Barrister Olumide Akindiya
Boluwatife Akadri – Compliments
of the season and we pray that this year brings good things for us. You
are welcome Barrister Olumide Akindiya.
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – Thank you and saying Amen to your prayer.
Boluwatife Akadri – If i may ask
for the benefit of our readers, why this programmes: Boiling Issues
with Barrister Olumide Akindiya?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – This online
programme becomes a necessity based on the situation of the country.
Why we expect our readers to contribute by expressing their views on the
topical and boiling issues we are discussing on the programme be it
politics, economy, law and so on. Their advice is equally necessary in
meeting their expectations since the intention is for people to speak
out, express their views so as to ensure that we all have a meaningful
environment and progressing country.
Boluwatife Akadri – Going to the
topic of the day – Small scale business in Nigeria: Legal business as a
point of view. As a young man and going through your profile, I
believe, your law firm should belong to this category?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – Yes.
Boluwatife Akadri – So I expect you sir to make it practical and realistic as possible in the interest of our readers?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – I will.
Boluwatife Akadri – When we talk of small scale business in Nigeria, how can you categories or define small scale business?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – A small
scale business to my mind is a company or a firm that is independently
owned and managed, it has a limited assets base, few members of staff,
the annual profit is low and few clients though can have a big office
space with all resources to accommodate many members of staff, low wages
and salaries and it has high risk of liquidation. With the advent of
information technology, there is possibility that a certain kind of
business can have many clients throughout the country and have two or
three members of staff with a higher annual profit depending on the
service rendered. For example an online publicists, a website designer, a
blogger, a consultant, even a lawyer. As such, there is possibility of a
sole proprietorship to have many clients or customers, high value
briefs and be using a room for an office. So can we still categories
such firm as a small scale business? Take notice that it is not only
number of clients, but profitable clients or customers.
Boluwatife Akadri – You mentioned ‘even a lawyer’. How come?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – A lawyer
who has his/her secretary, office assistant or litigation clerk without a
lawyer working for him/her can still rise above small scale business
despite from the outward assessment it is small. For example, by
training, a lawyer who is hale and healthy can still go to court from
Monday to Friday; can after court attend to clients too in office or go
for meetings. It now depends on the type of briefs, how valuable are the
briefs? Is it based on commission or professional fees charged? A
lawyer has opportunity of having collaborative partner(s) to work
together on a particular legal problem and where it requires so because
legal services are wide. Hence, such lawyer may not need many lawyers
working with him/her as members of staff at a particular point in time
and still maintain the clients and the fees.
Boluwatife Akadri – What are the assumed and real challenges of small scale business?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – Every
business starts in a day with vision of one human. So it has to be a
little beginning like a pregnant woman that just gave birth to a baby
and the baby has to grow. The first challenge is that the business
starts a day; to maintain and pay office rent; is the location of the
business good enough to attract clients or customers? Ability to manage
the few members of staff; ability to maintain and provide office needs
and equipments; likelihood of lack of motivation so it has to be an
inner motivation to work towards survival and get to the expected end.
Funnily enough, from experience, where such motivation comes in, they
can tell you, ‘you have to do everything for the office to work’ even
illegitimately because it is Nigeria thing so such owner have to be
mindful of those whom they are having business relationship with. Also,
there can be a challenge of operating it as a personal business so there
is need to
separate the firm from the owner in order to have good business
bargaining. Lastly, distraction which can be societal, family, spousal
distraction or political distraction. For example, the type of wife or
husband one married will affect the business either positively or
negatively. During election time like this, will this type of business
move?
Boluwatife Akadri – What can be the problems and can make small scale business fail?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – The
problems are numerous. Some are self-imposed problems and some are
external. First on the list, the problem of management experience with
skill, the question is can the owners cope? Another is choice of
business. If the business chosen is wrong and there is no passion for
such business it can cause failure. Lack or low advertisement
strategies: There should means of advertisement and a kind of brand to
promote such firm’s vision. For example, a law firm can only do fair
advertisement which is totally limited and cannot solicit for clients.
So it has to be through recommendations of legal services by clients
themselves, family and friends, etc. Similarly, lack of business plan – A
small scale business must have its plan to realize its vision, mission
statement, its shared values and company profile which must be
progressive. There is problem of competition. We faced this problem
still everything is getting shape.
Problems of lack of governmental
infrastructure and unfavorable government policy. For example, Nigeria
problems of low electricity supply, high cost of fueling generators,
many bad roads, no governmental motivation rather than being burden to
small scale business, etc. In our office, we hardly have electricity
supply for 2 hours on each working hour. Problem of inflation, where
there is economic instability.
Boluwatife Akadri – At one point or the other, have you decided to quit having a law firm?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – Yes, to be
frank, at the first year of our law firm, but what kept us going was
that I believed, ‘it is a matter of time and I have no eyes at the back
so I cannot quit than to aspire for expected vision with God being our
backbone.’ While working in a law firm before, I have observed the
challenges and problems itself based on where I have worked before with
other law firm I have done internship with before law school so I know
it is a matter of time.
Boluwatife Akadri – As someone who is maintaining a law firm at small scale business, what is your advice?
Barrister Olumide Akindiya – To me,
where there is a will, there is a way. We should all have strong
passion; inner motivation; observe our type of business and challenges
with problems attached to it. It is God that can do all things so wisdom
is required from God to manage the firm apart from knowledge and
skills. Be self-discipline financially; set example for members of
staff; ensure quality services. You are not expected to even collect
salary for the first few years as the owner of the firm for office sake
because your vision must be your priority and don’t give excuse to
clients or customers.
Boluwatife Akadri – That will be
all for today and we hope to receive your questions or comments. Thank
you and have a fruitful weekend!
Olumide
Akindiya is a Lawyer by profession, a Poetand a Columnist with Hallmark
Newspaper with caption, 'ASK THE LAWYER' on law-related issues. He had
co-anchored a radio programme called, 'You & the Law' during his
service year on Freedom Radio on weekly basis at Dutse, Jigawa State. He
is the Principal Partner of Olumide Akindiya & Co., Legal
Practitioners, Corporate & Real Estate Consultants with law office
in Lagos, Nigeria. He loves poetry, writing, mental argument, music,
table tennis, chess and snooker.
