Nexford Career Fair and Startup Demo 2023

As a learner or graduate, you’ll be able to connect with local and international employers and, as an entrepreneur, meet would-be customers, investors, and partners. It’s all happening on September 30th at Landmark Event Center, Lagos.

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Local and international employers in attendance



9 Mobile AWS FITC Interswitch Kuda Lagos Innovates Lagos State Employment Trust Fund Nestle Oris Consulting Shortlist Sterling Bank Wakanow

Your dream job awaits

10+ leading employers will be attending the event, and HR managers and recruiters representing some of Nigeria's biggest employers.

Register to attend now as space is limited!

CV review, Career coaching, and more

Jennifer Bangoura, Nexford’s Director of Career Innovation, will join leaders from various industries to provide career coaching and interview tips, and conduct CV reviews to improve your employment chances.

Explore remote job opportunities

We’re reserving a section for Nexford learners and graduates looking for remote job opportunities. Come and connect with representatives from some of the world’s leading talent marketplace and talent outsourcing companies!

Attend exclusive masterclasses by industry experts

As you prepare to embark on the next chapter of your professional journey, we are excited to announce a series of masterclasses designed exclusively for NXU graduates like you. These masterclasses will take place after the graduation ceremony and will run alongside the Career Fair and Startup Demo.

These masterclasses are designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills needed to start your career on the best possible footing. Don't miss this opportunity to jumpstart your career and achieve your professional goals.

Masterclass Speakers

  • Founder and CEO, Oris

    Michael Adesanya

    Founder and CEO, Oris

    With a decade of experience building retail sales and supply chain solutions, Michael Adesanya shares expert insights during our "Sales Skills for Founders" masterclass. As a YC and Stanford GSB alum, who is now on a mission to develop salespeople for the future of Africa's sales force, Michael brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to our masterclass attending graduates.

    Michael is the Founder and CEO of Oris, a consulting firm that hires and manages salespeople for businesses in Africa. He is also a Sales Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) at ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator, where he supports founders with their Sales and GTM Strategies. Michael holds a First-Class Honours degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Lagos (UNILAG) and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

    Throughout his career, Michael has worked with various organizations, including P&G, Accenture, Pomelo, and Gap Inc.. His diverse experience across industries and continents has equipped him with the skills and insights necessary to help founders excel in sales and business development.

  • Startups Leader, Sub-Saharan Africa for AWS

    Napa Onwusah

    Startups Leader, Sub-Saharan Africa for AWS

    Napa Onwusah is a seasoned business leader with 20+ years of experience working in renowned blue-chip companies. Currently, she serves as the Leader for AWS Startups in Africa and has held leadership roles at Google, Visa, Nokia, Cisco, and Microsoft. Her masterclass "Building and Scaling your Startup" will provide access to key industry insights and valuable lessons from her wealth of experience.

    Napa holds a Computer Science degree; an MBA; and a Harvard University leadership certificate. Excited about growing businesses, Napa leads a team at AWS to empower startups across Sub-Saharan Africa. She also contributes to the startup ecosystem by collaborating with non-tech founders to turn their ideas into scalable MVPs. Napa is a productivity enthusiast and through Built for Balance, her coaching program, she works with young professionals to help them build successful and balanced lives. Her mission to empower individuals and businesses, drive growth, and create positive change in the world makes her an ideal speaker for this event.

  • Mentor at Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) and ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator

    Ganiu Odewale

    Mentor at Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) and ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator

    With 15+ years in financial and tech services, Ganiu Odewale is a top exec and mentor who has served in various roles in business development, sales, product and project management, and client support. His masterclass "The Global Grid: Succeeding in a Remote Job Environment" draws on his experience delivering sustainable ecosystems and solutions, solving business problems, and facilitating change.

    Ganiu currently serves as a Mentor at Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) and ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator. He holds an EMBA from Lagos Business School, a BSc in International Business Administration from United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya, a Project Management (PMP-PMI) certification, and two Lean Six Sigma (yellow and green belts) certifications.

  • Country Human Resources Manager at Nestlé

    Shakiru Lawal

    Country Human Resources Manager at Nestlé

    Shakiru Lawal is a progressive Human Resource Leader with a proven record of successful accomplishments in Human Resource Management. His masterclass, "Designing a Fulfilling Career: Balancing Ambition, Purpose, and Goals", will draw from his extensive experience and is tailored to teach new graduates how to navigate the complex world of career development.

    Shakiru Lawal has extensive experience in various aspects of HR, including HR Strategy, Organizational Design & Development, Total Reward Management, Talent Management, Employee Relations, Shared Services Management, and Functional Development. He is a certified Senior Professional Human Resources International (SPHRi), Korn Ferry Certified 360 Feedback Coach, Certified Insight Profilor Coach, and Certified Gallup Cliffton Strengths Coach. Shakiru is also a full member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria.

  • Division Head, Sterling Bank Plc

    Obinna Ukachukwu

    Division Head, Sterling Bank Plc

    Obinna Ukachukwu, Division Head at Sterling Bank, and renowned Product Leader will lead this masterclass around the future skills you need to become globally relevant. Drawing from 20+ years of experience, and his MBA, Obinna will guide you on how digital transformation is transforming organizations across the world and the skills you need to stand out from the crowd.

