Monday, November 12, 2012

Opportunity International CEO Conference, Oct. 2012

Kristin and I attended Opportunity International CEO Conference held in Zanzibar, Tanzania. (October 31-November 1, 2012) Zanzibar is a beautiful island. It used to be an independent state but decided to be part of the union with Tanganika, thus forming Tanzania. But Zanzibar has tried to become independent again for quite some time.
Jetty Lounge, a breath-taking view...

Zanzibar used to be part of Oman, even its capital for decades under 11 Sultans. So its population is predominantly Muslims. But they embrace other religions openly. Its major town is Zanzibar Town, but its old town, called Stone Town, has many historic landmarks. We traveled to the Stone Town about three years ago so we stayed in the east coast where the conference took place.

The CEO Conference is mainly for Africa CEOs but two Eastern Europe CEOs are also invited. Opportunity International has a network shared service organization, called GMO or Global Microfinance Operations. GMO has several support staff, including Chief Risk, Chief Financial, Chief Auditor, Chief Information, Chief Human Resources Officers under the GMO's CEO. All these staff also attend along with African regional directors for all functions. 

This conference was to build upon the Strategic Blue Print that was presented at the Oxford OI Global Leadership Conference in September. I was asked to lead a 2-hour session on Transformation. I presented Holistic Transformational Development with the focus on providing services to meet the holistic needs of clients, primarily non-financial services.

Unfortunately, Kristin and I were not feeling well. So our leisure time was all for resting. The panoramic  and breath-taking views of Zanzibar were sufficient for our enjoyment. We were grateful for the opportunity. - Jeffrey

No comments: