Another view on HSBC and UBS: why they left Nigeria!

 

People have been screaming about the exit of HSBC and UBS as sign of bad economics. That's a huge lie.
I will try to explain it in a very simple way.
HSBC and UBS were never set up for regular banking.
When I say regular banking I mean retail banking.
They never ran salary accounts; they were never set up to afford loans to customers etc.
Their sole purpose was to help customers who can afford their services an easy way to transfer funds overseas.
Many do not know that since the inception of BVN which has made it easier for financial regulatory bodies to monitor outflow & inflow on every account, HSBC has been plotting their exit.
If anyone can make their books public, you would find out they had more outflow than inflow.
BVN was created February 2014, it was only enforced by this government as from 2015.
What did that do?
Every account owner was
forced to get a BVN code on their account (s).
So, if law enforcement and financial regulatory bodies accuse you of fraud, with your BVN
they can tell.... which account(s) you have funds stashed.
Any account without a BVN can no longer be run. Movement of (illicit) huge sums, especially to overseas became a massive problem.
So, imagine a bank whose main source of revenue is moving illicit funds overseas, suddenly can stay for months on end and the only customers you get are those who maybe want
pay school fees overseas or medicals, won't you close shop?
No more wires of $200,000 and above to Dubai to buy that exotic penthouse or carrying on with shopping sprees.
No more bank instruments to private jet companies... overseas.
The importation of big boy toys; yachts, helicopters have reduced drastically.
Now, once you try to initiate a huge wire transfer, CBN red flags that account and next thing you know compliance is calling the account officer to produce KYC.
Within minutes SFU is doing a background check, thunder fire you if you are a civil servant or close to government.
You would have to explain what the funds are for/how they were acquired and this drastically hit such banks like HSBC and UBS!
Banks like Standard Chartered, Stanbic IBTC, Citibank are able to stay afloat because even though they use the same model as HSBC, they are also solid in retail banking.
Any bank that opens shop under this current government with the sole aim of moving funds overseas will surely fail!
Look closely at those who are leading groups against PMB they are private jet, helicopter, yacht, schooners owners.
Many own those beautiful houses we see in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Oman, Muscat, Seychelles, London, USA.
Go to our airports especially Lagos and Abuja, all those beautiful girls who once used to sell Dubai real estate deals are out of jobs.
The few you see have stopped hounding travelers like before.
Once upon a time you would see them hanging around airports and 5 star hotels, it made me wonder why Nigerians were seriously marketing UAE real state.
How do you think the transactions were being made? Through banks like HSBC and UBS (many of our local banks also were complicit)!
Now every dollar that passes through CBN to a foreign bank must have complete paperwork! Bankers are now very careful, no one wants to be invited by SFU (special fraud
unit) or EFCC to produce a customer.
Who are those crying about their exit?
The Fayoses, Atikus, Ben Bruces and their minions etc.
Look at the youth coming online to defend them; many were being flown by helicopter to private resorts all over the country.
That tap has dried up and that’s the reason you see many of them online pouring vituperation on PMB.
About 4 years ago, I told a friend that if PMB wins election few banks would be in trouble, Buhari won and it didn't take long it started
happening.
Many of the bank heads used depositors monies to sponsor politicians/campaigns, when investigations started many tried to not only hide their shady deals but shield customers under investigation.
Why won't these people hate PMB?
Why won't they blame their woes on PMB?
When I say many of these banks aren't setup for the common man, people wonder at what I mean.
A very good example; write a lovely proposal for a good business deal and take to the banks and 90% of the time you wont get funding but let APC and PDP finish primaries and produce governorship candidates.
Both candidates can work into same bank and get as much as N500m each for campaigns. Banks didn't care then.
What's the worst that could happen? Worst case scenario, one candidate would lose. Whoever wins would bring enough investments that would cover the N1bn both took, that was conventional banking until PMB came onboard.
If say Odudu Bank sponsors Gochas and he wins he would make sure almost all state accounts go to Odudu Bank.
Some governors went as far as making their account officers commissioners as compensation (I don’t want to call names).
Some bank relationship managers would go on leave close to election period to join the clients on the campaign trail, once the client wins they resign their appointments with the bank and become political appointees.
Why would a bank worker do that if the bank hasn't invested heavily on that politician?
Suddenly PMB appears with this yeye BVN, TSA! Banks now see SFU officers like regular staff as they are monitoring everything. @officialEFCC under magu has become a pain in the ass because money can't just disappear.
Who do they blame? PMB!
The instant BVN came into effect; do you know how many accounts were lying dormant because of BVN? With huge sums in them! Many folks especially people being investigated wouldn't want to come forward to claim them; oga Magu and gang were waiting.
When many of these politicians or billionaires tell you the economy isn't doing so well, look closely at the person because many of them
own some of these 5 star hotels.
Some rooms go as much N300, 000 à night.
Once upon time some folks would pay for as much as one year for a room/suite upfront.
Many of those militants/ folks involved in oil bunkering operate this way.
Mondays through Fridays they are in the creeks sabotaging oil installations, Friday they get into their convoys to Port Harcourt and then jet off to Abuja and Lagos where they eventually check into these hotels.
You enter a place like Transcorp weekends you see them at the lobby, poolside and by Monday morning, banks are wiring funds to these hotels to cover expenses.
Today, the oil bunkering isn’t as lucrative as it once was.
First, price of crude has dropped so selling bunkered oil isn't really worth it as it used to be.
Secondly many countries are cutting down on the purchase of crude and third our military is hitting them harder than before so who is to blame?
They tell you banks are falling because of PMB; lie! Banks are falling because banks were never made for the common man.
I mean naija banks! TSA has collapsed most government accounts into central accounts.
So, we no longer have many government accounts littered all over our banks, many of such accounts were set up just to steal and launder government monies.
Are these tweets saying Nigeria has suddenly become fine for the common man? Hell No!
Nigeria for some years now has never favored us the ordinary folks but this is the first time we are seeing the crooked elite joining us to complain!
The fact they are complaining means something is being done to halt their crooked ways. Whatever it is, Baba Please Continue!
And as for the common man, we didn’t get here in four years! It took years of plundering, bad/no planning to get here. It will take a while to get us out.

