Founder and Chief Executive Officer of MicroMax Consulting, Dr NNEKA Abulokwe
by MTHULISI SIBANDA
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – Dr NNEKA Abulokwe, the digital governance and technology entrepreneur, has added another feather to her cap after Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II conferred on her the distinction of Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).
Her OBE for Services to Business is in recognition of her introducing an innovative form of governance for the digital world.
The award, which is part of the 2019 Queens Birthday Honours List, was formalised on Tuesday at an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace.
Abulokwe has an extensive career spanning 25 years, during which she has driven innovative technology and business transformation initiatives for some of the largest multinational digital transformation organisations.
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of MicroMax Consulting, Abulokwe is lauded for passion for people-centric governance.
“Put people first and the governance follows,” she said.
According to the entrepreneur, governance should invariably be about winning the hearts and minds of employees and about fostering a culture of accountability.
A dual British/Nigerian national, Abulokwe was born in London to parents from Nigeria and Jamaica.
She grew up in Nigeria’s south-eastern city of Port Harcourt, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Port Harcourt in 1991.
She returned to her country of birth that same year to pursue her Master’s degree at the University of London and later a Doctorate in business administration from Cranfield University
School of Management.
Abulokwe is one of the first black female professionals to sit on the board of a multi-national tech company in the United Kingdom.
She has received numrous distinguished awards and is highly regarded in the field of tech enablement and governance.
Abulokwe was recently ranked fourth on the Financial Times Top 100 Black, Asian, Minority, Ethnic (BAME) Tech Leaders for 2018.
She was named as a finalist for Governance Professional of the Year 2018 Award by the Governance Institute.
She was also named in the 2019 Powerlist 100 most influential black business leaders.
She was ninth overall in the 2018 and 2019 Financial Times EMpower Ethnic Minority Executives and Role Models List.
Abulokwe was listed among the top 100 influential people of African and Caribbean origin in the UK.
The award-winner, who is passionate about mentoring and empowering women, describes herself as a proud export of Nigeria and Jamaica, her parents’ countries of origin and hers equally.
– CAJ News