Adeeko’s Record Breaking Stint at CSCS
Chika Amanze-Nwachuku highlights Bola Adeeko’s record-breaking achievements during his 11 months stint as interim CEO of the Central Securities Clearing System
In today’s highly competitive landscape, companies need to stay one step ahead to win the trust and confidence of their numerous stakeholders. A simple way to achieve this is to hire creative persons who can think outside the box and deliver better outcomes; people who are not there to write nice reports, but are there to take actions and to leave things in far better shape than they met them.
By hiring creative people, companies can find solutions to difficult problems and in case of emergencies or unplanned leaves; if the CEO dies, quits suddenly, it becomes easy to get a good fit for the position from inside the organisation.
So when Mr. Kyari Bukar, the then CEO of CSCS resigned ahead of the scheduled date for his exit, the board and management of Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS), in their wisdom, selected Bola Adeeko, as the right person with the knowledge, skills and ability to perform the job.
In January this year, Adeeko was appointed as the Interim CEO of the CSCS, pending when a substantive CEO would be appointed.
The CSCS is a subsidiary of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1997 as a capital market agent to handle central depository, clearing and settlement services for transactions in the Nigerian stock market.
Prior to his appointment as Interim CEO, Adeeko was a General Manager and Head of Corporate Services Division at the NSE. He was responsible for Human Resources, Administration, Corporate Communication and Security as well as being the Executive Management liaison for the National Council’s (Board) Governance and Remuneration Committee.
The confidence reposed on him by the board of CSCS, chaired by Mr. Oscar Onyema, the Chief Executive Officer of the NSE, prompted his choice as the interim helmsman.
His strong leadership skills with over 26-year career in reputable global firm, high level of integrity in his transactions; hard work, ability to build consensus, firmness, and track record as a goal getter were factors that made him suitable for the position.
His boss, Onyema spoke glowingly of him upon his appointment: “Mr. Adeeko is deeply familiar with the company’s strategy and leadership team, which consists of highly accomplished capital market thought leaders with long-tenure in the business. We believe CSCS is in strong hands during this transition period.
The Board is confident that Mr. Adeeko will serve CSCS and its stakeholders well during this interim period.”
At the time Adeeko joined the NSE, things were very rough, but he went above and beyond what was required of him to deliver his task. A star performer, he explored potential areas of growth to ensure that nothing fell through the cracks.
A market analyst commented: “As interim CEO of CSCS, his core mandate was to provide the business, its staff and operational components with clear strategic direction and focus whilst ensuring that the activities critical to the business’ success, both transformational and ‘business as usual’ were executed with excellence and consistency. The records are there to show that he surpassed those targets and left the CSCS better than he met it.”
Another analyst added: “Given his track record of delivering results, Adeeko can be trusted with higher responsibilities.”
Some of the specific projects successfully delivered in a relatively short period he served as Interim CEO of CSCS, included the launch of a new (Clearing, Settlement & Depository (CSD) platform and the development of several internal processes aimed at significantly boosting CSCS’ operational efficiency. Adeeko and his team also exited some unprofitable businesses, reduced the company’s foreign exchange exposure and significantly improved its disaster recovery, data security and technology protocols by working with a Tier III data centre that offers significant cost efficiencies and scalability.
These decisions, analysts posit, will pave the way for more innovation and enhanced service delivery by the CSCS.
Indeed, the new CEO, Mr. Haruna JaloWaziri will find a plan already in action and a direction set.
Done well, Adeeko, who led the CSCS as Interim CEO for 11 months, has returned to his former role at the NSE.