Basic HTML Version
52 | The Lion King
The Award
I
was pleasantly surprised when I got a
mail informing me of my nomination as
the ‘Individual with the highest low cost
incremental deposit in Africa’ at the UBA
CEO Awards 2012. I could not believe my
eyes. It was after my supervisor, MD and
COO congratulated me that I realised
that the award is for real!
I have never received any Award or
recognition of this magnitude before, so
I was quite nervous and very expectant
of the Award. What would I wear? How
would I receive the Award? These were
some of the questions that ran through
my mind because I wanted to make an
impression.
I travelled to Nigeria the night before
the Awards and my excitement knew
no bounds as I could hardly wait for the
show to start. When I got to the venue,
the first thing that caught my attention
was the amount of glitz and glamour
around the red carpet entrance. It was
truly beyonds words. I thought to myself
‘Wow! This award is big’. I felt blessed and
highly honoured to be in the gathering of
eminent personalities such as our GMD,
the Bank’s directors and Mr. Tony Elumelu
who I admire so much.
The ceremony itself can best be
described as world class; full of pomp
and pageantry. The music, drinks, jokes
and laughter as we were entertained by
some of Africa’s finest artistes made me
feel good. I was treated like a star before
and after receiving my award.
How did I Achieve this?
I have always believed in God and in
myself with a burning desire to succeed
in anything I do. Our former MD, Mr. Soni
Anwal, used to say that whatever you
ask Mother Nature to do for you, coupled
with hard work, is bound to happen.
Competition has always been a
motivating factor for me. This is one of the
main reasons why I won the award. The
little things you do that give you an edge
in the environment you compete are
what you should concentrate on. This has
really worked for me. Excellent customer
service has been the hallmark of my
career so far. Deadlines should be met,
promises must be fulfilled. Owing to this
focus, I have been receiving numerous
referrals from most of my customers.
In addition, I usually try to identify the
resources that would help me achieve
my targets such as ensuring everybody is
my friend especially if our jobs interrelate.
Being able to talk to one’s supervisor and
colleagues freely makes one’s job easier
and more fruitful. Knowledge of the
Bank’s products and operations has also
been of great help to me.
Finally, I was able to drive low cost
deposit growth through prompt cash
collections and great customer service!
Thomas Matturi is a Relationship Manager in Wholesale Banking Division of UBA Sierra Leone
Sharing Experiences
My Experience at the
2012 UBA CEO Awards
by Thomas Matturi