Nigeria’s Okechukwu Okere today mounted the podium as Cum Laude laureate from the English-speaking world at the graduation ceremony of Dutch MBA provider Business School Netherlands.

At the ceremony at The Hague, Business School Netherlands Nigeria (BSNN) stood tall as it presented 83 students, 22 of whom graduated with distinctions thus:

•One overall best result (Cum Laude) in the English-speaking world.

•Four distinctions in the MBA.

•Three with Cum Laude in the dissertation.

Cum Laude laureate Okey Okere, 40, is chief operating officer for the professional services firm, Agusto Consulting. He is a happily married father of two and feels “overjoyed and truly blessed by God.”

Okere said getting here was no easy feat but was a very privileged position for which he is grateful. According to him, the Cum Laude status didn’t come just like that. He said: “I actually took the MBA very seriously. This achievement belongs to many other people who contributed to my success. The gifted BSN faculty that shared their wealth of knowledge and experience with us. My Set Adviser and my Internal Examiner, who gave me the confidence to reach for the stars. Our BSN Nigeria Director and his team who did their best to help us focus on reaching the finish line. My Ikeja 8 subset mates who showed serious levels of commitment to our collective learning and created the healthy competition that produced this. Most of all, my family, especially my wife and children, who also had to sacrifice their time with me, and create a conducive home environment for this to happen.”

For him, the story doesn’t end there. Encouraged by his result, his wife will also commence with her studies soon.

Greatest lesson

Grace Ivieovbo Uadia, the senior operations manager for a USAID-funded project (Nigeria MARKETS II), is another of the proud students who completed her viva voce with distinction.

She reflects on the greatest lesson the MBA taught her.

According to Grace, “The biggest lesson learnt was during my Marketing Management workshop where Lere Baale, CEO of BSNN, related marketing to our personal lives and work relationships. That was one of the greatest turning points in my work relationship with my colleagues and team members. I learnt how to market my ideas and plans to the 18 members of my team. This totally changed my management style and improved my work relationship with my colleagues. I never expected something like that from a Marketing Management workshop.”

Resolving the challenge

Co-graduate, Dr Anthony Oboh, the managing director and chief executive officer of Unique Venture Capital (UVC), calls it a ‘relief’ that the MBA is finally behind him. “I have never been able to balance the work-study-life priorities shared before and even during this programme. My inadequacies were further exposed by the programme. I am glad that I was able to prevail and finish. Resolving the challenge is a work-in-progress for me, going forward.”

“I wanted to do well and am proud that I gave it my best shot. Graduating with a distinction was a bonus and a pleasant surprise. I accept it with all humility. Going forward it will certainly put some pressure on me to perform better in all my dealings to justify the grading’s given by BSN. This I intend to uphold,” he added.

Relax, work hard and enjoy

Anthony Oboh advised for future MBA students to “take the programme very seriously. Manage your work-study-life balance efficiently and it will all go well. It is deeply tasking, academically rewarding and very fulfilling. Relax, work hard, and enjoy it.”

Business School Netherlands Nigeria (BSNN) was established in October 2003 as an educational service provider in Nigeria. This specialist business school is rigorously practising the scientific learning methodology termed Action Learning.

It is an affiliate institution of the Buren-Netherlands based organisation Business School Netherlands. BSN says of itself: “As a University of Applied Sciences, Business School Netherlands (BSN) develops MBA and management programmes internationally at a rapid pace with astounding success. BSN is a recognised private provider of higher education in and from the Netherlands with high growth intent. It is committed to keeping its focus on the needs of leaders of people and processes in organisations. Managers are responsible for upholding sound and ethical organisational principles and projecting a clear image of their organisation’s purpose.”

Business School Netherlands has accreditations in the Netherlands, Europe and United States of America. BSN is present in 13 countries across four continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and South America.

•Photo shows Okechukwu Okere.

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