Two members of Vodafone Ghana’s senior management team; CEO, Patricia Obo-Nai and Director of Digital Transformation and Commercial Operations, Angela Mensah-Poku, have been named among the top 50 Most Influential Female Leaders in Africa within the corporate and business sphere.

The list of corporate movers and shakers was compiled by Leading Ladies Africa, a women-focused non-profit based in Sub-Saharan Africa which is committed to promoting leadership and excellence among African women.  

In a statement on its website which preceded the unveiling of the top 50 leading ladies, the organization stated, “This list comprises African women and women of African descent who are making their mark in the corporate and business sector, spanning different industries in global conglomerates all over the world.”

In its third year, the top 50 list has evolved from being a Nigeria-centric one to an initiative that includes and encompasses the contributions other African women are making in the corporate sector.

According to the founder of Leading Ladies Africa, Francesca Uriri, “This list reflects our objective to continue to push for gender diversity and inclusiveness within the corporate sector – especially for African women and to highlight and celebrate their achievements to the growth and expansion of global big business.

"We will continue to push for gender diversity and inclusion of African women and women of African descent in executive positions and boardrooms in organizations across the world, and hope that this list encourages more to aim for these positions and increase representation across different sectors.”

This recognition is the latest among a long list of local and global honours that Vodafone Ghana CEO, Patricia Obo-Nai, has amassed since she took over the reins of Vodafone Ghana in April 2019.

An engineer by profession and a former Chief Technical Officer (CTO) as well as acting Director of the Commercial Business Unit (CBU), Patricia has brought her technical and commercial expertise vis-à-vis her remarkable people skills to bear in her role as CEO.

Under her leadership, the company has seen steady commercial growth and a significant restructuring process aligned to the company’s shift in ethos from a traditional Telco to a digital technology services company.

Vodafone’s remarkable adoption of digital-first customer service alternatives such as the My Vodafone App, TOBi and a suit of online/remote service portals among others have been ably commandeered by Patricia’s fellow laureate, Angela Mensah-Poku, Director of Digital Transformation and Commercial Operations.  

The notable success of Vodafone Ghana’s ongoing transition to a digital-first technology organization was particularly evident at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 as the organisation continued to operate at full throttle with over 90% of its staff working from home while customers were also able to access Vodafone’s suite of services seamlessly using the variation of digital interventions on offer. 

The list also features some other prominent Ghanaian women and women of Ghanaian descent, including Abena Osei-Poku, Managing Director of Absa Bank – Ghana and Bozoma Saint John, Chief Marketing Officer of Netflix.