Excellence and Innovation - ICC Mombasa Thrive time Interview with Isaac Kamuta

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Transcript

Welcome Prayer And Guest Introduction

SPEAKER_03 1:13

Invite our guest uh for this afternoon, and uh as we do so, allow me to first pray, and uh then I will read his uh bio and then I will invite us to continue listening in. Father, in the name of Jesus, we thank you for this afternoon. As we are gathered from every corner of this world, I pray that uh our time together is going to be productive, fruitful, one that is going to be challenging, one that is going to be worth sharing. And I pray that you will lead us by your Holy Spirit and guide us in every way. This we pray, believing and trusting in Jesus' name and everybody said amen. Our guest to today, this afternoon, is Isaac Kamuta. And uh we uh have Isaac Kamuta as one of the global, or rather, he is the global head uh EcoBank's payments and cash management business, and he oversees operations across 34 countries. This is including management of digital customer channels based in Togo, and he comes with over 30 years uh of banking experience. Those are three decades of uh banking experience. He has held senior leadership uh roles in business product development, innovations, and sales. He has previously worked at uh Citibank, and uh that is in Citibank Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa, covering the entire sub-Saharan African region for corporate financial institutions. Uh, he has also worked at uh JPE Morgan uh for the sub-Sahara African Head of Sales for Treasury Services and has also served as senior country officer for the Kenya for Kenya and East Africa. Currently, he is a director at ECOBank

Isaac’s Early Life And Education Drive

SPEAKER_03 3:10

Representative Office in Johannesburg, South Africa. And uh, as at last year 2025, he was honored as the African transaction banker of the year by EuroMoney. As for his educational background, he has a master's in science in finance from the University of the Strathslight. I think Isaac, you'll help me pronounce that properly. That is in the UK. And he has also a Bachelor of Education Science, Mathematics, Physics from Egerton University here in Kenya. Uh, and that comes along with RE5 certification from South Africa, South African Financial Service Board. He is passionate about technology, financial services, and he has contributed academic work on impact of technology-driven financial innovations in sub-Sahara Africa. Through his leadership and experience, Isaac continues to inspire excellence, innovation, and forward thinking, showing us how to thrive and make an impact in an ever-evolving world. Ladies and gentlemen, put your uh virtual hands together and let's welcome Isaac to share this afternoon. Isaac, please take a head, I mean, take uh the mic and proceed.

SPEAKER_01 4:34

Thank you. Thank you so much. Uh Henry, I hope you can hear me well. And um really let me start clear. Yeah, let me start first by you know, really thanking ICC for uh inviting me to come and share today at Thrive Time. Uh, and also just to thank all of you who have uh shown up here today for you know the conversation. Uh Henry, also thank you so much for uh that introduction. Sometimes when you read it, I'm asking, is that me? Um, but really thank you for such a good introduction. So as Henry has mentioned, um I'm based in in Togo, uh in uh in a town called Lome in West Africa. Uh but today I'm actually connecting in from uh South Africa, from Johannesburg. That's where I am today. Uh, and it's really, really a pleasure for me to be here to share with you. So I'm going to make this just conversational as I share my story. I think uh Henry has done a good job at introducing, so I'm going to make it very conversational. Uh, and then at the end, I will have some time for uh you know question and answer. But I'll I'll I'll start sort of just by giving a bit of background in terms of just um you know who I am. Um so I was I was born in in 1970 and in a place called Makweni. Uh in that's in the eastern part of Kenya. That's where I was born. Uh in my my father had uh two uh we had two wives, so you know, we came in from a polygamous family. Uh and um we, you know, in my mom's side, we are eight of us, and I think that background is important because it will come in when we start sharing some of the things that that have that that have helped me along along the way. Uh, and in the 70s, as you all know, things were quite difficult when you were born um in that area, um in that area at that time, that we had a lot of struggle, a lot of struggle. Um, and I think I've seen a number of people here who know my background very well. But we struggled a lot, um, you know, whether it's looking for getting food to eat, um, the issue of you know, uh clothes to wear, just the basic necessities was quite tough when you're born in a family um where you have quite a number of you and it's an arid place. And so it's quite quite challenging. But I think all these things to me um uh uh formed something which um which has helped to define my life. And I think it was one of the early, early discoveries that I realized, hey, you know what, if I if I don't put focus uh on education, it's gonna be a big struggle for us and uh as a family. So from the word go, I only knew and I saw education as the only way out of the problems that we were having. Uh I think the problems we are so many, you know, and I felt the only way out of this is really to really put a little focus on education, do the best I can. And that will speak about the spirit of excellence and innovation that has helped me a lot. So there was that very, very much in that drive to uh really leverage what you have. And at that time, the only thing I had um it was just education. That's the only thing I had. Um, it you know, we could go to school, uh, we had teachers, we are teaching us, and I felt that education was my only way out. And so, you know, from the early days, I poured my heart into it, um, made sure that um, you know, I could get good grades. Uh, and you know, by God's grace, I was able to uh do very well in my primary school, and I was called into a national school in Kisumu, which is um, you know, you can imagine coming from a quintu. Or at least I was I got into a national school. Um, that was a breakthrough for me, um, because now in a national school, uh in Kisumu, Kisumu Technical, now it's actually Kisumu Polytechnic. Um, you know, it was we had everybody there. We had all tribes, we were there. It was a national school, it had all the facilities, and to me it was like a you know a miracle that God had done for me to be in a place where uh I could excel. Um, yeah, so so again, there we I put in everything I could. And my dad was a taxi driver in Mombasa, and I think that's important just to you know to put you know to put in perspective. He was a taxi driver in Mombasa, and that's why Mombasa is a very special place in my heart. Um, but I knew if I don't uh succeed in my all levels, examinations, then you know, we were more or less um uh condemned to a life of poverty. Um and so I put everything I could, uh passed very well uh in all in my all levels, um, and and got a distinction. Um I think it was distinction one or something those days, we used to call it that. Uh, and then I ended up from A-level, A-level, which is advanced level those days, and I went up in a school called Kaba High School uh in my Chakwos area, which was a dream school for me. It was one of our best schools in eastern province, and I just wanted to be back home. Um, and so at Kaba High School, again, remember, we are pursuing, we're saying, you know, um seeing education as the only way out of out of out of out of poverty. Um, so we then uh really ganged up together. It was not uh as good a school as where I was before. Um, but um the determination to make it university was number one. I wanted to make sure that I get into the university, whatever the case. Um, and and I did everything I could. By God's grace, uh I was able to get admitted into the university, and that's how I ended up in Egerton University, where uh Henry has introduced me to. However, when I went into when I got admitted to Egerton University, uh, I got admitted to go and do Bachelor of Education Science, uh, mathematics and physics. And that would have, that meant that then I would end up as a teacher. And at that time, looking at um the salary that

