Leadership looks different when shaped by lived experience.<\/p>\n
This March, as we celebrate women across the Heirs Holdings Group, HH People<\/em> features Ibukun Odurinde<\/strong> in a thoughtful and reflective conversation on womanhood, strength, and impact. Drawing from her professional journey and her work empowering entrepreneurs at the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), Ibukun shares insights with Priscilla Okorie on what it means to show up fully, without shrinking and without apology. Thanks to her mum!<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Hello Ibukun, thank you for gracing us with your time again. It\u2019s been a while since our last conversation.<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>Hello Priscilla! Laughs.<\/em> Yes, it\u2019s been a while.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>This month, the world celebrates women and all the value we bring. From your perspective, what does being a woman feel like? So, let\u2019s start at the beginning \u2014 what does womanhood mean to you?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>Womanhood means strength, resilience, patience, and love. Those four words capture it for me.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>I like that you said strength because it ties into something that\u2019s been on my mind \u2014 and into my next question. There\u2019s always this talk about being strong as a woman: you have to manage the home, and parents especially focus on developing \u201cstrength\u201d in their daughters. So now I\u2019m curious \u2014 what does strength mean here?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>When I speak about strength, I\u2019m referring to what women are expected to carry from a very young age. As the first child, for example, you\u2019re expected to take responsibility early \u2014 doing chores, caring for siblings, helping at home \u2014 while the boys are often given more freedom. You are constantly being \u201cprepared for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n Strength also means mental endurance: preparing for puberty, managing menstrual cycles, enduring pain, and eventually childbearing. Women are expected to nurture, to support, to sacrifice. The expectations are layered and constant.<\/p>\n And honestly, women withstand a lot \u2014 emotionally and physically. Laughs.<\/em> Despite what some may say, we\u2019re not the crybabies. Hahaha.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>The irony! Because men say women are the crybabies.<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>That\u2019s interesting, because I once witnessed something that changed my perspective entirely. About 10 or 12 years ago, my neighbour died in a house fire. There was only one exit, and the fire started there. Her husband ran out to save himself, leaving her and their three children inside. One child survived, but when they found her, she was curled around her children.<\/p>\n Her final instinct was to protect them, even at the cost of her own life. <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Was there ever a time you realised that because you are a woman, you would very likely be treated differently?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>I realised it first at home. We were mostly girls, with one brother. He was the most pampered. Even as the youngest girl, I didn\u2019t experience that same level of indulgence because he was \u201cthe boy.\u201d<\/p>\n Then later, working as a Client Advisor in Asset Management, I experienced it again. Engaging male clients came with challenges that my male colleagues didn\u2019t face. You see a successful woman, and assumptions are made that a man must be behind her success. But when you see a wealthy man, you assume competence and intelligence.<\/p>\n That consciousness drives me. I never want to be in a position where I\u2019m underestimated because I am a woman. If a man can do it ten times, I\u2019ll do it fifty.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Have you ever felt the need to shrink yourself \u2014 in your voice, ambition, or presence \u2014 to make others comfortable?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>No. My upbringing shaped that. My parents raised us to be confident and content with who we are, while still striving to grow. I was taught that regardless of who is in the room, I am not less than anyone there. Why should I shrink to make someone else comfortable? Parents need to instil that belief in their daughters \u2014 you are enough.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Funny because I was going to mention that parents somewhat contribute to why women are not confident. They tell their daughters not to be too loud, to act a certain way \u2014 but you don\u2019t see those rules applied to boys. By the time these girls grow up and have ideas, they\u2019ve been taught never to be the loudest in the room, so they shrink. Meanwhile, boys who grew up acting like they own the room\u2026 do just that.<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>That\u2019s true, but I believe things are changing. Women are owning their voices more now. They\u2019re speaking up, dominating sectors, entering spaces that were previously male dominated. Even in nightlife and club culture, women are beginning to own that space.<\/p>\n Women bring a different perspective \u2014 love, kindness, resilience. There\u2019s a different culture women bring. So yes, even though some parents still do this, a lot more people are focusing on women empowerment and inclusion. That gives women confidence to step out and speak.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>This is really reassuring \u2014 that the future is promising for women. In your experience, how true is that in practice, both professionally and through your work at TEF?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>When I joined TEF in 2018, our entrepreneurship programme selections were heavily male \u2014 sometimes up to 84%. Not because we favoured men, but because fewer women applied. Today, we\u2019re almost at 50:50. In some programmes, women even surpass men.<\/p>\n For instance, in our Aguka ideation programme, the earlier years were male-dominated, but now we\u2019re seeing 53% women participation.<\/p>\n Women are becoming more deliberate \u2014 showing up, applying, contending. That shift is encouraging.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Speaking of that shift \u2014 has there been a moment when another woman stood up for you, opened a door for you, or when you did that for someone else?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>Hahahaha.<\/em> Absolutely. In my first job at Glo, my Line Manager was incredibly supportive. Later, in another department, I worked with another woman \u2014 you\u2019d expect competition, but instead I found mentorship and encouragement.<\/p>\n At TEF, my first boss, the CEO at the time, always told me to stay in the driver\u2019s seat. She would say, \u201cNever let anyone push you into the passenger seat.\u201d She emphasised creating value \u2014 because when you create value, it\u2019s difficult to be sidelined.<\/p>\n I owe a lot to those women. They believed in me, even when I doubted myself.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>What part of yourself are you still learning to embrace fully?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>I think it\u2019s more of me identifying areas to improve on. I don\u2019t think there\u2019s any area of my life that I do not embrace or love. One thing I tell myself is: for people to love and appreciate you, you have to love yourself first. Naturally, people will like you when you do.<\/p>\n However, I\u2019d love to improve my skill set and how I work with other people.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>What do you wish more men understood about women, particularly in leadership and ambition?<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>I think men need to understand that women are naturally hardworking and self-reliant. We\u2019re constantly seeking improvement. Men need to allow women the space to prove themselves and make impact.<\/p>\n Women bring compassion and inclusiveness into leadership, but that doesn\u2019t mean we compromise on results. We deliver.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Complete this sentence for us: Being a woman means ______.<\/em><\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>Being powerful.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n PO for HH People: <\/strong>Laughs.<\/em> Thank you so much, Ibukun. This has been a meaningful conversation. I absolutely enjoyed discussing with you.<\/p>\n Ibukun: <\/strong>Always my pleasure, Priscilla.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Leadership looks different when shaped by lived experience. This March, as we celebrate women across the Heirs Holdings Group, HH People features Ibukun Odurinde in a thoughtful and reflective conversation on womanhood, strength, and impact. 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\nThat kind of strength \u2014 sacrificial, instinctive \u2014 is powerful. You would know that her final thoughts were, \u201cInstead of my kids, I\u2019d rather burn first.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n