Rolake Rosiji: COVID-19 Exposed Option of Working Remotely

 
Rolake Rosiji has 10 year-experience in strategic and operational management positions in businesses in renewable energy, FMCG and Management Consulting. She started her career as a Management Consultant in London and also worked at Arla Foods in Nigeria and around the world. Rosiji advanced through a series of international level promotions and led multi-disciplinary teams in Nigeria, UK, USA, Denmark and across West Africa.

She joined Jobberman this year as CEO after spending 2 years as Country Manager for M-KOPA Solar Nigeria Limited. At the solar energy company, Rosiji created and managed a team providing solar power kits on flexible loans to consumers in Nigeria. To do this, she led a complex digital payments system partnering with the leading fin tech businesses in Nigeria which enabled customers to make small frequent payments. The Jobberman Nigeria CEO tells Tosin Clegg about joining the firm, her work history, the essentials for job seekers, human resource and a lot more

Jobberman, a trusted brand
Jobberman has been a trusted brand in Nigeria for over 10 years.
The company has had an impressive journey since being founded by three University of Ife graduates in 2009. We have grown to 70 employees in Nigeria and currently have a database of over 60,000 employers and 2,000,000 job seekers including many large corporates such as Access Bank, Dangote, Mckinsey & Company and Main One. Jobberman partners with state governments such as Enugu State and Lagos State on job creation programmes. We work with multi-laterals such as USAID and UNICEF on large employment programmes and with parastatals like NYSC. Most notably, we have a partnership with the Mastercard Foundation to place 3 million Nigerians in jobs by 2025 and to upskill 5 million young Nigerians. We intend to add more large scale partnerships to our portfolio including the recently established Federal Government Public-Private Partnership styled Infrastructure company named Infra-Co. We are bidding to be HR Recruiters to build the Infra-co team in support of the chosen fund managers and legal partners.

Employers will find it easier to use our online platform
Employers should expect a shift in the quality of service and a faster turnaround. Using technology, employers will find it easier to use our online platform themselves to manage their recruitment needs and to sift through CVs. We will continue to expand our executive recruitment, HR consulting such as Succession Planning and Salary Reviews. Job seekers can also access our free soft skills training from online platforms like Coursera and Thinkific directly on our website after registering.

We have the largest talent database
The most significant gap in Africa’s job market is caused by low access to opportunities with a wide skill and educational gap. Government and private sector need to empower candidates to take advantage of these opportunities through education, impactful empowerment programs, and adequate funding. This will create a more inclusive job market that will provide gainful employment for Nigeria’s teeming youth population. In a broad sector like infrastructure, you will notice that while there is abundant talent in Nigeria at junior levels – we lack advanced technical talent in these areas in Nigeria and we often employ foreigners to lead these projects. Jobberman groom Nigerians who can take on multi-million dollar projects. This is what we aim to do as the HR partners for CBN and NSIA’s Infra-co programme. We have the largest talent database and advanced assessment tools to allow us to select candidates transparently.

My previous experience and my new job
I have worked in FMCG, Fintech, renewable energy, management consulting and development. I have a Master’s degree from London School of Economics, an undergraduate from Durham University UK and a Certification in Business from Stanford School of Business. This will mean Jobberman’s development will be structured, well thought out and bold. We will use technology to secure our leadership in Nigeria and will be used by people who had not considered online recruitment, HR consulting such as salary surveys and succession planning before.

Synergy between world of education and work vital
I firmly believe that there needs to be more synergy between the world of education and the world of work. Educators and employees need to work together to create young people with the skills required in the fastest growing sectors in Nigeria. I sit on the EXCO of the Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria and from feedback from companies, recruiting the right talent is a major issue. Our goal is to plug this gap through accessing talent and training them. The Federal Government, CBN & NSIA have a very competent organisation in Jobberman, available to support them here in Nigeria, in the creation of Infra-co.

Several companies have made some of their largest gains in this pandemic. In terms of technological advancement, it has drastically changed workplace dynamics and has also opened our eyes to see the possibility of working remotely yet being effective in our roles. Many have started their businesses and have become employers in this time. Sometimes setbacks are opportunities shrouded in challenges.

SMEs, other startups must leverage on technology
The world is becoming a global village and technology is fast becoming a major tool for business growth. SMEs and other startups can leverage it across all business processes. They can also use the online platform to manage the jobs they’re recruiting for and to manage their candidates. I encourage SMEs and start-ups that probably don’t have massive funds to use our online platform for recruitment and talent management. Jobberman also provides free soft skills courses on our platform via Coursera and Thinkific. We also ensure candidates or employees take a test after the course. We use over 600 assessment tools to identify the best candidates for employers.

Young professionals must have a vision
I believe it is essential to have a vision as a young professional.
Know what you’re passionate about and focus on becoming the best at it. I love the line from the Mary Oliver poem: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life”. If you don’t have a job yet, put yourself out there. We are a great platform to start your job search as we provide opportunities to connect you to employers. We will also train you on soft skills so that when you meet employers you have an added advantage. You also have to self-promote. We live in a very competitive world where you cannot be shy about your accomplishments, learn to promote yourself especially when you meet new people. Invest in personal development, hone your skills, get more certifications. The corporate world is often harsh to women, so, if you’re a lady, be excellent in your field, give them something more to talk about, other than your gender.