It was a day of joy for Mrs. Roselyn Onalaja as she rolled out the drum to celebrate her 60th Birthday Anniversary with family, friends and associates on Saturday, 1st October, 2022.
In an interview with Great Achiever Magazine, Mrs. Onalaja went down memory lane with feeling of excitement, recounting her childhood days and her journey of life till the present moment.
Excerpts:
Q: Kindly give us a bit of your background
A: My name is Roselyn Onalaja (Nee Ojeme), from Esan in Esan Central Local Government Area of Edo State and married to Rtd. Col. Ademola Onalaja of Ago Iwoye in Ogun State. I’m the last of six children of my mother. My parents are deceased. My father was a very active grassroots politician (Councillor), community leader and big-time farmer while my mother was a trader.
Having moved to Lagos at a very early age, I was enrolled at Aunty Ayo preparatory and primary school in Ikoyi where I obtained my first school leaving certificate before proceeding to Government College Agege as one of the pioneer students in 1974. I hold B.A (Hons) Linguistics from the University of Benin and Masters in Public Administration from the University of Lagos, specializing in Human Resources Management.
I am a Human Resources and business development professional with varied competencies and I lead a team of consultants at StreSERT Services Limited and StreSERT Integrated Limited, collaborating with enterprises to determine the root causes of their problems and crafting compelling management and business support solutions that are specifically fitted to their business challenges. In my capacity as Managing Consultant, I sit on the board of the two companies.
I have over 20 years cognate experience in human resource services, starting my career at Andersen Consulting (formerly Accenture Nigeria) where I was exposed to world-class standards. The skills I developed working here have become my greatest asset in my quest for higher career and professional growth, leading to my successes in entrepreneurial ventures; some of them being StreSERT Services Limited and StreSERT Integrated Limited both of which I oversee as Managing Consultant.
I am an associate member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (ACIPMN), a member of the Nigerian Institute for Training Administration (NITAD), and an alumnus and volunteer facilitator and mentor at Fate Foundation; a not–for-profit organization with a mission to foster wealth creation by promoting business and entrepreneurial development among Nigerians.
I am an alumnus of the Lagos Business School, a member of the Enterprise Development Centre of the Pan-Atlantic University and a member of the Institute of Directors.
I am currently the Vice Chairman of the SME Committee at the Nigerian British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) where I also serve as an expert-in-residence for SME members of the Chamber; I am a member of the Communication & Advocacy Committee at Fate Foundation, where I also serve as a volunteer mentor and facilitator. I sit on the Governing Council of the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association (NECA) and the Ogun State Polytechnic, Ipokia as a representative of NECA.
I am a volunteer mentor at the Cherie Blair Foundation UK, the Founder Institute Lagos and Women in Business, Management & Public Service (WIMBIZ). I am a Fellow of The Association of Outsourcing Practitioners of Nigeria (AOPN) and the WIMBIZ Women on Boards (WIMBoard) Mentoring Program.
I am also a John Maxwell Certified Coach, Lanre Olusola Coaching Academy Certified Life Coach. I am an SME advocate with passion for coaching and guiding small businesses to develop systems and processes that ensure consistent growth which makes them attractive to the right workforce, customers and investors and remain sustainable.
Q: Tell us how your growing up was like and the kind of upbringing you had as a child
Q: My father was a very active grassroots politician and community leader in his days in Ewu – my village where I spent the first few years of my life before moving to Lagos to live with one of my elder sisters.
Though a polygamist, he was a lover of close and organized family setting and he paid attention to his children. I still remember with nostalgia the big dining table where we all gathered to dine with him especially at dinner after he returned from his various political and community development meetings. By the nature of my father’s political and community development engagements throughout Esanland, our house was always a beehive of activities; this made our home a rallying point for both adults and children within the environ where they were assured of meals each time they found themselves there.
My parents were God-fearing, straightforward and fair – particularly my father who would say it just the way it is, no matter whose ox is gored. He was known as a highly principled and disciplined man all through Esanland but these virtues unfortunately irked some people (particularly his political opponents), to the extent of planning his assassination in 1976 while I was only 14 years old.
Though I wasn’t born with a silver spoon, I grew up not lacking anything at any point in my life. Being the last child, my elder siblings ensured I grew up comfortably, contented and lacking nothing.
Q: Comparing upbringing in those years with nowadays, what would be your comments?
A: Of course, it has become very apparent that life when I was growing up wasn’t what it is now. What you refer to as those years was much saner, controllable and predictive. The much we had then was of great worth and value in all ramifications – be it in education, health, security and living generally. My generation was much easier to control as all we needed to hear was do this and don’t do that and we obeyed.
What you refer to as “Nowadays” is much more interesting and challenging at the same time. Children are more aware, knowledgeable and assertive, and generally referred to as ‘internet/technology’ children. Just as technology has enhanced life, it has come with its own challenges as it relates to parenting. In this new world of knowledge, it’s no longer enough to issue commands or directives, you must justify it and create an enabling environment for the other party to state his/her case.
I like the world of information we are in but don’t quite envy parenting at this time; it’s a lot more work than it was in those years.
Q: As a growing up child, what were those traits inherent in you that later manifested in life?
A: Like I said earlier, my father’s political and community involvement activities opened our home to varying people and activities – hosting of various meetings and events. Here I got exposed to the idea of engaging and interacting with people and being hospitable. Though I am naturally a quiet and reserved person, this aspect of my childhood has no doubt impacted me, such that I derive a lot of joy hosting people. I believe this culminated in the good people relations skills I exhibited in my early career years that ultimately propelled me in the direction of human resources and people management.
