NLI targets leadership capacity among members

The Nigeria Leadership Initiative (NLI), in the last eight years, has engaged in the exploration of leadership and values that challenges its accomplished leaders (senior fellows) and emerging leaders (associate fellows) to think more deeply about timeless ideas and their implications for living more successful and meaningful lives.

Consistent with its mission to create a growing, global network of credible, accomplished community-spirited Nigerian leaders, committed to taking responsibility for driving positive change in Nigeria and Nigerian communities,”

NLI reached another milestone with the induction of the inaugural Fellows Class; a cohort of leaders was inducted in a ceremony chaired by Bisa Williams, US deputy assistant secretary of state, at Yale University, New Haven, CT, US.

Speaking on the Fellows’ seminar, Yinka Oyinlola, CEO of NLI, stated that leadership is about self-awareness, agility and maturity as it is about critical thinking, foresightedness, communication and other soft skills.

He affirmed that the “fellows are already leaders for whom figuring out solution is needless as they will undoubtedly be dealing with different set of challenges that will require futuristic concepts for the challenges of the next decade. With the successful delivery of this maiden Fellows’ seminar, NLI has made a valuable contribution to the development of high impact and value-based leaders for Nigeria.”

The seminar modules are on: values; leadership; innovation; and impact. Designed as an intensive and interactive program, the Seminar will be led by world-class moderators who are in two categories: Yale Professors provided cutting-edge theory and knowledge while challenging conventional thinking; and, practitioners who have solved real-life complex issues and challenges through work experience

The programme done in collaboration with NLI Partner, Yale University had 17 Nigerian leaders participating in the seminar themed High-Impact Leadership for a Better Society. The major objectives are to: challenge the participants to think more deeply about living more successful and meaningful lives; move the Fellows from success to significance with focus on high-impact leadership for a better Nigerian society; and encourage them to move from thought to action through a high-impact class project.

The basis of NLI’s Fellows Programme is to inspire inductees to be comfortable in their leadership role and thrive under uncertainty. The dynamic nature of context and timing was the premise of several interrogations underlying the curriculum: what key capabilities, not lessons or courses, are required to continue a leadership journey while also providing tools for the Fellows to walk into their roles within the society and their respective organisations.

As NLI Fellows, they were taken through the leadership journey of self-awareness, agility, and maturity as well as critical thinking, foresightedness, and negotiations. Given that the Fellows were at the inflection point of transitioning from functional leadership to a holistic and bigger-picture view of the society, they acquired new approaches of rallying people toward a common purpose.

The newly inducted NLI Fellows includes professionals from all walks of life.