Entrepreneurs from Nexford's alumni network



Accesstech Innovation Bizedge Hospyta LeverPay MyTherapist Redge RetailLoop Tyms

Give your startup the visibility it deserves at the Startup Demo, in partnership with:

Iyinoluwa Aboyeji is a Founding Partner of Future Africa, an innovation fund that provides capital, coaching and community to bold and visionary leaders turning Africa's biggest challenges into business opportunities.

He is the Founder and former CEO Flutterwave, a business building payments technology and infrastructure to connect Africa to the global economy. Under his leadership, the company became one of the fastest growing payments technology businesses of all-time, processing over $2B across over 50M transactions, and attracted significant investment from experienced players in the space, including Y Combinator, Greycroft, Greenvisor Capital, and Mastercard.

Previously, Iyinoluwa co-founded Andela, Africa's largest engineering organization with over 1000 software engineers that has received investment from Mark Zuckerberg and Google Ventures.

In addition to this, Iyin is a Founding Investor in multiple other companies, including Moove and Itana.

Iyinoluwa holds a B.A. in Legal Studies from the University of Waterloo, and sits on the board of several institutions including Paris’ Share Africa Project, Rainbow Educational Services Limited, and Filmo Realty. He served as the Deputy Director General for Madam Oby Ezekwesili’s 2019 Presidential Campaign, is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, a Forbes 30 under 30 honouree, and a member of Nigeria's Industrial Policy and Competitiveness Advisory Council.

Olubunmi Adeoye serves as Principal at African Capital Alliance. He's the Vice President of Private Equity of ACA. He serves as Board Member at Wiocc.

Prior to joining ACA in 2009, Bunmi worked as an investment banker in the Global Energy Group of Credit Suisse in New York, where he was involved in financial advisory and capital-raising efforts for power and renewable energy firms.

Bunmi also used to be a management consultant at Accenture where he was involved mainly in business and process re-engineering engagements for clients in various industries. Bunmi has an MBA degree from the Darden School of Business, University of Virginia and a B.Sc (Mechanical Engineering) degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria.

Pitch your product

Here’s an exciting opportunity to tell the world about your business, product, or service. Africa’s startup ecosystem is continuing to grow. The $4.8b startup funding in 2022 is proof of this. Your journey to becoming the next unicorn could start here.

Meet potential investors and mentors

We’ve lined up business leaders from within and outside Africa, giving you the opportunity build year-long relationships with mentors, and position yourself as the next venture that these investors may want to invest in.

Network, network!

We’re making this a perfect atmosphere for high-value networking. The Startup Demo features entrepreneurs within Nexford’s own community, along with other startup founders and established entrepreneurs from Nigeria and beyond.

Career Fair & Startup Demo agenda

15:30: Career Fair & Career Advice

Meet and network with employers currently hiring, understand what they’re looking for and get live feedback on how the employment market is evolving. LSETF will be hosting career workshops to help you improve your CV and your interviewing skills.

Employers include:

9 mobile, AWS, Interswitch, Lagos Innovates, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), Nestle, Oris, Shortlist, Sterling Bank, Wakanow

15:30: Founders Pitch Session

Eight shortlisted founders will be pitching live to a panel of VCs. Join them - listen in and gain valuable insights from how to pitch and learn from live VC feedback.

VC panelists will include:

Founder turned investor Iyin Aboyeji of Future Africa Iyin co-founded two unicorns; Flutterwave and Andela.

Olubunmi Adeoye is the Vice President of Private Equity at African Capital Alliance, a leading pan-African investment firm sponsoring funds and managing investments in Sub-Saharan Africa. He brings strong expertise in private equity, consulting, and investment banking, having worked at Credit Suisse and Accenture respectively.

15:30: Start-up Demo Day

Meet and network with NXU alumni founders as they exhibit their own startups. 8 shortlisted startups will be displaying their product offerings. This is a great opportunity for you to learn about their startups but also to speak with founders and learn about their own entrepreneurial journey.

15:30: 1st Masterclass Session: Building & Scaling Your Startup

Napa Onwusah, Amazon Web Services (AWS) Startups Leader, will draw from a decade of experience at Amazon, Google and Visa, to guide current and aspiring business owners on how to build a market-ready product then how to accelerate growth. Napa is a believer in banishing the word ‘impossible’, would you like to join her?

15:45: 2nd Masterclass Session: Designing a Fulfilling Career

Shakiru Lawal, HR Manager at Nestle will help you design your career path balancing between ambition, purpose and goals.

16.00: 3rd Masterclass Session: Becoming Globally Relevant

Obinna Ukachukwu, Division Head at Sterling Bank, and renowned Product Leader will lead this masterclass around the future skills you need to become globally relevant. Drawing from 20+ years of experience, and his MBA, Obinna will guide you on how digital transformation is transforming organizations across the world and the skills you need to stand out from the crowd.

16:15: 4th Masterclass Session: Sales Skills for Founders

Everyone needs to know how to sell, in this masterclass, Stanford Business School graduate and speaker Michael Adesanya will draw on a decade of experience from companies like P&G and Accenture to help you build the skills you need to sell any product or service!

16:30: 5th Masterclass Session: Succeeding in a Remote Job Environment

The ‘Global Grid’ is real with millions of jobs going online, speaker Ganiu Odewale will guide you on where the jobs are coming from, what are those jobs, how to land them and most importantly how to succeed in them.

16.45: Session round up

Wrapping up the day will be all speakers and VCs who will deliver their parting words of wisdom and provide key insights.

17.00: Wind down time

The end of the official event but the beginning of a lot more for you! Let's keep the celebration going on #NXUGrad