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29 || November || 2023
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#Issue 50
How Jackleen Nnely
became a project manager
Greetings ET readers šš¾
We still have open roles for some superstar reporters in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria.
If you or anyone you know is a great storyteller whoās interested in the business and human impact of tech in Africa, come join us to build Africaās most important tech publication. Apply here.
by Timi Odueso
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Tech trivia questions
Some trivia before we begin. Answers are at the bottom of this newsletter.
- What’s the biggest tech acquisition in history?
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From Lagos to Northampton
In June 2021, Jackleen Nnely took a quick decision to pack up her bags and move from Lagos, Nigeria, to the UK. By September, she was already tucked away in the small rural town of Northampton.
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Jackleenās move wasnāt ignited by a grand wish to find a better job or escape Nigeriaās economic crisisā¦at least not at first. Before she left for the UK, Jackleen was managing African-led projects for Apple, and she had worked with some of the biggest media and entertainment companies since her undergraduate days. She was, by all means, doing very well for herself. So what made her leave?
One word. Traffic. Long, humid hours spent in Lagos traffic.
Iāve been sitting on my interview with Jackleen for months nowāmostly because I wanted to use it for another storyābut given last weekās discussion on Mastery v Efficiency, I wanted to highlight the life and career of a true master at project managementāmanaging projects for Apple, MTV Base and Bentleyāwho has spent the past 15 years mastering her job, and is planning her future efficiently.
Hereās how Jackleen did it.
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How Jackleen did it
You moved countries for traffic, Jackleen?š
If you’ve ever lived in Lagos, youāll understand. I was on my way to work one day, and I was stuck in traffic for hours. It was very early in the morning, I thinkā¦ and I just decided that I didnāt want to do that anymore. I also had been looking at skilling up as a project manager and a masterās degree looked like the next best thing to do so I started working on moving, and by September, I was gone.
Whoa! Three months? It takes people much longer. How did you do it?
Money! š But a lot of planning too, you know we project managers, planning na our work! I’ve always wanted to do my master’s as most of my friends had theirs. And when you’re young and your friends are going to school, you just feel left out. I had spent years hustling, and I wanted more in terms of my education. So while in traffic, I decided to start applying for a master’s degree in project management as soon as I could, and by July, I had gotten multiple admission offers, and by September, I was in the UK.
That sounds expensive!
Yeah, it cost about Ā£20,000 in total and thatās where the money comes in. So Iāve been working since I was a teenager!
Ah, OG gang!
Lmao. So I studied computer science, and I was actually still in university when my tech journey began. In my career, I started as a production coordinator, but I quickly transitioned into a producer role. I then moved on to become a project manager within my team. Iāve always been a structured person who likes to plan and work with spreadsheets, and that made me a natural fit for project management.
By 2016, I got a job at MTV Base Africa, and did a stint with a clean-energy tech company called OneWattSolar. People I met at my MTV Base job brought me to work at Apple for about 18 months.
In all this time, I was rather prudent with money. I saved a lot. I didnāt know what I was saving for, but I knew that money would come in handy. With my savings, I could afford to pay my fees, travel expenses, and rent. And when I got to the UK as well, I worked part-time for a bit during my masterās before I graduated and settled for a full-time gig.
Working and schooling? That must have been hard.
It was, but it wasnāt new. š¤·š¾āāļø When I first started my career in 2008, my plan was to study economics at the Lagos State University but I was given computer science instead which I ended up loving. And around the time I was an undergraduate at LASU, I was balancing work and school nicely, it got harder with my job at MTV Base but as a strong Naija babe, I ran it! Another thing that helped was being open with my bosses at work who helped me balance it all.
Also, almost everyone in my Uni had a side gig in tech, we were all full-time professionals, juggling school and work! Phew!
So was it easy finding a job in the UK?
Finding a job as a foreigner in any country is never easy! It’s a new space, and you are still figuring things out, and then thereās the problem of a lot of companies wanting to see that UK experience on your CV. One recruiter actually asked to have a call with me to confirm if I was a āNative speakerā. I mean, my first language is English! Lol, so what was that about? This made me very intentional about my job search! I also wanted to understand the UK job market, so I played around with industries for a bit by getting a voluntary project management role with a non-profit company. This was also my way of giving back, and I loved every bit of it! Also, just to add, I had worked with some of the most important global companies in Nigeria, but I still needed some of that local UK experience.
I did that for a while, and then, in September 2022, I got ready to start my search for a full-time job back in tech. I had a couple of rules: I wanted to work with a quality company, and I wouldnāt apply for a job if over 20 people had applied for it. The market here is very competitive, especially in project management, and you have to be intentional about it. I also decided that I wanted to work remotely, and I set a base salary for myself. I used LinkedIn a lotāit was my best friendāand I applied to multiple jobs a day but they had to be the right fit. A couple of months later, I had 3 job offers from some major companies and I accepted to work at Bentley Systems.
