Meet the young African women creating impact through international consultancy
International consultants working on finding sustainable solutions for social-economic problems on the continent, are more and more often roles fulfilled by our own young and brightest. Meet three young inspiring ladies from Kenya, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe who made their way into Dalberg – a firm that is rapidly expanding across the continent – to contribute to social impact and sustainable development through consulting work. Edel Were is a Consultant and Co-Lead of the Youth Employment and Education Practice at Dalberg Advisors. The 27-year-old is based in the Nairobi office and has been in Dalberg for 3 years. Within her time at Dalberg, she has built a range of experience in the youth employment and education space in Africa. Her work has supported the Conrad N. Hiltonn Foundation, MasterCard Foundation, Government of Rwanda, NGO’s and more. Christelle Nayandi is 23 years old and she recently joined Dalberg Advisors as an analyst. Prior to this, she worked on different social impact-focused projects in Africa. She was a research assistant in the Appropriate Point of Care Diagnostics project in Kumasi, Ghana, where her and her teammates conducted research on Pediatric Tuberculosis in hospitals and generated ideas on appropriate point of care diagnostic devices using available resources. Fadzai Chitiyo joined Dalberg as an Analyst in the Johannesburg office in 2017 and has made immense strides in her career, having been promoted twice in less than two years! She is now Strategy Consultant at Dalberg, with broad development sector expertise across agriculture, financial inclusion, healthcare, mobile for development, impact investing and inclusive business growth. She has conducted several businesses cases and go-to-market strategies for banks in DRC, Uganda and Zambia. In this interview, Edel , Christelle, and Fadzai share their tips of how to get your foot into the door with an international consultancy firm while in your twenties. Tell us about the competitive route towards being hired by a global consultancy… Chrisetelle: It involved a lot of hours spent on studying for case interviews, practicing and honing my structured problem-solving skills. Fadzai: Next to the case studies, consultancies are hiring more and more for company culture and global fit, with some building relationships with specific clubs or faculties on university campuses. It is a good idea to join some of these clubs, so you can gain exposure to current employees at the consultancy you are interested in, whilst also positioning yourself well to be a potential candidate Edel:I had expressed within my network my interest to engage in actionable problem solving, especially in the development sector, therefore people gave me guidance and how to prepare. I hadn’t really been exposed to consulting before, so resources such as this and this, but also videos like this one, really helped me. [bctt tweet=”Before you become a consultant, practice the skills, apply for internships and if that’s not possible read up on case studies and how to solve them – Edel Were” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] How did you land your job at an international company like Dalberg? Chrisetelle: I got to learn about Dalberg’s amazing work through an information session at my university. I also got the chance to attend a talk hosted by a partner in one of the African offices. I made the effort to reach out people who work in consulting to seek preparation tips, connect to people currently working in Dalberg and being very proactive about it. Fadzai: A former Desmond Tutu Leadership fellow who saw my potential for a consulting career and introduced me to the firm. The introduction was a first step, but I really had to prove myself in the interviews to land the job through three case study interviews with senior staff and partners from the Africa offices. Edel: I met someone who worked at Dalberg and got interested in the company as it matched my desire to work in the social impact space. Even though they didn’t have any vacancies at the time, I tried to build my experience by doing several internships and jobs in the development space and applied once a position opened. [bctt tweet=”Want to work with an international consultancy firm while in your twenties? Edel, Christelle and Fadzai share some tips…” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] In your opinion, what are the pros and cons of life as a consultant? Christelle: Working as a consultant is great because you get to work on many projects in different sectors and areas. But traveling often can be challenging because you don’t usually get a lot of time to spend with family and friends back home. Fadzai: The exposure to some of the top executives and development leaders on the continent or globe position you well to take your career anywhere you like. However, life as a consultant is also a life on the road. It is important you ensure you can achieve some work life balance and maintain the relationships that matter in your life. Edel: Working with people who are constantly refining their problem-solving skills has helped me build my skills and knowledge quite quickly. I work in a variety sectors (health, education, agriculture, energy etc.). At the same time, it can be difficult to specialize in one sector or practice area as you’re expected to a be a generalist. [bctt tweet=”Life as a consultant is also a life on the road. Ensure that you achieve some work life balance – Fadzai Chitiyo” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Have you worked on any projects which contributed to the overall development of Africa? Christelle: As I recently joined, I am working on my first project! The bulk of my work involves doing a market assessment for an international education institution here in Rwanda. I do this in order to identify needs and gaps in the market and see how it can better position itself to address them. Fadzai: My most exciting project was to design and develop a commercial business case and go-to-market strategy for a leading bank in Zambia. They wanted to reach 30,000 small holder farmers with business financial services for them to graduate
