How Nigerian Techpreneurs can scale their businesses globally – Tunde Mo’Aguda
Let’s get to meet you sir, tell us about your self and your background
My name Tunde Moses Aguda. I can describe myself as a serial entrepreneur. For more than two decades I have been involved in web design and development, fabrication and product development etc. I studied quantity surveying at Yaba College of Technology, Yaba- Lagos State after my secondary education at FGC Ilorin.
From childhood, I have always had a keen interest in innovative projects and creating an enterprise from ideas. Over the years, I have always been committed to numerous projects that has seen me create lots of synergy with people with shared values. I am the co founder and CTO to Brandmydp project, zignature.co, eInvites app and flexwox. All these are original Nigerian ideas to the world.
You obviously have done remarkably well in all your ventures. What were the initial challenges you faced in the beginning and can you share your source of inspiration.
Just like any other entrepreneur from this part of the world, you would come across lots of challenges that would test your mettle. The truth is, if you are not broken In the initial period, you have the potential to pivot into any level of success you work hard for. The challenges are common from initial funding for a start up, high cost of materials for production and more.
One of my main source of inspiration should be my Dad. He’s always supported my entrepreneurial pursuit from day one and has also taught me a few tricks along the way.
Your kind of profession would need lots of research, how do you stay on top of industry trends?
One of the things you’d need to have as a successful entrepreneur is the ability to know how to process vital information relevant to your craft. Because I have the mindset of being global in my aspirations and also be in tune with global practices, I stay tuned in to notifications from online and even offline platforms that share insights on information relevant for my upward progression.
In Nigeria and most countries in Africa, there is an emergence of companies with tech driven solutions and also a rise in tech communities. How do you think this trend can be sustained and what are the pros and cons ?
Nigeria and Africa has experienced a transition into a new level of progression that requires that we keep exploring all the possibilities and making best use of opportunities. We are blessed with a lot of talent that need to be harnessed and used for the optimum benefit of the society. The Tech evolution is providing that and bringing new and better ways to drive processes in solving common issues.
We have to sustain it by maintaining a high level of professionalism and also have a government that is intentional about creating policies that would aid the growth of these initiatives. We have to make sure that organizations that play in this space are well structured and have good corporate governance embedded in their value system.
Are you involved in any community initiative that helps to horn the skills of young entrepreneurs and what kind of advice would you give to start ups
Well, we always aspire to give back to the community and support projects that provide value to the society through many of our initiatives. My advice to start ups would always be for them to show a lot of tenacity and professionalism in every stage of their business. The objective should always be consistency of purpose.
What should Nigerians and the rest of the world expect from you in future.
Like I said earlier, we aspire to take our values globally and ensure we keep contributing to the development of the society.