Miss. Tolulope George-Yanwah is the country manager, Jumia Services, the logistics arm of Jumia, which manages the shipment and delivery of packages from sellers to consumers.
According to her, working in a male-dominated sector is quite challenging but her experience with Jumia has been life-changing, as the company gives equal opportunity to everyone to bring out their best.
Excerpts:
Attraction to Jumia
I have been in the logistics management field for about 11 years. I heard about Jumia three months after the platform was launched. Knowing several unique logistics challenges in Nigeria, such as fragmentation, limited number of services, infrastructure, finance, I became curious as to the workings of e-commerce and how Jumia intended to scale up its business to consumer (B2C) logistics operations nationwide. This curiosity led me to join what is now the leading pan-African e-commerce platform. Having spent six years and four months with Jumia, it has been rewarding and exciting to know that I am a part of an organisation spearheading the growth of e-commerce in Africa and I am strategically placed within a team that’s charged to build the largest and leading integrated network of logistics service providers for Jumia.
Role at Jumia
I oversee a total of seven unit/departmental heads, directly, and a total of 800 employees, indirectly. My work routine is about ensuring the effective and efficient running of our logistics operations as well as building the company culture. Team management, which involves developing managers (hiring and training employees), monitoring and motivating staff and shaping the work environment by internalising our values, cost management and managing operational quality.
Jumia Services
The Jumia platform consists of three main elements: a marketplace, which connects sellers with consumers; a logistics service, which enables the shipment and delivery of packages from sellers to consumers; and a payment service, which facilitates transactions among customers active on our platform. Jumia Services is an integrated and connected network of logistics service providers, the aim is to ensure the right package is delivered to the right consumer in the best cost to quality ratio meeting up with the needs of millions of consumers nationwide. Our services include warehousing, inbound, inventory management, outbound; Last mile, door delivery, pick-up station. Vendor collection services, pick-up and drop-off; cash collection services and linehaul and reverse logistics.
Jumia’s mission is to improve the quality of everyday life in Nigeria. So, our logistics services help our consumers save time and save money. I supervise the shipment and delivery of packages in the best cost-to-quality ratio to our customers. We are also committed to helping businesses grow, and demonstrate this commitment through our integrated network of service providers who are majorly SMEs whom we have helped in areas of technology, business development and finance lending; and we continue to create a sustainable impact through job creation and skillset improvement.
Working with Jumia
It has been a life-changing journey. I am grateful to Jumia for the opportunity to grow in the midst of many challenges in the last six years, and for making growth and career advancement within the company gender neutral in a sector that is male dominated.
