Having spent over 16 years in the HR/People space, one of the more recurring failures by both the business owners and employees has been with balancing what to prioritize. While it may seem intuitive to prioritize what makes you money, i.e. your products and services, over human capital, it is companies who focus on the latter who thrive in the long term.
Virgin Group’s Founder, Richard Branson quoted that “Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your clients.”
As controversial as this quote might seem to some, it actually has some truths. Here’s what I surmise.
Revenue
The bottom line is the main purpose of starting a business or taking the risk to embark on a new venture. This however cannot be achieved without good and loyal employees who recognise the vision and strive daily towards achieving the business objectives.
At AZA Finance, the vision is clearly defined and the decisions made to grow us to the business we all envisage is fully embedded in how we hire, nurture and compensate our employees. From quarterly goals set, to the strategic people-related programs, we always ensure that our operations are scalable & efficient. Our leadership constantly reiterates that people are the key to our success.
People
What drives any employee to seek out a job or take a risk with their career/future plans at any organization is usually centred around the company’s vision, success and culture. The growth possibilities and ultimately how well they would be compensated are intertwined with how some find fulfilment. Employees desire to be treated fairly, be understood, and be given room to learn, grow, and succeed.
In their search for all these, what stands out to them is primarily a company that values them and strongly believes and advocates that their overall success is tied firmly to how they treat their employees.
At AZA Finance, our daily mantra is to ‘Hone Our C.R.A.F.T.’; this is the core of our culture. Our employees are encouraged to be:
1) Customer-Centric – keep internal & external customers at the core of all our activities
2) Resilient – nothing is too hard for us to overcome;
3) Accountable – what we do and how we do what we do matters with honesty and integrity always at the forefront;
4) Flexible – be ready for change and be willing to adapt when the need arises and
5) Team players – we need each other to live the vision and bring to life all that we dream & envision.
Choosing to empower employees only makes a company’s vision, mission and goals are achieved. People over Product/Services is a sure way to success for any organization. That being said, we are always looking for people of like minds and have a couple of open roles. If you would like to be a part of AZAwatu Family, go to the careers page on our website and come join us in our vision to “Accelerate the growth of businesses in frontier markets.”
Written by:
Premo’ Ojokojo
Head of People Operations
Lagos
