During festivities, many people lock their houses and spend the night out with friends as they celebrate. On the last day of 1998, residents of a gated community locked their houses and went out to Sheraton to bid farewell to the old year. However, an old lady living in one of the houses did not move out. She stayed behind. The new year, 1999, was considered to be the last year of the world. Stories abound that the world would come to an end on the last day of 1999. To some people who believed in some cult-like religions, they…
Corporate social responsibility of street cleaning: damn stupid leadership
Disclaimer: if you are the kind of person who gets irritated easily, do not read this blog. It contains an opinion that may inadvertently annoy you. Thanks. Ring. Ring. I accept the call. “Mustapha, how is your day tomorrow? Can you join us for our corporate social responsibility event? We shall be cleaning the street early morning.” Since the caller is a close friend, I thank him for thinking about me. “This is a great initiative. Unfortunately, cleaning the street is not my current expertise. However, I could contribute Ugx. 100,000 towards the cause.” “No. You don’t get it. We…
Do you prepare for board meetings?
All board members should come to the meeting well briefed. You have probably witnessed a board meeting where members are not adequately prepared to make a meaningful contribution. As members enter the boardroom, they find board paper files on the desk. As the chairman calls the meeting to order, the board member is busy reading through the board papers! One wonders what kind of contribution can such a board member make. At one of the boards, the board chair required members to book contribution space on any item on the agenda. This forced members to read the board packs. During…
Is your board empowering you?
The issue Majority of Board members add little impact on the organizations they serve. Even worse, they act counter-intuitive to their mandate. In the end, they add minimal, if any impact on the organizations. Many board members bring dysfunction as their practices make it difficult for executive management to do their work. The cause Few board members have clarity of their role and mandate of the board. My personal experience is that it is difficult for a board member to make an impact in any company if the majority board members lack adequate skills, training, and exposure on the role…
How to be a fantastic MC at a corporate function, Part 1
The Institute of Corporate Governance of Uganda held a public lecture on 8th August 2019. I was the event MC. This being my third time, I was very excited. As usual, I first researched all over the Internet about what makes a fantastic master of ceremony (MC). It is not easy to find such practical information on the Internet. Great resources are restricted. You are either a member or must first pay to subscribe to access the resources. Below are the insights to help you shine at your next gig. You have been nominated or selected to MC at an…
Building Resilient Businesses: Understanding how the smallest and most negligible risks can become the biggest disaster
A presentation by Mustapha B Mugisa, Mr. Strategy. BOOM! A loud bang went off. A huge fire suddenly started. That Thursday morning, March 2017, at 10 a.m. brought total misery. The Top Management Team, who were still in the morning meeting, looked out into the window and saw staff running past the main block, shouting: Fire. Fire. Fire. Factory on fire. Fire. Fire. The Chairman, also the owner of the business, a tall man with dark skin, could not believe his ears. He rushed out of the meeting. And ran towards the plant. And there it was in a huge…
