She has a very firm handshake and looks you straight in the eye with a warm but assertive smile that can be a bit intimidating if you expected anything less.
I have been trying to corner her for an interview since she took on her new assignment last October without much success.
Between business trips across three continents, learning the ropes at her new job and close to a dozen events and product launches across the East African region, Mariam Abdullahi’s diary has been a flurry of activity.
Recently, she had an opening between an early morning business call and a dentist’s appointment, and I finally got the chance to interview the general manager for Microsoft Mobile Devices (previously Nokia) East Africa.
Transition phase
Ms Abdullahi joined Microsoft in 2013, and late last year, when the former head of Microsoft Mobile Devices East Africa Bruce Howe took up another role in Microsoft’s Asia Pacific division, she replaced him.
At the time, Microsoft was just concluding the $7 billion (Sh683.9 billion at current exchange rates) acquisition of Nokia, and then later was in the transition phase of rebranding into Microsoft Mobile Devices.
“In the world of Microsoft, things move very fast and opportunities are available, and if you put your hand up to do something, people will tell you go ahead and do it,” she says.
“So when my friend Bruce decided to move to Microsoft Asia Pacific, he came up to me and told me to take up this role.”
Before joining Microsoft, she had worked in Europe for six years and then moved to the Middle East for another 10 years; first for Brightpoint, a subsidiary of Ingram Micro, and then Zain Group.
Abdullahi recalls her experience in the Middle East as being exciting, and it, unknown to her at the time, was the precursor to her future role that would finally bring her back home after almost 20 years outside the country.
“The Middle East is a place where you can get lost. Today, the road is going this way; you fly out and get back after a month and find it is going the opposite direction.
“You have to come from a really grounded place and I am blessed to come from a family that always reminds you where you come from and where you are supposed to be going. My mother would always tell us, ‘Do not forget where you come from; your tax dollars are needed back home’.”
Future needs
As business development director for Africa at Zain, Abdullahi’s job was to travel to and from Africa to explore the technology needs for different markets in the region, and find out what value her company could bring to them. However, she wanted to do more.
“I used to tell my friend, who later introduced me to Microsoft, that I needed to do something that was life changing. I needed to do something that made me feel much more emotionally connected,” she says.
“I am one of those people — I have to do everything from the heart and with a lot of passion; if I’m not feeling it, then I can’t do it.”
So it was a really easy decision to make when Microsoft came looking for someone to push the company’s 4Afrika Initiative.
“I had heard about it and I felt they were really speaking to my heart. It wasn’t a tough decision to make.”
Under the 4Afrika Initiative, her role was to head Microsoft’s telecom partnerships, something that gave her a whole new dimension on how consumers in the region demand, access and consume technology.
“Microsoft has been in Africa for 22 years with about 19 offices across the continent and we have done some great work,” she says, “but we needed to stop for a second and look into the future of technology needs and solutions for the African continent.
“Not everybody can afford high-end flashy gadgets, so how do you bring these innovations to consumers at a much more affordable price without compromising on quality?”
A passionate advocate for maternal health and education, Abdullahi believes technology leaders need to take it upon themselves to challenge their consumers to open their minds to the possibility of doing practically anything with technology.
“If I were to fund a start-up today, it would be something that looks at how we can use technology to make maternal health more seamless and a safer bet for all mothers regardless of their socio-economic state,” she says.
“I love when consumers challenge us and tell us that they need to have their devices more natural. Consumers are becoming more tech savvy and they know what they want.”
Beyond gadgets
When she is not managing the company’s distributors, attending business meetings or preparing product launches, Abdullahi loves to travel and discover new places, with a bias for her home country.
“I really don’t have a favourite as such and I keep finding new places every time. I was in Kilifi recently and I think I want to move there. I was also in Bondo and it was very amazing. I like game drives and to me, the Mara is my favourite game drive and I believe it’s even better than the Kruger. I like anywhere that does not have the hustle and bustle of cars, so the more rural it is, the better for me.”
Despite living a life that sees her immersed in technology, Abdullahi says it is important sometimes to unplug from everything and smell the roses.
“For me, work-life balance is a myth and people normally think it is a 50/50 thing, but it’s not that simple because one aspect of your life will always have more attention than another at some point.
“However, it is very important to have a life outside your gadgets because if you do not switch off, you will not be productive for anybody, both in your personal life and your work life. I want technology to be what I am, not to become what technology is.”
