I believe in women because they are good multitaskers - Makada

When Florence Sempebwa-Makada became the managing director of Nissan Motorcare in March 2016, the ratio of women to men was 1 to 10. It was one of the things she sought to change. Professionally, she believes there is no work meant for men and women because schools do not differentiate what is taught to boys and girls.

“Without undermining men, I believe in women because they are good multitaskers and focused. There’s an adage that says, ‘if you want something done, give it to a woman’. They have not disappointed me. The technician with the highest productivity ratio in the workshop where repairing vehicles and all kinds of technical work is done is a woman. It is a success story because women are undermined in most organisations,” says the Bachelor of Science in Applied Accounting graduate from Oxford Brookes University, UK.

Makada’s education began in Matale Boarding School (currently Nkoyoyo Boarding Primary School) in Matale- Mukono District. Then, Gayaza High School after which she left for the University of Dar-es-Salaam under the East African countries exchange programme to study BSc in Computer Science and Statistics in 1991. She later pursued a degree in applied accounting from Oxford Brookes University-UK qualifying as a chartered accountant in the UK in 2006. She also studied a senior management course at Stellenbosch University in South Africa.

Rising through ranks

Since 1996, when she joined the Motorcare, Makada has grown through the ranks, working in different departments. She first worked as a network administrator and accounts assistant before she doubled as an accounts assistant and human resource development manager. Along the way, she was became deputy finance manager, but also acted as sales and after sales manager. Before her appointment as managing director of the dealership in March 2016, Makada was finance and business planning manager. 

“When I served as deputy finance manager, I called myself a people manager. When you work with people, you need to understand their strengths and weaknesses to get results from them,” she says, adding that the different titles held over the years have helped her build experience in different departments.

With an eight-year tenure at the helm of the company, her title was not a new area or field. It was a change of mindset to wear the hat of a lady in charge of the entire organization. Thus, one of the successes Makada has registered is growing the percentage of women to men..

“I had to think more strategically and remember that in everything I did, every employee of the company was up to speed to deliver results desirable by the group. I had to spend a lot of time coaching and mentoring the senior management to manage their subordinates to produce results. Sometimes, I do mentorship of the lowest level staff,” Makada shares.  

Values and principles

To successfully lead an organisation, Makada  says one should have personal values to uphold. On her end, this includes not engaging in projects and leaving them halfway.

“When I do something, it is not for the sake of doing it. I give it my best shot to get the best results. The best results may not be the best for others, but for me. The objective is to always achieve the best I can within my means,” she says.

When Makada was appointed managing director, Nissan Motorcare had approximately 30 per cent of their cars being sold to the government. This, to her, was a gap because the government is the biggest buyer in the motor vehicle sales industry.

“The sales have grown to more than 50 per cent. I told myself that I was just a managing director by title and had to change the strategy. I visit government offices and ministries to meet permanent secretaries, executive directors of parastatals and talk about my products but also ask for feedback where the company is not doing well. Everyone has a perception of different products. I accept weaknesses but also promise to improve on service delivery,” says the Chartered Accountant. 

Leading an organisation also requires emotional intelligence, an area Makada opines, most leaders undermine.

“Emotional intelligence as a value in management goes beyond looking at an employee as an employee, but rather putting in effort to understand what they are going through. For instance, an employee can go to work but when their mind and body language shows there is something not right. I can choose to ignore it but I can also choose to try to understand what they are going through,” Makada says.

“It could be a problem they are dealing with at home or at work. Sometimes all that someone needs is a listening ear. I may not help as a managing director, but as a colleague at work. When applied correctly, emotional intelligence will reduce stress among staff in companies and will lead to excellent results.”

Getting the best out of employees

Most employers believe that getting the best out of employees is all about teamwork. Makada instead challenges every leader to make every staff productive, which in the long run, leads to the organisation’s growth.

“Encourage the culture of employees helping others to improve their performance. If you know how something is done, do not look at a colleague making the same mistakes over again and let it pass. Hold their hand and show them where they are not doing well and how they can do it differently to meet the expected goals. If you make other staff shine, you shine more. In my capacity, if the senior management makes their subordinates shine, every employee will produce positive results,” Makada says.

Her work has not come without challenges. These were mostly in the market conditions where she had to break the perception in the public’s minds that Nissan cars were expensive to maintain.

“I had to go from one government ministry and parastatal to another, meeting high level managers to talk to them about Nissan brands. I engaged the factory leadership in South Africa and the executive committee to work around making sure we are competitive when it comes to aftersales. I had to do a lot of surveys in the market to see what competitors are charging,” Makada recalls.

After overcoming these challenges, Nissan Motorcare was recently awarded as the best company in sales and aftersales services for two consecutive times in sub-Saharan Africa. 

Her two cents to women

Apart from believing in yourself, Makada advises that if you want to be a leader in car dealership circles, do not be afraid to voice out your ideas in boardrooms.

“Getting to the top and leading teams to success requires you to be willing to help outside your core functions. Get exposed to different sections of the company. It is the only way you will accumulate knowledge,” she advises.

Quick take 

What is the best compliment someone has ever given you?  
During celebrations on Women’s Day, my son told me that I inspire him the most. He also said I am the most hardworking person he knows.

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
I am both and it makes me a rare species.  

What is your worst habit?
My sleeping time is sleeping time. I do not want anybody or anything to get in the way.   

What are you most grateful for in life?
I am grateful for my parents and my family. My parents laid a foundation of hard work that has kept me going until today. 
I have a supportive husband; he is one who even sells a Nissan when I am not around and this means he is supportive. 
My children are extremely understanding of the different situations we go through as a family. This has allowed me to grow in my career.