Signed
Concerned citizen, who wouldn’t want to get fired by Monday morning for
saying what needs to be said.

My eyes, my eyes! A writers phobia for glasses conquered

Squinting guys, my eyes, my eyes. Small lettering doesn't agree with me anymore. I carry a Techno phone that has a light. Yes, its an android, I must let on before you crucify me for staying analogue in this digital mass.

I've been told to get glasses, but the trouble is I do not want to end up like the tortoise in the story with bifocals perched on the end of his nose. I suppose eventually I might get a pair for reading and writing, but this is one sign we don't like to give into. Age. What did the bible say about one of the patriarchs? His eyes grew so dim that he could not tell Jacob from Esau. I find that pretty difficult to believe you know. Even if he was as blind as a bat, he would surely be able to tell his children apart. Perhaps he was faking it.

I am not faking it. I went to the drug store to get some medicine and the lady pharmacist raised an alarm when I brought out my flash light to make sure I have the right drugs. Her shop wasn't well lit and the lettering on the slip was quite small. Am I making excuses? At a certain age we are in denial. We like to think and believe all the parts of our body will function the way they used to. For one who writes and reads for a living, its an alarm when you can no longer see like you used to. You find yourself squinting at the lettering on the computer, in the newspaper, on the indication leaflet of a drug, at your digital bible(well that can be adjusted) and critical at the business related text messages you receive on your phone.

I have made a commitment to see the ophthalmologist and the optician. Get it over with and make sure that the googles, bifocals or glasses I get are wire frames so I wont even know they are there.

I am interested in putting in one other thing before before I end this rant: Is it really true that glasses are corrective and that we can give them up after some time. Or is that just a line the opticians sell to us with the glasses we pay for?

So to give myself consolation forgiving in to this "visionary" transformation I made a list of celebs who wear glasses and look good: Jay Z, Taye Diggs, TI, Zoe Saldana, LeBron James, Aziz Ansari. Hmmm there are quite a few. That makes it feel better, I tell you.;

21 Biblical principles that would help fulfill your career ambition

21 Biblical principles that would help fulfill your career ambition

The Holy Bible is laden with principles that would help us get to where we would want to go. Many of us wish for a brighter future but we do not necessarily work towards it. We live in a society that is good at praying and very slow to act. This generation must be more forthright in its actions if we are going to fulfill the mandate that the Lord has put upon us by grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the blessings of Abraham that we claim to be ours all the time. By the grace of God I shared these 21 Principles with the Young Men’s Fellowship of the Folawiyo Bankole Memorial Methodist Church in Ikate Surulere. Here is a brief mention of some of the principles. I hope one day to put them into a book to be published for young people to be inspired to use the grace of God to work wonders in our society that is fast giving in to dismay and hopelessness.

1.   Attitude is the first principle. There are many attitudes expressed by the modern day individual. Most of them are determined by what happens around us, our prejudices and our association. A lot of people in our country have an attitude problem: come to work late, deal with the customer wrongly and do what they like instead of what they are supposed to do. If we could change our attitudes it would go a long way in affecting our work and relationships. Do you have the right attitude? Gen 18:14 Is anything too hard for God to do? This is what is known as the Can Do Attitude. 

2.   Mindset: What is our mindset on at the moment? Good or bad things, right or wrong things. Performance improvement or shortcuts to success? The mind is an incredible tool that God has given us. One powerful principles is whatever we conceive and belief in our minds we can achieve! Napoleon Hill said that. But I bet he got the principle from the Bible. As a man thinkest in his heart so is he……Proverbs 23:7. In Genesis 11 people gather together to build the tower of Babel. If God did not stop them I suppose they would have built it!

3.    Belief System: Everyone has a set of beliefs that are deeply rooted in the psyche of the individual. These beliefs guide us in our thinking and could either help us progress in life or be limited.  Four factors determine what we believe: evidence, authority, tradition, revelation and association. Anyone of these factors could be responsible for our beliefs. But the Christian also has his own beliefs which are supposed to remove any form of limiting beliefs we have. The central point in Christianity is the death and resurrection of Christ. Romans 8:11 If the same spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead should come upon us that same spirit that raised Jesus from the dead would quicken our mortal bodies… With God by his side the Christian believes that nothing should be impossible for him.

4.    Core values are also principles that serve as guidelines for the Christian in this wicked world: Integrity, accountability, diligence, perseverance and discipline. Five values that every Christian is expected to live by. They would also serve as principles that would stop us from going astray in this world of temptation.  James 1;12  “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him”.

5.   Dreams and Visions: No matter how old or young we are as Christians we are allowed to dream and also have visions about what is to come in terms of a greater future a time period of blessings and fruitfulness or promotion and achievement:

Joel 2;28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.

A vision is a picture of our desired future. Christians should belief and work towards a greater and brighter future, if we work with God we can achieve that future.

•      You dream of who you would like to “BE.”

•      You dream of what you would like to “HAVE.”

•      You dream of things you would like to “DO.”

•      You dream of places you would like to “GO.”

A desired picture of your future!

What are you doing about it?

6.   Words! Be careful what you talk about and think about. You just might get them. A thought spoken out is a creation. Positive affirmations work wonders: Tia Walker said:

“Affirmations are our mental vitamins, providing the supplementary positive thoughts we need to balance the barrage of negative events and thoughts we experience daily.” 

God is my refuge, strength and help in times of trouble. Psalm 46:1

God is my stronghold in times of trouble. Psalm 9:9

My hope is in the Lord. Psalm 40:7

7.   Skills : I put this quote on twitter and it went viral. Thousands of people viewed it. It was retweeted and affirmed:

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses and a range of skills that are used in everyday situations, but all too often people remain unaware of, or undervalue, their true abilities”.       

–Alex Ogundadegbe

Every human being is an embodiment of skills. Some of us are suppressing what we have. God has embodied in us the ability to do more than we expect we ever can. Thinking, speaking, creating tools with our hands, introducing new concepts that can solve problems. The skill set of the average human being is deeper than we think. But it remains redundant because with neither explore nor use it.

Exodus 35:30-35

Ecc 10:10

These skills encapsulate our gifts, talents and abilities. 

Promote customer loyalty and improve your business today!

Radical customer service and customer minded individuals often boast that they will surpass the expectations of their customers, this is good and encouraging but let us face facts here: Just how many customers can you really spend extra time and costs on to exceed their expectations? We might be able to do it with one or two, but if you intend to go over the top with every customer you meet, I dare say it will take a whale of time to do that and additional costs too. There are fond beliefs in customer service that there is no limit to the frequency that we should aspire to as professionals; now that is a good mind set for business. Some look at the progression from this perspective: Service is doing the minimal, care is taking it to the extra mile, delight is making the customer very happy, ecstasy is ensuring that the customer is extremely happy. If this is true, just how many of us take the majority of our customers to the level of ecstasy?  The honest truth is very few.
A survey I have conducted across numerous service industries from Maritime, through banking and financial organizations onto educational and health care delivery organizations shows that not many customer service people really have the time or can bear the costs to take the customer to the level of delight, not to talk of ecstasy! Well this is okay. Because the secret of good customer service which is applicable across every service and product providing organization in existence today is simply meet the demand of the customer and do it with the least amount of hassle within the minimal amount of time!
Another out come from my research tells me all customers really want is for us to get the job done. Do what you told them you will do and they are satisfied. Not many customers look for over the top service to attract their loyalty. What they really want is to have the service rendered to them with as little effort as possible. If you can make your service almost effortless on the part of the customer he is likely to come back to you for more.
The summary of all these analysis is customer satisfaction leads to loyalty and loyalty on the other hand should lead to profit. Loyalty means that the customer is willing to make an investment of time and resources to encourage a relationship with you and your brand. So how do we promote satisfaction? Here are five things we can put into our service capability that would help us improve satisfaction:

1. We ought to take care of down stream complaints and inquiries so as to reduce the instances of the customer coming back to us for further information. This means don't just solve the problem at hand, look beyond it, try to anticipate what could be next and deal with it.
2. We should train ourselves as customer service people to address the emotional demands of our customers. There are various categories of customers. Some of them want more control of the product you provide, some want you to listen to their opinions about the product, others simply want you to understand how they feel about certain aspects of the product. If we can be a little more empathetic with our customers it would go a long way in helping us understand them and on the long run we will satisfy them.
3. We should make sure that our customer service channels: online( social media, website, automated service) telephone call center, Physical contact center all solve the problems of the customer so they do not have to switch contact approach. If we make all our channels encourage First Contact Resolution processes then it will improve customer satisfaction.
4. We should use feed back from customers to improve the service. Our complaining customers can be our best critics and a viable source to spotting flaws that could be remedied in our service. Feedback helps us to improve.
5. We should make our service as effortless as possible. Effortless service on the part of the customer is really what brings them back. Their satisfaction is not necessarily promoted with over the top attention and service. Meeting the minimal at minimal effort is enough.

If satisfaction breeds loyalty, then your loyal customers would be the evangelists that would help you build your business. Getting new customers through the marketing mix and promotions is not always as easy and as

cost effective as we think. But if you have dozens of loyal evangelists they will promote your service at a cheaper rate and even literally bring the customers to you.

Putting your best foot forward

I just spoke to a young lady looking for a job and crafting a CV. I asked her, "so what is the exceptional talent you believe you have that you should push forward to your employee?" She was lost. So I asked her: What did you do in school? What skills do you have, what gifts can you use that could help that company fulfill its objectives?" Then it became clearer. Skills, gifts and abilities. We must find a way to push them forward for our organizations. Ability: the quality or state of being able; especially : physical, mental, or legal power to do something. Time and again in HR we are interviewing people with certificates for skills with no ability. What's to be done?

How much political capital do you have?

Being a good manager is not enough for you to run an organization or a department successfully. It is very important that you have what is known as political capital. Like money, political capital is a currency you spend, only this time its intangible and there fore is difficult o quantify and measure. Political capital comprises of two key components: relationship capability and reputation. The former has to do with your ability to have proper and rewarding work relations with everyone in your organization. It becomes more important when the productive process of your organization is taken into consideration. If you do not have proper work relations with the people in your organization they will do what they can to stifle your activity, reduce your progress and eventually damage your success!
Please note that we are not saying that everyone you work with has to like you! Far from it. Remember the out worn phrase: "you cant please everyone!"  But one thing you can do is earn their respect. Yes, you can earn everyone's respect if you know your job and you treat people right. You may not be able to treat everyone fairly in an overbearing organization where the company has a very strong hostile culture, but you can make an effort to do the right thing at least ninety per cent of the time.
When you are seen to do the right thing and you are treating people right as much as possible your account will be full in terms of political capital. Added to that is your reputation in the organization. What do people think about you. How do they see you? Perception is difficult to fake over a long period of time. You can pretend for some time but in periods of stress and extreme pressure your real person will manifest.
So pile up your political capital because a day of reckoning is coming when organizational or positional authority will not suffice to get things you urgently want. You will have to fall back on your capital, make a withdrawal and get the job done. That's why its so important.
During a change of guards at two public offices in Nigeria the responses of the officers to the CEO in each organization varied and was extremely different: In one organization, some of the staff protested audibly when they heard that their boss had been removed from his position. Reports say some of the members of staff actually broke down in tears and complained about their inability to get another boss like the one that was leaving. In another organization members of staff gloated and cheered, they couldn't wait for their boss who was a woman to leave the premises when it was announced. Can you spot the difference?    

What do we mean by accountability and transparency?

I recently had the opportunity to speak to some civil servants in Abuja about the concepts of accountability and transparency. Here are some highlights of our discussion some of which were culled from the public institutions geared with role of fighting corruption.

There are some tests we can use to determine whether a government is accountable to the public: 

(a) The Fiscal Prudence Test-the key question here is: Is Government losing money? Is there value for money in government expenditure? Can things be done in a cheaper way? Are estimates and budgets “overloaded” with private attachments and interests?

(b) Citizen’s Accountability Test- Are services being delivered to the people? Is the electorate satisfied with the state of public infrastructure and services?

(c) Public Integrity Test- How is the executive arm held responsible for charges of abuses of office?

(d) Public Morality Test- Is the business of government being run by people with a public conscience?

