Why climbing Kilimanjaro was important - Safaricom CEO

If you were given an opportunity to lead one of Africa's most profitable companies, what would you do before taking up your corner office?

For most, preparing for the new challenge buried under mountains of paperwork would probably be the ideal routine.

Peter Ndegwa returned to Nairobi, for a second time after working abroad, to take over as the first Kenyan CEO of Kenya's largest telco, Safaricom.

But days before taking up the task of leading the huge company, Ndegwa threw himself an uphill challenge, literally - to conquer Mt Kilimanjaro.

"It was an opportunity to take a clean break and do things that I always wanted to do and climbing Kilimanjaro has always been on my list," Ndegwa told the Star at Radio Africa Group offices on Wednesday.

The 51-year-old economist told the Star that while this was an opportunity to test his fitness, the achievement was something he was seeking.

"I have always kept fit but it was really not about keeping fit but a sense of achievement," Ndegwa said.

So how was his first month as CEO at a time when the country and the world is fighting a pandemic?

"I didn't imagine that I would be going through my induction on Zoom. But there is a silver lining. Safaricom is a big company and this is the time to support the country, " Ndegwa said.

The father of one added that as an essential service, Safaricom's main goal is to ensure that Kenyans remain connected.

Ndegwa, who holds an MBA from the London Business School, urges Kenyans to be patient as the world tackles the pandemic.

"Even if you lost six months, it is not the end of the world. Once we deal with the spread and reopen the economy, you will be very surprised... Kenyans are very enterprising and they will bounce back," Ndegwa said.

Ndegwa took over from Michael Joseph, who was acting as CEO since the death of Bob Collymore in July 2019.

Joseph and Collymore have been credited for growing Safaricom into a multi-billion company and when Ndegwa's appointment was announced, many reacted to it with the usual "big shoes to fill".

What pressure did Ndegwa feel as he prepared to take over at Safaricom?

"One of the things I tell people when they join a new organisation, despite how successful it is, do not try to be like the previous CEO. You have to be yourself," Ndegwa said.

He adds that there is a real sense of accountability and responsibility and hence the pressure but notes that he is proud to be the first Kenyan CEO of the company.

"I think it is a sense of pride being the first Kenyan CEO of Safaricom and it is great to lead such an organisation. But it is also good for me to serve my country since I have a lot of experience around the world and it is always good to come back and be able to serve the country," Ndegwa said.

Not only does Ndegwa say he will focus on ensuring Safaricom maintains its edge as a leading telco, but that venturing into new areas is also critical.

The economist and accountant noted that his goal is to make sure Safaricom continues to be the successful organisation that it has been and take it beyond Kenya.

And most importantly, ensure that it benefits all its customers around the country, he adds.

"We have a lot of opportunities to continue to grow such as M-Pesa. We have an opportunity to really drive internet penetration. Data is an area we need to focus on. But more importantly, we need to go to areas like health, education and agriculture and use digital to allow people to access those opportunities," Ndegwa said.

Ndegwa says his hobbies include keeping fit, reading and travelling - his family even has a world map with stickers of where they have travelled. 

He also loves watching sports, with Arsenal being his favourite team in the English Premier League.

And so what is the Safaricom CEO reading at the moment?

"I am reading about how the world is dealing with the Covid crisis and how the future of work is going to be. Will people go back to the office?"

"How will healthcare be provided in the future? How will education look? How will digital transform how we socialise, shop "

"But more importantly, how connected are we going to be given the challenges we have seen? And when the world reopens, how will social distancing affect how we interact and communicate.

Ndegwa's parting advice, especially to young people, is: "to be able to lead others, you must be able to lead yourself."