On this edition of Milestone Spotlight, we tell the story of Mr. Kayode Ogunwole, Head of Information Technology, SIFAX Group, who has been with the organisation for almost 20 years, a man whose calm decisions, taken in tense moments, have quietly protected the backbone of the organisation.
How He Joined SIFAX
When Kayode joined SIFAX Group in 2006, he was looking for a more secure and predictable career path.
He had been part of the final IT team managing the shutdown of a distressed bank. “I was the last man standing. The bank was winding up, but somebody still had to keep the systems alive.” he recalls.
He was searching for stability. Searching for continuity. Searching for the next chapter.
An advert in a national newspaper led him to apply. The recruitment process was intense: written exams, multiple interviews, consultant screenings, and finally, a face-to-face session with the Chairman.
“The process was strict,” he says. “By the time I was invited for the final interview, I knew this was serious.”
He got the offer.
But what happened next could have ended the story before it began.
The Day He Almost Walked Away
On his first day, he arrived hopeful.
But what he met unsettled him.
The office was small. Space was tight. Renovations were ongoing — information he had not been given. There was no prepared desk waiting for him.
“I stood there wondering,” he says. “Did I make a mistake?”
He had left a structured banking environment for this.
At some point that afternoon, he quietly stepped out.
“I told HR I was going for a break,” he admits. “Truthfully, I was thinking of not coming back.”
It was a fragile moment, one of those quiet crossroads that determine careers.
HR sensed it. Space was rearranged. A workstation was created. Conversations were held.
He returned to his seat.
He stayed.
Looking back now, that decision was not just about a job. It was about destiny.
Building Order Where There Was Motion
When Kayode settled in, he began to observe carefully.
IT existed but structure was loose. Processes were informal. Vendor agreements were undocumented. Governance frameworks were missing.
“There were small servers,” he remembers. “Very small. IT was running, but not with proper governance.”
He knew what regulated systems looked like. He had seen structure in banking.
And so he began the quiet work of building.
Formal policies were introduced. Service Level Agreements signed. ERP processes redesigned. Backup protocols strengthened.
“In IT, you don’t run backward,” he explains. “You take a cut-off date and move forward correctly.”
Over the years, the transformation was steady:
- From Navision 2004 through multiple upgrades to Business Central
- From Exchange 2003 to Office 365
- From minimal infrastructure to structured cloud integration
“We are not fully automated,” he says thoughtfully. “But we are not where we used to be. Anyone who sees our systems today will see growth.”
What began in a cramped office would evolve into the digital backbone of a growing conglomerate.
The Night the Backup Saved Everything
Every career has defining moments.
For Kayode, one came during the ransomware attack in 2020.
The attack compromised primary systems. Backups were affected.
Except one.
A cloud backup he had personally configured days earlier — almost as a precaution.
“I was here for almost 48 hours,” he says quietly. “Monitoring the restoration.”
Two days. Little sleep. High pressure.
“My prayer was simple,” he adds. “‘God, when this comes back, let it work.’”
The bandwidth was slow. The download dragged. He reached out to external consultants to accelerate recovery.
And then, the server came up.
“Under three hours after the proper transfer, everything was restored.”
Five days of data had to be re-entered manually. But the company was saved from catastrophic loss.
“That single backup,” he says firmly, “preserved everything we had built.”
It was not dramatic in the public eye.
But inside IT, it was monumental.
When Fire Came
In 2010, fire struck the office.
In 2024, another incident affected operations in Ports & Cargo, damaging servers.
Sensitive systems were at risk.
But this time, preparation made the difference.
Because governance had been enforced. Because cloud backups existed. Because recovery protocols were already structured.
“By Monday, you wouldn’t believe anything had happened,” he says.
The business continued.
Quiet resilience.
Leadership Under Pressure
Over the years, Kayode learned something deeper than system configuration.
He learned people management.
“Technical knowledge is not enough,” he says. “You must carry people along.”
Major system migrations were often met with resistance. Departments saw them as “IT projects,” not operational necessities.
“But it’s not IT’s project,” he insists. “It impacts their work.”
Sometimes persuasion worked. Sometimes escalation was necessary.
“Sometimes you use the stick. Sometimes you use the carrot.”
Those experiences shaped him into more than an IT expert. They shaped him into a leader.
Trust and Compassion
Kayode speaks openly about one factor that strengthened him: trust.
“The trust my bosses especially the Chairman, Taiwo Afolabi, placed in me gave me confidence,” he says. “I thank God I have not betrayed that trust.”
He reflects on working closely with the Chairman over the years — travelling during acquisitions, observing leadership firsthand.
“He knows when to be a boss and when to be a friend,” Kayode says. “He is compassionate.”
That blend of firmness and empathy left a lasting impression.
What Still Drives Him
After nearly two decades, what keeps him showing up?
He pauses before answering.
“The hope,” he says finally. “The hope of building a better workplace; one that uses technology to make real impact.”
He believes SIFAX Group is still unfolding.
“I see a brighter company,” he says. “A global name. A household brand in Nigeria and beyond.”
He wants to look back someday and tell his children:
“I was part of building that.”
A Message to the Young Professional
A Message to the Young Professional
If he could speak to his younger self, his advice would be simple:
“Intelligence is not enough.”
“There’s a difference between intelligence and dedication,” he says. “Someone can be intelligent and not dedicated.”
For him, growth was intentional, and sometimes personal.
“I’ve used my money – my dollar – to buy courses myself, “I’ve gone to seminars abroad before with my money, not with the company’s money.” He says.
That commitment to self-development shaped his confidence and credibility.
“You have to improve yourself. The internet is not just for one-button things. You can teach yourself a lot of things.”
To him, professional growth is not accidental. It is deliberate.
Conclusion
From a first day filled with doubt to becoming the guardian of the organisation’s digital spine, Kayode Ogunwole’s journey is not about noise.
It is about steadiness.
It is about showing up when systems fail.
It is about staying when leaving would have been easier.
And sometimes, it is about sitting for 48 hours – believing that when the system comes back on, it must work.
