It’s Being An Amazing 3 Years and 7 Months. Thank You Paradigm Initiative

After 3.7 years of amazing work experience at Paradigm Initiative, I leave today. I am thankful for the opportunities given me all through the years. I will be sharing some of the most memorable moments I had in the last 3 years and 7 months:

Resumed at Paradigm Initiative Nigeria on Monday June 3rd, 2013 as Project and Social Media Manager for the Tobacco Control campaign and had the opportunity to work with great minds from different fields across the country from advocates to tech and media experts . It was the first time I was handling such a huge project, I practically learned on the job with immerse support from awesome colleagues and friends on and off social media, I’d like to use this opportunity again, to say a huge thank you to every of the cause champions we worked with and to everyone who in one way or the other tweeted, retweeted and supported the campaign on my timeline (chai, I flooded my TL then)

It was also an honor to champion the creation of Paradigm initiative’s Digital Media unit in 2014, glad to have worked on the content management and dissemination strategy, came up with ways to best share updates from the organization’s Programs and project. It was difficult to get everyone of my colleagues acquainted to the process at first but I am extremely thankful to them for making it work and helping to improve the process over the years amidst disagreements, laughter and quarrels. There were high and low points, but the success of this has led (still leading) to the continuous growth of Paradigm Initiative’s social media platform. Big thanks to my boss ‘Gbenga Sesan for this opportunity

I had the opportunity to have trained over 250 non-profit organizations on the use of social media for advocacy and for social good at various Internet Policy Trainings and Tech4Good events over the last 3 years and 7 months.

Paradigm Initiative TENT 2014

Between 2014 and 2015, as Digital Media Manager, I worked with the awesome and hardworking Debola and ever dependable Olayinka on the Digital Jobs campaign, again, this was another huge project we had to deliver on as expectations were very high, thankful to Debola for always keeping the vibes on, even when it felt like our strategies weren’t working, we kept at it. The campaign reached over 18 million people online. Couldn’t have asked for other people to work with on this campaign aside you two. Thank you for also allowing me travel around campuses in Nigeria to preach the gospel of TENT and Digital Jobs. Best team ever

I always knew I had the passion to teach in me somehow over the years, but thanks to my colleague and friend, Abolaji Oluwatosin for giving me the opportunity in 2013 to teach the LIFE2013C students my first ever social media class. I mean it was a great a honor to interact and engage with under-served youth from Ajegunle. Glad to have trained over 160 of them on Social Media for personal effectiveness, mentored about 20 of them over the last 3+ years and it is more humbling to see them use social media to promote their businesses and build a career off it. Can’t be thankful enough.

ICT Policy was an area of interest I never saw myself dangling into, woot! I didn’t like the topic at all, just like mathematics it was boring:). Here was I with no choice, I had to really learn to love it because as Digital Media Manager, it was part of my responsibilities to support the ICT Policy team and work with them to develop communication and social media strategies. Working with Godson, Femi Abikoye, King James Nkum, Adeboye Adegoke, Tomiwa Ilori and Oluwaseun at different times on Internet Policy Workshops, Internet Freedom Forums, Social Media Advocacy has made me a better Digital Rights advocate. Thank you for the lessons.

Also Read: I branded a sex stimulant biscuit called Spice

A big thanks to every team member I have worked with at Paradigm Initiative, You all made my stay worth it. Gbenga (my personal person and able Finance Manager), Tosin (eyan mi), Yinka (padi mi), Adeboye (BGO of life), Tomiwa ( I will miss our back and forth of content sharing), Kanyinsola (ijogbon), Seun, Genevieve, Gabreal, Ihueze, Umar (my reading partner), Tinuke, Ebele, Tunde, Olumide and everyone I didn’t mention, I appreciate everything we achieved together for the organization.

The Paradigm Initiative team at the 2016 retreat

Now to my Chief Operating Officer, Tope Ogundipe, thanks for being more than a boss, I’m grateful for the projects and events we handled together. Great to have worked on the Web Foundation funded Women’s Rights Online campaign with you alongside Adeboye. Thank you for letting me act in your stead when you went on maternity leave in 2013. That experience made me a better manager.Thank you for your friendship

Now to my boss and Executive Director, ‘Gbénga Sèsan, everything I have mentioned above wouldn’t have been possible without your belief in me. Thanks for always pushing me to be better. I’m grateful for the support, advice and feedback. They will always be useful.

To what is next, I look forward to opportunities in branding and communications; digital media, media and technology. I am also open to collaborating on building solutions and creating ideas that will rule the world.