Starting a business can be intimidating, but many people do so successfully each year with the right resources at hand and this is what The Doing Business in Nigeria Conference 2022 held on April 27, 2022 aimed to foster.
The program was convened by Linda Uneze, Managing Partner of Maurice Xandra Solutions, a human capital management company. It themed “The Age of Conscious Resource Utilization.”
The program theme was “The Age of Conscious Resource Utilization.”
The attendees were taught practical ways they can boost their businesses leveraging on technology and other factors that guarantees their business a chance to succeed.
Paul Onwanibe, CEO of Landmark Group, a keynote speaker at the conference spoke on “Business Strategy and Execution in an Emerging Market.”
He noted that problems can be turned into opportunities and that people who say it can not be done should not interrupt people already doing it.
He further explained other factors that can foster a business, he said, “Be passionate. Without commitment, you will never start and without consistency, you will never finish. The best price that life offers is the chance to work hard at what is worth doing. Be principled. There are lots of opportunities and not enough competition.”
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A few keynote speakers advised attendees on the rise in cost of doing a business and therefore a need to be passionate about it so as to build resilience.
Adesola Sotande-Peters CFO Godrej Africa, USA and the Middle East, said that passion and drive are the basis for starting a business. Also, business owners need to be mindful of the rise in the cost of doing a business.
Ugo Obi-Chukwu, Founder and Partner of Nairametrics Financial Advocates, said that cost is a major factor in determining business survival, and as a business owner, one needs to be mindful of the rise in cost. She noted that there are lots of opportunities but she thinks it is for those who already have a structure.
It was also advised to take advantage of the digital space and learn technology skills that would boost their business.
The need for businesses to evolve was explained by Jane Egerton-Idehen, Head of Sales, the Middle East and Africa, Meta (Facebook).
She said, “When we say that businesses should evolve, some people think they are going to lose their businesses to robots and AI. That is not what we are saying. We are saying that the way we work will evolve and some skills for some types of work will evolve.
Furthermore, she said that COVID was a wake-up call and in the middle of the lockdown, there were some states where one could not work from home or even do video calls.”
Olu Akanmu, the President of Opay, supported this by sharing that “The Opportunities of Digital is great for new businesses who do not have the legacy to hold on to traditional technology of old companies. It is an advantage for small businesses”.
