As the Stills Portfolio Lead and Head of Marketing for Kenya and Tanzania Country Operations at Coca-Cola, Nelly Wainaina ’20 is no stranger to leadership. Still, her time as an MBA student at ALU School of Business revealed some leadership aspects that she had yet uncovered. Watch the video below to learn more about other discoveries she made at ALUSB and her advice to young, African businesswomen.
On the V^3 Leadership Model
(…) It’s a programme that sort of unpacks you, like almost disintegrates the type of person you are; your leadership skills, your qualities and then puts you back together. And I find that absolutely brilliant because the journey of leadership does not stop. Many of us joined the programme when we thought: ‘I’m at the apex of my career, I’ve got lots of experiences, I’ve got a lot to teach,…’ But to be honest, there’s been a lot of unlearning and you have to do, you have to be receptive to the learning process so that you can learn and then transform. And I tell you, it’s been absolutely amazing.
To young businesswomen on the continent
Yes, women are different from male leaders but if you go into business with the notion of ‘I’m a different person than the other one’, then you already shortchange yourself. And I would advise women to play the game just like anybody else would, to believe in themselves. And once you believe in yourself, you become more confident and then opportunities start opening themselves up just like the rest of your male counterparts. So I don’t think there’s a difference in terms of skills for both men and women. It’s just if you present yourself as a ready person for the opportunity, you’ll absolutely be successful. So just believe in yourself and be confident in your choices.
Watch Nelly’s full interview below:
