What does it take to scale a business to world-class standards? In this session from the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce (NSACC) August Breakfast Forum, Group CEO, SO&U, Udeme Ufot explores the intersection of quality, accountability, and long-term growth. Reflecting on the evolution of Nigeria’s advertising landscape, Ufot details how his agency’s partnership with MTN Nigeria helped set a new benchmark for excellence.
Question: What does it take to scale a business to world-class standards while maintaining accountability, and what legacy does that leave behind?
Udeme: Part of running a successful business requires maintaining high quality, transparency, and accountability in your work. So much has to be done to fine-tune operations and scale up to world-class standards. When you raise your game, standard demands ensure that even when partners leave, those high standards remain. True value is not just what we have, but what we do and what we leave behind.
Question: How has MTN Nigeria set a benchmark for other businesses and sectors looking to compete on a global scale?
Udeme: When you raise your game, it becomes a point of reference. For other sectors, MTN Nigeria has helped businesses raise their standards to a global level – equipping them to compete anywhere in the world. MTN Nigeria serves as an open university for standards and growth.
Question: What role does regulation play in this environment, and how do high operational demands push your agency forward?
Udeme: Standardisation also means regulatory agencies have to step up. Now and again, the network looks to us as a brand for people to follow, positioned to survive and meet these demands. The level of standards demanded of us and the scale of work required push us forward.
Question: How has advertising in Nigeria evolved since your early days?
Udeme: Reflecting on early experiences before MTN Nigeria, an advertising agency receiving an instruction like “just give it to them” meant ensuring a Monday radio copy is cleared. Today, that process is automated. During our work with MTN Nigeria, campaigns ran 30 to 40 spots a day across platforms. True to the slogan “Everywhere you go,” everywhere you turned was MTN Nigeria. It remains a powerful brand that is relentless in its demand for quality.
- Excerpts from Udeme Ufot’s session during the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce August Breakfast Forum, commemorating MTN Nigeria’s 25th Anniversary, on Thursday, August 27, 2026.