From the Corporate Communications desk

Lagos Business School emerges as the only African business school on 2020 Economist ranking

Lagos Business School (LBS) has become the only business school in Africa to be featured on The Economist 2020 Executive MBA Ranking. The Economist's Executive MBA ranking is a bi-annual list of the best providers of the Executive MBA programme across the world categorised based on two broad measures: personal development/educational experience and career development.

The LBS Modular Executive MBA was ranked based on the quality of students, student and faculty diversity, quality of faculty, programme quality, career progression, salary and networking. The programme holds the 2nd position in the world in the category of percentage increase in pre-EMBA salary on graduation, and 4th position in the percentage increase in pre-EMBA salary after one year.

Commenting on the achievement, MBA Director, Dr Uchenna Uzo said, “At Lagos Business School, we have consistently proven that the knowledge we offer on our MBA programmes adequately prepare managers for career progression. This is because we feel the pulse of the market and deliver a curriculum that is adapted to solving our students' distinct challenges.” Lagos Business School was ranked alongside other top business schools including the IESE Business School, Yale School of Management, and Kellogg School of Management. This is the second consecutive year the LBS Modular Executive MBA is being ranked by The Economist magazine. In May 2020, Lagos Business School's Custom Executive Education was named first in Africa by the 2020 Financial Times Executive Education ranking.

LBS Faculty, Henrietta Onwuegbuzie speaks on board-readiness at women-led dialogue

On Thursday, 1st of October, LBS Faculty of Entrepreneurship, Dr Henrietta Onwuegbuzie was a speaker at the Women-led & Owned Dialogue series with 22 senior c-suite executives from around the world.

he Women-Led & Owned Dialogue aims to catalyse solutions on Tissues where women in leadership or with the potential to lead across Africa are disproportionately impacted while unlocking gender-smart capital at scale for women-owned businesses. The programme brought together new perspectives on ways to accelerate and unlock women ' s leadership potential, improving business performance while aligning stakeholders' values. The webinar split into four sessions had speakers from both the private and public sector, lending their voice to the conversation of the impact of women in society.

The speakers include

Jen Braswell, Director, Value Creation, CDC Group; Jessica Espinoza, Chair, 2X Challenge & Global Gender Finance Lead, DEG; Charity Wallace, MD: Global Women's Issues, U.S. DFC; Joanne Yoo, MD, Development Partners International; Megan Blair, Founder, Early Bird; Linda Mateza, CEO/PO, Eskom Pension & Provident Fund; Geetha Tharmaratnam, Founding Partner, Aequalitas Capital Partners; Donna Sims Wilson, COO, Kah Capital Management; Roselyn Spencer, Founder, Cedar Pension Consulting; Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes, Founder, Aruwa Capital; Cathy Goddard-Edwards, CEO, FyreFem Fund Manager; Faith Khanyile, CEO, WDB Investment Holdings; Raylene Watson, COO, EBS Advisory; Vivina Berla, Founder, Vimine Holding; Kanini Mutooni, MD, Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation; Tariye Gbadegesin, MD/CIO, ARM-Harith Infrastructure Fund Managers; Dr Amy Jadesimi, MD, LADOL; Simiso Velempini, CEO, Africa Matters; Ijeoma D. Agboti-Obatoyinbo, MD/CEO, FBNQuest Funds; and Dr Henrietta Onwuegbuzie, Academic Director, OMP, Lagos Business School.

The speakers highlighted the benefits of having women at the decision table; they provided data on how boards with women outperform others in the same industry. Also mentioned was the role women play in crisis leadership, with reference to leadership during the current global pandemic.

Speakers referenced the fifth sustainable development goal (SDG 5) which is to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls and reiterated that without the achievement of SDG 5, the world would not be able to accomplish all other SDGs. One of the panels focused on advice from personal experience in navigating maledominated spaces and how each individual has handled challenges as well as success stories. The general advice was for women to continually invest in themselves, be flexible in their leadership and actively sought for guidance from mentors, sponsors and advocates.

