Self-promotion is a vital tool for any career advancement. In order for people to grow in their career, they need to be visible and promote their skills and expertise. Studies have found that women promote themselves less often in the workplace. According to a National Bureau of Economic Research paper, women graded themselves lower than their actual capabilities on test performances even though they had good average scores. Minimized self-promotion, visibility, and ratings have affected women in terms of pay and roles in the work place.

africon constantly drives initiatives towards women empowerment within the company, and this month, we invited Ms. Roshni Walia, who is a Chief of Staff at Maisha Meds, to share some vital tips on encouraging women towards active self-promotion at work. The event had Ms.Tei Mukunya (CEO of NatureLock and an advisory board member at africon), and the wonderful women of africon in attendance.

After the discussion, we were able to break limitations around the perception of self-promotion, thereby encouraging the women to use their voices more. As most companies are now working virtually, self-promotion is even more difficult to actualize. We have been addressing this through consistent support and reassurance towards our women, and we will continue to help them grow their potentials at work.

Africa is considered an emerging continent that offers businesses various opportunities to invest successfully. In order to help German small and medium sized enterprises (the “Mittelstand”) to enter the African markets, the BRS Institute at the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences (HBRS), africon GmbH, the Federal Association of Medium-Sized Enterprises (BVMW) and Nexia International released the “Mittelstandsindex Afrika” (SME Index Africa).

Just recently, the AfrikaContact-Magazin ran a feature on the “Mittelstandsindex“ . africon was able to share the application of the index in the context of our client projects. Some of the questions we answered addressed the importance of the index for companies and how to use it for successful country prioritization.

Download the magazine and read more about some insights we shared.

Learn more about the Mittelstandsindex here.

africon prides itself on having a highly skilled team who is instrumental in implementing all our projects in our key sectors. With our philosophy of “bridging potentials“ where we consult the management of global companies on their Africa strategy (beginning with their market entry until the local implementation) we are strengthening our team in West Africa.

Omegie Momoh, who is based in Nigeria, joined the team as a Business Analyst in March. She studied Accounting in her bachelor’s degree from the University of Essex. Prior to joining africon, Omegie consulted for both international and local companies in sectors such as consumer goods, oil and gas, financial technology, digital media and logistics. Omegie will support in the execution of projects locally in Nigeria. She has already began doing in-depth market research and analysis, strategy development and partner identification among other activities.

“I am a believer in Africa’s economic potential and therefore, I am very excited to work on projects that could spearhead economic development in the continent. I believe working with africon will be an exciting and positively challenging experience that will bring about growth in my career,” Omegie says

To see more of our team members, see our team page.

africon has been strengthening its team including the advisory board which constitutes professionals with unparalleled skills and experience. The board embodies significant long-term Africa understanding and guides africon in its current growth phase. It contributes ideas, networks and local know-how. Therefore, africon is very pleased to add another member, Uzodinma (Uzo) Ezimora, to the board.

 Mr. Ezimora has 22 years’ experience in the launch and development of B2B sales networks in Africa, international business development and technology project execution. He has vast experience in key industries like energy and manufacturing sectors across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. His areas of expertise are in industrial sales, market development, business strategy and organizational design.

Uzo holds an MBA in International Business from the Ecole des Ponts Business School in Paris, France, and a double degree in Management Accounting and International Trade from the University of Hamburg in Germany and the EDC Business School in Paris.

He was formerly an Executive Director at General Electric in Nigeria and has held various leadership positions at General Electric Company, ArcelorMittal SA, KPMG Business Advisory Services UK, and KPMG Consulting France.

 “I am excited and honoured to join africon’s Advisory Board in its drive to support the development of business in Africa and with Africa. Despite numerous challenges globally, this decade is also a moment of great opportunity for those who recognize the potentials and understand the environment of the world’s largest untapped market”, Mr. Ezimora notes.

africon looks forward to a continuous exchange with the advisory board to support the growth of the company.