May Odiley, who has been with Cellulant since 2021, handles the Treasury, Tax, and Settlement Analysis of Merchants and Enterprises across the Group.
Go-getter, Soft Spoken, and having good vibes is how May describes herself in 3 words.
She’s a teamplayer, believes in a communal approach to creating impact, drawing inspiration from influences and talents around her/ in her space.
Aside from converting leads and closing contracts.
May who is a proud Manchester United fan is a dancer and an Afrobeat lover…..boy does she love her music, she also loves good food, playing video games and hanging out with friends.
What did you study and where?
I studied Sociology and Anthropology at the Prestigious University of Benin.
What attracted you to Cellulant
- Brand and market visibility: Cellulant is one of the leading players in the African market with a reputation for excellence and quality product offering when it comes to payments.
- Mission: Cellulant is passionate about creating opportunities for businesses and communities across Africa which resonated very well with my passion when it comes to doing impactful things in a communal way.
What drives you?
Making a scalable impact in the lives around me has always been a major push. In doing so, I have had to embody the ability to produce results consistently. Although this is not easy, it is very necessary in order to grow.
What are you looking forward to solving for the market this year?
Collaborative problem-solving and service delivery: every day, we solve the daily issues confronting our merchants, working alongside my team members.
What is something you wish you knew earlier in your life?
In my experience as a salesperson, I have come to understand that sometimes the best step to take is backward.
Restrategise and correct previous errors to advise current realities.
In our now fast-paced world, it’s easy to get caught up and when that happens You can only connect the dots looking backward not forward.
What informed your transition from the Sales Team to the finance team?
I would first like to acknowledge that our employee value proposition #UnlimitedOpportunitiesUnlimited growth is one of the reasons I was able to transition to a different team to begin with to explore where I can grow.
Being in sales has helped me understand the customer acquisition cycle from origination to monetization but I was not very savvy with the financial reporting side, hence my transition to finance.
Summarily, I moved to finance to broaden my understanding of the business from customer prospecting to financial reporting
Having worked six years in the banking industry from banking operations to E-Business and Agency Banking, ignited a passion for financial technology which I had always wanted to pursue.
Today, I am a few papers away from completing the Chartered accountant certification ICAN (The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria).
Also, I am currently undergoing my MBA program at Nexford University.
Where I am taking finance classes across financial accounting and financial technology.
Read Also; I love being part of Transformational Processes – Judith Osiobe
What achievement are you most proud of?
There’s really nothing more rewarding for a salesperson than that feeling when you know you just bagged a deal.
That moment when you feel all the work has been worth it, the engagements, back and forth that lead to the successful close of the contract.
Being able to do that more than 17 times within the year was quite notable.
I was able to close more than 17 contracts across Checkout, payout, and in-store merchants (Local merchants, Global merchants, and aggregators) in 9 months.
What is the best career advice you have received so far?
Always ask because if you don’t ask, the answer would always be no.
I learned this the hard way, but I am glad I did.
Read Also; Continually Ensure Your customers Value What you Offer – Musonda Mbalazi
Describe Cellulant in one sentence
A melting pot for change-makers.
I come to work every day working with some of the best and brightest people in the continent to make payment in and across Africa more seamless.