Dr Onwuegbuzie who leads sessions in entrepreneurship on the MBA and Executive programmes at Lagos Business School (LBS), and is the Academic Director for the OwnerManager Programme spoke on the need for women to be 'board' ready. She mentioned three requirements for board-readiness; excellence, values and empathy. “Excellence is blind to skin colour, gender or race; as women aiming for the top, excellence should not be compromised; the goal is to be the best version of selves without trying to be like anyone else,” Onwuegbuzie said. She also highlighted impact investing, and how it contributes to the economic and social development of Africa. Dr Amy Jadesimi mentioned the need for women in leadership positions to lead from different levels and make evidence-based decisions. Charity Wallace shared the importance of the role of a support system to aid women's development. She said “It is essential for women to stay connected with their peers in different sectors and levels. A strong network provides stability and aids nurturing relationships. ” Tariye Gbadegesin said that women participation on boards is necessary, because boards ultimately run the organisations who design the solutions to the world's needs. She concluded that women provide invaluable strategic contributions that result in better decisions.

This first programme of the women-led dialogue series provided a platform for women to share practical steps to accelerate and unlock women's leadership potential and drive innovation. This initiative aligns with LBS' goal to develop responsible leaders, solving Africa ' s business problems. Jen Braswell, Director, Value Creation, CDC Group; Jessica Espinoza, Chair, 2X Challenge & Global Gender Excellence is blind to skin colour, gender or race; as “ women aiming for the top, excellence should not be compromised; the goal is to be the best version of selves without trying to be like anyone else... Onwuegbuzie said ”

Supply chain executives

discuss practical industry solutions at LBS interactive session

On Tuesday, September 29, 2020, Lagos Business School hosted select top Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), Finance & Supply Chain executives in a closed online interactive session. The session provided a platform to exchange ideas, network and discuss the latest trends, challenges and opportunities in finance and supply chain, especially considering the prevalent turbulence in the operating environment. Strategy faculty, Chidi Okoro gave the opening remarks as he spoke on the importance of supply chain and finance to the health and sustenance of organisations. Operations Management faculty, Dr Frank Ojadi and the Managing Director of the LaCasera Company, Chinedum Okereke moderated the 2-hour session.

The keynote address was delivered by Dr Goodluck Obi, Partner & Head Consumer Markets, Audit Services, KPMG. In his presentation, Obi focused on the macroeconomic review, lessons from FMCGs and the post COVID-19 outlook for supply chain and finance. According to data gathered, following the lockdown measures, Nigeria's Business Confidence Index fell for the first time to a negative index of 66.2 in May 2020. It remained negative until July, showing a loss of confidence amongst business owners. Business owners in the manufacturing construction and Agri/services sector contributed to the pessimism in July 2020 (-2.9, -0.5 and -4.8 respectively). However, a positive index of 33.7 in August 2020 indicates an optimistic outlook of the economy, and this is expected to continue in Q4 2020. Obi highlighted the major challenges faced by organisations during the lockdown and the management actions implemented. He said, “Most companies battled with cash collections from key customers, increased impairment losses on key customer accounts, increase in average collection period and amongst others. In dealing with these challenges, most firms had to take swift management actions. Many firms required bank guarantees from new customers, increased monitoring of their daily and weekly cash flow collections, sourced local raw materials to reduce dependence on foreign-based inputs and restructured the procurement and supply chain departments to respond to the new threats.” Obi added that the increase in the adoption of technology and digitisation is critical for the FMCG sector post-COVID-19.

