The Eleganza story: Wasn’t about personalities by Joseph Edgar

As expected, the trolls came at me.

“Oh Edgar, you are arrogant. You do not know Alhaji Rasaq. How dare you sit in your living room and decide what a man does with his hard work?”

“Edgar, this is why I don’t engage you. Shade saved the empire from dereliction. Since she came in, it has grown. You are being sponsored,” etc.

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Yes, I agree with the arrogant part. I find it very difficult to engage with smurfs who go emotional on issues and start baying like greyhounds.

How do you argue with a person who says, “You are just jealous of Shade. Go and do your own and hand it over to your gateman’s son”?

The issues raised in that essay are very critical to the economic growth of this country and, indeed, most countries.

The reason is simple: the survival of founder-led firms like the Eleganza Group adds a lot of positive input to economic development.

Job creation, tax revenues, infrastructural development, and community development, to mention a few.

If a company, for example, with the large workforce that the Eleganza Group carries and with its continued contributions to economic development, is allowed to go down due to a poorly articulated succession plan, the loss would be massive for the economy, and not even the Okoyas, who would still live well from rent.

Imagine the Dangote Group going down today as a result of Alhaji not putting in a proper succession plan.

It will impact our energy security, significantly reduce government tax revenues, throw thousands into the labour market, and cripple thousands of feeder SMEs who rely on it for one contract or another.

You see why it is not about Shade but about our collective interest for the giant Eleganza Group to get its succession plans right.

While talking about this succession issue, let me state here that most companies start out as family-owned or family-promoted — even in partnerships.

In partnerships, the promoters hold personal stakes and will pass them to biological heirs who either run the firms or just collect dividends.

As the concern grows and other shareholders come on board, their stakes are diluted and, in some brilliant cases like AIICO and Leadway, they make way for corporate governance at the management level, which then institutionalises succession, which in most cases impacts growth positively.

Another beautiful case is Biodun Shobanjo’s Troyka Holdings.

I recommend his biography for every serious student of succession planning.

From very humble beginnings, he and his partners built what was then known as Insight Communications into one of the biggest marketing communications platforms on the continent.

As it grew, it diversified into PR, security, and other such areas.

The moment the ship stabilised, Mr Shobanjo started putting together a succession plan, which he unlocked at retirement.

Today, Troyka is being run very effectively by a well-groomed management team that continues to push the founders’ vision.

There is nothing wrong with succession being biological, like the Fajemirokuns, the Baloguns, and the Odukales, but it must be deliberate and guided by very strong corporate governance structures and stringent capacity-building initiatives.

Otunba Balogun made sure his boys, Bolaji and Ladi, went through the rungs of tedious training before the reins were handed over to Ladi at FCMB and to Bolaji, which pushed him to emerge as one of the most influential corporate figures in the economy today.

So if Alhaji Okoya has done this with Shade, then Nigeria will be better for it. And if not, it is not too late to get advisers and consultants to immediately infuse the very best of restructuring, capacity building, and inclusive human capital initiatives that would look not only to the larger Okoya family for leadership talent but also scour the broader labour market as he strives to achieve the 100-year mark.

In conclusion, very few Nigerian companies have hit the 100-year mark. The ones that have, like Olaniwun Ajayi and others, have achieved this largely by infusing a very credible succession planning crucible.

So, my dear critics, it’s not about Shade. It’s way bigger than her and Chief Rasaq Okoya, who remains one of the most respected business icons of our time despite the wrong turn he has taken on this issue. It’s about corporate legacy and continuity.

Thanks.

Come and beat me.

Duke of Shomolu