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Knowing, Understanding Your Customers, Key to Building Viable Local Startups- Georgina Campbell-Flatter
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has been ranked as the top University in the world for the third year running.
This can be attributed to a number of factors. Areas where the institution is obviously very strong are in the areas of technology, innovation and entrepreneurship.
A team of MIT officials recently arrived in Nigeria, for Open Mic Africa. They also visited a number of Startups they found interesting.
A member of that delegation was Georgina Campbell-Flatter, Executive Director, Legatum Centre For Development and Entrepreneurship at MIT, USA, with whom I had a very interesting discussion on her thoughts on the Nigerian Startups ecosystem and how to build viable ones.
On what her experience has been, so far, in Lagos, Georgina stated that it has been awesome and great. “The energy in the city is amazing. The people are great. I’m having a beautiful time and our hosts are incredible”, she stated.
Shedding light on some of the Startups that her team had visited, Georgina mentioned some Startups, but was, particularly, excited about Wecyclers, run by Bilkis, whose Startup is all about offering an innovative model for recycling waste, thus, helping to clean up the city of Lagos. She stated that waste are collected, processed and sold for a profit.
Georgina also spoke glowingly about Max , a delivery service that makes it easier for Lagosians to send and receive packages in under 3 hours, because of the adoption of the innovation of the Motorcycle delivery model, thus, beating the usual Lagos traffic.
Georgina stated that, this is instructive, as Max has been able to create as much as 4,500 jobs that did not exist five years ago in the city.
On how local Startups can benefit from the MIT ecosystem, Georgina stated that it is a matter of the mindset.
“When we support entrepreneurs, we encourage them to think about two things. It’s the mindset in spirit and its’ scale.”
She stated that spirit is natural, as there are people who are excited and eager to provide value to their ecosystem.
She stated, however, that matching them with the needed skills to build and scale their business is what MIT does to help the Startups. Georgina stated that there is a Professor at MIT, who has written a book, with a disciplined approach on 24 steps to working through your business.
“The key point behind everything that he teaches and everything that we teach at MIT is that, you have to understand your customer. You have to know who you are serving”, she pointed out.
Georgina stated that, embedded in the MIT approach to teaching, is the idea of mind and hand, and she thinks that Nigerian Universities too can take queue from there.
“Everything we teach, has a theory component and also a practical component”, she reiterated. She emphasized that it is not all about standing out there with some power point, talking out to entrepreneurs, because, they want to be involved. They want to engage. They want to GSD, which means ‘Get Stuff Done’. You can’t really teach that”, she pointed out.
She stated that the approach is to teach in Class a little bit and, then, carry out some project work by getting the students out to the field.
“One of the assignments we have, is you have a decent technology idea, go and speak to 50 potential users of that technology and come back and tell us what they thought of it”, she stated. She went on to say that, students also have to develop other business skills, such as, how to pitch, how to story-tell, marketing, finance, which leads to building a good business.
Georgina is of the opinion tgat, support structures are key to the growth of an entrepreneur. “You really do see results when students come into our program, they might have a great idea, but not a good sense how to approach that customer, how ti build up that product to meet the needs of the customer and by walking them through simple steps”, she reiterated.
On how important the fusion of technology and entrepreneurship is, to the growth of the ecosystem, Georgina stated that technology alone is not helpful, but when you match technology with coomercialisation, (entrepreneurship), one can really see the impact that brings to the society.
Georgina concluded by saying that she is eager to have as many entrepreneurs as possible from Lagos, to come over to MIT for training.
Telecommunications services provider, Globacom, has admonished Nigerian workers to reflect on more ways of contributing further to the growth of the country.
In a solidarity message on the occasion of the 2024 International Workers’ Day, the company noted that Nigerian workers were resilient in spite of the challenges they encounter in the course of discharging their duties.
The telecommunications giant further noted that the story of Nigeria cannot be adequately chronicled without acknowledging the immense contributions of workers, both in the public and private sectors.
The day is observed on May 1 yearly in recognition of the contributions of workers all over the world and to advance fairer and more sustainable future by advocating for workers’ rights.
“We salute Nigerian workers on this day and commend them for the hard work, commitment, resourcefulness and industry which are essential for the growth of the economy of any nation,” Globacom said.
CWG Plc has announced a significant milestone in its commitment to delivering value to shareholders. Following a thorough review of the company’s financial performance and outlook, the Board of Directors has approved a substantial increase of 400per cent in dividend payout to shareholders.
