Working with the Best Corporate Communications team in Africa- Some useful experience

Developing your career in Ghana can be very challenging especially if you don’t meet the right people who will nurture you to make an informed decision and most importantly set you on a very fulfilling career path.

Fortunate enough, I had the rare opportunity to working with one of the best Corporate Communications Team in Africa. In that team, no one was a junior. We recognized everyone as “managers and directors” though there were hierarchies. Equal support and equal respect were common. It was a team that openly discuss personal life experience to professional experience to inspire all. Fitting into that team was easy and welcoming.

Tigo Corporate Communication team is an embodiment of a strong corporate engine that strive on projects brewed from ideas of every single member of the team.

As a new addition, the introductory meeting challenged me and to a large extent questioned all the course learnt at the university. It was swift, challenging and refreshing at the same time. It seemed like the whole company was folding up that day.

“Michael, any update from end? Alex what are we doing for staff? I think, this idea is not exciting enough… Team! We have until close of day to come up with something exciting for this product” Those were some firm words from Gifty Bingley, our Corporate Communication Director in my first early morning Monday team Briefing meeting.

In fact, I had no idea what was going on, I was blanked and confused but maintained my calm.

“… and I want us to understand that in Telcos, you are as good as your last job” she concluded.

These words reverberated with me throughout my stay with the team. In every project, I locked it up this phrase. I have got some impression to create, I have a career to build and my journey to that is as far as walking from Accra to Kumasi. This got me started. Always having the end in mind and acting as though I will be shown the exit gate on the same day.

The team was compact and ready to support to see me through my career, Michael Sarpong Bruce, Our Social responsibility Manager, once told me “Josh, if you want to make an impact, whatever you do own it”. Another punchline. I said to myself, I have got nothing to own, I didn’t create this, and it was there before I came. This is the dilemma most of us face. How do we make existing work our own? Remember, it is no crime to own something you can easily be identified with.

As hungry as I was with work, I took up the challenge, every work I was made to do. I added some flair and innovation to it. I believe it made an impact in the team though some were challenging.

There were some key things that underlined our success. Our flawless execution. You can do all the coordination, up and downs, leg works but if you fail to deliver as planned on the day. It is zero. No matter the turn out. This was the benchmark to the success.

Flawless teamwork. No one was an island. We worked together regardless of our portfolios. Critiquing works and ideas that brought out the best. If a team lead fails, we all receive the criticism. I remember a distorted picture I took. That day I wished I could turn back the hand of time and hold the camera again to take a good picture. Of course, I took the blame and I admitted I was unprofessional on that. I was criticized and it got to the whole team. Since then, everyone in the office looked at any picture I took before it goes external. Guess what? It made me a good photooo.

Flawless gain celebration. We won numerous awards and we celebrated as such. I ate cakes until I needed no more. The gains were overwhelming which positively impacted the company. The celebration gave the team reasons to always fight for more. And personally gave me a passion I have not had for a long time.

Flawless feedback. This is something that was common. No matter how successful we were on a particular project, we still found something to critique. These feedback worked so well that we always tried to patch up our work so no one will have anything to say. This made us better project executioners no matter the timeline.

Team Flawless it was. If I go on, I won’t end this article. Let me specially thank the team, for the opportunity to learn from them.

The learning has not ended, my new Boss, Shirley Tony Kum is another gem who doesn’t settle for less. Skewing the best out of me and I am loving it already.

“Joshua, don’t stop reading, read, read” that was part of my farewell message from Gifty. Still reading though.