PROFILE: Mosunmola Abudu is a media personality, TV producer, talk show host, entrepreneur, & human resources management consultant.
“If you CAN think it …you CAN do it!” Talk about “words speaking volumes”, this catchy phrase aptly sums up the life, personality and achievements of Mosunmola Abudu – more popularly know as ‘Mo Abudu’. Mo’s whole personality, attitude and indeed, her life thus far, lends credence to the fact that once she can think it, then you can be sure she can and will do it!! Born in the United Kingdom on the 11th day of September in the year 1964 to Nigerian parents – Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Akintunde; her family originates from Ondo town in the South Western region of Nigeria. Mo has made her mark in various fields of endeavor, which cut across the corporate world, the hospitality industry and, most recently, the media world. She is a proudly-Nigerian, proudly African woman of many parts: Human Resource practitioner/consultant, Talk-show hostess, Media personality and Television producer. Mo also sits on the board of several NGOs as well as National organizations such as the Nigerian Economic Summit Group.
Mo stands out uniquely in various ways as a determined, self-motivated, results-oriented achiever with a vivacious personality that inspires others to get up and go! The firstborn of three sisters, she is the proud initiator and founder of a number of ‘firsts’ in Nigeria. She is a visionary, purposeful and forward thinking person who will not take ‘No’ for an answer in her determination to positively impact her generation, while leaving a lasting legacy for generations to come. Through hard work and sheer grits backed by strong faith in God to achieve the seemingly impossible, Mo makes things happen, no matter how great the odds.
Although life dealt her a cruel blow when she lost her father at the very young age of 11, Mo refused to play the victim. Instead, she determined to do her mother and nation proud by not only succeeding, but excelling, in life. She has come a long way from those tough early days, without the support of a father, to build a name for herself through several very successful business ventures and initiatives: creating jobs, positively impacting her generation, society, nation and, indeed, the entire African continent.
CORPORATE CAREER: Achievements and Successes:
Mo Abudu started off her career in the UK as a Recruitment Consultant in 1997, quickly rising to the position of Branch Manager. She went on to work for the highly reputable Starform Group, successfully managing the prestigious Corporate Credit Management Exhibition for 3 successive years from 1990 to 1992. She proved to be a good manager with great multitasking skills while there, effectively and seamlessly handling diverse responsibilities – from research, to design, organization and production of various conferences and seminars. Mo eventually moved back to Nigeria in 1993, armed with the skills and experiences she had gained as well as the successes she had recorded in such a short time in the UK. She was recruited by Arthur Andersen for Esso Exploration & Production Nigeria Limited (now ExxonMobil) to head up their Human Resources and Training unit. She served in this role until the turn of the century (year 2000), when she successfully executed her responsibilities as a member of the ExxonMobil HR Transition and Merger team in ensuring a smooth and seamless transition process. Recognizing the growing need for a well trained and highly motivated work force to successfully take Nigerian businesses into the 21st century, Mo decided to take advantage of her established reputation as an HR specialist to establish a privately-owned specialist human resources development company known as Vic Lawrence & Associates Limited (popularly known as VLA). Resigning from ExxonMobil, she focused single-mindedly on steering VLA through various critical stages of development to become one of the most successful and fastest growing Nigerian-owned outsourcing and people management consultancy firms in Nigeria. While running VLA as the Managing Director and engaged in other business activities, Mo recorded another landmark achievement with the successful commissioning of the Protea Hotel, Oakwood Park in August of 2004. She conceptualized and initiated this innovative project which involved raising investment partners for the development of an executive training centre that also offers first rate residential and recreational facilities. Located in the beautifully serene, yet busy, Lekki Peninsula axis of Lagos, the Protea Hotel, Oakwood Park which is set on more than one hectare of land is an ultra-modern purpose-built training complex that offers its clientele state-of-the-art training and conference facilities. Today, the hotel regularly hosts corporate bodies and professionals.
Personal Life:
Mo’s home base is in the bustling, cosmopolitan city of Lagos—the commercial capital of Nigeria. She lives in a very serene part of the city in a quiet estate on the Island. She sees her home as her personal haven where she can relax and be totally at peace.
Mo loves to travel to different places all over the world. Her favourite spots happen to be some of the most popular and sophisticated cities in the world: London, Paris, New York City, Cape Town, and Johannesburg. Although she is well travelled, there are still so many other places around the globe that she desires to visit and explore.
Mo enjoys a very special relationship with her mother, whom she loves dearly. She admits that they have had their differences over the years, but the older she gets, the more she has come to love and appreciate her mom. She particularly appreciates her mom because of the unconditional love, constant comfort and peace she has given her all her life; and also because she is always praying for her.
Mo has been blessed with two wonderful children: a son and a daughter. Her children are the apples of her eye. She is very proud of both of them. Her daughter, who is also her firstborn, is now in her final year at the University of London. According to Mo, her daughter is so beautiful: “… she has a beautiful heart, is totally respectful as well as being a loving and compassionate child”. Her son is totally adorable, highly intelligent and already knows that he wants to be an aeronautical engineer when he grows up although he is only 15 years old now.
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source – MomentsWithMo.tv