Wow. Thatās a huge win! Letās talk about your UK experience now. What are the biggest changes?
Thereās no traffic, for one.
But Iād also say Internet connectivity is a big one for me. I donāt have to worry about connecting to the internet or if Iāll have to buy three modems. Everything just works here.
Another shock was how welcoming the lecturers were. In Nigeria, you could get punished for challenging lecturers but here, they welcome it and that made getting my masterās seamless.
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Jackleenās Notes
So Jackleen and I had an interesting 90-minute conversationāitās 9,000 words long btwābut Iām going to stop here because Iād like to highlight the most critical points she made during our conversation.
- Youāre not alone: When I asked Jackleen how stressful it was working through school as a young Nigerian, she said, āEveryone I know had a side gig even in the early 2010s.ā We often think that we’re the first ones to struggle through school + work but success stories like Jackleenās tell us weāre not. Itās easy to feel like weāre alone in our job hunt or work struggles, but stories like Jackleenās tell us that weāre not. More importantly, they show us that we can succeed.
- Tech doesnāt have to be design or coding: The fact that Jackleenās made a career working in tech without coding tells us that there are several career paths in tech. It also tells us one thing: you can work in companies that are not startups or conventional tech companies. While she works in a tech company now, Jackleen started off in media and entertainment. Thereās a way for everyone!
- Be audacious: NGL, even I thought Jackleenās rules of job finding would make job hunting hard at first. āPeople thought I was arrogant,ā she said. But she also says she knew what she wanted in life and would not compromise for it. She knew it would take time, and a lot of effortāshe spent 5 months hunting, and she already had 13 years of experience at the time! She mentioned that she knew her value and what she could bring to the table, and that she wasn’t going to let anyone make her feel small. You shouldnāt either.
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The great thing here is that Jackleen is open to helping people and mentoring them through her mentorship platform, Immigrants in Tech. She canāt take all of usābecause I also want to be mentoredābut sheās happy to answer career questions via LinkedIn or through her mentorship platform. Sheās also published a book, A Newcomer’s Guide to the United Kingdom, with Blessing Ashimi to help anyone whoās thinking of moving to the UK.
Thatās all for this week. Once again, if you have thoughts on this edition, please send them to me at timi@bigcabal.com.
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Ask a techie
Q. How can I marry my studies in school and my development in tech?
The first thing to note is that you should be transparent with your employers; let them know about your school schedule. This way, no one is blindsided.
Next, partition your time. The great thing about schoolāor most schoolsāare schedules, there are predetermined classes. You want to make calendars that outline your working hours and your class hours. Also, make sure that you have a few hours in between for rest; both work and school take a huge chunk of brain power. Communicate this schedule to your employers as well, and redefine deadlines. If it’s possible to work out an asynchronous schedule, do that. What should matter is that you get the job done within the given timeline.
The same goes for your tech courses. Divide your time well.
Rest and play hard. This might sound counter-productive but itās not. Being in school and growing your tech career will take a lot of focus, and if you donāt rest enough, you will burn out and lose both battles. So take regular breaks and do things that relax you.
Thatās all we can take this week. Have any questions about working in tech? Ask away and we’ll find answers for you.šš¾
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Tech trivia answers
Itās Dellās acquisition of EMC Corporation in October 2016 for a world record (at the time) of $67 billion.
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Opportunities
- The citizens of Commonwealth countries in Africa can now apply for the Commonwealth Africa Cyber Fellowship Programme 2024. Selected experts will serve as fellows for a year, and get exclusive access to academic research opportunities, networking events and annual conferences, with a focus on enhancing cybersecurity policies and institutions across Commonwealth countries in Africa. Apply by December 10.
- Applications are open for the Mastercard Foundations Scholars Program 2023/2024 at the Carnegie Melon University Africa. The program provides generous financial, social, and academic support for students whose talents and promise exceed their financial resources. Apply by January 15, 2024.
- Applications are open for the Aurora Tech Award 2024. The Award is an annual global prize for women founders of tech startups. Winners of the first prize get $30,000, the second prize gets $20,000 and the third prize gets $10,000. Apply by December 1.
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Jobs
- TechCabal – Senior Reporters – Africa
- Big Cabal Media – Senior Product Manager – Africa
- The Economist – Africa Correspondent – Africa
- Canonical –Junior UX Designer – Lagos, Nigeria (Remote)
- Moniepoint – Growth Product Manager, Data Engineer, UX Research Lead, Storyteller – Lagos, Nigeria
- TdH-NL Africa – Communications Intern – Nairobi, Kenya
- African Visionary Fund –Portfolio Fund – West Africa
There are more jobs on TechCabalās job board. If you have job opportunities to share, please submit them at bit.ly/tcxjobs.
Disclaimer: TechCabal is not affiliated with or associated with jobs and opportunities listed on all its job boards and newsletters. All applicants bear the responsibility of researching about the roles and companies they apply to.
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