How A Trip To Chicken Republic Sealed His Fate In Insurance
Ola’s career could have ended at errands to Chicken Republic but the M.D. said NO. He tells us about his internship experience, Casava’s impact on him, and his advice for startup newbies.
What was school like for you?
I studied at the Yaba College of Technology. It was a nice experience that went by pretty quickly.
Sweet! So what happened next?
So some of my course requirements included a three-month internship, and then a one-year internship.
I wanted to do my three-month internship at FBN General Insurance because my uncle knew the M.D.
When that didn’t work out because the FBN took too long to get back to me, I went to work at the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). It was a wonderful experience.
When it was time for the one-year internship, there was an opportunity for me at FBN.
Finally! How did it go at FBN?
It was absolutely brilliant actually!
I think working at FAAN prior made me appreciate the environment at FBN more. The way work is done at a government institution is totally different from how it’s done at a private institution.
Managers sending interns on errands to buy food for them was a thing. None of the managers asked me to go and buy food for them but there was always a possibility.
It stopped when the M.D. noticed that a particular intern was going to Chicken Republic up to three times a day. He was bothered so he called the intern and asked him why he was eating that much.
The intern then explained to him that a manager sent him to go and buy the food. That evening, the M.D. called a meeting with all managers and sternly instructed them never to send interns on errands again.
Through that incident, nearly 80% of all of us who were interns that year began actual careers in insurance because we actually got involved in insurance work and were impacted.
All thanks to Chicken Republic lol
Yeah, all thanks to Chicken Republic for real.
How do you find working at insurance companies?
So far in the insurance space, I have worked at Sanlam and a broker called SCIB Nigeria and Co., arguably the biggest broking firm in the country.
I worked at SCIB for two years then I moved to Sanlam where I worked for another three years.
Now, I’m at Casava. I've basically done a broker, an insurance company, and now an Insurtech. I have a very rich career.
And a rich bank account lol
I don’t know about that, oh.
So how did you get to Casava?
I have a friend who had worked at Casava before me. When I received an email from the HR team at Casava about my current role, I messaged my friend to find out if he knew anything about it.
He said he was the one who forwarded my CV to the HR team and told me more about the company. The rest is history.
Friends that put you on >>> What was your interview process like?
So the first two interviews were virtual and then I had a physical one. When I walked in, I liked Casava’s office space. When I saw the size of the team, it scared me a bit because I had worked at traditional organizations prior.
I knew what to expect and I also wanted that challenge. I just thought that Casava was cool and after my conversation with the COO, I left thinking ‘Let’s give this a shot.’
So, this is your first start-up. How different has the experience been?
The difference is massive actually. In traditional companies, there is a structure that gives clear expectations for everyone there. You know exactly what you're going to do every day.
Startups on the other hand are a bit more chaotic in the sense that everything is still being built and you are part of that process. So you’ll have to advocate more for the things you believe in, there is a lot of experimentation, and you just figure a lot of things out by yourself until it works.
But yeah, everything is different. Even the management style is different.
That sounds exciting. What do you enjoy the most about working at Casava?
I think the challenge that I envisioned is what I like the most about working at Casava. You don’t know what problem you’ll be resolving today or what team you’ll be collaborating with tomorrow to launch something new.
I think the spontaneity at Casava is something I look forward to and it has stretched me. I have had to go out of my comfort zone several times.
Before I joined Casava, I wasn't a natural at sales but now, I’m considering sales because I’ve had to engage people and I think I’m good at it.
It’s simply because I’ve had to do it sometimes at Casava.
I was on my way to play football one evening when someone threw a basketball in my direction for me to take a shot. I just watched the ball roll away because my rationale was I don’t play basketball so there was no need to try and catch it.
That’s an example of how I don’t engage with what I don’t already know. You can’t do that at Casava because when the task demands for you to do something new, you find creative ways to execute it. And I consider myself to be a creative person so yeah, working at Casava has made me more creative in my approach to problem solving.
That’s amazing Ola. Finally, what’s your advice for people transitioning from traditional companies to startups?
Hmm… I haven't really thought about that before but from my experience so far, I’ll say you first need to be ready to change your mindset.
Your mindset drives everything so if you're stuck with the traditional mindset, you will struggle. Adjust your mindset to adapt to any new organization or industry you find yourself in. That way, you are ready for anything and everything.
Secondly, you need to keep an open mind and be flexible. Traditional organizations set you on a clear career path and it’s easy to feel like you can’t do other things excellently. Startups challenge you to rediscover yourself so you can harness skills you might not have realized that you had.
It might be overwhelming at first and that could be frustrating but if you have an open mind and are flexible, you’ll be alright.
Solid advice! Thank you Ola
That’s what I do. You are welcome lol.
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