Name: Najeeb Mahamoud Abdussalam

Title: Chief Executive Officer

Organisation: Trust Synergy Infrastructure Ltd

Najeeb Mahmoud Abdussalam, Founder/Chief Executive Officer,TSIL: Najeeb has over 20 years’ experience managing and directing complex projects. He currently serves a dual role of Secretary, Urban Mass Transport committee/ Secretary (technical), Kano Rail Mass Transit Implementation Committee and has served as the Director of Kano Urban Transport Project Office (KUTPO). He previously served as the Secretary of the Kano State Project Delivery Committee, and Senior Special Assistant - Research and Documentation to the Executive Governor Kano State and has coordinated several World Bank/NIAF, a DFID funded program projects in Kano State. He began his career working in the risk management, financial advisory and business development units of Tropical Commercial Bank and First City Monument Bank. Najeeb obtained a Masters in Environmental Management from Bayero University, Kano in 2007. He also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management and obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Geography from University of Maiduguri in 1996.He is a Fellow of Institute of Management Consultants and a Certified Management Consultant, a member of the Sustainable Policy Commission: Nigeria Economic Summit Group.

Najeeb also served as the Managing Director/Chief Executive officer of Abuja Urban Mass Transport Company (AUMTCO)

Thank you to the 2,000 leaders who’ve generously done the 7 Questions on Leadership!

I hope Najeeb's answers will encourage you in your leadership journey. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Jonno White

1. What have you found most challenging as a leader?

Getting people to key into the organisations vision and to take ownership.

2. How did you become a leader? Can you please briefly tell the story?

I think it started to manifest when I joined partisan politics and was vying for an elective office. I was eventually appointed as SSA to the executive Governor. My leadership skills began to manifest when I began technical studies to reform the public transport space of my state and was receiving technical support from World Bank and UK-NIAF.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

My typical day begins with the morning prayer at dawn just like any other Muslim. Then I take bath and get set to office. On getting to office especially when I was the MD/CEO of AUMTCO, I proceed to workshop to know how many buses we have deployed, how many are being attended and their status.Then the regular monotonous office work while getting updates from heads of departments on where we are from previous day or assignments.

4. What's a recent leadership lesson you've learned for the first time or been reminded of?

The welfare of staff and their families is a cardinal component of leadership. It dies not only endanger camaraderie but also enhances operational and organisational productivity.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?

My Vision by Sheikh Al Makhtoum of Dubai. It clearly shows how vision if brought into focus can lead to achieving great successes. These successes comes with price tag "Doggednes"

6. If you could only give one piece of advice to a young leader, what would you say to them?

Have a clear vision and be focus.