After one year in the saddle, how has your experience in private equity helped you settle intoto the chairmanship of Ecobank?
I want to believe that my work in private equity has shaped how I view performance. Not just in terms of numbers, but in terms of resilience, governance, and long-term returns. It's also put me in a position to see what capital does to people on a day-to-day basis because we're in a continent where every employee is responsible for many family members and people.
For me, you have to look at the numbers, you have to look at the environment and you have to look at the people and I think private equity really prepares you for that. Private equity also helps me have a sharper focus on capital allocation because you need cost discipline in investments and investment in platforms that scale. So all of this is crucial for a pan-African financial institution, you know, that's operating across diverse markets.
But most importantly, my professional default is to always be ready to be a fan of somebody else's work. So as a private equity professional, you invest and then if the CEO is good, you're grateful because it makes you have returns. And today as chairman, it's very similar. I have to be a fan of Jeremy's work Awori, Ecobank CEO. So, it's very important that he succeeds and it's very important that I'm right there next to him and sometimes behind to support him and give him what he needs to succeed because I cannot succeed without his success.
My experience in private equity also helps me to bring an investor's perspective to board discussions which are critical in supporting management while staying accountable to shareholders. So, it gives you a culture of communication and connection with those who invest. That's what I now do with our shareholders to keep them informed and to develop a relationship with them so that they don't feel disconnected with the day-to-day, and you could see it today at the AGM. Some of the smaller shareholders that I haven't had the privilege of spending time with voiced their frustrations about getting more information. I have high hopes on our ability to keep improving with that.