The session was attended by Senior Manager, Supply Chain, WAMCO, Samuel Obadan; Finance Director, Reckitt Benckiser, Shekar Poojari; Group CFO and Head of Supply Chain at TGI Distri, West African Cubes, and Chi Pharmaceutical, Puneet Sharma. Other are; Head of Supply Chain, DUFIL Prima Foods, Pankaj Jajoo; Finance Director, the Lacasera Company, Godfrey Iriso; Head Supply Chain, Honeywell Flour Mills, Tayo Ilori; Head of Operations & Supply Chain, The Lacasera Company, Louis Premkumar; Supply Chain Director, Guinness Nigeria, Ngozi Aghomi; Head of Planning, Hayat Kimya Nigeria, Ugo Ogwo; Chief

“Obi added that the increase in the adoption of technology and digitisation is critical for the FMCG sector post-COVID-19 ”

- Dr Goodluck Obi, Partner & Head Consumer Markets, Audit Services, KPMG.

Financial Officer, UAC Group, Ibikunle Oriola; GM Finance, PZ Cusson, Babatunde Oni; Supply Chain Lead, Nestle, Nestor Finalo and the Managing Director, TGI Distri Limited, Sunil Sawhney.

Also contributing to the session were LBS Faculty Chidi Okoro, Strategy; Dr Ogechi Adeola, Sales and Marketing; Vanessa Burgal, Marketing; Dr Obinna Muogboh, Operations; and Dr Arinze Nwokolo, Finance. The executives and LBS faculty shared insights on the management of supply chain disruption and higher cost of imported raw materials due to the pandemic. The discussion also h i g h l i g h t e d t h e a v e n u e s o f strengthening supply chains through credit policy; cash management and capital requirement post-pandemic.

Chief Financial Officer, UAC Group, Ibikunle Oriola shared the steps his company took to strengthen their working capital position. According to him, his firm conducted a stress test of their businesses for vulnerability. He stated, “What became very clear was liquidity and cash was critical to maintaining operations for many of the businesses. We decided to conserve cash as the duration of the lockdown was not yet clear.”

Chi Pharmaceutical's Puneet Sharma also shared how his organisation leveraged innovation to ensure the running of their operations, sourced raw materials locally due to the travel bans, and strengthened relationships with customers which determined how they managed inventory. Supply Chain Director of Guinness Nigeria, Ngozi Aghomi spoke on how her firm managed inventory during the lockdown. She shared how their stock policy was revamped before the lockdown to hold more raw materials than usual, which cushioned the impact of the pandemic.

The executives concluded with an agreement on the essentiality of data for a dynamic route-to-market for business across several industries.

The interactive session is the second in the series; the first was conversations with top FMCG marketing and sales leaders across industries. Lagos Business School remains committed to positively impacting the professional standards of business management in Nigeria and Africa.

“

What became very clear was liquidity and cash was critical to maintaining operations for many of the businesses.

We decided to conserve cash as the duration of the lockdown was not yet clear.

- Chief Financial Officer, UAC Group, Ibikunle Oriola

The Sustainable and Inclusion Digital Financial Services (SIDFS) of Lagos Business School has been chosen to participate as a survey partner in the Global COVID-19 Fintech Market Rapid Assessment Survey.

Organised by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) at the University of Cambridge, in partnership with the World Bank Group and the World Economic Forum, the survey will collect and analyse timely data related to the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic is having on the FinTech Industry.

The assessment survey will help to understand which Fintech companies are best able to adapt to the pandemic and which are under threat. According to CCAF, it will “capture responses from 15,000 FinTech firms in over 190 countries around the world with the support of over 150 industry associations and FinTech ecosystem partners.” LBS Faculty and SIDFS Team Lead, Professor Olayinka David-West will be steering the course of the research in Nigeria. She has led several research projects, conferences and discussions on technology, digital payments and other critical aspects of the Financial Services ecosystem in Nigeria and Africa. “The coronavirus pandemic has impacted the financial services industry in significant ways. In response, the Nigerian financial services ecosystem would also evolve, by reviewing business operations, practices and processes while also exploring new product development techniques to serve a consumer base that has also been impacted by the pandemic. The COVID-19 Fintech Market Rapid Assessment Survey will provide relevant insights that will inform decision-making among financial service stakeholders and better position FinTechs for the days ahead, even as the world transitions into its new reality of a COVID-19 world. This initiative is well-timed, and I am thrilled to be a part of it” said David-West.

The survey which targets companies in FinTech and Digital Financial Services (DFS) markets will run till July 30, 2020. Set to be published in the third quarter of the year, the report will aid FinTech industries and DFS providers to position themselves better to cushion the impact of COVID-19 and to seek opportunities to scale and expand. The SIDFS is a university-based research and advocacy initiative with the goal of creating an inclusive ecosystem for financial services. Through focused research as well as active engagement with all stakeholders in the industry, the Initiative furthers the case for financial inclusion.

Lagos Business School receives funding for sustainability research on African companies

Lagos Business School (LBS) has received a research award to conduct an international study on sustainability for companies in selected parts of Africa.

The study, which will be carried out by the LBS Sustainability Centre, will focus on how businesses in Africa are responding to long-term development aspirations in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Funding for the study was provided by a consortium of international organisations who share common goals of advancing Professor Chris Ogbechie sustainable development and using business as a force for good. The Lagos Business School organisations include B Lab, Sistema B, B Academic, and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). The project will explore how companies in Nigeria, Mauritius and South Africa are integrating longer-term sustainable development objectives and targets into their strategies, and whether the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a helpful framework for this integration process. It will further examine how the companies Professor Ralph Hamann being studied are working to achieve these strategies, in addition to the Graduate School of Business role played by the COVID-19 pandemic. University of Cape Town

Principal investigators on the project include Professor Chris Ogbechie, Lagos Business School; Professor Ralph Hamann, Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town; Professor Kenneth Amaeshi, Business School, University of Edinburgh; Dr Ijeoma Nwagwu, Lagos Business School; Neeveditah Pariag-Maraye, University of Mauritius; and Dr Judy Muthuri, Nottingham University Business School.

Professor Chris Ogbechie, the Director of the LBS Sustainability Centre says, “Responsible business practice is the only path for businesses that want to have a true and lasting impact on the continent. Through this research effort, we begin to map the landscape of responsible business across Africa more closely and provide leaders on the continent a roadmap to navigate these uncertain times. Insights from this research will help our business leaders build back better as we emerge from the pandemic” Commenting further on the significance of the study, LBS faculty, Dr Ijeoma Nwagwu said, “This research project is significant because it explores the risks and opportunities confronting businesses that deploy sustainability thinking and tools to advance development in African countries as diverse as Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and Mauritius. There are a few studies of this nature. Our study illustrates the possibility of a shared vision and an aspirational narrative for a sustainable future in African countries.” The project seeks to generate direct and tangible benefits for the participants, as well as other practitioners and policy-makers as they will be presented with opportunities for discussion. Findings from the study will be widely published as they emerge. The LBS Sustainability Centre consolidates theory and practice on sustainability, builds leadership skills and supports constructive dialogue and collaboration between business, government, civil society, and academics to find solutions to critical sustainability challenges.

Professor Kenneth Amaeshi Business School, University of Edinburgh

Dr Ijeoma Nwagwu Lagos Business School

Neeveditah Pariag-Maraye University of Mauritius

Dr Judy Muthuri Nottingham University Business School.

Top FMCG executives share consumer engagement solutions at LBS interactive session

On Tuesday, August 11, 2020, Lagos Business School hosted select marketing and sales leaders from Nigeria's FastMoving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector to an interactive online session.

