Ghana Talks Business’ Paa Swanzy-Essuman had a conversation with Mr. Frederick Amissah, Country Director of Herbalife of Ghana Limited on our “Celebrating Achievers” series.
Frederick has a rich experience in corporate Ghana spanning thirteen (13) plus years. He holds a BSc. Agriculture degree from KNUST, a Master’s in Business Administration, marketing from GIMPA, a and diploma in strategic marketing management from the Institute of Commercial Managemnt,UK.Frederick is also a member of various professional bodies including CIMG,PMI,Young African Leaders Initiative Network(YALI Network) and the prestigious International Society of Business Leaders (ISoBL).He has also attended various commercial, marketing and leadership courses/programs across the world spanning Africa, Europe and the US. Having worked with British American Tobacco, Guinness Ghana Breweries, Coca Cola Bottling Company, Globacom and now Herbalife of Ghana; he shared insights on leadership, people management and doing business in these challenging economic times. He has won several awards including the CEO magazine’s Titan-Building Nation’s awards – sweeping both the Country and West African Regional awards for Business and Professional Services for 2014.
Frederick Amissah and Herbalife of Ghana again bagged two awards at the West African Regional Magazine Achievers Awards in Lagos, Nigeria, this past October, 2015. Herbalife won the “Innovative Foreign Products of the year” award while Frederick won the much coveted “Marketing Person of the year” at the ceremony. He is also a full member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing; Ghana (CIMG) with designation MCIMG. Frederick believes leadership should be espoused by living and performing above self with world class excellence in mind. He’s a family man, married with three beautiful kids. Fred is the epitome of a well-balanced man from humble beginnings to a titan.
*Ghana Talks Business in this conversation is tagged GTB and Frederick Amissah tagged FA.
GTB: Who is Fred Amissah?
FA: Fred is an African corporate executive with over thirteen years extensive corporate experience in sales, marketing, commercial and general management across Ghana, Africa, Europe and US. I am a family man, married to Lydia; and blessed with three brilliant kids: Papa Essuah, Maame Afrakoma and Nenya Nyarko. I am an Nzema from Eikwe, in the Western region with some Fante roots hence the Amissah. I am an open-minded cosmopolitan family man whose values include accountability, assertiveness, community and compassion.
I am also very modest but overly ambitious, hard-working and consistently sets firm goals for myself. Then, once I’ve defined my benchmarks, I take the necessary steps to achieve those milestones.” And also come with unwavering resolve. I am determined to do well in my job and have a successful career, as well as to make the company I work for more competitive.”
GTB: How was growing up like?
FA: I come from very humble beginnings with both parents educationists. My dad was a unionist with Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and my mum was a teacher. So you reckon I come from a family of teachers and so we the children, five (5) in number, never took education with a pinch. Education was with us at home, and followed us to school. I am the second boy of four boys and a girl. To my parents, education was everything so getting good grades was non-negotiable.
I attended various primary schools across the country, from Wenchi, Dunkwa-Offin and Koforidua because my dad moved around quite often due to frequent transfers. But I finally ended up at Pentecost School in Koforidua for my Junior High School education. I proceeded to Pope John Senior High School, Koforidua, where I read Science, with the aim of becoming a medical doctor; an ambition that didn’t materialise.
GTB: …so being a medical doctor was your childhood ambition?
FA: Ambition…yes, but not a dream, I would say. It was an ambition driven by parental/family guidance and societal reverence for medicine and doctors. My personal dream was to be a success in whatever I did knowing I had a myriad of passions including current affairs, English Literature and natural science. I wanted to be many things; from a lawyer, broadcaster to a doctor. Every kid growing up those days wanted to be a doctor. And I thought it was a good ambition. I pursued Science and went to Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to read a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture. Campus days were very exciting times – especially the freedom to learn and grow in my own space. I loved independence and freedom of university life was self-revealing and fulfilling and KNUST molded and helped me to open-minded, unafraid to explore and question the status quo. It was in the university that I really got opened up to the world and realised the world is full of opportunities, and that you don’t need to get fixated on only one thing. The then Vice Chancellor, Prof. Amonoo Neizer said at our matriculation; “Don’t just pass through the school; let the school pass through you”. The four years I spent on campus built my character, discipline, resilience and evolution as a person.
GTB: So when and how did your corporate career begin?
FA: After university I did my national service like everybody else, thinking about what next. Back in the university I realised I wanted to be in the corporate world because of the global opportunities that were available, the work ethics as well as the network of people one stands to add up in your personal portfolio. I read about corporate gurus and their stories ignited a certain desire in me. What I had always wanted even when I was kid –SUCCESS! No matter what it took: sacrifice, learning extra, building a solid foundation or a good network of friends. I started out my corporate career with British American Tobacco after going through a very rigorous application and interview process (assessment centre as it was christened). The moment I got informed of landing the role was one of my best moments in life because I knew it was the turning point for my dream. I worked there in various capacities from Leaf Operations to Sales and Business Development. BAT gave me the footing to move on to higher career positions as Regional Sales Manager, Divisional Sales Manager, Head of Key Account, Regional Markets Head of Business and Country Director in Coca Cola Bottling Company, Guinness Ghana Breweries, Globacom and Herbalife of Ghana respectively. Looking back gears me up to continue to go higher and push myself to achieve more.