University Years And Self-Taught Coding

SPEAKER_01 10:20

you know teachers were being paid, uh, I think to be the starting salary for a graduate teacher at that time was uh 6,000 Kenyan shillings. Looking at the salary that the teacher, a teacher was being paid, I felt that if I go into uh teaching, um then the problems that I had at home I would not be solved. So I then made a decision, and again, this is an important junction point. I I made a decision. I felt that um, first of all, Bachelor of Education in Science, I considered it is a very easy course to do. Uh it's maths, it's physics. Um, I could do it uh a few lectures. I knew I had time in the university, and so I said um the only way I can get out of this is if I actually study something else in parallel. Uh, so that by the time I finished the university, I have aged myself. And that is how I ended up studying computer science. So when I landed at Igato University, I then decided to pursue technology on my own, computer science. I had a colleague of mine who we were together at Kisunu, who I found there who introduced me into technology. And again, a very important thing about relationships, the power of relationships. Uh, that friend of mine, uh I'm completely indebted to him, he's a gentleman called Martin Nikoyabe, very, very smart guy. Uh, but he's gonna introduce me into technology and he showed me where the computer lab is. Uh, he showed me how to put on the computer. And as soon as I landed in Nickerton, I made up my mind. I said, I was going to study technology on my own, in addition to my Bachelor of Education program that I was doing. And I also made a decision. I said, I don't want to only uh just graduate with the Bachelor of Education science. I said, I want to be on top of the class. Um, and I also want to be very good also in technology. So I'm pursuing technology on my own, teaching myself with manuals. I'm also attending lectures, doing my Ph sans, and I wanted to succeed in all. I wanted to make sure that I succeed in both of them. And so for the three years that I was Egaton, it was really in the lecture halls, doing my bachelor's program. And as any free time that I had was in the computer lab. I was really learning how to develop software, how to write code. Uh, and and and you know, that's that was really my life at the university. I can talk about time management, we talk about excellence, talk about innovation, it's actually how you also use your time. So for the three years I was at Tigato University, I was able to really focus on my education degree at the same time, also write technology. But something then happened when I was at Tigato University, and I think that's important here because it was on my second year that I actually got born again. I had grown up as a Christian. Um, you know, the AIC church was just near where I had come from at home. We were always going to church, but I'd really never taken the things of God seriously. We sang in the choir, we did very many things, very many activities, but I'd never really um made up my mind to follow Christ. And it was in my second year at the university that I actually came to know the Lord in a Christian union meeting on a Friday evening, um, when I was a second year, and I really I got born again. And of course, when you don't know the Lord, you are searching, you are doing this, you are empty, um, you try to fill all that with many things that everybody does. I was a young man. Um so you know, those days university life was quite fun. The government was giving us money, um, there was everything that we needed, there was everything that we needed. Um, there was everything that we needed. And so, um, you know, what when on that Friday when I surrendered my life to the Lord, it was a turning point for me. And I had been searching. There was something that I was searching for. I tried many, many, many, many things, but on that Friday night when I was a second year, I went into the into the Christian Union meeting on a on a weekend challenge, and I've I the worship I found there was amazing. I connected with God in a man in a way that I'd never connected. That was my transformational moment. That night I made up my mind. I said I was going to follow the Lord Jesus Christ as my personal savior. I also made up another decision that night, and that decision was since I had searched so much to I had tried so much to find Christ. I I wondered how comes people were not able to reach me. I was there suffering, uh, confused, doing many things, but those who were called Christians did not struggle to find me, to reach me. Um so on that night also, I made up my mind. I said, now that I've known the Lord Jesus Christ, I want to do everything possible to make others also to know him. I don't want people to be lost the way I was lost. I will do anything I can in my power to make sure that other people like who are lost like me actually find Christ. That was a decision I made that night. I didn't know what that decision would mean, but it's a decision I made that night. And it was transformational. You know, God changed me. My attitude, my uh behavior, my language, everything changed overnight. I, you know, I be I was transformed. When you hear people talk about you become a new creation, that night I actually literally became a new creation. My habits changed. The things that were important to me were not important anymore. I there was there was a humility that God put in my heart. And um, you know, that you know that the things that I struggled with that just disappeared that that night. And I think it was out of the decisions that I, you know, that I made. So now armed with Christ, um, and knowing the Lord Jesus Christ, um, in my in my in my second year, uh, uh, you know, we then just continued focusing on on my my academic program. But then something else very important happened. It was the most around that time the univers the government introduced um cost sharing in universities. Cost sharing mean meant that now we would start paying for university education. Uh, before we were paying nothing, the government would give us loans as always that we would repay. Um, but in that time, around 8991, the government now introduced cost sharing. There were riots all over the country. The universities routed, we banned everything that could be banned to protest that decision. And what what happened then? The universities got closed indefinitely. So when the universities got closed indefinitely, I then found myself in Mombasa with my dad, where my dad was staying. And when I arrived there, um one thing that then I decided to do was to um to volunteer. I decided to volunteer to go to a computer college there that was training computers, and I volunteered myself as uh to help teach students um and just help. We didn't know when the universities would happen.

