A global non-profit was keen to set up operations across East Africa, charting their course along new avenues confirmed for development. Starting with Nairobi their dream was to expand across the region - all with local leadership and as quickly as possible.

This required building a strong foundation with systems, processes, and training to support rapid expansion as well as designing and implementing a business model that could both scale quickly and adapt quickly to nuances and needs in other parts of the region.

Alongside all this externally-visible activity, was a strong drive and desire to ensure the right company culture was cultivated in order to scale for faster growth, one that embraced flat organizational charts and empowered local decision making.

Today they have 20+ thriving operations across 6 East African countries.

A client was seeking advice on their bid to move out-of-gauge equipment to the Port of Palma in northern Mozambique. When asked when they’d last visited the area, they said they’d never actually been; they were sourcing their data for this multi-million-dollar project from Google Earth. As I showed them my pictures of Palma, a quaint fishing village of only a few hundred inhabitants and no port within hundreds of miles – it grew very quiet on the call.

Ignorance is costly, both in terms of money, and in terms of your reputation. Imagine if they would have submitted a tender based on some fictitious port that didn’t exist.

Thankfully, we not only came up with a feasible plan but also convinced them to first actually visit the area themselves because there are no better witnesses, than your own eyes.

For their first foray into Africa, a client wanted to bring experts and equipment to build roads and bridges in a landlocked country in Africa.

We worked from the initial understanding of the client’s current status, capabilities, and goals; developing their appetite and knowledge of on-the-ground realities; building in-house and local bandwidth; and providing a clear assessment of the capital requirements. The end result was a bespoke market entry strategy and operationalization plan.

Market overviews, an understanding of real versus perceived risks, competitive analysis, product-market fit assessments, and a host of other services such as designing their supply chain routes, ensured the client had all the intelligence they needed to take their idea from paper to reality.

Over 20 years of multiple CEOs had resulted in an organization where growth had stalled and turnover was high. Brought on as their Board President for 2 years I spent the first 6 weeks listening and asking questions and found a staff that seemed directionless, a company whose vision and direction was unclear, which was exacerbated by lack of guidelines, policies or culture.

Getting everyone together and agreeing on what the company stood for and where they should focus their efforts started the journey. This was followed by board members, staff and subject matter experts jointly drafting a vision and strategy along with policies that reinforced the desired focus and culture of transparency and equity.

An all-hands workshop on organizational management and change outlined the different roles and responsibilities of the board vis-à-vis the c-suite and staff with plenty of time for Q&A.

Today this country organization is not only back on a growth path, but has become the model for their sister country organizations across southern Africa.

An international organization was excellent in its on-the-ground services to the local communities made up mostly of refugees, but moving fuel was out of their scope of expertise. A civil war was further hindering the supply of diesel and jet aviation fuel to their 20+ locations, sometimes bringing their their operations to a standstill.

Route surveys identified new entry points, multi-modal transport solutions and took into consideration rainy season. Internationally-compliant storage solutions were built at each site further ensuring continual accessibility to fuel.

Not only did the organization never go one day without fuel, but more than 90% of the 450 employees are local nationals.

Having the right local leadership in place ensures companies maintain their leadership edge.

For one client keen to expand rapidly into and across the continent of Africa, I designed a leadership development program that took into account their specific industry and the realities on the ground in Africa.

Industry best-practices were combined with in-house developed materials to create customized curriculums. Train the Trainers sessions were conducted locally in the language(s) of the country allowing local staff to raise up and teach courses as well as develop new materials.

Today, the programs and activities are providing a steady stream of local talent driving dramatic business results.

A Fortune 500 company was facing a challenge repairing its equipment in West Africa. Whenever a piece of equipment went down, the business owner lost money and the reputation of the manufacturer was damaged. However where should their spare parts hub be built?

My APPEAR model guided us we assessed multimodal transport options, local storage options, turn around times, costs of duties and taxes, and how trade agreements could impact business operations.

Two countries offered cost-effective storage and the quickest and cheapest import and export of spare parts. The final choice was made by their board.

From a client’s first look at the market, I provide the facts, figures and contacts needed to make an investment decision. Often this includes finding the right local partner – be that to provide equity, be a shareholder or simply a supplier or service provider.

One client worked in an industry and country where a local partner was a legal requirement. Another client wanted local representation prior to setting up their own operations, while a third company always opted for local shareholders.

In each case, local, reputable, knowledgeable partners were identified who not only add value but have “skin in the game”. Many of the most effective and scalable businesses across Africa are developed and delivered through partnerships between local and international entrepreneurs and businesses.