GTB: Who and what influenced you most growing up?
FA: Reading wide influenced me a lot. I always had the urge to read right from a very young age. And with my parents being educationists, I had a lot of books at my disposal. I read wide across the length and breadth of all subjects including History, Geography, Politics, Religion, novels, etc., all on my own. As a Science student I one day found myself reading History whilst Chemistry was being taught.
Moving around the country also influenced my perceptions and beliefs. I am naturally extroverted so it was very easy to meet and make friends with people I hardly knew. I met different people from different backgrounds with different characters and behaviours. And so I grew to be more tolerant, understanding and less judgmental. I learnt a lot about dealing with and handling different situations based on beliefs and perceptions of people. This also ignited my curiosity and desire to travel globally to see and experience the different kinds of people and cultures out there.
GTB: How is your normal business day like?
FA: As with every business executive, day to day performance is key to achievement of corporate,individual and leadership milestones. Every day counts and is crucial towards success. My day begins with the reading of mails and briefings from my team (operational and functional). It is usually filled with conference calls/webex meetings with senior executives. As well as monitoring of commercial, economic and business environments(both local and international); negotiating business development deals; mining opportunities out there; providing general leadership and motivation for my team. All these interspersed with extensive travels (local but mostly foreign). I basically try to keep the business healthy on all fronts with the support of my team and generate confidence along my value chain. I do all these with discipline, integrity, firmness and vision of leading from the front.
GTB: How are you preparing for your succession?
FA: Life is a journey and so is leadership. People should from day one be positioned with strict discipline, integrity, selflessness and the ability to live and die for their course. Once these are instilled in people they know what to do always no matter who is in charge. I know the strengths and weaknesses of my team (very crucial indeed) and so it makes it quite easy to mentor and help bridge certain gaps in certain individuals who have the hunger to go higher. I train, motivate, mentor, delegate and direct my team such that they work perfectly well even when I am unavailable.
Fred shares his perspectives on leading and managing people on THE VIEW
GTB: What drives you? What pushes you to give your all to the course you believe in?
FA: My biggest motivation is to be an important part of those who influence and change the world positively; especially corporate Ghana and the world of business. This means positively influencing my family, my company, my social circle, my network, my country, my continent and the world at large. I do this with hard work, tenacity, exemplary leadership, discipline, focus, resilience and proper planning. Failures will come and go; learning from them is the main reason why they come. ‘Success is painful’ … I have learnt. It demands the kind of sacrifices many people won’t be comfortable with but the ‘desire’ to attain it can’t be put out. I have that ‘desire’ so it drives me … it pushes me to always do/go extra.
GTB: You spoke about ‘failures’ … how do you manage and deal with those gloomy days of business?
FA: As I said earlier on I am very fond of books and articles. I usually beat those days down by reading and learning from people who have failed severally but have come out tops. People like Winston Churchill, who led the British when all was doom and gloom; Warren Buffet who made investments and went from nothing to one of the richest; Nelson Mandela, our Sam Jonah, Kofi Amoabeng, Seni Adetu, B.A. Mensah, and a lot of good examples we have in Africa and Ghana. Their stories tell me that “…this too shall pass”.
I always have strong support from my family. I keep a very good family and business balance because after it’s all said and done family it is. After it all, they help me unwind and de-stress. I can always count on them.
GTB: Your view on the challenging economic times in Ghana. What should businesses do to surmount these herculean challenges?
FA: The economic situation in Ghana makes doing business quite hectic and difficult. Businesses are barely making profits. It’s tough but I believe it calls for smart business solutions. Businesses need to stay smart to stay on top. Every tiny fibre of the business organization needs to be fine-tuned. Customer management is key. People are not buying because there’s pressure on the little money they have. It’s key to keep the customer satisfied so you maintain your position on their priority list.
Smart spending is also crucial. If money leaves the company, it must come back many folds. Cost compression is the way to go in order to avoid losses at this time. Strategic pricing can help cushion some of the burdensome taxes and bills – with huge emphasis on avoiding over and underpricing. Taking good care of your staff is very essential. If businesses allow the economic hardship to let them neglect the needs and welfare of their staff, the consequences will be devastating. Very competent staff could be lost to other companies. Keeping a good balance is the way to go.
GTB: Your advice for the young people who aspire to join the corporate business world.
FA: *Have the desire to succeed
*Get a good mentor
*Be disciplined and focused
*Take that bold and first step
*Stay the course by making sacrifices
*Go through the mill to gather as much experience as possible but don’t slack.
*Take bold but well informed risks with caution.
* Keep soaring and never turn back.
GTB: Thank you Sir.
FA: Pleasure is mine.