Faith Turning Point And Life Changes

SPEAKER_01 17:20

And that was important for me because it was as I was teaching students on a volunteering basis, that one of the companies then offered me an opportunity to go and install for them computers during school holidays. And when I went to install for them the computers, they were just using a basic uh ex, you know, those days, basic spreadsheets to do their billing. Um, I I it was during that time that I realized these guys were really suffering. I could develop software. I saw what they were doing, and I'm talking about really innovation here because innovation is critical and it has to become part of your DNA. Um, what actually innovation, a good definition of innovation is practical implementation of new ideas, methods, or products that create value, improve efficiency, and solve real problems. So, as I was installing the computers, I see I realized these guys were taking almost like three weeks to do billing, invoicing. And I realized, you know what, I could write for them some software that would actually get that done in one day. And that was my first attempt at actually solving a real problem for that company while I was a student. The end result was I built for them a platform, a platform for doing container tracking and billing that reduced their invoicing from four weeks to two days in a month. They could send all their invoices and get paid. That was a huge, big, big breakthrough. So, as the universities were opening, um, you know, I had written this program, it was working for them, they were using it. And I remember when I went to the university, that was the first time I appeared in a newsletter. The university newsletter, it was like university students develops uh you know software. It was news that time. Um, and you know, that gave me a lot of a lot of mileage. Now, and I'm talking about really innovation and excellence, um, you know, driving what you do. So when I now finished university and I ended up in in Mombasa, remember I'm born again. I end up in Mombasa, uh, which is my hometown, and of course, we ended up in our local church as we are leaving. As we are leaving the university, the the Christian Union leadership gave us a very good directive, which has helped me up today. He said, when you leave university and you go to the town you're going to choose to work, there are several things that you must make sure is alive in your in it happens in you. He said, make sure you have a pastor. Make sure you have a church. Actually, the order was make sure you have a local church that you call home. Uh make sure you have a pastor who is pastoring you, and make sure that you have a ministry. Make sure that you have a ministry and make sure that you're going to have fellowship. He said, if you have those four things active in your life, you'll thrive as a Christian. You have a church, you have a pastor, you have a ministry, and you have a fellowship. Those four things, when they're active in your life, you remain and you'll be you really thrive as a Christian. So when I landed in Mombasa, I did exactly that. I had a church uh with a good fellowship with the youth group. Um, and then we also then started up uh a prayer group, which then became our ministry. And that is that that in you know brings into into fruition what what we now call the church revival evangelistic ministry, which I am a part of. And we started up that as from a prayer group that we are meeting. And the what we said there was we don't want just to be born again and just sitting in church doing nothing, we want to go out there and and reach others for Christ. Remember the decision I had made when I got born again. We said, you know, we can actually go out there and do something, we can do crusades, we can work with churches, with schools and and and colleges, and that and that prayer group then became an evangelistic ministry that we called Krem, Church Revival Evangelistic Ministry, uh, which then I became part of. And what we were doing was we just kept going to churches, doing crusades, in addition to everything else we are doing. So Krem then got um got started, and I became part of that. And I've I've seen a number of creme members are here, uh they have dialed in here. You know, the ministry is still active. We we've been going on now for 30 years. And it was basically professionals from different areas. We come together and on weekends we go out there, we preach, we come back to our home churches. So creme got born, got born. But then around that time, you know, then now I realized you know, I'm now out of school. Um, I've written software. Um, so what do I do? I then decided to apply. I I had this desire to work for a bank. I felt that the problems that I had needed to be could be solved through banking. Banking was was was one of the most painful. Um, you know, professionals at that time. So, what I did was just apply. Again, remember, I had nobody, I had no tall relative. I applied to every bank in Kenya, actually, not every bank, every international organization in Kenya got my letter. Or there's no one that did not get a letter from me applying. And then I got, you know, a number of interviews started coming through, and eventually um I got hired by Citibank in Mombasa, uh, in Raleigh House. You know, I think that is, I think it's in the Raleigh House there in Mombasa. That's where I got I got hired. Citibank was, of course, an American organization. So for me it was a big breakthrough to you know to go in there. Um, and my mission was hey, maybe this is something I should be able to write and it becomes global. Um, so I joined in, of course, as a clerk. Um, you know, I joined in as a clerk, uh, which is the lowest level that you can join. And remember, I am a Bachelor of Education degree holder. Those days, if you wanted to work in banking, you needed to have a Bachelor of Commerce. So for me to get into a bank with a Bachelor of Education degree was a misnomer. And again, it talks about what God can do. The Bible says the Lord will meet the desires of your heart. I really truly wanted to work in a bank for very good reasons. Um and I believe God did a miracle for me to be to be hired into the bank because I didn't have a bachelor of commerce degree. Um that is important because when I went, we talk about challenges. In my joined as a clerk, grade 10. Um, and then you go into the bank industry, you have no banking, no commerce background. One of the challenges I faced at that time was uh people wanting to prove that I was the wrong hire. That uh why are you here? You have an education degree, you are a teacher, you should be in school. Do you even understand banking? And so we had to be very, very creative, you know, learn very fast. Um, because the people that I was working with, we are determined to make sure they can convince the management that I was the wrong person to be hired. Um, but I we through prayer, you know, and again, through the empower of prayer. Remember the Krem team, we used to meet every Friday for prayer, the whole night, overnight casha. Um, that is one thing that kept me, that kept me going. We would pray. Um, and you know, I managed to settle down in the bank. Uh, despite all the traps that they set for me, I was able, God was able to help me overcome all those traps. And there were many, many. But the key thing was people determined to show that you don't know banking and that you should be in the in the classroom teaching and you're in the wrong place. And I had to convince them that actually, um, you know, that's not that's not the case.

