray, pray. But personally for me, there has
[1:13:22] to be the balance, There has to be the balance between praying
[1:13:26] and then working hard. And just like how you're
[1:13:27] explaining it obviously from my person that once you are
[1:13:30] influenced as a person by after you sort fever with God, it
[1:13:34] affects your entire outlook on life, how you work as well.
[1:13:38] It does. Prayer is critical and I'll
[1:13:41] share this personally, I pray a lot everyday.
[1:13:47] I spent hours in prayer at least every day.
[1:13:49] I make sure that I don't leave the home with that minimum an
[1:13:54] hour and now of prayer, which means that sometimes I go more.
[1:13:58] So it means I wake up early. Yeah, sometimes at 2:00 AM.
[1:14:01] Hey. Yeah, 2:00 AM and then I push to
[1:14:04] the sometimes if I'm so tired from the previous day means I
[1:14:08] may not be able to wake up at 2:00 AM.
[1:14:10] Sometimes then I wake up a bit later and then I still pray and
[1:14:15] then I don't sleep again. I just go straight to prepare
[1:14:18] for work. You able to balance all of this
[1:14:20] you. Need to OK, you need to balance
[1:14:23] because actually if you understand the power of prayer,
[1:14:26] the effect it has on you, it actually lowers stress.
[1:14:32] Wow. Because in the face of any
[1:14:36] situation, you know that you've done what you need to do, so all
[1:14:41] things work together for good. Yeah.
[1:14:44] So, yes, if I go into a business meeting and it doesn't turn out
[1:14:49] well, I don't stress because I know that I prayed a lot.
[1:14:53] Yeah. I prayed in tongues a lot, Yeah.
[1:14:55] And the success that I was expecting didn't come.
[1:14:58] God knows best. Yeah.
[1:14:59] And always you look back and, oh, this was why.
[1:15:04] This was why. So prayer is important.
[1:15:07] But then that balance that you talk about, yeah.
[1:15:11] If indeed you are spiritual and God is influencing you with
[1:15:16] favor, he would. He would move you to do a lot of
[1:15:19] work, smart work and hard work. That's why Paul said in First
[1:15:23] Corinthians 15 that it is by the grace of God is by favor that I
[1:15:28] am what I am. But nonetheless.
[1:15:30] I little bit more abundantly than those who claim they are
[1:15:33] Christians is always favor. Grace goes to hard work.
[1:15:37] Jesus, he increased in favour, but he prayed more.
[1:15:41] He went from village to village to the point where one time he
[1:15:45] was so hungry, wet, so hard, so hungry.
[1:15:50] I had to meet the woman of the world.
[1:15:51] And then we have that passage. So for me, spirituality, I
[1:15:56] cannot do with that now. What we forget is that they are
[1:16:01] neutrals in this life. And then there are a good number
[1:16:06] of people on both sides of them. So there are the Christians that
[1:16:09] are neutrals, neutrals include because they don't double in
[1:16:12] any. And then there are those who
[1:16:13] also double in. And you come to realize very
[1:16:15] early on that if you ask very spiritual art in the corporate
[1:16:19] space, there are people who double in the other side.
[1:16:23] Oh, yeah. I had a story, very, very funny
[1:16:26] story once, that this building was being renovated, so it was
[1:16:31] an office space. But I think there was an issue
[1:16:34] with fire. So they had to come and fix the
[1:16:37] place up after fire, you know, after it was gutted, you know,
[1:16:44] by fire. So they had to take away the
[1:16:46] carpets. Then when they lifted the carpet
[1:16:50] of one floor, they found charms. In an office space.
[1:16:55] Office charms and people and this is sealed, not this
[1:17:00] regular. This is, you know, a tough
[1:17:01] couple that is so they come so they come late evening, dawn
[1:17:07] pull. It off and then put it under.
[1:17:09] I don't know how true, but from my experience as being a
[1:17:13] spiritual person, I won't doubt that story.
[1:17:16] So, yeah. So there are people who dub and
[1:17:17] you, you want to be neutral. You are going into a business
[1:17:22] meeting, you are vying for the same rule, same position with
[1:17:26] somebody who is being backed by a whole.
[1:17:32] A host of things. A host of things that.
[1:17:33] You say? No.
[1:17:35] Yeah. You would you would you would
[1:17:38] not enjoy that promotion that God may have destined you for?
[1:17:41] You not enjoy that rule? You not enjoy that?
[1:17:43] And I told you life, life is a rat race.
[1:17:46] So whoever needs an edge needs to tap into something.
[1:17:51] For me, it's always better and wise have to tap into God,
[1:17:55] because God is a source of all promotion, he says.
[1:17:58] That promotion doesn't come from the East.
[1:18:01] From the West. West or the South, but it comes
[1:18:04] from God who sets that one and then puts another other
[1:18:10] beautiful. Yeah.
[1:18:12] So, yeah, I'm deeply, you know, spiritual.
[1:18:15] And I think that even for every business owner, you need, you
[1:18:18] know, to be spiritual. Yeah.
[1:18:20] Mental health, and I hear a lot about it, yeah.
[1:18:24] Depression, yeah, amongst business owners, entrepreneurs
[1:18:29] and all that. I think one tool to help that
[1:18:33] is. Spirituality.
[1:18:34] Spirituality and spirituality here is a deep connection to.
[1:18:38] God, yeah. And also believing what the
[1:18:42] Bible says. I have a habit that I do when I
[1:18:44] sit in my car in immediately I turn on the engine.
[1:18:49] The book of Proverbs explain, explain wow audio Bible in
[1:18:56] understandable English even though it sounds nice.
[1:18:59] Yeah, understandable. The living Bible or new living
[1:19:02] NIV, please then Nuggets. OK that you pick up book of
[1:19:08] Proverbs. Yeah yeah.
[1:19:10] I have three favorite universes from the linked to the corporate
[1:19:14] space. Yeah.
[1:19:16] And just from the book of Proverbs and it's it's it's
[1:19:19] really guided me in so many, you know, situations.
[1:19:22] Yeah. OK.
[1:19:23] Wow, beautiful. So I mean, we've had a very
[1:19:26] wonderful and interesting discussion.
[1:19:29] And I just have one final question which I want to ask,
[1:19:33] which is that if you could leave our audience with one principle
[1:19:38] to live by, what principle would that be?
[1:19:59] It would be from the Bible 3 scriptures from the book of
[1:20:04] Proverbs. OK Proverbs 12 Work hard and
[1:20:14] become a leader. Be lazy and never succeed.
[1:20:19] This is from the Living Bible and then also from Proverbs.
[1:20:26] Proverbs 14 An empty stable stays clean, but there's no
[1:20:36] income from an empty stable, meaning that you can decide not
[1:20:43] to put in the efforts and the hard work.
[1:20:46] You avoid all the mess you won't feel, you won't face any level
[1:20:56] of challenge, any discomfort, any mess, any inconvenience.
[1:21:01] But the difference between you and the person putting in the
[1:21:03] hard work and effort is that, yes, they will go through the
[1:21:06] mess, which is income, generate income.
[1:21:09] Yeah. And then the last bit also is
[1:21:13] from Proverbs, Proverbs 14 also, you say that work brings profit.
[1:21:21] So it's all work brings profit. And that is what I would share
[1:21:27] with your audience because I know you're, you know, the type
[1:21:32] of people who listen are largely entrepreneurs and then working
[1:21:35] class and corporate people and all that.
[1:21:37] So I would share this if maybe I was sharing with another, you
[1:21:40] know, group. But this for me is a guiding,
[1:21:45] you know, principle. Yeah, principle that I you live
[1:21:48] all. Right, beautiful.
[1:21:50] All right, Emmanuel, thank you so, so much for this
[1:21:53] conversation. I've been really impacted by the
[1:21:56] conversation and I've learnt a lot.
[1:21:58] So Accra, Ghana, the world. Dua, hi.
[1:22:06] If you're watching this, it means that you made it to the
[1:22:08] end of this episode, and that probably also means that you
[1:22:12] enjoyed this episode as well. So if you did, I just want you
[1:22:15] to do one more thing for me, which is a like this episode and
[1:22:19] subscribe. This helps us to put out more
[1:22:22] interesting content for you to listen to and goes a long way to
[1:22:25] encourage us, the team Apesua, to keep doing what we do.
[1:22:29] So until then, see you next time.

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