Yemi Gbeja – General Manager, Supply Chain & Business Development
Tell us about yourself and the leadership role you occupy.
I’m a graduate of Industrial Chemistry with a master’s degree in Exploration Geophysics from the University of Lagos, an alumna of the Lagos Business School’s Modular Executive MBA; the Africa Immersion program of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and W. P. Carey School of Business, Arizona State University, USA.
I have over twenty years’ experience in oil and gas traversing the downstream and upstream sectors. I am responsible for driving the Supply Chain, Business Development and Major Projects results in BOG, interfacing with a wide network of internationally renowned OEMs, suppliers and clients.
I am a personal development and self-leadership advocate, raising socially responsible boys and inspiring women to take responsibility for their success.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned as a leader?
I have learnt that leadership starts with you. Self-leadership precedes public influence or team leadership. If you cannot influence or lead yourself effectively, you are not a leader and therefore you do not qualify to lead others. Effective self-leadership is the foundation of effective people leadership, followed closely by visionary leadership. God demonstrated both in the beginning (Gen1:1). This is proof that leadership starts with you.
How do you balance leading a team with your other responsibilities?
As humans, we juggle many balls, and I dare say that humans were inherently designed to multi-task. It is not an exclusive skill for women as many mythically propound.
I lead by doing, more than telling. I go the way and show the way, having first understood the way. Understanding the way for me is the foundation and it’s critical because you cannot give what you don’t have. I practice effective prioritization, delegation and creating dependable support systems at home. I’m a mum and a wife first before being an employee but it doesn’t appear so because of the strong and dependable support systems that I have. I spend my time on the most critical tasks at work and at home. I delegate the rest without abdicating. The only thing I never delegate is my personal development.
What leadership qualities do you value most?
My most valued leadership quality is learning agility. Leaders who fail to learn quickly or are too lazy and rigid will produce mediocre results, which trickle down to those they lead.
It is important to understand the dimensions of learning agility. Leaders who are learning agile, have the ability to analyze, think critically, learn from experience, and apply it to new circumstances (mental agility), they build relationships, inspire others and communicate effectively (people agility), they maintain focus, creativity, productivity, and deliver strong results (result agility), they see change as an opportunity for improvement (change agility), and they are self-aware (recognizing their strengths and weaknesses and continuously improving themselves).
Learning agility is a balance of Speed and Flexibility. Speed to learn and act quickly and the flexibility to be open to new concepts. A leader must be able to learn, unlearn, and relearn continuously, develop high order thinking and problem-solving skills.
How do you make tough decisions?
Although I portray a tough demeanor, I am a very compassionate and emotional person. The emotional Yemi, however, is relegated to the background when it comes to making tough decisions and the pragmatic Yemi takes charge. I think clearly and align my decisions with what’s most important to me – my values. No matter how tough the decision is, if it aligns with my values, I can sleep well knowing that I did right by me. This approach ensures that my actions are in harmony with my core beliefs, fostering a sense of inner peace and integrity. By staying true to my values, I build a life that reflects my principles, ultimately leading to a more fulfilling and purpose-driven existence. I accept whatever decision I make because I understand that no decision is perfect, and I’m prepared to deal with the consequences.
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a leader?
As a leader tasked with delivering sales and revenue, I have faced a lot of challenges, the biggest being achieving sales growth with limited resources and developing salespeople who left for pay increases shortly after they were trained without making any significant contributions to the organization. It’s difficult not to feel “used” in such situations but I’ve come to accept this as part of the lessons of leadership that builds resilience in us.
If you could give your younger self one piece of leadership advice, what would it be?
Grow Your Network. I didn’t think I needed people, and I never wanted to be at the mercy of anyone. I believed in my own competence, and I worked to get better every day. But I learned that being an individual contributor is the lowest level of career development; to be a leader, you must be interested in success that is beyond you, and you can’t influence people without a genuine interest in them.
Networking and Sales is essential to success in life. Selling is not only about what you know, but also whom you know. The strength of your product knowledge, skills, and experiences won’t matter if you don’t know who needs your product and can influence buying decisions in your favour.
I honestly didn’t know I could end up in sales. In fact, I deliberately avoided Sales for this reason. You can’t sell to yourself, can you? lol!
Network, meet as many people as possible and try to make a good impression. Otherwise, don’t be surprised if someone more sociable but less competent beats you.
What excites you most about the future of BOG and the industry?
The great opportunities that I see. The Bible says in Hebrews 12 that for the joy that was set before Him, Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. It further admonishes us to consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that we will not grow weary and lose heart.
Despite the challenges that we’ve faced as an organization and the cyclical industry downturn, I hear the sound of an abundance of rain! It’s here already and I want to be soaked in it. The future is bright for BOG.
How do you handle failure or setbacks in leadership?
I have a growth mindset. I don’t see failure as negative. Rather, l see it as an opportunity for learning. I take responsibility for failures, assess the root causes without looking for who to blame, make corrections where possible and focus on the future.
Leaders must create an environment where people are not afraid to fail.
Those who have never failed have missed out on learning. One of the difficult things about learning from failure is taking the pain to deconstruct but it’s essential to do so to gain from the experience before putting it in the rear-view mirror. We learn more from failures than we do from our wins, that’s a consolation.
What book, podcast, or resource has had the most impact on your leadership style?
The Bible, definitely.
Jesus’ leadership style challenges the conventional understanding of leadership. In Luke 22:26-27 “, Jesus says, “But you shall not be like them. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who leads like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines? But I am among you as one who serves.”
I lead by serving, by doing. I am very hands-on. I don’t recline at the table, dishing out commands. I get in the arena and others follow. The best books, podcasts and resources I have read on leadership got their principles from the Bible.
Conventional leadership, especially as practiced in the Nigerian political system, organizations and many parts of the world, is ineffective and cannot achieve the desired outcome.