Cost Sharing Shutdown And First Software Win

SPEAKER_01 24:40

Um, but again, coming back to innovation, as soon as I settled down there in the bank, and I really talk about excellence because when your life is driven by a desire to excel, excellence, when you talk about excellence, you talk about something superior, something first class, outstanding, skillful, exceptional, fine, brilliant. Those are all terms that you use to describe excellence. Um and it was something that I've always felt that anything that I ever do needs to be to come out like that. Anything that passes through my hands must be um, you know, first class, it must be outstanding, it must be skillful. These are all terms that should describe anything that I did, however small, however big it was. Uh, it is it was something that I made sure, whether it's in the software that I wrote, whether it's in the assignments I was given, I made sure that those were coping. And also in the church as well. Because you know, excellence not just in the workplace, it was also excellence in church. Whether we are running a church, the church program, we are running the youth ministry, we are running our ministry, um, you know, our ministry uh program, we can make sure that it was done well and with excellence. Um, so within a very short time, um, I was able to look at some of the problems that we are having and ask myself, can I actually solve this problem using technology? For example, you know, there were some processes that would take so long. And without again being asked to do, again, I'm talking about you have been stepping out there and volunteering and doing things, not waiting to be told, but actually thinking ahead. I was able to write a uh technology software for the bank there in Mombasa to solve some of the problems they were having. And that uh program that I wrote, then of course got recognized at our head office in Nairobi at that time, and it also got recognized globally all the way to New York. Um, I was awarded actually uh sort of an award for it. It was the first time somebody had written a pro a platform like that. So that gave me feasibility from being in a remote branch like Mombasa. Nairobi people actually were told, wait a minute, you're not the only people that are doing stuff. Even some small branches like Mombasa are doing amazing things. And you know, that went all the way to New York, and it was the first time that God has used that as an opportunity for me to be known, for other people to know my capability at that time. Um, something also so that was happening in the industry. At that time, if you banked a check, it will take almost like 21 days for a check to clear. If you it's a local check to be seven days, but also technology was changing. Remember my my the technology that I trained myself in, technology was changing. Um, in other markets, uh, these things we are taking quite fast to, you know, for for checks to clear, for payments to move very, very fast. And the employer, my employer at that time, of course, had done these things in New York, in Europe, and Citibank was the largest bank in the world at that time. They'd done some of this technology out there. So we're able to take that technology that had worked so well in America, in Europe, and say, how can we use this technology in Kenya? And so I was part of the team that then spearheaded what we call today the electronic clearing house in Kenya. Um, you know, of course, representing the bank that I was in, but we were able to um, you know, implement digital clearing, digital technology, and reduce the time it takes for people to get paid from 21 days to now. We talk about instant payments. We everything is instant, instant now. So I was part of that, again, leveraging the technology skills that I know that I had. Around that same same time, the world was also changing. That uh people were now, uh it was possible for people to do electronic, uh, to do transactions from their homes. Technology was changing. Again, talk about being in the right place at the right time because when prepared when preparation meets opportunity. So I have the technology background, the world is changing. Now you can actually do payments online. Um, and I was able then at that time to lead the bank in actually developing what we could consider the first transaction that a customer ever did online from their office to the bank, uh, paying online. Uh, I was able to lead that that that effort. And shortly after that, the internet also came. And when the internet came in, we were now saying, okay, how do we leverage the internet technology to actually also drive banking and payments? And I was part of the global team for the employer at that time that speeded internet banking, and we were able to launch the to do the first internet banking transaction in Kenya. And that was, of course, um, you know, in the early 90s. Now, all those things then helped me to get promoted and move from Mombasa to Nairobi. And by that time, also, I had now established myself as a specialist in payments and digital technology. Um, you know, and I was doing you know pretty well. And it was at that same time that the bank was saying, what we have done in Kenya, we can actually do it, expand to all other African markets with Kenya as our hub. And so we started opening up. Uh, Uganda was opening up. So I was able to be part of the team that opened up Uganda. We opened up Tanzania. South Africa was opening. That time it was been closed because of apartheid. Uh, but now South Africa was opening up as well, and I was able to be part of the team that was, you know, leading uh the cash market platform um uh installations in all these all these markets. So that is then what laid the groundwork now for my international career. Having done what we did in Kenya, um, I was sent to Tanzania. Henry, when he was leading the CV, said we were sent to Tanzania, um, where I was it where I was sent out to run the business in Tanzania. It was my first international assignment. Um, you know, I find myself in Tanzania. Uh, it was quite, quite um, you know, I would say challenging. Uh, being, you know, you're asking, can you really do it? What you have done in Kenya, can you really do it outside of your things of self-doubt? Uh, can you really get it done? Maybe you can only thrive in Kenya. All those things came in. But again, through prayer and commitment to the work of God. Remember, um, the Krem is still going on, irrespective of where we are. We are still doing missions. We do around 10 missions a year. Um, and I would fly in from Darisalam to come to Nairobi, to Kenya to do the missions and go back. Um, and so we continued grounded in that because you know, being grounded in the work of God keeps you humble. Um, it keeps you humble, it keeps you focused. Uh, you don't start thinking too much about yourself. Um, there's something about the house of God that keeps you humble, um, you know, which I think you should never leave. Um, so I was able to do the Tanzanian um work very well. And then I was asked then to move to South Africa uh to come and do what we've done in Tanzania, to come and do, be based in South Africa now and do that for the whole of Sub-Saharan Africa. And so I was able to move with my family. Uh, that time I got I got married in 2000 in 2000, and now we moved with my family uh to South Africa in 2006. We're based in Johannesburg, which is where I'm connecting from today, and helping to launch um, you know, the our payments uh uh capability for the employer across sub-Saharan Africa. Um, yeah, and so it's I was it was quite frightening. South Africa is a big market, it's sophisticated, it's complicated. Um, so you all those things of can you make it? Is it possible? Can you make it here? You are this is a you know the market is very white dominated, um, you know, so can you really thrive here? So there are a lot of things that we had to overcome, but again, God was gracious. Um, and again, I would say being grounded in missions helped us to continue um doing that. So I would fly again from South Africa to come for the Krem missions in Kenya um and come back here.

Ministry Foundations And Banking Breakthrough

SPEAKER_01 32:40

Um and we continue doing that, and you know, God was gracious. It was at that time then I I I think one day I received a telephone call uh from from uh JP Morgan at that time. I think they'd had about my capability and they came to request me if I could join them. How was I get another very important decision point? I had done this well for Citibank. Now I'm being told to join JP Morgan. Can I do it in another employer? Is it possible? Can we work? Um, you know, so a lot of questions that you know went through. But eventually I decided to take a to take a step of faith um and move uh into JP Morgan to go and help them uh set up that in sub-the same work I was doing for my employer in sub-Saharan Africa. Um, and so that that I did that um you know for five years. And uh with on the my sixth year, the my former employer that I'm uh City Bank came back for me. Um they said, no, no, no, we want you back. And again, um talk about excellence. I think when you are when you establish yourself uh for integrity, excellence, uh people always look for you. Excellence is always looked after. It's one of the things that people look for. Uh it opens doors, excellence, people look for it, it's in demand everywhere. Um, it builds respect, you create a reputation. Um, you know, and and and I think that's the reason why they came back looking for me. They asked me to go back uh for a second time. Um, and I went back, uh, worked for them for you know three, um, you know, three, another three and a half years. And uh after that, in 2020, 17, is when Echo Bank, who is my current employer, uh, came also and asked me if I could join them and help do what I'd done for City and JP Morgan, try to do that for uh for uh for Echo Bank. And you know, that's what I've been doing. Um, I joined them in 2017 and really uh tried to redefine payments in the continent, uh, trying to you know drive payments to everybody with leveraging technology to make it easier and really create a Pan-African uh payments gateway um that can work not just for one country, but actually across multiple countries. And that's what I do. That's that's what I do. Um as I said, I'm married to my wife called Pauline. We have two boys um that are in university, one of them is working as he studies, the other one is graduating this week. Uh, and we have a small, my small daughter, uh, who is 13 years old, who's just gone to you know to high school. And that's what um we've been doing. There are several things that I would like just to you know to highlight along along along that journey. Uh that that whole career journey. I think number one is remaining grounded in the house of God. Um, you know, remaining grounded in the house of God. When I when I got born again, and I the advice I got of stick to church. Um you know, the the God has created the church as an environment uh from where you are able to grow. It says if you are planted in the house of God, you'll flourish, you'll thrive. The word flourish is also means thriving. And what I've seen is that uh people start well, they they're in the church, then when God opens doors um, you know, for for them, they then leave the church, they leave the church. They focus on on the blessing and leave the church. Um, I think remaining grounded in the house of God for me was uh as kept as uh is one of the key things that has really helped uh has helped me a lot. I I was able to I I joined the bank as a clerk grade 10. At the time I was leaving, I risen to the top of the organization. The highest level you can become is a managing director in a global financial institution. I joined as a clerk grade 10, uh, and I was able to become a managing director at the age of 42, which was you know, which was an you know an amazing uh in terms of uh achievement. From grade 10, I Mombasa, uh to a managing director uh at the age of 42 uh in South Africa. And through all those changes in grades, whether it's grade manager, vice president, whatever names the grades, remaining grounded in the church um to me has been phenomenal. It's been the one thing that has kept us going. The second thing that has that has helped is being active in ministry. You can be in the church, but not active. Um, you know, and and the the advice again I got when I was leaving university, be active. Uh when you are involved in a ministry, ministry gets you active. You're out there to fight. Uh, there are some blessings that God will only give to you in the field. Um, it does not matter how you pray in the church, it does not matter what type of prayer. There are some blessings that God will give you when you are in the in the battlefield fighting. There is some character that God builds, there is some revelation that you get when you are actually out there winning souls for Christ. And that's why you out, you know, remaining active in the ministry for me has been uh you know has been phenomenal. It's been uh you know amazing. For example, in those 30 years of ministry, um, going into crusades, preaching, seeing someone get born again, seeing those people go, finish high school, come, and they join the ministry. I think I've seen a number of people here who have joined the ministry. Some of them I preached to them when they were in high school, and they've finished high school, went to university, came back, and now they are part of Krem. I've seen a number of them here tonight, today who are connected, and I'm so glad, you know, to see that. So I think remaining grounded uh in the church, in the house of God for me is important. It does not matter what grade you become, even if you become uh even if you become the president of the country. Um, you know, there's this in the house of God, your position does not change. Even if you become the president, you are still a child of God, you're still a brother. Um, and that should not change. The ministry that you are doing in church does not change because you have become big and become senior. If you are an usher, you are still ushering. If you are a preacher, you're still preaching. If you are in the praise and worship team, you should still continue to do that, of course, unless God gives you another calling. So I think remaining grounded in the church, remaining grounded in ministry, and I'm talking about active ministry, not just coming to church on Sunday to tick the box that you have been there. No, no, doing something to extend God's kingdom. And when I say doing something to extend God's kingdom is in every way, not just attendance, in finances, giving your money, your time, your talent, your resources, everywhere, that has also helped me a lot. And then I think the other thing that uh, you know, has helped, as I mentioned to you, it's really the whole idea around excellence. Really making sure that anything that you ever do, whether it's in the house, whether it is in the workplace, um, it is something that's done with excellence. Because the God we serve is an excellent God. God is excellent, and what he does is excellent. Uh, in fact, the Bible says, Oh Lord, how excellent is your name. His name means you know, excellence is his character, and his deeds and who he is and what he does is excellent. His creation is excellent, the universe is wonderful. If you look at the skies, the God that we serve is an excellent God. And that means as his children, anything that we ever said to do, let us do it with excellence, not just you know, for the sake of doing of doing it. So we we must commit ourselves to excellence, especially in the house of God. The church has not been known for excellence. Um, you know, oh yeah, this is church work. So we can come late, we can do a medoker work, we don't prepare, uh we don't spend time to prepare. No, no, no. You you you have to do God's work with excellence, uh, because then that wins um wins respect. Then um the then um I think once you have uh excellence, in fact, if you remember the most of you have had around uh the Sistine Chapel, um, which is I think one of the most amazing works of of art that was ever done. Um, it was in 15 in Michael Angel is one who did the Sistine Chapel in around 1508 and 1512. It is up to date one of the most amazing works of art. He spent four years on his back painting up the ceiling where nobody would actually see. And when he was asked, How are you spending so much time painting small details like that for four years on your back? He said, even if nobody sees what I do, God is going to see it, and in me myself, I'll see it. So when you begin to live like that, you you you don't do something because people are seeing, you do you are you do everything with excellence because God is seeing, and even you yourself, you see it. Even when you when even when we are giving and you don't give with excellence, you know, because you know how much money you have. Um and God knows. So excellence has to be something that drives you, and it's not an it's not an it's not an event, it's a process that you must commit through in anything that you ever ever ever ever do. So excellence, I think, is is is an amazing um thing to build. And then the second thing, which again was part of what wanted to talk about here, is innovation. Innovation, as I said, as I defined innovation, is picking up ideas, practical ideas and methods,

Payments Innovation From Mombasa To New York

SPEAKER_01 41:50

and then creating value, um, improving efficiency, solving real problems. Um, if you can look around where you are, you know, God will give you ideas, He'll depose you things that you can say, this can be done differently. It's execution of ideas that you can say is called innovation. MPESA was an idea of somebody. Today is a global platform that is making a lot of money for people. I I uh uh most of you in Kenya would remember Border Border, which today we all use. Maybe you took a border border to come for this meeting or wherever you are. Those started as bicycles in Western Kenya, moving people around. And at that time, you know, it was across the border. That's why you're called border border, moving through from the Kenyan side of the border to the Ugandan side of the border on bicycles. But it was an idea. And people have taken that, and today the border border industry employs maybe is one of the largest employers today in the country. An idea, when it's converted into um into when it's executed on, then becomes innovation. So I think wherever you are, whether it's in the church, even the church needs innovation. We can do a lot of that. The ministry needs innovation, the businesses need innovation. Our country needs innovation. I think we also we even need innovation in leadership. When you look at what is happening in our country today, we need innovative thinking. Um, so I think innovation has to be it has to be a part of what we do and be determined to really solve life's real problems. Um, because then that can be very, very valuable. So I think that is something that has really um really driven my life. And then, of course, balance. Life is about balance. You've got family, um, you know, you've got family to focus on, you've got ministry to focus on, you've got work to focus on, and all these things are important. You can focus on one at the expense of the other, um, or focus on two at the expense of the other. And I think you have to be very, very, um, very, very deliberate around balancing all those things to ensure that when it's time for church, time for ministry, you are there 100%. When it comes to time for family, it's 100%. When it comes to work, it's 100%. You are where you need to be 100% of your time. So I think that is something else that I think has helped me along the way. And I think, you know, to me, when I look back, I feel when I was telling someone, it's now been almost 30 years in the workplace. I feel like I joined yesterday. Why? Because you are so engrossed in what you do, you love what you do, and you are determined to pay whatever price it takes to bring real solutions into the marketplace. And something that also benefits the church, benefits the ministry, benefits the country, benefits Africa as a whole, and of course benefits the whole world. So I think allow me to maybe leave leave it there for now. I've tried my level best to just touch different pieces on things that are helping me along the way. And uh hopefully we can take a few questions uh before I close. And I I pray that you know you have picked up something along the way.

SPEAKER_03 45:05

Wow. Yes, yes, sir. I I am here, and thank you very much for that very great analysis and uh uh a beautiful story for that matter. I think what for me has been mind-blowing was that uh you were coding in the 1980s or thereabouts. And uh I am I I recently came in into the world and I thought that I am the only person who has found digital spaces. And to imagine that you are doing that with manuals in university, I think you deserve uh a great, great, great uh hearts off. So thank you very much, Isaac, for that. And uh I think we all agree that uh Isaac is uh a perfect definition of uh uh that which God has tremendously blessed. I think you mentioned something that uh about active ministry, and I remembered that uh it is when you say there is a blessing that comes with that, actually, where the Bible says that uh blessed are those feet that take in the gospel. So there is a there is a specific blessing that comes with that, and I think that is very, very good. I have not seen any question uh for you, Isaac, at this point. And having not seen any question, I can uh take the liberty of asking you a question myself as I wait for two or three questions from uh the participants, but many have uh uh commended you on your journey. I think, as you mentioned, there were very many people that you have preached to and they have uh come of age. Many of them are here. And to those ladies and gentlemen who uh Isaac has uh in one way or another preached to. Uh, I also had uh read from Onesmas who said you are part of uh a magazine that was uh started up by JCC in Mombasa, which I think you are a contributor, and uh that is also noted. So thank you very much for every person who has appreciated Isaac. And Isaac, I think you can see much of what has been your uh part of what you have labored in uh has uh had results and fruits up to this very point. Isaac, my question for you is very simple. I think it is in your bio that you say or that you identify as a forward thinker. And my my question is uh from a from a born-again uh Christian in the marketplace, and I I hold the view personally that uh the greatest revival actually happens in the marketplace. What would you, from your crystal ball, if I may call it that way, what would you be saying is uh the direction that the church should be looking at in terms of you know making sure that we are having impact in the in the marketplace, whatever it is that we are, I think looking from your journey, you said one of the things that you wanted to endeavor is to ensure that not uh I mean nobody else will miss out on the opportunity of hearing the gospel uh by the time you are getting to be born again. So, as a forward thinker, where should the church be looking at? Uh and because you're speaking to marketplace uh people here, where should they be focusing their energies on or which direction should they be looking at uh if you were to answer that?

