Our Man Crush Monday is the pioneering Engineer Nnamdi Ezeigbo, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SLOT Systems Limited, a success story of the Nigerian information and communications technology (ICT) industry with over 70 stores nationwide and a booming online store. Engr. Ezeigbo is also known as being instrumental in the establishment of Tecno in Nigeria, arguably the fastest-selling mobile phone brand in the country.
For over twenty years since its incorporation in 1998, SLOT now employs over 1,500 people across Nigeria and has grown to become associated with quality mobile phones, laptops, and electronics. And to share his pathway to success, Engr. Ezeigbo authored the book Entrepreneurship the SLOT Way.
Engr. Ezeigbo is also the chairman of the Ezeigbo SLOT Foundation, which has so far granted scholarships to over 2,000 young Nigerians to pursue formal education. The Foundation has also trained young Nigerians in mobile phone and laptop repairs through the SLOT Academy, thus providing them with the capability to take advantage of the opportunities in the technology space. The Academy also trains teachers and students yearly at the Lagos State Technical College on the latest technologies in the telecommunications industry.
The Academy in partnership with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the Edo State Skills Development Agency (Edojobs), also trains indigenes of Lagos and Edo States respectively on mobile phone repair and maintenance.
Born in the 1960s in Sapele, Delta State, Nigeria, Engr. Ezeigbo has strived to continually learn and upskill when needed. He obtained a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Yaba College of Technology, and soon after completed his national service at Guinness Nigeria Plc in 1996. He went on to earn a BSc in Computer and Electronics Engineering from Lagos State University in 2001, and a Masters in Information Technology from Ladoke Akintola University in 2009. He completed an Executive MBA at the Lagos Business School in 2013, and is a member of the Advisory Committee of its Africa Retail Academy. He also undertook the Owner/President Management (OPM) programme at Harvard Business School from 2015 to 2017. The latest feather in his cap is the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) honorary degree from Abia State University, Uturu, conferred in 2021.
For his trailblazing work in ICT, Engr. Ezeigbo has been recognised as The Sun Newspaper Entrepreneur of the Year 2020; Nigerian Society of Engineers Outstanding Entrepreneur 2018; and Nigerian Telecom Awards Entrepreneur of the Year 2016, to mention a few, as well as awards for the SLOT brand itself including Business Day Most Innovative SME Award 2017 and Nigerian Telecom Awards Mobile Phone Dealer of the Year 2016. Notably, Engr. Ezeigbo was given the honour of being a torchbearer for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
An icon in the ICT industry, Engr. Nnamdi Ezeigbo represents the inventiveness and resourcefulness of the Nigerian entrepreneur. Join us here at Pride Magazine Nigeria as we raise our glasses to this man of excellence.