Podcast: She powers Africa

Carol Koech: There's a characteristic of the village life and energy poverty. And going back to maybe 20 or 30 years ago, the source of light was kerosene lamp. And my mom, being a schoolteacher, used to go to the nearest town every end of the month to collect her salary. She always had the characteristic five-liter jerry can to fill it with paraffin. We used the paraffin lamp. We were lucky we had the one that, you know, was proper paraffin lamp, but many of our neighbors used the weak lamp that also had a lot of smoke and all sorts of things. We had, I would say, a better experience because we had the paraffin lamp. Many people actually had to do all the activities within the daylight. And if they had to rely on any light, they would then use the firewood. Those days We did not have the solar lanterns. We did not have all this.

Carol Koech: To be honest, growing up, I really did not have any role models. So, I didn't even know the career options that were available, except those that I could see. I mean, my parents being teachers, and also, you know, going to the hospital and seeing the nurses and maybe one or two doctors, those were the models that we had, that were familiar. And the Kenyan university, or rather the Kenyan education system, you know the way the course selection happens, is you get the course that your KCSE [Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education] certificate says, and for me that is where I fell. So, I just went to study engineering. One of my cousins who is a few years older than me was already studying engineering. So, it was a natural progression for me to go because at least I knew one person who was studying.

Carol Koech: And so I remember about four years ago, I wasn't really looking to make a transition, but then, you know, there's this head hunter that came to me and said, oh, we have this organization that has just recently acquired a local company. They're looking to build a local team. And I was like, hmm, this looks very interesting for me because I get an opportunity to become a part of a company that was a local company that is being transitioned to a multinational. So, I actually moved into Schneider. I was being invited to do a specific job, which, I was not very interested in, but I was much more interested in programs that Schneider was running around sustainability, and they have this program, which they call Access to Energy Program. I remember when I was having the conversation then with the hiring manager, I was like, you know, I'm not interested in the job you're offering me today.

But if you ever have a job around this space, then I'm interested. It's very strange because about two or three weeks later, they were like, can you come and discuss a proposal we have? And then, you know, they had put together something to suit my interests and this was for me an opportunity to realize that actually you can define the jobs you want and, it can be made. So, I moved into that role, stayed in it for about a year, then moved to a different role where I was running a division. And then I knew I had been, you know, informed along the way that I was being prepared to become the country leader. So, I was working and putting together those skills. And then in 2020, right in the middle of COVID, I get appointed as the country leader. And it's been an interesting journey since then.

Carol Koech: Oh, challenges are always there. I mean, being in a sales role, first of all means that it's a very high-pressure environment. You must deliver the numbers. I remember the first year when I moved to a sales role. I did not sell even a cent. It was very frustrating to see at the end of the year, people getting paid bonuses and you are there not seeing anything, but I think I would say that as the challenges have been presented, they've really helped me to build myself. And I've used them as steppingstones to learn. I've had situations in my career where, companies constantly reorganize and, some jobs fall off and I've been a victim of those where at one point or another, my role has fallen off. You know, I've gotten this redundancy letter and then it's, you know, helter-skelter to try and get another job. And I think I've also been fortunate to manage that situation fairly okay. So, I'd say challenges are constant. Currently, of course, I have a big responsibility and I'm constantly facing challenges. There are external challenges from the market, there are internal challenges from the organization, and sometimes personal challenges as well.

Carol Koech: I try to remember those and there are really many. But let me just give you one. I remember, when I was working at GE, covering the sub-Sahara Africa region, and I'm sure the listeners on this podcast that are in Nigeria would resonate with this. I traveled quite a bit in Nigeria into some of the remote towns. And I remember one time I was in Port Harcourt, and I was going to visit a particular customer location. I'm seated in this four-by-four. The cars are big. And then I have this chaser car in front and a chaser car at the back, and I'm thinking, hmm, the village girl here has all these escorts. You know, I look back at that and it's really an amazing experience. But I've really, I would say, had some experiences that have had me pinching myself. Is it really me going through this stuff? But I've also had some low moments. It's really just a constant accepting that life and growth comes, and experiences are like this.

Carol Koech: If you look at energy access in Africa, I really would like to go a little bit into statistics here. The people who bear the brunt of lack of energy are the women. If you have to make a meal for your family, then you're trying to beat the daylight. It means that you're working in a very limited time and pressure. The women really have a chance to improve their quality of lives by participating in ensuring that there's energy access, but more importantly in ensuring that it's energy that is sustaining the climate. Because again, the same people that bear the brunt of lack of energy are the ones that bear the brunt of climate change today. It's the women who are walking longer distances to collect water and all that. So that really is the reason why we must be part of the solution to make the quality of our lives and our mothers and our sisters better.

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