SPEAKER_01 48:30

Thanks, thanks, thanks, Andre. And again, really appreciate the you know the comments uh that the audience is posting here. Um I think I think I would say the church needs to be relevant. Uh relevance is important. The church has to be impactful to the society in which it is planted in. And if you look even back to the revivals that happened, um, the revivals that happened is when the church was actually relevant in the society that they that they are planted in. The church, for example, led uh the if you remember the history of the slave trade, the people that actually led um, you know, to the abolition of the slave trade, were Christians in the marketplace. They were members of parliament that were truly born again, uh, that moved motions in parliament and and did everything they could for you know slavery to be be abolished. So the idea that church is only on Sunday, and then between Monday to Sunday, we are in the secular world, and the two are not related, to me is something that we need to kill. We need to know when you are born again, you are born again 360 degrees. So whether you are in the church, you are in the marketplace, uh, wherever you are working, you know, God has blessed you there, and you need to be impactful, you need to be relevant in that place that God has put you through. So I think to me, the church has to have to be really relevant. And the only way the church can be relevant is when there's no separation of church and everyday everyday life. I'm in the banking industry, I should be a proper born-again banker in anything that I do, in every interaction I do. Um, the same thing, if you are a born-again Christian and God has called you into politics or into to represent us, then you should be, you should represent us there and they should feel the impact of a Christian um in the in the marketplace. So I think the church needs to train people. We need to equip people to send them into the marketplace. We should not be recruiting people into the church, tell them just to come and we feel nice on Sunday. No, no, we need to be equipping people and sending them into the marketplace to have an impact so that from the presidency to the members of parliament to the courts to every government office is actually full of people that are properly born again, that can stand, that have testimony, that have integrity and character to be able to deal with the issues that we are that we need. Even today as a country, if you look at the challenges that we have as a nation, I think it's we need more Christians, we need more Christians in the leadership

International Roles And Building African Platforms

SPEAKER_01 51:20

places so that we are not just praying. We are praying, but actually we are ready um to make the impact in the in the real world. Remember, I've talked about innovation, it's solving real problems. We should be solving real problems. We have a corruption issue in our nation. We should be solving that problem as Christians um by influencing what happens in the marketplace. So I think the church um needs to really release people, release members that can go out there and make a difference in every place that they are that you know that they are in. That's one uh fundamental shift that the church needs to uh uh needs to have. And maybe on the same on the same note. And us who are Christians, we need to understand that we don't just come to church when we need jobs, when we are poor and desperate and believing God for a miracle, for promo. And then once we get the promo promoted, then we disappear and we are never seen again. Or we keep dating the church now. Once in a while we come, oh I've become busy now. You know, I'm you know, I'm when I am available. No, that's not that that's not what uh just God's will for our lives. We we need to get stay grounded in church. We need to stay grounded as believers and then that we can make a big impact in the church.

SPEAKER_03 52:40

Thank you very much, Isaac. I think that that that is a very solid, solid response. In the next three minutes, Isaac, I want you to take one minute for each of these questions. Faith Bossi asks, how or where can what would be your advice for one who is starting up their career in the finance uh sector? Being that you have had uh over three decades in the banking sector, I think they are looking at your acceleration all the way from uh international, uh local to international spaces. That is number one. Number two, I mean uh related is uh how can uh young professionals cultivate innovative mindsets in the environment they, you know, that resist change? How can young professionals cultivate innovative mindsets even in an environment that resists change? Uh and last but not least, now that you uh began the journey of uh innovation and technology a long time ago, what are the biggest opportunities for Africa from where you sit in terms of innovation? Three questions.

SPEAKER_01 53:50

Okay, great. So let me um let me start um you know with the the the one on the career. Those anyone that is uh uh starting up a career in the financial services world world, I always say the key the most important thing is entry point. You how do you enter in? If maybe you have already gotten a role in any of the financial services world, then you you've already made the first step. Um then this the second thing, and I always advise this when we are doing when we do recruitment um across across the region for people, and we have around 14,000 employees um here where where I work, and and and and I always tell people do well in in the current role that you are in. Excel. Even if you are a cashier, excel as a cashier. It is excelling in your current role is what prepares you for the next. Because, as I said, there's a huge demand for excellence. So, whatever department that you get placed in, excel. But what does that take? For you to excel, it means you need to be knowledgeable. It means that you need to read um and and be uh be better than anybody else in that in that role. That means you have to read. Reading, by the way, is something that uh comes and is is underpins everything I've talked about. If you come to um you know my office, you find a whole like a whole library, um, books. Um, anytime I get you onto a flight, my policy is read a book in the flight. By the time you land, you have finished it, come back again. And so you have to read, you have to invest in yourself to become good at that. Um, and that is sacrifice. Because remember, you can never go up in life if you're not willing to sacrifice. So you have to sacrifice, you have to read and read relevant things to that role that you are in, so that you become so good at it. When you become good at it, then people start looking for you. And and that's what happens. Good people never look for jobs, they never look for opportunities, they are sought after. You know, the next department will be looking for people saying we we have heard of your reputation because remember, excellence builds character, builds reputation. Once you have a reputation, everybody wants you. So you then keep growing, keep growing, keep growing. I'm not saying it will always be smooth. There'll be sometimes accidents along the way, sometimes you get bad bosses along the way, but by and large, you cannot keep that which is good down. So that that that that is to me is the entry point. And and you can you can you can go as far as you can. And then if you if you maximize the opportunity in that particular company, remember you can also shift. You can move elsewhere. Like, for example, this is my third employer now. I've changed, I've shifted because I've reached a point I thought maybe I had reached a maximum in what I was doing here, and so somebody else was offering me a better opportunity. So I move. Um, so you also remain open-minded. You may reach and hit a ceiling where you are, and you should be open to moving. And it's a risk. And remember also, and nothing uh life is about risk taking, right? You ought to be willing to take to you know to take to take risks. So that's what I would like to do. Then the second question, the third question was where are the opportunities in IT um, you know, today as we speak. So I think one, um, the the we had everybody talking about artificial intelligence, AI, and the impact of AI on everything that we that we could do. So that is an area that I think if if anyone invests in understanding AI and machine learning, data science, um, these are all areas that will continue to will continue to grow. Software development will always be there, even though people say, Oh, yeah, you can use AI now to do software development. But at the end of the day, you still need to go to software developers. Um technology. I think we are right now, everybody has a mobile phone, right? Everyone uses a mobile phone. The mobile phone technology will drive a lot of our economic activity. So you need mobile phone engineers. Um, you have companies like um Ericsson and all these guys that are driving all these networks that the telcos are using. Those are uh network engineers that is technology. So there's still a lot of opportunity available out there. Let no one tell you, uh, yeah, because AI is coming, it's removing everything. No, there's still a lot of opportunity that is available out there. And then uh question number one. What was it, Henry? The question number one.

SPEAKER_03 58:23

Uh, I think you've covered them. There was the opportunity one, then there was the one talking about uh where does one start, especially one who wants to do career in uh finance? It was related. Uh, and then the other one was uh how do professional cultivate an innovative mindset even in an environment that resists.

SPEAKER_01 58:43

How do you cultivate an innovative mindset in the midst of uh an hostile environment? You know, people resist change. Even the church. Don't forget, part of the reason why the church has lagged behind is because the church has always resisted change. When technology came, when guitars came, the church said guitars were a devil. You're saying it is the devil inside that box. So we resisted guitars and the world took the guitars and they started doing rock music and all that. And then later on, oh, we realize it's a good thing. And now we go after it. So the church has always resisted change. And because of that, the world moves faster than us. I think that needs to, you know, that needs to end, you know, to end. And how do we do that? We need to make sure that you rally around uh um people with the same mindset. If you're an innovator, you are thinking about innovation, surround yourself with like-minded people that are actually in the same field, um, so that you can be able to encourage one and you know, encourage one another. Uh, because generally, people, organizations resist change. And when they resist change, they'll they'll either change late, which is what the church has been doing. We always change late. And when the world has embraced. And I think we need to reverse that. Every new technology needs to be tested in the church first, and then we the world can come and use it. That's when I talk about being relevant in the world we are living in. We need to reverse that. We cannot be late adopters of technology in the house of God. We need to be fast adopters of technology so that we can remain uh relevant. But one way of remaining of doing that is hanging around with like-minded people. Get people who think like you, people who um build relationships that inspire you, attend conferences, be like in a meeting like this, uh, where you can get inspired and um you can be able to overcome that uh uh that resistance that you always find along the way.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:43

Beautiful. Thank you very much, uh, Isaac. I think those are very solid, solid, solid nuggets. Ladies and gentlemen,

Lessons On Church Grounding Excellence Balance

SPEAKER_03 1:00:50

uh, thank you for your time. This has been wonderful, Isaac. We extend uh great, great, great appreciation from the entire ICC Mombasa family and the entire Thrive Time family. It is not a small fate to sit with a uh uh a director of your caliber and uh receive from. And so I totally, totally appreciate and thank you for your time. Thank you very much again, our participants, for extending uh six minutes of your time, of your lunchtime to us. And uh at this particular point, I will do two things. This is a service just like any other here at ICC Mombasa. Our giving details are going to be given to you. And uh I will invite Pastor Anderson, uh, one of our pastors at ICC Mombasa, to give us the benediction and he can release us from there. Once again, thank you very much for joining us this afternoon. We see you next in the next one.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:49

Uh thank you, Henry. Thank you so much, Isaac, for coming and uh and just sharing your life story and inspiring us and uh telling us yes, and being actually an example that we can actually thrive in innovation and just bless the trade as far as you know being a Christian in the in the in the marketplace and just uh being excellent at uh at it is is concerned. So let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for Brother Isaac, Lord God, who um has come out, Lord God, um, or or rather has come out as a perfect example, Lord God, to uh to a person who pursues innovation and does things excellently, Lord God. You say in your word in Romans chapter 8 that this world is waiting in eagerness uh for the manifestation of the sons of God. And thank you for just um uh for just uh using Isaac, Lord God, to become an example, to become a testimony, Lord God, of how Christians can live their lives and thrive in innovation, Lord God, breaking grounds, Lord God, bringing real solutions, Heavenly Father, that touch and change the world significantly, Lord God. And we pray that even for for us, Lord God, who have who have logged in today to hear his stories, to to hear that um his advice, to to glean luggage, Lord God, from his life. We pray that Lord, this will be our marching order, this will be our challenge, this is uh will be our our excuse, healer, Lord God, that Lord, we will go after everything um that you are that you are calling us to, Heavenly Father. And we pray that Lord Um Isaac has become a testament of a son of God, Heavenly Father, that this world is eagerly awaiting for Heavenly Father, that Lord, He will inspire each and every one of us, Lord God, uh, to become also um uh the manifest, Lord God, um the manifest examples, Heavenly Father, of sons and daughters of God and bringing change, innovation, Lord God, and bring Christ in our spaces, Heavenly Father, for the glory and honor of your name. I thank you and I worship you for it in Jesus' name we pray and believe. Amen. Back to you, Henry.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:17

Thank you, Pastor Anderson, and ladies and gentlemen, that brings us to the end of today's Thrive Time. I hope that this has been a blessing, and I hope to see you in the next one that is every Thursday here at Zoom from 1 p.m. to two p.m. Have yourself a very wonderful afternoon, and you can live at your own leisure.

Marketplace Impact Q&A And Closing Prayer

SPEAKER_00 1:06:00

We were made for so much more than all in their real life. It's time for us to more than just survive. We were made to thrive. Into your word, we're digging deep to know our father's heart. Into the world we're reaching out to show them who you are. So living water slowing through. God, we thirst for more of you. Fill our hearts and flood our souls with one desire. Just to know you and to make you know me. Live to name online. Shine like the sun made darkness run and high. We know we were made for so much more than all and we like. Left your name on high. Shine like the sun, make darkness run and high. We know we were made for so much more than all that real life. We were made.