From KPMG to Forte Oil and now Geregu Power, Julius B. Omodayo-Owotuga Has Been around Corporate Nigeria

Julius B Omodayo-Owotuga began his foray into corporate Nigeria in the early 2000s when he had a stint at MBC International Bank. Since then, he had gone up to work in some of the biggest companies in Nigeria. Without a doubt, his journey through corporate Nigeria can best be described as a gradual but consistent climb up the corporate ladder. Today, he is the Deputy Chief Executive at Geregu Power Plc. Let’s find out how he got there.

A Quick Look at His Academic Background

Julius B. Omodayo-Owotuga is a Chartered Accountant with a B.Sc. degree in Accounting from the University of Lagos. He is also an alumnus of the prestigious University of Oxford’s Said Business School, where he underwent studies in Advanced Management and Leadership Programme. He has also undergone similar studies in a number of other globally-acclaimed business schools, including the Harvard Business School.

As a Chartered Accountant, Owotuga is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, ICAN. In 2009, he came an Associate of the Institute of Certified Treasury and Financial Managers. He is a Member of the Institute of Credit Administration, Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, as well as Member of the Institute of Directors.

It is obvious that his sound academic qualifications and professional qualifications imbued him with the preparedness he needed to succeed in the corporate world. And indeed, he has succeeded professionally, and continues to do so as you shall see as we now take a look at his past corporate experiences.

His gradual but consistent rise to the top: past experiences and accomplishments

Omodayo’s foray into corporate Nigeria officially began in 2002 when he was hired as a Foreign Operations and Funds Transfers Officer at MBC International Bank. This job position more or less served as a launching pad for his many years career in the financial services sector. This is because while he was doing his job transferring funds, he was also acquiring excellent knowledge of trade operations.

But he only worked at MBC International Bank for one year, moving on in 2003 to KPMG Professional Services where he became a Senior Financial Advisor. Here, his initial assignments were mostly staff support related because he began by serving in a mere team member in different risk management engagements, from where he garnered much experience to start functioning more actively in terms of consulting and auditing engagements.

Some of his most outstanding achievements at KPMG include- serving as the Deputy Team Lead during the 2005 audit of Nigeria International Bank, Deputy Team Lead during the 2006 Audit of Access Bank Plc, and then Team Lead during the 2006 Audit of FSDH Assets Management Limited (FAML). He was also the Team Lead during the 2006 audit of Pensions Alliance Limited, as well as Team Lead, for the 2017 financial statement audit for Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Limited.

Now, his role as Team Lead in the 2017 financial audit of Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Limited is significant because he left KPMG the same year to join the bank the as a Financial Manager. He, however, had a very brief stint at Standard Chartered Bank which basically involved financial control and other operational functions. Some of his key accomplishments included managing the company’s budgeting and corporate real estate services, improving on thee company’s knowledge of FIRS reporting standard, amongst others.

From Standard Chartered Nigeria, he moved on to Africa Finance Corporation where he first served as Financial Manager, whilst playing deputising role as an Assistant Treasurer. Some of his key roles and accomplishments during his stint at the Pan-African multilateral development finance institution include-

• Assets and Liabilities management, investment mix analysis, and performance management.
• Budget preparation and monitoring for the Treasury group.
• Ensured that the integrity of financial data of the Group is not compromised for sound financial decision making.
• Capturing of transactions monthly preparation of management accounts on excel for 17 months during the startup stage of the corporation, etc.
• In terms of accomplishments, Mr Omodayo facilitated the successful closure of several trade lines and a short-term funding of US$50million from an International Bank. In the same vein, he energised the corporation’s relationship with such Supranational Institutions International such as The World Bank, IFC, AfDB, Export Development of Canada (EDC), and all the local banks in Nigeria.

His Time as Forte Oil’s Executive Director of Finance & Risk Management

In 2011, Mr Omodayo joined Nigeria’s leading oil and gas company , Forte Oil Plc, as an Executive Director. His portfolio entails overseeing the financial and risk management affairs of the company and its subsidiaries. In his own words-

“I have full responsibility for financial management and capital optimization, financial decision making based on Board of Directors approved strategies. In this role, I manage the Group’s Treasury, Financial Control, Risk Management, Financial Operations, Internal Control, Procurement, Inventory, Management information systems, Engineering, Information Technology and Non-Fuels Revenue departments. I also deputize for the Group CEO in this role. Key non-technical strengths include excellent leadership skills for decision making, influencing, strategic thinking, communication skills and strategic thinking.”

In this role, Omodayo contributed quite a lot towards transforming Forte Oil Plc into a more successful company. Although profit-making over the years wasn’t quite consistent, Forte Oil was able  to move from an almost moribund oil company to a relatively stable one. Take for instance, it went from declaring a loss after tax of N19.5 billion in 2011, to reporting a profit after tax of N12.2 billion in full year 2017. The company also did fairly well in 2018 prior to its acquisition by new owners.

Of course, Mr Omodayo isn’t solely responsible for these positive outcomes. It was a collaborative effort between him, the CEO, all the other Executive Directors, mid-tier managers, junior staff, and indeed everybody. But below are some specific accomplishments that can, indeed, be attributed to the man of the week-

• He helped Forte Oil Plc to raise capital at different times, (including 2016 during the height of Nigeria’s recent recession), when a $30million debt capital raise deal was successfully closed. The capital helped the company shore up much needed capital.
• He facilitated the successfully reorganisation of Forte Oil Plc’s capital structure in 2013 through a scheme of arrangements, thereby enabling the group to resume payment of dividends in 2014. Prior to that time, Forte Oil Plc had not paid divdends for five whole years.
• He also brought about an automated processes which enables budgetary process, cash advance, exit, asset disposal, and project management.
• He developed and implemented the Enterprise Risk management and governance framework for the Group.
• He implemented an e-procurement software for buying right, and many more.

Moving to Geregu Power Plc

After Femi Otedola (former Chairman of Forte Oil) completed the sale of his 75% shareholding in the company last year, he moved on to Geregu Power Plc which he recently founded. He also took along with his some of his best men and loyalists from Forte Oil Plc. One of them is Julius B Omodayo-Owotuga. He also made him the Deputy Chief Executive.

There is no doubt that Mr Julius B. Omodayo-Owotuga is an accomplished and vibrant Nigerian professional of global standard. And the best part is that he is young, with a whole lot of bright future and immense opportunities ahead of him. Business Elites Africa is proud of him and wishes him the very best in his career.