Shobanjo (63) who is popularly known as Nigeria's ‘Father of Advertising' said that he accepted the challenge and with the stakeholders would work towards creating and developing a program of which everyone can be proud.
As CEO of The Apprentice Africa, he joins a long line of distinguished corporate titans and business moguls that includes Donald Trump, United Kingdom's Allan Sugar and South African's Tokyo Sexwale amongst others, whose presence, charisma, business savvy and panache have been integral to the success of the franchise.
Shobanjo's upbringing imbued him with a cosmopolitan worldview and his early experience as a broadcaster prepared him for life as an advertiser.
He became Deputy MD of Grant Advertising before his 30th birthday, co-founded Insight Communications (now Insight Grey) in 1979 and has today grown the company from the initial 18-strong team into an advertising behemoth.
The Troyka Group, which is the holding company for Insight, FKG2, Optimum Exposure, Media Perspective, MediaCom, Quadrant and Halogen amongst others, employs over 7000 Nigerians.
Shobanjo attributes his success to his fierce determination and a steely can-do attitude. ‘I was young when I left Grant advertising and young people are very daring, so it didn't cross my mind that I wouldn't make it. Again, without meaning to be immodest, I really have never failed in my life. If you're not used to failing you don't even contemplate
failure.'
He lists four essential qualities for success: professionalism, honour, integrity and passion.
‘If you have these four things, chances are that you're going to succeed,' he says.
A consummate advertising and marketing communications practitioner, he is a perfect choice for the CEO of The Apprentice Africa because as a believer in people, his business style has favoured a mentoring ambience which has spawned protégés who are leading lights of the advertising and marketing communications industry in Nigeria.
Today, the top 10 CEOs of the top 10 advertising and marketing communications outfits in Nigeria are proud alumni of what admirers love to refer to as the ‘Insight University.'
Shobanjo brings to The Apprentice Africa almost 40 years of top-notch corporate experience, entrepreneurial savvy, multi-disciplinary industry experience and a business maxim founded squarely on the belief that success is not negotiable.
As he loves to say: ‘Winning is not everything. It is the only thing!'
For more about the program, go to http://www.theapprenticeafrica.com/
