By Moses Nosike
Sholoye is the Managing Director of many business outfits.  Having worked in some multi-nationals like Texaco Overseas ,Nigeria Petroleum Company  Unlimited now Chevron for years, she has decided to apply the experiences garnered in service over the years into her personal practice.

Sholoye: Hardworking and dedication lead to success

In this interview with Saturday Vanguard Business, she speaks on the activities of International Alpha, one of her companies that deals on leasing of vehicles on international standard. She also suggests ways, government can curb the rate of unemployment by restoring standards in our tertiary institutions. Excerpts:

International Alpha, what are they into?
International Alpha is a fleet management company that is into fleet outsourcing, leasing of vehicles (bulletproof inclusive), shuttle buses, staff bus operations, pick and drop services, drivers training and recruitment. We also do operational leasing and financial leasing.

When leasing cars, who takes care of security?
The company takes care of security. But sometimes, some of our clients  insist on the use of  their own security which is acceptable. Such clients like Multinationals, Blue chip companies, would prefer to personally handle their security arrangement when they have the likes of their CEO’s from global head office abroad visiting for privacy sake.

Who are your target audience?
Our target audience include, multinationals, bluechip companies, banks, hotels, even schools are now leasing buses unlike before when they buy their own buses.

In most cases, the prices  of oil fluctuate, how does this  affect pricing in the leasing and fleet management business  to ensure you’re not operating at a loss?

Fortunately, fleet business is not as volatile as some part of Oil and Gas trading though, it has its own hazards. The cost of buying diesel per litre sometimes can change upwards every other day depending on several factors. But for fleet business, we can lock in prices, which means, we can apply a fixed pricing over a specified period of time.

What are the challenges associated with these joint business?
There are a couple of challenges with different businesses having its attendant risks. One of the hazards of the business is safety of the drivers and the assets. Sometimes, the vehicles are stolen and the drivers injured. Yes, the vehicles are tracked in addition to insurance coverage, but that doesn’t stop theft. Recovery action usually follows, sometimes successfully  or otherwise.

Though the vehicles will eventually   be replaced, it would create an immediate inconvenience for our clients and their operations.  Another challenge is the inability of some clients to respond timely in terms of payment. So, security and safety are major hazards in leasing business.

Considering the level of security in this country, are there machineries in place to protect the vehicles in order to reduce risk in leasing business?

Yes, there are tracking companies in Nigeria now. So you can track your vehicles to mitigate loss of vehicle and insurance coverage to pay back damage or loss to a vehicle. The tracking company in addition to their systems partner with the appropriate law enforcement agencies for quick and effective vehicle recovery.

Do you have an idea or advice on how youth unemployment can be solved in Nigeria?
Talking about unemployment and Nigerian graduates, unemployment should not be isolated. What is the root cause of unemployment? So, until we do what is called causal analysis to determine and identify causes of unemployment, only then can we address the unemployment issue appropriately. Unemployment should not be viewed from the surface. I look at it from two perspectives, what is the quality of our graduates? Nobody wants to employ half baked graduates.

As an employer of labour, I have been privileged to interview graduates applying for placements but I  confess, I have been absolutely disappointed at the stuff some of our graduates are made up of. I”ve sometimes had to go out of my way to counsel them. I think it has to do with their orientation and background. The students need to be re-orientated.
The second perspective is the government and school authorities.

Government needs to look inwards and address relevant issues regarding the stability and growth of the economy. Government needs to provide a conducive learning atmosphere, standardize our educational system and motivate the lecturers/teachers to get the best out of them. Aside from motivation, a situation where lecturers, teachers don’t get paid for months is very discouraging. This will lead to distractions and less diligence/commitment.

This is why we should look at the root causes of unemployment. Government should review their position on education and adopt the best strategies that are workable. Teachers and lecturers should be treated along the same line like their counterparts in other fields.