Chairperson of the Business and Financial Times (B&FT), Dr. Edith Dankwa, has enjoined young persons to prioritise opportunities for growth as they make career decisions, saying, it is crucial for personal development.
Despite the necessity of adequate financial remuneration for work done, she argued that a career at a budding organisation also presents the perfect opportunity to build leadership skills and create impact, which in turn serves as a catalyst to achieve more.
She said this during an interview on Accra-based Joy FM’s morning show, following her emergence as the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG) Marketing Woman of the Year for 2020.
“I came to realise quite early on that work is not just about the monetary benefit alone, but your passion; that also does not mean that you do not need the money but at a small company, you could make an impact and the impact would be felt more than being at a bigger, more established organisation.
“That also does not mean that being part of a bigger organisation and putting in your best is not good but at a smaller company, you are able to put all your skills to the test, even if you are not the most experienced yet,” she explained.
Chronicling her time at the B&FT – which she joined as an administrator upon completion of her one-year mandatory national service and has risen through the ranks to serve as its Chief Executive Officer and now Board Chair – she noted that the growth potential of the company was a motivating factor. She added that her persistence has been vindicated by her professional development and the growth of the paper to become the go-to source for business information in the country.
Young people and work has dominated discussions, particularly over the last quarter, following a number of developments. These include comments by the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, who said the government public sector payroll is full and encouraged young people to venture into entrepreneurship as well as the oversubscription of applications to the police, immigration, and fire services.
Touching on the rise of entrepreneurial ventures, Dr. Dankwa asked stakeholders to be more intentional in their support for nascent businesses, adding that it must transcend the financial investment and potential return on said investment, taking a keen interest in the impact created by SMEs.
Dr. Dankwa advocated for more supervision for small businesses, especially for measures to be put in place to encourage owners to treat the businesses as separate legal entities and refrain from using assets of the business on personal expenditure.
“It is not just about the financing but also having an interest in what SMEs do. We must follow up to ensure that whatever support that is given to them yields fruits and we can see that they are growing. Sometimes for the owners, when the business is thriving, we get excited and we see the money as ours and misappropriate it.
There should be some form of mechanism to check SMEs that are being supported. As a country, we should identify – whether it is a hundred or a thousand – SMEs that we groom for at least five years to be sure that they are very independent before we let go.”
About Dr. Dankwa
Dr. Edith Dankwa graduated from the University of Cape Coast in 1998 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, with honours, in Management Studies. Two years later, she joined the Business in Africa magazine, and the Business and Financial Times as an administrator.
After a year in the role, her stellar performance saw her being promoted to the position of Special Projects Manager. Her rapid progression saw her become Business Development Manager after another year, then General Manager and Executive Director by 2007. Under her tutelage, the flagship publication, the Business and Financial Times (B&FT) has grown from a boutique, weekly newspaper to production on every working day, save holidays.
In that time, there has been the introduction of other publications such as the Business Times Africa Magazine (BT) and the Energy Today Magazine (ET) as well as agenda-setting events such as the Ghana Economic Forum (GEF), Ghana’s Most Respected CEOs, the Money Summit, African Business Leaders Forum and a host of others.
After 20 long and accomplished years, she stepped down from her role as the firm’s Chief Executive Officer in 2020. She has served on a number of boards, including but not limited to, the International Chamber of Commerce, Unilever, the Right To Information (RTI) Commission, African University College of Communication (AUCC), Ghana News Agency (GNA), and Media General. She is a founding member of the Executive Women’s Network (EWN).
Dr. Edith Dankwa has been duly recognised for her contribution to the wider business, the financial and economic landscape of the nation. This has seen her adjudged Best Print Media Entrepreneur (2011); 100 Most Influential Personalities in Ghana (2013) and most recently, CIMG Marketing Woman of the Year (2020). She is a Fellow with Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK, and a Fellow of the Institute of Certified Economist of Ghana.
Dr. Dankwa has an Executive MBA from the GIMPA Business School, a Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Newspaper Management from Inwent International Institute of Journalism, Germany.
Her doctoral degree is in Business Administration (International Business) from Walden University, USA.