I remember a constant comment in every of my performance evaluation then being that I am a pleasure to work with. I have harnessed this skill over the years, making me the person I am today when it comes to developing and motivating people to attain their full potential and be of value to themselves and the organization they work for.
A: What were the major challenges you faced while growing up?
A: Growing up, I wished I had my father for much longer. So, I was told my birth wasn’t quite an easy one, resulting in a fractured right arm and growing up a lefty. This was a major challenge in my early years as it was regarded more like a taboo to use your left hand. The constant harassment and force by people around me (particularly my extended family members) to use my right hand which I really couldn’t do then always left me unhappy and crying most times.
I believe the quiet and reserved nature I grew up to understand of myself was as a result of this challenge. This stripped me of my self-confidence and assertiveness until much later in life when I began to understand the link and the need to change it.
Aside this, I would say growing up was relatively good and satisfying, with very loving immediate family members who pampered me as the last child and ensured I lacked nothing, having lost my father at an early age.
Q: Tell us about your career and the challenges if there are any
A: My very first and only employment before venturing out as an entrepreneur was with the then Arthur Andersen & Co., a foremost multinational management consulting firm based in Lagos and later Accenture where I worked for a total of 10 years before leaving in 2000 to co-found a business support consulting firm.
I left this after 7 years to again co-found StreSERT Services Limited, a HR and business support consulting firm and then another (StreSERT Integrated Limited) five years later. Both companies (where I currently serve as Managing Consultant) are thriving in their 16th and 11th year respectively.
I was fortunate to have had the opportunity of working in a multinational consulting firm at that time (about 33 years ago) where I acquired top quality skills and competencies. I was exposed to learning and being led by great people with great values – these helped me in my entrepreneurial journey and the quest to build sustainable businesses.
All said and done, this journey has not been without ups and downs – varying challenges, particularly in Nigeria where the enabling environment for business growth is grossly lacking. The dearth of infrastructure, quality talents and unfriendly regulations amongst others have made the journey challenging while the staying power to continue creating solutions, developing people and contributing to the nation’s economic growth have been most rewarding.
The journey - its challenges, lessons, and solutions created to surmount the challenges and keep forging ahead are my attainments/fulfillment, the root of my passion for startups and SMEs in my coaching, learning & development and mentoring initiatives which I currently collaborate with organisations locally and internationally to express. Such organisations are the Fate Foundation, Lagos Business School, Women in Business, Management & Public Service (WIMBIZ), The Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) and the Cherie Blair Foundation, UK.
Q: At what point did you decide to marry and how did you meet your husband?
A: In mapping out my life, I always had an age range within which I wished to be married and to the glory of God, it came to pass. I met my husband during my youth service year in Abeokuta, Ogun State in 1986/87 while he was serving as the ADC to Gen. Raji Rasaki, the then Military Governor of Ogun State. Serving as a key person in the communications unit of the NYSC Secretariat always put me in the limelight during formal events, being the Master of Ceremony at those events. I guess this made it easy for him to spot me….. (laugh).
Q: What kind of person is your husband?
A: My husband, Ademola Onalaja is a retired Col. in the Nigerian Army. His background as an Electrical/Electronics Engineer makes him a very hands-on person when it comes to fixing things. This I suppose contributes to his love for gadgets.
He is a very principled and honest person if I say so myself – an aspect of him I thoroughly admire and commend. He is a very good husband and father to our children and grandchild and very giving of himself and his resources. He loves God and he’s an active member of the Methodist Church and particularly in the Ijebu Diocese where he serves as the Lay President.
My husband is a highly sociable person and a “crowd puller”. He makes friends easily and is very deliberate about relationships and impact. The act of supporting others comes very easy to him and he spares nothing at doing so.
Demola cannot stand double-standards and act of dishonesty. Like himself, he feels people should say it the way it is, not giving it other colour/meaning, and regardless of the person, situation or circumstance. He is very intolerant when it comes to things of this nature. We have been married for over 30 years and blessed with three lovely children and a grandchild to the glory of God.
Q: How were you able to combine motherhood effectively with your career?
A: I was already working in a very demanding job in Lagos when I started having my children. It was very demanding and most times exhausting to be honest, particularly doing so in the city of Lagos. There were a few times I thought of throwing in the towel by resigning. Though I consider myself reasonably lucky with the support system I had, the thought that I couldn’t give my children the amount of time I desired got to me sometimes.
I remember taking qualifying exams for Masters Degree a few times and having to defer the programme due to the rigour of combining job and motherhood. I could finally proceed when our last child went into boarding school.
Work-life balance is an illusion that cannot be achieved. Harmony is desirable and achieving it is a consistent journey of life.
Q: Please share with us one of your experiences of life, either negative or positive that you can never forget
A: There are many positive and negative experiences of life but the negative one I still remember vividly is the death of a very close family member at a very young age, someone I loved and was very fond of. He was on a journey from Ibadan to Benin and I was in school waiting for him as he would always drive into the University to see me before proceeding into town. I waited endlessly on that fateful day until the terrible news hit that he had been involved in a ghastly accident at Ore in Ondo State. It’s been over 30 years now and I still wish it never happened.
Q: At 60, how fulfilled are you?
A: I give God all the glory for six decades of good and fulfilling life. God has been good to me and my family that I honestly find it hard to pick out anything otherwise scanning through my life. Honestly, 60 is truly a number as I still feel young and youthful. Despite life’s ups and downs, it’s been victory all the way. I am thankful for a loving family, great children and grandchild, good health, provision, peace in my home, thriving businesses and the opportunity to be of blessing to others.
In all, I am thankful to God.
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