THE Federal University of Technology Owerri, has clinched the Unilever Nigeria sponsored Ideatrophy business challenge.
FUT Owerri tagged team ‘Blueprint’ slammed two other institutions-teams ‘Apex’ and ‘Idealist’ in a keenly contested battle to emerge first and second runners up in that order.
Sponsored by Unilever, the Ideatrophy which hit its fourth edition this year, is a national competition which gives undergraduates from various universities in Nigeria the opportunity to develop and execute strategies that deliver business results.
This year’s edition tagged: ‘The confidence to do more’ tasked the students to develop a communication and marketing plan for Rexona and also drive communication that Nigeria’s most popular and widely patronised deodorant: ‘Sure is now Rexona’.
The competition featured personalities including; Prof Pat Utomi who delivered the keynote address, as well as the Lagos State Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment Mr. Babatunde Durosinmi Etti.
Speaking at the event, Managing Director of Unilever Nigeria Plc, Mr. Yaw Nsarkoh, congratulated the winning team on their outstanding success. He also praised other participating teams for their impressive performance.
Nsarkoh expressed Unilever’s passion to help equip Nigerian undergraduates with invaluable business skills that would help them become successful entrepreneurs operating under a world class standard. He urged the students to continue aspiring towards more success.
Said Nsarkoh: “This is not the end, it is only a beginning, we believe that whatever we call best in Nigeria should be able to hold its own against any team in the world.”
He emphasised the need for creativity, which he described as necessary for survival in the workplace and life in general. He further highlighted the need for students to take advantage of the networking opportunity the competition provides.
“Competition such as this provides room for development and networking as participants get to work with people from diverse backgrounds and learn ethics, co-existence and integrity as it relates to the workplace.”
Utomi charged the students to take advantage of the opportunity for exploits.He identified fortitude, creativity, perseverance and goal setting skills as vital.
“Principles are like a compass that stirs you towards a destination, providing a guiding path,” Utomi said.
“The problem in Nigeria today is that the country has become an instant gratification society where the attitude of overnight success is encouraged, where people embrace wealth without work, religion without sacrifice, education without character, pleasure without conscience and business without morality,”Utomi added.
Utomi also advised the students to expand their creativity which he described as central to the creation of a better world.
Durosimi Etti described Unilever’s initiative as laudable.
He said: “Unilever has again demonstrated their love for the country, this shows that their investment in the country is not just about getting returns but impacting on the lives of Nigerians.”
Bella Victor, one of the winning team members, said coming tops in the competition was a dream come true.
“This is a great moment for me,” Victor said. “I am grateful to Unilever for the opportunity to participate in this competition. We promise to consolidate on this success and use it as a platform to move on to greater achievements,” he added.
This year’s competition also saw the introduction of the individual recognition award Also for the first time, individual recognition award was introduced, and was won by Jennifer Ikeokwu from Babcock University.
The high point was the presentation by participants of their works to Mr Nsarkoh. Others in attendance include: Marketing Director David Okeme, Guest Judge, Titi Akinsanya and Marilyn Maduka, leadership development Manager. The event also featured a mock interview session for students, vetting of CV’s/resume and one-on-one networking sessions with business leaders, among others.
