The board of directors is the topmost decision making body, appointed by the shareholders (for a listed company or public entity) or owner of the business (in case of a private or family owned business). Public companies for example those listed on the Uganda Stock Exchange (USE) and those owned by Government of Uganda, must have a board of directors by law. The objective is to protect the interests of the general public and shareholders. Good boards are composed of people with diverse skills, experience and exposure to provide effective oversight for the long term success and growth. Instead of…
Making an impact
Are you are leader or top executive? To make impact, you need to master two critical skills – public speaking and awareness – general knowledge. While giving a keynote address to board of directors, my first words were: “Why is it that many community based organizations are struggling to survive?” The first time I asked the question, everyone one in the audience was quiet. Now I remembered the principle of “conformity.” People are worried of being the odd man out. Members had their name tags on; I put one of the audience members in my gaze, and said “Peter, in…
Invest your savings wisely
Let’s set the record straight – you must invest money in order to succeed. Your choice of business and entrepreneurial acumen will determine your profitability and future success. Every business has its own shortcomings and limitations. You must do homework to ascertain the impediments to your business. Is it capital or markets? Assuming you had Ugx. 5m in your bank account, which business would you invest in? There are many businesses you might consider investing in– stocks, treasury bills, real estate, mobile money agency, eatery, consulting outfit or farming. Your choice should be influenced by your availability, capital requirements and…
How to remain relevant
You probably spent over US $3,000 in 2015 alone feeding your stomach. How much did you spend on your brains? The food for the brains are intellectual discussions with others – whether experts or not, children or adults or villager. You will always learn something new. Speaking with the matron of the boarding school where I took my child yesterday, she said “I learn a lot speaking with these 10 year old, than I do with peers.” They are so brilliant that they always get from me what they want, when they want it. She added “I am learning a…
Social network era: how safe is your information assets
Below is part 1 of the presentation I made at Infosec2014 seminar on 20th August 2014 at Hotel Africana Kampala, about the risks posed by social media. This is a must read to improve your security online. The answer is: “your data is not safe” as I will demonstrate in the following five part series. Below is part 1. “How many of you know of a person who has ever died of a snake bite?” Great attempt. No one has ever died from a snake bite. They all die from the snake Vernon or poison that circulates in their bodies…
Cyber security facts and fiction, issue 1
Issue: A lawyer in Uganda is said to be threatening Facebook for meta-data and user registration details of one TVO; who has made several allegations on his Facebook page. Fact: Want to know who posts what on Facebook? It’s not that easy. And Facebook won’t give you the details, as doing so could be in contradiction with their privacy policy, at compliance level and kill their business at a strategy level. People post too much private details on their pages with a ‘psychological contract’ that the cloud host (Facebook) will respect their privacy. Globally even when national security is at…