There is VERTICAL ACCOUNTABILITY-which is the accountability of government to the voting public through the ballot box. This is closely allied with the capacity of the electorate to remove a government that fail to account to them or deliver services. It   assumes the existence of a political culture where the individual’s vote counts. The other form of accountability is HORIZONTAL ACCOUNTABILITY-which the accountability of government institutions to anti-corruption and anti-graft agencies. It also includes the accountability of the public sector to statutory auditing agencies; oversight committees of the state assemblies and the National Assembly; human rights agencies and the media. 

Transparency is characterized by the following:

(a) A disclosure system.

(b) Access to information.

(c) Openness to public participation.

(d) Absence of undue secrecy.

(e) Readiness to face and accommodate legitimate scrutiny.

(f) Humility on the part of executive office holders through readiness to answer questions raised by citizens.

Understanding what good customer service is as against practicing it

Most people who sell products or services understand customer service, they just do not practice it.

Here are some tips I have shared at some of my seminars:

           Have a good greeting with a smile
•Ensure a visitor likes what he sees
•Offer a guarantee: we will try and satisfy you!
•Do a personal survey: What do people want, how can I give it to them best?
•Be conscious of information
•The power in “thank you” and “sorry”

The objectives of customer service include:

•To enhance company’s reputation

•To improve client satisfaction with company products or services

•To reduce revenue loss through loss of clients

•To reduce client replacement cost

•To reduce revenue loss through loss of opportunities

•To encourage repeat business

Some key phrases that help guide us in customer service:

•The Customer is King

•The Customer is Always Right 

Vision 2018

It reads like a political campaign theme. In a way it is a campaign but its all about you. You ought not to be distracted by the politicians and the economists this year and you should get on with your life. Don't let these politicians who are merely competing for power and scarce resources fool you into following them blindly. If you wish to follow a leader, watch him closely and make sure that the policies and ideas that he propounds profit the people more than his person. If you do your analysis properly and you discover that the policy favors him even more than those he is supposed to represent, then call yourself to order. You might be following the wrong person.

What is important this year is that you have your own vision., Call it vision 2018 if you like! Plan it and implement it according to how it suits you. Make sure that what you are doing is good and that it would benefit some other people as well as you. Vision 2018 should help improve you in more ways than one: Think about your business, your friendships and your community. What can you do to improve any or all of these?

Decide to make some progress this year, don't sit back and let it pass you buy like a fast car. Often times you could be going no where fast and all of a sudden you are in the middle of the year ant its no longer so new. Vision 2018 requires not just planning but a lot of action. You can start by writing something down. Documents open your eyes to things you might have overlooked like costs, people you might need to help you, material resources, skills and expertise etc.

Writing it down and planning your way forward is one thing, putting it into action is another. After you have spent time doodling with your plans ask yourself the all important question. What do I have to do to start? Once the answer comes to you, just do it! Don't hold back. Remember forward is the direction. Keep moving forward in your planning and the chances are you will get closer to your target as the time passes. Vision 2018 might have started with a picture in your mind and a document in your hand, if you are tenacious enough it could end up being a dream come true, right before your very eyes!

The power of the strategic plan

In today’s corporate world, whether you are in business, charity, ministry, sports, politics or even the academia it’s important for you to have an understanding of strategic planning. A plan is a document that should take you from where you are to where you want to be! A strategic plan looks into the future and tries to take eventualities and contingencies into consideration.

To develop a strategic plan, the organization will have to go through a number of stages which take the form of questions, as follows: 

•      Where are we now? - The analysis of the current situation.

•      Where do we want to be in the future? - Setting the objectives and the goals

•       How are we going to get there? – Creating the strategy( the details of the plan)

•      How will we know when we get there? - Monitoring and evaluation of outcomes.

Often we add a couple of other questions to the list to enable us have a more detailed picture:

            How long will it take us to get there? A time element should be involved for measurement

            What will we meet on the way? There are obstacles and hindrances that we have to overcome

             What will we need to get there? Tools comparative advantages, personnel          

Asking yourself these questions would keep you on your toes and enable a proper planning process.

Never keep the plan in your head thinking: “I have no need to write it down, because I know it back to front”. Writing it down does a lot of things for you:

1. It would enable you put the plan into a proper perspective

2. It would bring out some missing links or things you probably overlooked in the planning process

3. It would keep your plan realistic and keep your head out of the clouds so that you do not imagine too many things or take details for granted

4. It would enable you put a proper cost to the planning. You will be able to itemize the resources properly and account for what you want to spend and use.

5. A written plan would serve as guideline for you in case you end up swaying from your original intentions or you get the details mixed up.

