Speaker

We are pleased to welcome Olajide Abiola, a distinguished military veteran and visionary entrepreneur, as a speaker at this year's Evolve Conference. He will be sharing his insights on "Unlocking Opportunities: Identifying Untapped markets in Nigeria". In his entrepreneurial journey of over fifteen years, Mr. Abiola has made a significant impact in various sectors of the economy through his superior organizational skills and leadership abilities. Today, he serves as the CEO of a multi-billion naira group of firms, where he oversees the renowned residential hospitality brands Gidanka and HomeAway, as well as Jendo, a premium groundnut oil manufacturing company. His proven business acumen led to the successful co-founding of a leading financial technology company, boasting a transaction volume of ₦13 billion in under eight years. Mr. Abiola's wide-ranging expertise encompasses technology, finance, production, sales, business administration, retail, project management, and legislation. He has played a pivotal role in shaping the Nigerian business landscape and even served in the 7th Senate, where he offered valuable contributions to Senate Standing Committees on Banking, Insurance, Appropriation, and Capital Markets. With an academic background in Computer Science from the University of Ilorin, Kwara state, Mr. Abiola also holds a certification in Information Technology by Microsoft. His educational journey further includes project management, negotiation, marketing, budgeting, and costing courses from esteemed institutions like the University of California, Irvine, and the University of Michigan in the United States. His notable achievements have earned him the distinguished fellow of the Institute of Strategic Management. Mr. Abiola's professional accomplishments are complemented by a rich family pedigree. Born in Oyo State and coming from a lineage of intellectuals, he embodies the profound knowledge passed down from his university don mother specializing in Business Education and his father, an educationist after an illustrious banking career. As the former CEO of a leader in the lendtech industry, Mr. Abiola has driven many groundbreaking projects worth tens of millions of dollars. He remains a significant contributor to finance, manufacturing, retail, real estate, and hospitality sectors, and has ambitious plans to venture into supermarket retail chains and more. His accomplishments in the hospitality sector, particularly with Gidanka, have marked a series of influential collaborations, such as hosting META, a prestigious multinational technology conglomerate. These successes have solidified Gidanka's position as a leading player in residential hospitality, not only in Nigeria but across the continent. Mr. Abiola's unwavering vision and commitment to excellence have significantly influenced entrepreneurship, driving economic growth and creating jobs in Nigeria and beyond. His role as CEO, coupled with his introspective acumen, operational expertise, and extraordinary networking skills, has set his companies apart and positioned them as formidable players in Nigeria's business space. Beyond his business ventures, Mr. Abiola is widely known for his "healing doses" on Facebook - an educational platform where he shares wisdom nuggets for personal and entrepreneurial growth. His writings offer guidance and inspiration, focusing on a wide range of topics, from patriotism and healthy living to business leadership and creativity. Join us to learn from Mr. Abiola's wealth of experience as he unlocks the potential of untapped markets in Nigeria at the Evolve Conference. His insights promise to inspire and guide aspiring entrepreneurs and business leaders to new heights of success.