Leadership Questionnaire

1. What have you found most challenging (and exciting) as a CEO or senior leader?

Staying Resilient in times of crisis.However it is exciting to be a risk taker and step forward to unknown waters when you’re carrying an optimistic mindset.

2. What was your journey to becoming a CEO executive or entrepreneur especially in the last decade? Please briefly tell your story?

Hyooh! With my personal trials and tragic journey of being an orphan and then a widow at a very important stage of any human being lifecircle I was able to start my company with all these mixed feelings.

My driving factors has always been an inborn character and optimistic personality.

I started to dream about being an enterprise that has a social impact.I saw how different genders are affected by products provided in the fast moving goods such as food-based consumption trends during the 2007/2008 financial crisis.In the wake of that, I felt food will be the most important thing ever in the agricultural revolution, especially within the continental I live, Africa and more so my home country Tanzania which has more than 60% of population depending on this sector.

My passion was for children,Youth and Women, since I represented the interest of both, since I had young siblings to take care, I became a mother in 2013 just before I graduated with my msc.applied economics.

My social enterprise became one of the potential candidate that interested development partners in the area of food and nutrition.With that, I was nominated to African Women Entrepreneurs Programme fellowship under the US international visitor leadership programme in 2017.

I managed to visit USA most inspiring places and States including Chicago, Illinois,

I am grateful the opportunity exposed me to meet and interact with like-minded women and men Entrepreneurs from different parts of Africa.The programme created in me a new beginning for considering my business as well suited for regional and international space.

It was at the same time,, I realised while you face obstacles in oneside of the world,,for others it is an opportunity.I became strong and optimistic that my business will grow no matter what happened.Because at this particular year, I was also required to take my daughter to school, no support from the dad,all had to play in my financial management.

Despite all this, Iin 2018 decided to holdback a profit making agenda and work around community based initiative that I co-launched with young graduates from my university, SUA.

LisheYangu initiative started as CBO, in Morogoro, where I lived and thought I will make the business.We decided to focus on School Nutrition agenda, which by then was a gray area in my Country.Championing this initiative exposed me to so many things including the need for partnership, inclusiveness and creating ecosystem of support.I was able to showcase and present my dream in many platforms including going into pilot project in 2020/2021 with government of Tanzania, to see how fortified school meals will bring difference in the learning, performance and attendance of school going children.Our unique advocacy tool has been instrumental to engage 30 schools with 12,000 children with nutrition education and launching of 30 nutrition(LISHE) clubs in Tanga and Kagera regions.

I am so happy this approach paid and has been one of the areas that makes me proud to be part of change makers in this space.It also make me believe putting people before profit can always take you to the profit no matter what.
This week, I am invited to be one of the partners who will seat and listen to the government policy decisions on how nutrition will benefit Tanzania through regional offices.Our Hon.President Samia Suluhu Hassan, will be chairing this meeting.This is one of my proudest moment as a social enterprise founder and CEO of ONA Foundation.

3. What’s a most recent significant leadership lesson you’ve learned which transformed the way you lead/operate?

Knowing my personality and how it is important to influence and bring change.Specifically,, what are my positive and negative characters that can help to value add or destroy my name, leadership and operations.

4. What is your secret to organising/managing your work, your role (or portfolio of roles) and your personal life every single day from waking up moments to bedtime?

I am trying to really go with the floor and be in the realm of work-life balance mood.However, reading alot of books and personal development literature has helped me to gain knowledge and more tips.One of the recent particular reference is the Robin Sharma, 5AM Club book.It has added a very good perspective in my personal life transformation.

I am currently trying in to fit in the group of the 5am Club!

I do use 60mins approach: 20 for spiritual, 20 for personal reflection and 20 for physical activities.This is more done in the morning, as I also like to sleep early so evenings are less intense for me.Additionally, because I also made routine to my kids who need to also go to bed before 9pm.It is working well however sometimes I get setbacks from unforseen calenders when I travel or being away from my home.

5. What are the important topics and trends on your mind these days, that you feel impact business, the leaders and their journey and areas they need to focus on?

Food and Nutrition still remain very strong for me and I see even for the entire world on the wake of the pandemic,,everyone has now turned to be own well-being watchdog.Priotinzing self-care and balancing with fast moving dependency on technology.

Financial inclusion, how do we bring in equity and equality issues in the economic sense.Especially when we have more than 50% of businesses runned by women,if you considered African population and its political agenda.
The most important things that we share with others, such as air, water, and environment,how they need to be well taken care of since we have different levels of thinking, Access, decision making power.It is our individual and share responsibility to make everything work for our own good since we all live here, on the planet,be positive or negative outcomes of their utilization , the impact is for all.

6. What is one book or film that has had a significant impact on your leadership (both personally and in business) so far?

The 5AMC, Robin Sharma.I really wish to meet him one day if I will be lucky!

7. How do you build leadership capacity and embed growth mindset in businesses and people?

By being a good communicator.
Knowing when and what to speak to who will have major impact depending on the passion and commitment.
From this I can well identify needs and areas of improvement and capability building.

I do like to take small steps in building people less experienced or younger than me as well as those who are older to engage with them to learn their journey of growth mindset.

Networking and Mentorship has helped me to have business and people close to my circle of safety and work together.

8. What is an experience or story you can share that comes to mind from your time as a senior leader/executive that resulted in a highly positive outcome ?

Being the youngest board member in the agricultural Council of Tanzania between 2008-2010. I was representing the dairy industry, through a membership association that I was leading as industry executive.This was a volunteer role which I decided to take while I was changing my job just after being married.The role and responsibilities made me become one of the thought to leader in the space of dairy sector.I was exposed to many opportunities and tasks to a level I would also require to present infront of members of Parliament.The result had made me to be well known,respected in the field and seat in other sector expert committees.From this, I started to shape my carrier better and decided to add value to my skills by doing a postgrad.I was able to access a partial scholarship to study in a shared facility at one of prestigious Universities, University of Pretoria and Sokoine University of Agriculture under collaborative masters of Applied Economics in Eastern and Southern Africa.

9. What is one piece of wisdom you would like to share?

Life is always mysterious, you do not know what tomorrow brings.Be present, be positive and never give up on yourself.

Leadership Questionnaire

Mboka Mwanitu