One thing we ought to be able to do is find out if we are making progress. We should be able to ask ourselves how close we are to the goal we have set for ourselves. Mile stones in the shape of achievables or deliverables ought to be listed out to assure us how well we are doing. For instance,

if we say we want to be number one in our sector, there should be Key performance indicators that should show us how close we are to being number one.  The indicators could be numbers, market share, clientele profile or even the time of growth compared to other competitors in the sector.

Planning is invaluable, but strategic planning, anticipating most of the eventualities that could occur is the greatest form of planning that any manager should embark upon.

           

            

So you are talented, but is talent enough?

The modern Human Resources Manager is consistently on the lookout for talent to serve as a competitive advantage for his organization. On the recruitment and selection of a talent it bothers on the managers to ensure that the skills and gifts of the selected staff are used maximally to achieve the organizations goals and objectives: Thus the phrase: Talent Management.

Achieving an organization's goals and objectives should be more of a guarantee, not big talk! The knowledge skill and ability of the people concerned should breed confidence. The key question rings large in the minds of HRMs and line managers: Who can do the job?

Success versus Talent

Talent is not enough. Management analysts note that there is little correlation between man’s effectiveness, intelligence, talent, imagination and knowledge. The questions therefore arise: what does it take to succeed and where does talent fit? There are three perspectives:

1 Everyone has talent! People may have equal value but not necessarily equal giftedness. Some People have multiple talents. Most people have fewer abilities. All of us can do something well. Someone is always capable of doing something better than as many as the next 10,000 people. What is your strength zone? Find it and use it. In the organization that job of finding the strenght zone is the  HRMs

2. Develop the talent you have. Why do people spend more time trying to strengthen their weaknesses in skills development? Why not spend more time strengthening your strengths? (Apart from attitude and character which need to be worked on always) technical abilities can always improve if we put our minds and practice to it! Lawyers, doctors, speakers, teachers, musicians and fighters can always improve their performance level with practice, additional training and additional skills acquisition. Multiple award winning football recently said "   "I have kept growing off the field and on it. I am improving and adding things to my game, every day I enjoy being a footballer more" There is always an upper level we can make and meet if we work towards it. Again from the organizational perspective the HRM and his training associates have to draw up programmes that help strenghten these areas. 

3. Everyone can make choices that add value to talent. Apart from natural talent, key choices you make will set you apart from others.  Choose, for instance, to associate with people in your area of specialty who can influence you to do better. Choose to consistently think of ways in which your performance level can be improved. Focus and concentration is required in some professional callings, deep thinking and speedy analysis is required in others. What is your requisition? Find it and apply it.

So if we marry improving talent with the right attitude and skills we should be on our way to getting the best performance available in our area of operation. The competitive edge is coming as much from people as from products. The optimum use of peoples’ individual competencies is in order to match the organizational goals
If you are in top management you need to develop yourself. If you have top managers in your organization, do not leave thier development to chance. Engage them! There are some key areas in which top managers need to be developed consistently in major organizations:
New attitudes and behaviors that would promote culture change. \
We live in a changing world. Organizations are consitently in the flux over change. The work environment, climate, markets and customers are consistently changing and so we have to prepare our managers to change to suit conditions and demands.
Styles of empowerment and innovation are also changing drastically. Top managers are giving more authority and power for decisionmaking activity and they are being schooled in methods in which they can innovate and introduce new methods and approaches into their work activity on a regular basis.
New markets are opening up for different products on a regular basis. Sometimes it takes a different level of expertise to spot or identify new markets. A lot of the new markets in today's world are either hidden, esoteric or difficult to penetrate. specialized training is in order to enable managers to look in odd and unexpected places and understand new trends.
Managers are also in  need of knowledge that would help them maximize the use of technology.

Nigeria portends a big market for all manner of products and services. Some of this demand for services is readily recognizable, where as the other demands need to be subtly enticed out of the would be consumer.

How empowerment is failing in Africa

A governor of the middle belt state of Nigeria acquired wheelbarrows and distributed them as part of his empowerment scheme in his state. His logic was: If you have a wheelbarrow you have a tool to work with. The question many of his critics asked was: What kind of empowerment is a wheelbarrow?
There have sundry reports of youths who have risked their lives traveling to North African countries so as to cross the Mediterranean into Europe. Many people have perished at sea and in the desert because of this risky venture. Italian authorities recently investigated the deaths of 26 girls, mostly Nigerians who were found dead at sea with evidence of sexual abuse and violation. The continual exodus of youths from African countries is caused by a loss of hope in the future of their countries

   

The concept and meaning of empowerment has different interpretations to various kinds of people. One general description says its “measures designed to increase the degree of autonomy and self determination of people.” In an organization it is defined as “a management practice of sharing information, rewards and power with employees.”Empowering people is generally giving them opportunities to advance their fortunes in commerce, politics and national perspectives. Leadership determines to a large extent how, when and why people are empowered. Sadly, the African society demonstrates very few opportunities of empowerment for its people. The basic necessities that are taken for granted in various developed countries are grossly absent in many poverty stricken African nations. There is a high tendency for corruption in government, dishonesty and misappropriation in the use of public funds such that these countries cannot afford the necessary infrastructure for the people who live there.

