Taking Time to Sharpen The Axe

This phrase was part of a profound analogy shared by Absa Bank Uganda’s Executive Director and Head of Markets, David Wandera, during an engagement with colleagues at our branch in Jinja last week.?

While speaking to the importance of taking the time to improve their skills and the different options available at Absa, David used the example of a person chopping wood.?

He said the Axe’s blade eventually gets blunt, necessitating the logger to take a step back and sharpen it before resuming the task.?

I loved this analogy because it not only highlighted the importance of learning to us, as an employer - which resulted in our recent recognition for having the best practices in Learning and Development under the Prudential Best HR Practices Survey for 2021, and as a Top Employer in Africa by the Top Employers Institute - it also perfectly explained the purpose of the week-long trip to Eastern Uganda.?

The trip created a very critical opportunity for the bank’s top leadership to interact with the dedicated teams that work hard to execute the bank’s strategy, and in so doing, reinvigorate our strategic execution.?

Our People Function Director – Sylvia Mulomi, Credit Director - Guy Lutaaya, Retail Director – Musa Jallow and Business Banking Director – Albert Byaruhanga, Head of Corporate Real Estate – Peter Paul Emaju, Head of Customer Network – Ronald Kamulegeya, and I together visited branches and customers in Lugazi, Jinja, Tororo, Mbale and Soroti.?

We expressed gratitude for their great work and listened to their feedback regarding how best we can continue to provide solutions for our customers, in addition to emphasising the importance of self-leadership and personal development, encouraging the colleagues to take charge of their growth through the different channels available at Absa.?

I was continuously impressed by the valuable insights shared by the Directors and the rest of the travelling party throughout the engagements.?

While visiting the branch in Soroti, for example, our Business Banking Director – Albert – intimated that his career in banking began at that exact branch in Soroti – back in 2002 when it was still called Nile Bank – and he showed us the exact booth he was stationed.?

He went ahead to share his career trajectory as it has progressed and spoke passionately about being selective in the pursuit of career growth.?

Musa Jallow, our Retail Banking Director, said that if he was not performing at his task and a colleague sought the intervention of his superior, he (Musa) would not feel slighted, but understand that the colleague is being a warrior for the customer, which is their job.?

To me, this was a great example of humility in leadership and an exercise in showing colleagues that they are empowered and should be relentless towards delivering the very best customer experience – and to always centre a customer-first approach in all that they do.?

As a person that is very passionate about customer service, the trip allowed me to share this passion with the teams on the ground and meet other like-minded individuals spread out across our operations.?

We are an organisation that values our people as our strength and are driven by the commitment to constantly prioritise their empowerment, wellbeing, learning and development.?

I wholeheartedly believe that leaders need to be accessible to their teams and have regular engagements with them.?

As such, I am glad that we are a group of colleagues that understand the assignment and demonstrate the qualities necessary to grow and develop the next generation of leaders within the bank – ensuring that the “Absa Axe” is always sharp.?