Andrew Ssekamwa, who is the chief commercial officer at Movit Products - and a judge for the 2025 CFO Awards for East Africa - believes that CFOs need to lead with innovation in today’s dynamic business environment.
With nominations for the Oscars of Finance ongoing, the former CFO speaks to CFO East Africa about the power of impactful leadership in driving meaningful change.
What makes you excited to be part of the judges’ panel for the 2025 CFO Awards for East Africa?
I have been engaging with CFO East Africa regarding the community’s agenda and what we would want to do. And I felt it was quite pivotal for me to at least participate and add a brick onto growing the community. I think rewarding or recognising individuals who have excelled in their roles as CFO and have created an impact in their organisations, but also on their customers or people around them is something that would really be good.
Which qualities and attributes will you be looking for in the nominees?
One of the things we've been talking about a lot is value. Individuals who have been able to go beyond number crunching and talking about historical data. We've seen other markets or regions talk about a chief future officer and going just a step ahead to see how will I, as someone in charge of our financial strategy; as someone in charge of driving execution of strategy; as someone utilising technology, contribute to see that the organisation remains relevant in its competitive space. But someone who's able to lead a team and look out for those who come after us, I would say. So basically, a well- rounded individual who may have the title of CFO, but is able to see the entire organisation in a 360-degree way and map out its future.
How do you think the role of the CFO has evolved in recent years and how do you plan to apply this when evaluating the 2025 CFO Awards nominees?
CFOs no longer sit behind a desk, look at the numbers and then advise. They go beyond to see what the numbers are saying and whether they can predict how these numbers will evolve in the future. What business aspects do I need to tackle to ensure that the business remains buoyant and relevant and is able to exceed its performance targets? The CFO comes in to say, ‘what is the value that my current business is generating? What are the risks that I anticipate and how will I navigate them? And then how does my business model evolve over time so that it's able to navigate the threats that are within the business environment, the unanticipated events?’
We saw Covid happen, but now I'm sure businesses are more ready to navigate that. The CFO has this 360-degree view across, be it operations, be it strategy, be it sales, commercial, be it HR in terms of people skills, and in terms of investment to see if any investment I'm making is giving me actually adequate return, but also putting my business at the next performance level to remain relevant.
So, I would say that value is very key, but also futuristic thinking has become very important for CFOs in any organisation. That's what I will really look out for in terms of someone who has that mindset, that I'm not only looking at the numbers, but I'm looking at the value being generated and how the business is going to be relevant in the future and how it has positioned itself to participate competitively.
Given that the awards recognise diverse candidates from diverse backgrounds and industries, how can the panel ensure fairness and impartiality throughout the process?
I think it's always good to recognise someone who has actually put in time and effort to upskill themselves and put themselves at a better level compared to where they were before. Being able to tell the journey and story will be very key, including how they've used that to ensure they remain relevant in the position they're in.
I was a young CFO awardee at the SCCA Deloitte Awards about two years ago. I think looking at someone who has holistically crafted themselves and positioned themselves to add value at that young age to the organisation is what will separate the winners from the rest. You’re also seeing the environment in which they're operating and how they've even been able to scale despite the challenges around them to be able to perform at that level. I think that's where the balance will be.
And how do you think these awards contribute to the finance profession and even the broader business community in East Africa?
Historically, finance professionals were always at the back end of operations for businesses. Their contribution was not clearly spelled out in terms of ensuring that some of these businesses remain afloat, but are also able to hit the targets that they are hitting.
And therefore, these awards will bring to light across the region the importance and the value that CFOs bring to the table, and also highlight the finance profession and its pivotal role in not only improving the business community, but its impact on economies across the region. But also from a personal perspective, we are all chasing careers.
We all want to be leaders. So, highlighting these individuals who are performing at that level and creating a competitive space for talent will be something good.
Share some personal experiences from your career background that you believe will help you bring a unique perspective to the judges’ panel.
From a career perspective, I've actually interacted with so many industries. I started out at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Uganda. I have an element of consulting and private practice from an accounting perspective. Then I moved into manufacturing, specifically FMCG. From there, I joined the banking industry with Standard Chartered and Embank. Now I'm back. I have also been in the airline industry, and then now back to manufacturing.
So, I have quite a diverse experience in terms of the expectations of finance professionals in those businesses and what they're expected to bring to the table. There is also the fact that I've won similar awards before - the Young CFO of the Year as well as the Strategy Execution CFO of the Year. This gives me that unique background. Having participated in the CFO East Africa community, the interactions I’ve had with the different CFOs, looking at what they've been looking out for and what they require in terms of recognition and some of the milestones that they're achieving positions me very well. I will therefore be able to add value on the panel.
What advice do you have for future CFOs or even current CFOs who aspire to be recognised at the awards level?
I think one of the things they should not leave out is having grit. I know it's tough but having the grit to pull through and navigate challenges and situations is something that they need to maintain. Maintaining a high level of integrity and the ability to think outside the box, or like they say, without the box. Just removing the box and thinking differently about how you can transform and change your organisation so that it remains relevant would be something very important.