The absence of stable electricity in West Africa is major factor of underdevelopment. If people do not have access to electricity they spend extra sums of money to generate their own. Activity that should be driven by electricity becomes absent or highly expensive to sustain.

Lagos, a city in South West Nigeria, suffers all the indicators of a society rigged with poverty and a gross lack of empowerment. There are large numbers of youths who are in jobs and activities that put a daily meal on their table, but do not produce anything. Many school leavers and drop outs are involved in football gambling and internet fraud and petty crimes for sustenance. Industry in Lagos is virtually dead. Importation of cheaper goods, lack of security and reduced access to energy has lead to the closure of many industrial organizations which could contribute to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country if they were still up and running. Industries are fast becoming obsolete in Nigeria. Many of them have multiple problems. They have no access to viable and affordable energy sources, no proper roads through which goods can be evacuated, constant harassment by law enforcement for cash gifts, multiple tax payments and competition against cheaper imports.

Minister for Agriculture and rural development in Nigeria Mr. Audu Ogbeh who had earlier declared that there would be ban on the importation of rice in December 2017 has since realized that an outright ban would be difficult to implement. Rice is currently grown in 18 states in Nigeria but the combined harvest of these states cannot meet the demand of the Nigerian rice consumers who currently eat over 500metric tons of the commodity every year. Nigeria is the largest importer of rice, oil and sugar in West Africa and holds a high up position for the importation of these products worldwide. Sadly, Nigeria is still importing N1trillion worth of food a year. Ogbeh says government in Nigeria cannot afford to finance rice farmers like they do in Thailand and other Asian countries. The question is: If government is not ready to subsidize farmers to help get agriculture off the ground then how does the farmer survive and how does agriculture thrive in a country like Nigeria? Giving the farmers loans, tools for production and outright purchases of their products as well as introducing processing mills that would prepare the rice for sale would go a long way in making a credible impact on rice production. But government has rejected that strategy.

Farmers in every major country where agriculture has flourished are not left to struggle on their own they are empowered by government who finances parts of their operations and reduces tax collection from them. Its not so in Nigeria.. Farmers have complained that Internal Revenue Service(IRS) have showed up at there farms threatening to shut them because of tax issues.

Economic empowerment should be such that start up and existing organizations that need help should have access to tools, necessary imports and tax holidays that would make them profitable and thereby help develop the economy. Many of our governments couldn’t care less.

By 2050 the emerging economies in the world: Brazil, India, Russia and China would have gone far ahead in terms of development. Brazil, in spite of economic challenges has made huge headway in the development of Computer Applications, India is becoming a hub for computer software and medical tourism, Russia is also making great forays into computer development, exploitation of gas reserves and warfare equipment, China is working on connecting all its cities by rail, increased automobile manufacturing and military hardware development. It is expected that China and India would be leading producer of manufactured products by the year 2050. Africa’s only hope in this race appears to be South Africa and even there, corruption and political turmoil is making  the country lag behind.If proper action is not taken, Nigeria would be left behind in scheme of manufacturing and at the height of service delivery. 

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The Competitive CEOs Skill set.

The skills you require to become a successful leader in your sector.

Cognitive ability

This is raw intellectual horse power and mental agility that helps your creativity and enables you understand situations and circumstances that are sometimes complex and maze-like to the ordinary eye. The ability to think on your feet and proffer solutions to nagging problems in a nick of time.

Strategic Thinking

Your thought process for the company or organization should not be based on the realities of the moment alone. Being strategic in your thinking is tuning your thoughts to the future, both immediate and long term. You ought to have the ability to think up scenarios and long term solutions even before they happen.

Analytical Ability

Ability to sort through diverse sources of information and see what’s important. You ought to be able to, within a short period of time, determine what is critical to continuity and success in an organization, a project or assignment. The analytical ability enables you to determine the most important factors.

Decision making ability

You ought to be able to make sound decisions with minimal risk in an environment of ambiguity and uncertainty.

Personal and Organizational Communication skills

Communication should be your strong point. Remember you are constantly engaging the troops (your followers/team members) and convincing them to tread a path that should lead you and the organization to meet your strategic business objectives. Close to the communication prowess is your ability to influence and persuade different groups. You ought to have salesman skills as well as an understanding of group dynamics.

Managing Diversity

Work groups, businesses and organizations are as diverse as they come in today’s business environment Prepare to manage people from different cultures, gender, age and so on.