The session provided a platform to who hold key roles in the intersection of exchange ideas, share insights Sales and Marketing in multinationals and support the strategic i n t h e c o u n t r y . T h e y i n c l u d e o p e r a t i o n s o f p a r t i c i p a t i n g Commercial and Marketing Director, organisations, especially considering Procter & Gamble, Mokutima Ajileye; the prevalent turbulence in the Marketing Director, Unilever, Nsima operating environment. Ogedi-Alakwe; Sales Operations Conversations were moderated by LBS Manager, Nestle, Olutayo Olatunji; Faculty of Strategy, Chidi Okoro and Head of Sales, GSK Consumer, Soji began with Managing Director of a Awotiwon. Others include Country market research firm, Milward Brown Manager, William Grant and Sons Nigeria, Ugo Geri-Robert, who was the guest speaker at the session. GeriRobert delivered a presentation on the Nigeria, Frances Nwosa; Commercial Director, Nestle, Khaled Ramadan; Vice President, Consumer Development, Chidi Okoro Lagos Business School, Faculty of Strategy changing behaviour of Nigerian Unilever, Felix Enwemadu; and consumers in the light of emerging Marketing Director and Division Lead – trends in a post-COVID era. Homecare, Unilever, Bunmi Adeniba. According to Geri-Roberts, Nigerian c on s u me rs h a ve b ec o me mor e concerned about their personal finance, health and food security. She explained that consumer engagement on digital media has surged because of the pandemic. Consumers seek new information, and the only way brands can win is by providing this information in the form of solutions for surviving the pandemic. Geri-Roberts named some brands who are leveraging this new behaviour and needs to deliver unique experiences to consumers. An example is Dano Milk which is providing relief materials to vulnerable neighbourhoods through its Nominate A Neighbourhood campaign. Other examples mentioned are Spar, Heineken Lagos Fashion Week and Maggi. She also advised brands in the FMCG sector to aid equity through corporate social responsibility (CSR) and empowerment schemes for members of their host community. “The crisis has triggered the need to be identified as a purposeful brand, a brand that' s socially responsible, a brand that empowers people”, she said. Anchored by Associate Professor of Marketing at LBS, Dr Ogechi Adeola, the session was attended by individuals The executives agreed that brands in the sector need to have a granular understanding of how the pandemic hit d i f f e r e n t c o n s u m e r s e g m e n t s . According to Ogedi-Alakwe, “We, as FCMG companies, need to understand what has changed with our consumer's needs and how our portfolio profitably addresses those needs. ” She added that consumers have limited spending capacity this period and brands must take their product quality more seriously to prevent the spread of negative word of mouth for their products. Contributing his perspective, Nestle's Tayo Olatunji opined that sales and marketing heads must manage their route-to-market creatively if they do not want to pass the burden of i n c r e a s e d p r o d u c t i o n c o s t s t o consumers. According to him, it is the responsibility of these managers to ensure that wholesalers, who are essential components of the value chain, are trained to be professional as they are the ones who interact with retailers and shoppers. The professionalism gap in the sales and marketing sector is what the Lagos Business School Sales Academy aims to bridge. Run by the School's Sales and

Dr. Ogechi Adeola

Associate Professor of Marketing, Lagos Business School

Marketing faculty, Dr Ogechi Adeola, Dr Tayo Otubanjo and Vanessa Burgal, the Academy provides salespeople with practical tools required to improve their performance standards and win in today ' s competitive market. The Academy has delivered capacitybuilding sessions to the staff of sector g i a n t s , s u c h a s N e s t l e a n d FrieslandCampina Wamco. Sharing instant feedback from the session, one of the participants described it as “well-handled and very insightful”. The interactive session is the first of its type since Lagos Business School moved its programmes online and the School remains committed to positively impacting the professional standards of business management in

LBS MBA 19 students discuss the relevance of an MBA education in a pandemic

Deciding to study for an MBA is a significant step for young managers and professionals. But making such a decision in the middle of a global health and economic crisis can be more challenging than usual.

