Chijioke Obuna: Keeping Up The Pace

 

For Chijioke Obuna there are rarely two days in a row that are the same. “My workdays go in cycles; it depends on what phase of the financial cycle we are in. That will dictate exactly what I’m doing at any given time,” he explains. “Working in two different offices means I have to move quickly to keep up. There are many reports to get ready, and challenges, like the systems themselves, that need to be dealt with.”

Chijioke currently works for MTN Uganda. He has been with MTN over seven years. His initial work experience, after graduating from the university in Nigeria with a degree in finance, was with Arthur Andersen where he was involved in Audit and Tax advisory services and then Standard Trust Bank. “For me the main difference between working in a bank, and working in a telco, was that I found banking repetitious,” says Chijioke. “I have now worked in several different places in Africa, and in different departments within telcos. I find the telecommunications industry very exciting.” 

Credit management, interconnect and roaming are just few of the things included in Chijioke job description. He oversees several large teams responsible for these different services. This offers him a unique end-to-end perspective of the telco’s processes.

The penchant for fast paced, constantly changing scenarios requiring focus and agility is reflected in Chijioke’s choice of sport. He plays tennis several times a week at his club in Kampala. He is also an avid chess player. Even in his down time, Chijioke is ‘keeping up’, reading about new technologies and learning new software programs.

Chijioke is constantly upgrading his education as well. Not only does he have an MBA in finance as well as a diploma in Mobile Communications, he is also working on his MA in Economics. He is a member of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria and Institute for Credit Administration.

As part of his ongoing education, he recently attended GRAPA certification training. He took special interest in the information about wireless, SOX, and new technologies. “The training for me was exciting because, although I have attended some revenue assurance workshops before, I now have more experience on the job. The experience combined with the training has helped me to better understand the concepts we discussed and to envision how everything fits into the over all picture.”