Tony Elumelu inspires me - Professor Porter.

Renowned Professor of Harvard Business School, Professor Michael

Eugene Porter has described Mr. Tony Elumelu, immediate past Managing

Director of the United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc and Chairman Heirs

Holdings, as being a source of inspiration, stating that he will

become more involved with Africa. Porter said the antecedents,

pan-Africa vision and agenda of the immediate past CEO of UBA have

helped to shape his views and perception that the continent can be

transformed by a new generation of committed leaders epitomized by

Elumelu.
Professor Porter, who is generally regarded as the father of modern

business strategy and the world's most influential thinker on

management and competitiveness, disclosed this in Lagos on Saturday

August 6, 2011, at the 10th edition of Tony Elumelu Lectures Series

(TELS) organized by UBA. Delivering a lecture titled 'Creating and

Sustaining Strategic Competitive Advantage' before a capacity crowd at

the UBA House, Porter emphasized the need for wealth creation, stating

that businesses can truly  grow when product and services are offered

to the target markets or customers uniquely and at a premium.

He advised businesses and their managers to ensure that their

strategies align with customer needs. According to him most businesses

aspire to be the best but there is nothing like the best company

rather what is obtainable are good and profitable companies with

unique products and services tailored to meet consumer needs.

'Strategy is about choosing what you want to do and sticking to what

you choose to do.  There must be trade offs. You can't be everything

to everybody', said Professor Porter.
Speaking at the occasion, the Group Managing Director of UBA Mr.

Phillips Oduoza commended Professor Porter for his work in the area of

business strategy. He said the ideas espoused at the occasion validate

some of the strategies adopted by the UBA Group. 'We would work harder

in actualizing these strategies even as we reorganize to implement the

holding company structure' maintained Oduoza.
In his remark during the lecture, Mr. Elumelu, urged business leaders

to internalize the concept of economic shared values by building into

their strategies, the elements of long term focus, superior value and

sustainability.  He advised the UBA Group to stay the course on its

Africa expansion strategy.
TELS is a quarterly Leadership Development Forum, conceived to

engender and produce well rounded executives from within the UBA Group

who will not only impact the financial industry space where they work,

but influence the larger society positively.
It is a forum where Senior Executives of the institution from across

Africa and the rest of the World gain knowledge from the wealth of

experience of famous and distinguished African business leaders with a

track record of success in their chosen endeavors. The medium provides

a melting point where valuable insights and acumen are shared by these

carefully selected speakers.