Extraordinary Nigerian Woman...Sarwiyat 'Rahaman

 

Today's Extraordinary Nigerian Woman is fondly known to her friends and loved ones as Sarwi. Now if every one had an "essence" which is the inspiration behind their creation, I would say Sarwi's creation was inspired by FIRE! in all its ramifications and features...from keeping you engaged,warm and inspired with the beautiful hues of red and gold to its very useful functionality for cooking and then stretching to its infernous nature when provoked or unrestricted. What I am saying in a coconut shell is that Sarwi is HOT!!!!...She is a Baby Oku 1,000,000 WATTS!!!!/KILOVOLTS +++...Lol!

 

Lets read from the thirty something year old corporate diva;

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Full names – Sarwiyat Adenrele ‘Rahaman

What you do and possibly where and how you do it? I am a Program Manager. I oversee projects which all feed into a common purpose or goal.  I ‘do’ this for Airtel Nigeria and have been doing this for almost 6 years.

Is this what you have always desired to do? – oh no…

How did it happen? I just wanted to be special and amazingly rich so I could buy my Mom a HUGE chateau in Nice! Lol! No… I wish I could say I always wanted to do this but I just fell into it. And it happened to play to my core abilities. Call it divine engineering. Beautiful. I had worked in Customer Care for 5 years, with no real incline into what I wanted to do with my life… So, as with all young people in a time of turmoil – I resigned with a month to round up work. But was working as a Project resource for a major Project being overseen by the then COO and which was being managed by Accenture. I had proved good enough to be given a Sub Project under this to manage and was handing over my last work pack when the COO asked what I wanted to do with my future. I was cheeky enough to say it was not his concern as I had resigned and would be out by month end. He rejected my resignation and asked – no, ordered, that I report into his office the following Monday. You needed to know him to understand that this was totally in place for him… anyways – it has been a great time ever since. I seem to have the capacity to manage large projects which in turn grew to Programs and I have been joyfully doing this for the last 6 years.

What kind of qualification or experience prepared you for this role? Hmm… I could go into the regular by telling you how I got my PM certification and all but that is not actually it… It helps. But I feel what has been most helpful is humility of self. A Project/Program Manager is someone who connects other peoples’ skills to deliver on a set goal or objective. You have to be willing to learn. Humble enough to appreciate that you do not know everything. Every project or program is new. You have to manage the team and stakeholders. The way you manage stakeholders is very different from the way you manage your team and resources. But all are extremely important to deliver. You have to be motivated. Preferably internally so. Some knocks can keep you down permanently if you are not driven from within…

 

Do you do anything else…like business, charity, volunteer...etc? I do charity work. My sisters and I own a Charity called Marhaba (which means Welcome in Arabic). We feed the poor during the month of Ramadhan. We are hoping that as we grow – we will be able to extend this to a year round thing. More like a soup kitchen if you will.

If you could do something else…absolutely anything else, what would it be? Ah! I would be an actress! Doesn’t every girl want to be an actress? Singer? Or star? Something?! Lol! I actually don’t think I want to do anything else… I have done all sorts of things – delivered all sorts of Projects that have taken me far and wide. Allowed me stretch myself in ways that I never thought I could… No… I like what I do. And think it suits me…

Inspire someone dear Sarwi; Wow… The stories I could tell… I was passed over for promotions so many times – I lost count. I worked my butt off on projects and someone else would get the credit for it. So many times I wanted to throw up my hands and just say to hell with it! But… I stayed on… and I am happy I did.  Today – I am an accomplished Program Manager with over $100 million worth of Projects/Programs delivered for my company. 
I would like to say that as women, we have the boards stacked against us from day 1. You have to work harder than the men. If you are tough – you are seen as aggressive. If you smile – you are seen as too soft. If you are married with children and speak of your child once – everyone thinks you are just a milk making machine. If you are single – you are a spinster and a ballsbreaker or worse… so… I have found that the best I can be is just me. And I advise all women to be this way… You cannot be everything to everyone so be satisfied being yourself. But in order to be this way – you have to work hard for it.

Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn – because you know what? No one else will do it for you. Men do it for each other but women… not so much…

Oddly enough, my experiences have been a broad mix of good and bad… I have been fortunate enough to have some really great female Managers and also, lucky, yes – I say lucky, to have some really bad female Managers… and all of these experiences have made me who I am today. I learnt what to do and what not to do…  In a sometimes very tough way… When I first started working I had been advised by many friends how to never work with women and boy, were they proven right! I had a Manager once who felt it was okay to scream at me and call me names… all in the workplace! Fancy that… and that was a tame experience…!

As women, we need to protect each other in the work place. We need to look out for young women amongst us who are trying to make their way because we know it is hard. Even if you are doing it on your back – that is also hard! Not that I am condoning but none of it is easy… and sometimes, a kind word or an ear goes a long way… I could have done with those in my early career… But thankfully, I had wonderful strong women in my life like my Mother – Aisha Mata Abdurrahman, my great female Managers like Jumoke Furo Hart nee Akodu, Eve Banda Msiwi and Mariam Abdullah – who showed me what it was to be strong, kind, assertive, focused and guided me in my growth in my career. 

It also helps to learn ‘craftiness’… There is a wisdom that needs to be learned in the corporate environment that no one could EVER teach you in a classroom or a book. That sixth sense that sensitizes you to the manoeuverings that is required in every organization and is peculiar to the individual organization as well…  Every woman needs to have someone within an organization that can teach her these things. It may not be her exact organization but a similar set up. Now – I am not saying go and hitch your life on to the next woman boss you see – because not all of them want to have you along with them… We women sometimes can be strange… I call these sorts of situations unhealthy relationships… Please make sure that the person you are asking for help or advice, likes you. Yes – likes you. And wants your progress enough to be honest with you. Not someone who tells you everything you do is great – but someone who will actually help you. Not someone who loves to have you as a hanger on… Men have it easy – there is always some back slapping going on. And they always mentor each other – I think it is part of their DNA. Women tend to stand alone. Work it on their own. We do not network naturally. But this is critical to corporate growth and needs to be nurtured. It may seem like schmoozing – but it is a very handy skill to learn. Trust me on this!

And if you cannot find a woman who can do this – a man will do. Just make sure it stays as a platonic relationship because when they are not – they can get pretty complicated quick.

Enough! I sound like a self-help book!

Hope you have enjoyed my monologue… And I hope Chigo will be happy now! By the way – I love your blog!

Thank you Sarwiiiiiii...I'm honoured.... *Takes a bow*