Managing Talent

Hiring the best you can find is always an advantage.  But retaining and developing talented people is another story entirely. Thriving CEOs need to learn how to do this.

Ability to learn

Continuous learning should be a commitment and practice of Chief Executive Officers. You ought to be able to learn from your team and adopt the best skills and strategies from them without being intimidated or threatened. You do not have to be the smartest guy in the company to be the CEO.

Just how competent are you at your job?

Just how competent are you at your job? Now that's an interesting question. Let's see now, you need skill and knowledge to get that job done. But you may find that among a certain group of professionals "knowing how" to do something is a little different from "knowing about knowing how" to do something. There are lot of people who talk about things they probably never really had the opportunity to practice themselves. Take for instance, some of the professors at your local university. Many of them have studied a lot in their fields, but not all them can really practice the professional aspect of their calling which entails doing the things that they discuss in class.
Competency is described as "an underlying characteristic of a person which results in effective and/or superior performance on a job"-Boyatris 1992.
The competency test is a quick way of assessing yourself to determine if you are making progress or not.
Check out the following questions:
1. Is my knowledge about my profession purely academic. In other words, do I merely talk about how its done and how it should be done without any hands on experience that shows we can do it?
2. If I have a project relating to my core skills and profession and I am asked to do it myself, what are my chances of success?
3.Could I play the role of teacher/coach in order to enhance the skill of another person's skill or ability?
4. If I am asked to play the professional role which includes my core training and skill would I be able to perform optimally?
The ability to perform the activities within an occupational area to the levels of performance expected in employment is the sum total of competence. So ask yourself again: Just how competent are you at your job? Knowledge and skill should enhance work activity.

Attitude is a component of business success

Human Resource Management professionals are recruiting more for attitude with the intention of training for skill and competency in this century. The crux of the matter is the right attitude and behavior is urgently needed to ensure that employees of an organization would do the job right and focus on meeting goals that are set by the organization. The right behavior is consistently being taught in management school.  HRM understands that bad behavior and attitude can get in the way of skill, if steps are not taken to determine and differentiate good attitude and behavior and distinguish it from bad or unacceptable conduct.

Every employee should take an attitude test, in addition to the aptitude that we so much focus on, and see if indeed his behavior is not serving as a hindrance to his success and growth on the job.  Here are some parameters you ought to consider to determine if your attitude is right or wrong:

1.    The whole is more important than the parts! This philosophy has its Here root in your ability to put the organizational interest before your personal interest. A good manager ought to be able to sustain business, development or success in organizational strategy while being uncomfortable himself if the need arises. Human nature often makes us think of our individual comfort first. But if we can delay gratification, in a good system, rewards are normally greater when they are delayed.

2.    Keep your eye on the goal! Organizational vision and mission statements should be so compelling that they should help the staff or operatives get through business on a bad day. Keeping our minds eye on the vision we have, often helps us go through uncomfortable circumstances and situations undaunted, because we know and believe in where we are going. All of your workforce should be able to stay focused, understand the mission and vision of the organization and relate everyday actions to this mission and vision.

3.    Have a unified direction! In management and productive processes we find that even though the direction of people might be similar, the paths we tread could vary, as long as they ultimately lead us in the same direction. Everyone in an organization should work towards the same goal, no matter how varied our skills, work or jobs are within the same organizational setting. A unified direction would strengthen the processes and outcomes in any organization that it exists.

4.    Reinvest in your skills and productive processes! If you take time out as often as possible to spend a percentage of your resources on honing your skills and improving your productive processes, you are bound to consistently improve on what you are doing for a living. Consistent practice, seeking out cutting edge strategies and improved practices will give you a high appeal at your business. Never be satisfied with how good you are. Seek to get better.

5.    Try New and more efficient ways of making progress! Innovation attracts patronage when it is refreshing and more efficient. Management professionals of all kinds should not be afraid to try out new ways of doing things. Research and development should lead to more efficiency and better ways of achieving results. As long as quality is not compromised newness is attractive.

6.    Staying positive no matter what is going wrong! In management, things are liable to go wrong no matter how well we have planned the processes. We can control certain variables, but there are others that we cannot control. Staying positive in the middle of disappointments is an important psychological attribute that we all need. Those who give up so easily could have a bad influence on the team.

7.    Rewards are important! Rewards are important in management. They serve as a viable source of motivation. But the attitude people have towards rewards is also important. We should not have people on our teams who seek to be achievers merely to claim rewards. A focus on a larger picture is important.

Having all this in mind is one thing, implementing it is another. The best way to find out if your staff has the right attitude is to create scenario and psychometric tests for them which will expose hidden character traits.