Nataliey Bitature: To be successful, ignore the naysayers

Nataliey Bitature, 31, is a Ugandan entrepreneur and executive, currently serving as CEO of EnerGrow, which she founded  in January 2018 with Riccardo Ridolfi, an experienced mini-grid developer. EnerGrow is an asset financing company based in Kampala, Uganda, catering for the East African market. They specialise in productive energy asset financing, leverage an energy connection to secure loans to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in rural and peri-urban areas. Bitature, daughter of Ugandan businessman Patrick Bitature, was named in the Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2015. Carol Kasujja had a chat with her.

What makes you tick?
I'm a curious person by nature. I'm always looking to learn and grow so as long as things are moving forward, I'm ticking.

What advice do you have for Ugandan businesswomen?
Don't be quiet and don't give up. You need to be resilient. Ignore the naysayers. We must keep at it until we are truly welcome. It is not easy starting and maintaining a business and it is harder as a woman. But we should not be discouraged. To succeed, we just have to keep going. It is a long and hard road but it is worth it. You must be consistent and visible. Make sure you talk about your business, always selling it. We can't afford to miss opportunities because we didn't speak up.

What motivates you?
Every time I see a headline of ‘first woman to XXX' I get angry. How are we still living in a world where this is a headline? I read these stories and feel the struggle this woman went through to make it in a male dominated field and I know we have to keep fighting. The girls behind us should not find any areas women still need to make records in. It should be a given. Until we are equally in top spots, across all fields, we have a road of struggle to conquer. I am motivated to keep doing things and being an example for younger women. They should dream big and live in a world where that dream is totally achievable for a woman.

What challenges do you face in undertaking economically viable enterprises?
Assessment and time. Before venturing into a new business, research, research, research. Make sure you understand the industry - the challenges, the gaps, the obstacles. Make sure you understand your customer, target audience, their pain point. What solution are you providing with your product or service? What is the existing solution? Who are the current players? What resources does this enterprise require? It is so important to go into something knowing as much as you can. You will learn along the way but always better to measure twice and cut once. Time is the other big challenge. New projects require attention and dedication. Managing several projects over the last few years has been challenging for me because time is limited in a day. To give everything the attention it requires is not always possible.

How do you balance family and work?
My family is very understanding about the demands of my work. I don't have children so my time is truly mine to manage. The best solution I have found for balance is to be present. If I am at work, I focus on what is in front of me. When I am with family, I am present and engaged with them to make the most of the time. Multitasking is not efficient for me, especially when mixing the two.  If I commit to being present at a birthday party or wedding, I make sure I won't be working. I may have to come late or leave early because of work, but while I'm there, I'm there.

Advice to young women in the corporate on world how they can climb the ladder
Show up with your best self. Be prepared and enthusiastic.  That doesn't cost you anything. The corporate world rewards those that are visible and have good professional relationships. So value your reputation and make sure those that you interact with have good things to say about you. Make sure you are prepared and knowledgeable in your work, be confident when you speak and make sure you speak up regularly!

Why do you think you were named as one of World Economic Forum's Top 5 African Women Innovators for 2016?
2016 was a really busy year for me and because of the innovation of Musana Carts a lot of what I was doing was online and very visible. At the time I was very surprised by the honour. In fact, I was so busy launching Musana Carts I didn't find out about it until two days before and therefore I couldn't attend the conference. It was a great honour, not just because of the World Economic Forum but because it highlighted women innovators in Africa. I was among great company.

How do you keep in shape; do you work out or watch your diet?
I try. You need to maintain a healthy lifestyle to be productive. I drink a lot of water, green juice and herbal tea everyday. I'm not a big meat person, I eat a lot of fish and vegetables. I do have a sweet tooth which needs management everyday. My office is in a hotel so I walk around quite a lot everyday

What are some of the businesses you ran?
I started doing business in high school- small things like selling snacks or matchmaking services. My first real business was Tateru Properties, a real estate agency. I'm also a co-founder of Handymen Uganda an agency for electricians,  plumbers, carpenters etc, Musana Carts - provider of solar street food carts and training, EnerGrow-asset financing for entrepreneurs and Business Revolution- a Tv show for young entrepreneurs. I've also worked in some of my family's businesses- a farm in Gulu, Simba Telecom and Protea Hotels.

Having been raised by an entrepreneur, what are some of the tips you picked from your father that have helped you succeed?
I was very lucky to grow up in a business household. I first realized the advantage when I was doing business studies at A level. Things that I thought were just common sense were being taught in textbooks. Principles like credit and debit, profit and loss were things we had discussed as kids at the dinner table. So most business concepts come as second nature to me. What I learnt from going to work with my father over the years was the value of listening. Whether we were on a construction site or in a board meeting, he asked so many questions and listened to many different people. He was always open to different opinions and ideas, from the most junior staff to the ones in charge. I used to get impatient and think he was wasting time listening to everyone so much. But now as I manage people and projects I believe it is a very valuable skill. You never know what you will learn from someone with a different perspective from, especially someone who is on the ground doing the detailed work every day.

Do you think your family name gave you a unique advantage in the pursuit of your goals and achievement of your success?
Hmm yes and no. I think having access to my father's network has been an advantage. I've been able to achieve some things faster because I can leverage relationships he established. Like I said before, your reputation is very important and I get to use his reputation to build trust quickly. It is also sometimes a disadvantage because when your name precedes you, you have to work harder to change someone's assumptions and expectations of you.  I've had to put in effort to build my own identity and reputation separate from my father's.  When it comes to pursuing goals I believe that is each individual's journey. Maybe I have  goals many of my peers won't have for a  few years but in doing things this way I also have a lot more responsibility to bear at my age so it kind of balances out.

 
Biography
Schools attended. Courses you did and why those courses?
I went to Rainbow International School in Kampala for 10 years. Rodean Girl's school in Johannesburg for a year. Dean Close School in the UK for two years. I have executive education certifications from the Harvard Kennedy School in Effective Storytelling and Data Analysis, a Master's in Social Entrepreneurship with a specialization in Project Management from Hult University in San Francisco, and my undergraduate degree is in Education Studies and Business Management and Honorary Doctorate in Business and Innovation are from Keele University, UK. I chose to study what is interesting to me and useful for my work at the time.
 
What annoys you, what are your hobbies, how do you spend your leisure time?
Unkind and selfish people annoy me. My hobbies are music and reading. I have recently been enjoying the ‘at home concerts' on YouTube.  I like reading biographies and articles on innovation and economics. I make sure to follow institutions or interesting people on social media so I'm always learning something new.
 
Best advice ever
Feel the fear and do  it  anyway, by Susan Jeffers.