Indeed, women are now going all out to prove that what a man can do a woman can also do it.
With bold steps and great achievements, women are constantly taking the front row in many aspects of life.
From politics to business, and then to career, women are gradually stepping away from the ideology that they belong only to the kitchen and the ‘other room’.
Now, even the men are marvelled with the kind of great things these women do.
One of such women is Adaora Umeoji, who is set to make history as the first female Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Zenith Bank Plc.
No woman has assumed this position since the inception of the bank in May 1990.
On June 1, 2024, she will step in to replace Ebenezer Onyeagwu, whose five-year term as CEO will end on May 31, 2024.
Zenith Bank announced this in a statement on its website.
According to the bank’s statement “her appointment is consistent with the bank’s executive transition tradition, succession plan, and strategy of grooming leaders from within”.
Adaora Umeoji is blessed with nearly thirty years of experience in banking, having previously served as the deputy managing director of the bank, a role she assumed in October 2016.
She has also been with the bank for close to twenty-six years.
Here in this article, you’ll find all that you should know about Adaora Umeoji.
Education
Umeoji has quite an impressive educational background.
She is an alumnus of Harvard Business School, where she completed the Advanced Management Program (AMP), and Columbia Business School, where she obtained a Certificate in the Global Banking Program.
She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology from the University of Jos.
Ada also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting and a First-Class Honours in Law from Baze University, Abuja.
Additionally, she has a Master of Law from the University of Salford, United Kingdom.
She also has a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Calabar; and a doctorate in Business Administration from Apollos University, USA.
She also has a Certificate in Economics for Business from MIT Sloan School of Management, USA.
Also, she has completed executive programmes in Strategic Management and Leading Global Business at Harvard Business School, USA.
Fellowships and Professional Memberships
Adaora Umeoji is an outstanding professional with a range of prestigious fellowships to her name.
She is a fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute in the United Kingdom, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, the Nigerian Institute of Management.
She is also a fellow in the Institute of Credit Administration, the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Nigeria, the Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators, and the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria.
Honours and Awards
In 2022, she was awarded the Officer of the Order of the Niger by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Also Read: Bankers Awards 2022: Zenith Bank Bags Bank Of The Year Award
She was also recognised as a Peace Advocate of the United Nations (UN-POLAC).
In 2023, she received the Humanitarian Service Icon Award from the Sun Newspaper, in honour of her philanthropic efforts.