This September, 49 aspiring knowledge and imbibing in me the managers resumed for the Lagos culture to enable me to adapt and meet Business School Full-time MBA the demands of the post-pandemic with a resolve to progress in their world.” career despite the crisis, and for good reasons. The business landscape is The Full-time MBA 19 class is an uncertain. The job market has evolved, impressive mix of professionals across and professionals need to be amply industries – banking, professional prepared for the new demands of services, law, oil and gas, and so companies and industries. on–including an Obama Fellow from For Chung Tsz, a citizen of Hong Kong Business School, Faith Mpara said, who has experience in building Africa- “The primary reason that I chose LBS is focused NGOs, “technology-enabled that it is in Nigeria. I have deep businesses and de-globalisation will be admiration for Nigerians and their the themes to watch in the post- exploits in business. I also chose LBS pandemic world. The world will because it is one of the few schools that desperately need globally connected offered extensive support during the experts, to move businesses and ideas application process. I had staff call on across Africa, Asia, Europe and Sunday and assist me for hours when I America. ” He believes that the LBS had challenges with my submission. experience will be a game-changer for This is uncommon because I have him, as he will build up a valuable completed applications with several network in Africa and potentially create schools and could not proceed because more impact across the globe. support was absent.” The most experienced member of the class, Adetola Okunola plans to relaunch his career as a management executive after the pandemic. He said, “the industries I have in my purview include Energy (Integrated Oil and Gas) and Management Consulting. LBS will avail me the technical know-how and emotional and moral fortitude required from management executives. These and other skills gained from LBS would be integral in the attainment of my objectives”. Joining the class with experience from KPMG, Olamide Onaolapo said the effects of the pandemic on the job market influenced his decision to join the programme. “A lot of organisations have not been recruiting because of the p a n d e m i c . A n d s i n c e I w a s transitioning, I decided to acquire more knowledge as the world deals with a new reality. I believe LBS can prepare me for the future of work by imparting Cameroon. On why she chose Lagos Mpara, who is a beneficiary of the LBS Scholarship Scheme, also added, “LBS has an excellent reputation and financial support system for students. Apart from the scholarship scheme, the rest of my tuition needs are catered for b y t h e M a n d e l a I n s t i t u t e o f Development Studies (MINDS). LBS' reputation made this easier than it will have otherwise been.”

Also sharing his experience about the support offered by the School, Chung said, “I appreciate how far the team at LBS go to see that we get the most out of our MBA experience. For example, a former employee reached out to me to offer advice at the point of leaving his role at LBS. That says a lot about the School.” Chung Tsz MBA 19 Talent Forum Ambassador

Chung said, “I appreciate how far the team at LBS go to see that we get the most out of our MBA experience. For example, a former employee reached out to me to offer advice at the point of leaving his role at LBS.

That says a lot about the

School.”

This September, 49 aspiring managers resumed for the Lagos Business School Full-time MBA with a resolve to progress in their career despite the crisis, and for good reasons. The business landscape is uncertain. The job market has evolved, and professionals need to be amply prepared for the new demands of companies and industries. For Chung Tsz, a citizen of Hong Kong who has experience in building Africafocused NGOs, “technology-enabled businesses and de-globalisation will be the themes to watch in the postdesperately need globally connected experts, to move businesses and ideas across Africa, Asia, Europe and

pandemic world. The world will America. ” He believes that the LBS experience will be a game-changer for him, as he will build up a valuable network in Africa and potentially create more impact across the globe. The most experienced member of the

Lagos Business School Beta Gamma Sigma chapter earns Highest Honours status

The Lagos Business School chapter of the Beta Gamma Sigma society has been bestowed the Highest Honours status for the 2019-2020 academic year. The Highest Honours status is the highest distinction possible for Beta Gamma Sigma chapters. Beta Gamma Sigma (BGS) is the exclusive business honour society for students enrolled in business and management programmes accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). The Highest Honours status results from the outstanding work done by the Lagos Business School BGS team and its continuing support of the society. The Honour means Lagos Business School's BGS chapter is eligible to be considered for the Outstanding Chapter of the Year award. It also means the chapter will be recognised at global BGS events, on social media, and in publications. Earlier in 2020, Lagos Business School alumna, Ibukun Awosika, was named the recipient of the 2020 Beta Gamma Sigma Business Achievement Award. The award is presented in honour of individuals who have made a significant achievement in business.

The Lagos Business School BGS chapter was established in November 2017.