Vaida Odongo: You can start a business anytime with the right mindset
Contrary to what many people and businesses might think, investing in your brand online is not just about spending money on the brand. Instead, it’s about building an entity that will resonate with your customers and keep them coming back again and again—even when there’s no deal or promotion to entice them. Who is Vaida? Vaida Odongo is a young woman living in Nairobi who’s passionate about empowering women and leveraging on technology for sustainable development. She studied Gender and development studies while in university but came to love marketing after a short stint working as a trainer in the Google Digify Bytes Program that was being implemented by Livity Africa, a youth-focused nonprofit based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Vaida loves seeing businesses grow and coming up with strategies to solve various business challenges. “You might be having a challenge with selling a product online, what I do is that I sit down and look at all the possible solutions that might help solve the problem then we choose one that works. I love the adrenaline rush that comes with brainstorming”. “I have always been interested in empowering women. When I was younger, my dream was to work in an NGO that would enable me directly work with women. I hadn’t figured out yet what exactly I wanted to do when I actually landed the job, but I knew things would become clearer with time. [bctt tweet=”When you empower a woman, you empower the society – @vaida_odongo” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Fast forward almost ten years later, I have found myself working with women though not in an NGO. I now help women brand and market their products and services online. I am very passionate about helping women grow and sustain their businesses because I believe that when you empower a woman, you empower the society.” Why Digital Marketing? “The world is increasingly going digital. With more than half the population using online platforms such as social media, companies are now forced to look at how they can leverage these platforms. The social space is set to grow and there’s a need for training so that the teams which are set on marketing online have the capacity to do so”. What does your work involve? My work involves training women-led business and enterprises on branding online. This means creating a brand story that their online audience will be attracted to. I have been working on this for the last two years and I’m loving it every day. My pieces of training are conducted over a one to two-day period and tailor-made to fit a customer’s needs. [bctt tweet=” I love the adrenaline rush that comes with brainstorming – @vaida_odongo” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Whether you are in beauty, fashion, construction or advocacy, I have the right curriculum to help you amplify your online voice. I also help companies come up with strategies that will help amplify their voices online. I also offer mentorship sessions to my clients. Maybe along the road the strategy we picked might not work, I’ll come in again and we’ll come up with another one. I also offer refresher training to me customers for free. My aim is getting their businesses to grow so we do whatever it takes to make sure this happens. To empower more businesses to grow, I also offer pro bono services to customers who are just venturing into business and need some advice. I do this because at the beginning some people just need to know different ways they can market their products and services. When building your online brand, you need to: Make sure you understand your audience, their needs, and why they interact with you. Create an online persona that is fun and captivating at the same time. Be consistent. Make sure you post when you are supposed to. Take time to appreciate your customers e.g. through give away. Remember to have fun. Captivating your audience is trial and error. Have fun while at it. How do you manage your business? Being your own boss is a challenge because most of the time, you never know when to stop and take a break. I have learned to schedule myself so that I have enough time to catch my breath and relax. Also, I enjoy reading and watching animated movies and cartoons. I also love cooking and discovering how I can use different spices and herbs from all over the world in my food. What is your advice for young women who are looking to venture into Digital Marketing? My advice to young women out there is that you can start a business anytime and with the right mindset, you can take it to the next. Becoming a digital marketing expert requires you to do a lot of research to know what’s happening in the online space. Remember that deciding to be your own boss doesn’t mean lots of free time on your hands. You have to be willing work overtime because most of the time you will have to do everything on your own without a cheering squad. If you’d like to share a story with us at She Leads Africa, share your story us here.