Women keep shattering the ceiling by finding themselves in positions they only imagined. By sheer determination, hard work and tenacity, they have succeeded in getting to the top of their careers in almost every sector.
The banking sector once thought to be the exclusive preserve for the male folk has in recent times, seen an avalanche of women, and not just women in the industry, but in the top hierarchy of the corporate ladder.
Adaeze Udensi, PhD., the Executive Director of Titan Trust Bank is one of such. Adaeze boasts of extensive banking expertise covering retail, commercial, public sector, E-business, private wealth management, business development, credit, and marketing. In all, she brings over 23 years of experience and expertise in the financial services industry. Her banking experience and aggressive sales, strategy, negotiating, risk management and corporate finance skills proved to be a right fit for the bank.
Career
She was the Executive Director at Heritage Bank, in charge of the South-South/South-East Directorate as well as the Executive Compliance Officer, before joining TITAN. In the absence of the CEO, she also served as Managing Director and was in charge of Heritage Bank’s retail operations in all 160 locations in Nigeria.
At Zenith Bank where she spent 16 years, she supervised the expansion of its Oil & Gas, public sector, commercial, and retail operations, pushing it to the bank’s second-largest portfolio. She rose to the position of General Manager till she left in 2014.
Academic history
Adaeze Udensi has a Bachelor of Science in Banking and Finance from Enugu State University of Science and Technology, and two MBAs from Rivers State University of Science and Technology, and Bangor University in the United Kingdom.
She later proceeded to the University of Panama where she obtained a PhD in Credit Management. In pursuance of continuing education, she studied Executive Management at the Wharton School of Business, Kellogg School of Management, Harvard Business School, and INSEAD.
She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, Scotland, a member of the Governing Council of The Chartered Institute of Nigeria (CIBN), a Fellow of the Institute of Credit Administration, and an Honorary Senior Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria.
On supporting young businesses
Adaeze has a passion for supporting young businesses. Under her leadership, the bank’s consistency and strategy have been known to extend beyond unlocking the potential and uncovering the retail market, SMEs and corporates to its full potential.
She realized there was a gap in the retail market and small businesses because they felt left out and ignored and nobody was paying attention to them. According to her, “Their pain resonated with us. We know that in the next ten to twenty years, these ones will be the big ones tomorrow but they are not getting enough attention.
“For instance, our number one question when we meet a client is – What is your pain point? and we work with them to administer a solution….and that is why we are taking that award- Best Trade Finance Provider in Nigeria, by Global Finance magazine, for the second time”.
Result-oriented banker
She has been described by colleagues as an aggressive and result-oriented marketer, especially of financial/ banking products. She is also in the forefront of ensuring that the bank doubles its net income in order to scale up, while also focusing on growth. This lends true to her drive for results that has led to a proven track record in business development and turnaround management.