This decision reflects CWG’s confidence in its financial stability, growth trajectory, and ability to generate sustainable returns. By enhancing the dividend payout, CWG aims to reward shareholders for their continued trust and support while reaffirming its commitment to creating long-term value.
Mr. Philip Obioha, Chairman of the Board of Directors at CWG Plc, said, “The decision to approve a 400% increase in dividend payout underscores our confidence in CWG’s performance and outlook. We are dedicated to delivering value to our shareholders and believe that this significant dividend increase is a testament to our commitment to shareholder value creation.”
This increase in dividend payout aligns with CWG’s strategic objectives to prioritize shareholder interests and maintain strong financial discipline. The Board remains committed to prudent financial management and sustainable growth, ensuring that CWG continues to be a reliable investment for shareholders.
As CWG continues to execute its growth strategy and expand its presence in the market, the Board anticipates that the increased dividend payout will further strengthen investor confidence and support CWG’s vision for the future.
CommunicationsWeek Media Limited, a certified global ICT company with over two million online subscribers, is delighted and proud to announce Prof. Yakub Aliyu, as the keynote speaker at Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Distinguished Lecture series 2024.
Aliyu, will be speaking on the theme: Artificial Intelligence (AI): The Good, The Complex and The Anticipated”, this leans heavily on the fact that AI changing our lives– we just need to know where to look today.
This year’s rebranded Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Distinguished Lecture/Awards Series is slated for Saturday, May 25, 2024 at the Four Points by Sheraton, Lagos.
The event is the most prestigious annual event that brings together captains of industry in both technology and financial worlds.
According to Ken Nwogbo, CEO, Communication Week Media Ltd, organisers of the ABoICT Distinguished Lecture/Awards Series, “the choice of Prof. Yakub Aliyu is deliberate because of his exceptional career in Artificial Intelligence (AI)”.
He added that, AI is considered to have the potential to instigate a fourth industrial revolution,1 and is dramatically changing people’s patterns of interaction and economic activities.
“The traditional factors of production and physical capital and labour may no longer promote substantial economic growth. It is generally believed that AI will be one of the most important factors determining future economic growth,” he said.
A professor of microelectronics and a scholar-practitioner in artificial intelligence and deep machine learning for industrial applications and high-speed application processors. His research interests include Multimodal AI models for high-efficiency industrial robot applications and Human AI interactions.
He also has adjunct academic professorships at five African, USA, and UK universities. Holds a BS in Applied Physics Electronics from Karlsruhe and A Bello Universities in Germany and Nigeria, an MBA in International Business Management from the University of London, an MSEE (Master of Engineering, Electronics), and a Ph.D. in Electronics Engineering from the University of Wales.
Prof. Aliyu is the global quality director for Bourns Inc., Riverside, California, USA, an electronics system, and components manufacturer. I oversee quality functions in 21 factories worldwide.
He has also held quality and operational management leadership positions at National Semiconductors, Bell Labs-Lucent Technology, Texas Instrument, Global Foundries, and Roper Technologies USA.
Authored and coauthored over 30 Advanced Technology United States-issued patents in High-Speed Application Processors and Contributed to over 40 international impact Journals, chapters, and conferences; FASI, SMIEEE USA, MIEE UK, M. Inst pf Physics Chartered Phys and C Eng UK.
Past lecturers included Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, then executive vice chairman, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC); Engr. Yomi Bolarinwa, former Director-General of National Broadcasting Commission (NBC); Dr. Jean Luc Fort, CEO at OR System France and a specialist in Counterparty Risk; and Professor Chris Nwagboso, Chairman, Knowledge Factory International, United Kingdom.
Others are: Uche Orji, managing director/chief executive officer, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA); Biodu Omoniyi, Managing Director/CEO, VDT Communications; Ayotunde Coker, Managing Director, Rack Centre Limited; Peter Adedayo Arogundade, managing director and chief executive officer, Sidmach Technologies Nigeria Limited; Dr. Adewale Obadare, chief visionary officer, Digital Encode and John Obaro, CEO and founder of Systemspecs; Prof. Isa Pantanmi, minister of Communications and Digital Economy; Dr. Seyi Akindeind, co-founder, Digital Encode; Dr Krishnan Ranganath, Regional Director, Africa Data Centres.
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