MEET BANKOLE WILLIAMS –
Bankole Williams is a man of many hats. He is the MD/CEO of LYD Consulting, a top Management Consulting firm committed to helping organizations improve their performance and bottom line by developing bespoke strategies and solutions that rightly resolve each client’s existing problems. He is a Certified Management Consultant (CMC) from the International Council for Managing Consulting Institutes ICMCI). He is also a Fellow of the International Management Consultants Certification Board (FIMCB).
With over a decade’s experience in the consulting space, he has consulted for some of the most reputable organizations in Nigeria. His elite clientele comprises of the World Bank, Google, the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), Federal Internal Revenue Service (FIRS), Lagos Business School (LBS) Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank, Diamond Bank, Skye Bank, Union Bank, Heritage Bank, Stanbic IBTC, First Bank of Nigeria, Fidelity Bank, Oando, Konga, NLNG, UTC.
Born and bred in Lagos, Bankole is an alumnus of the University of Lagos where he studied Biochemistry. However, he never practised biochemistry because he got his first job with Guaranty Trust Bank as a Human Resources Officer. There he worked for three years and resigned in 2009 as an Assistant Banking Officer to chart the unfamiliar world of consulting as an associate with V.I.P Consulting, a notable customer and human Management Consulting firm owned by his mentor Mr Fela Durotoye.
“When you make up your mind that you want something so bad, you will do whatever it takes to make it work. In my case, that meant having to pick side trades to make ends meet. I had resigned from a financially rewarding job at that time to a completely new field in consulting and was learning less than half of my previous salary at the bank. I had responsibilities to keep up with and so I started selling Polo shirts by Ralph Lauren and a couple of side gigs as well. My family and friends thought I had gone insane. In their words, ‘who leaves a profitable banking job to start all over again?’
When asked about his rise to prominence, he had this to say, “I have failed many times and I have been rejected quite a few times. One time, I lost over six million Naira on a business venture that did not yield profit. It was tough losing that kind of money at a time when I was not very buoyant financially. Starting up my own firm also came with numerous rejections but I have never let that stop me. Rejection to me is the food of champions.” As he recounted some of the challenges, he faced after resigning from his job to switch careers from HR to Management Consulting.
Today, all of his professional and personal experiences, victories and knowledge find relevance in his work as he runs his own consulting company, which he founded in 2016 and wherein he serves as the Principal Consultant. Bankole has helped employees of corporate institutions surpass the annual financial targets of their employers. I have trained and deployed consulting interventions for over 30,000 professionals in corporate institutions operating in diverse industries ranging from Government to Banking and Finance, and the Oil and Gas etc.
Bankole is the Founder of the Live Your Dreams Africa Foundation, which he set up to tackle the unemployment and underemployment problems of Africa by creating economic opportunities to help people live their dreams. Over the years, he had focused on social consciousness to inspire hope whilst challenging the African youth to rise above the ugliness of poverty, to the possibilities that lie within their control in order to live their dreams of a better life. This he does through his Live Your Dream Conferences and the Dream Development Centre, which organizes skill acquisition trainings that train unemployed and underemployed youth in highly profitable skills, business management and personal development. Thus far, his foundation has successfully helped create jobs for One thousand, and two (1,002) youths across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.
Bankole Williams is also a certified Life Coach and therapist and his vision is to optimize human potential to surpass their targets/societal expectations by illuminating possibilities, activating intelligence, developing capabilities and directing activities to drive transformational growth in people. “Fear a lot of times is non-existent. People are held down by limiting beliefs because of previous painful experiences or background. My goal is to help people deal with limiting patterns of failure and break free from limiting mindsets that stop them from living their dreams.” Bankole has who has a thriving community of over 50,000 individuals across several continents has mentored, coached, and taught many through his weekly emails, coaching programs and deep-dive sessions. Some of his most popular coaching programs are Science of Astounding Results, Career GPS Boot camp, The Wealthy Mind boot camp etc.
He has also authored three books, has written the foreword for a couple of books too and served as a reviewer for many other authors. His published books Engaged to a job I hate, Cupcakes for your soul, Drowning Fishes and an e-book Fortify; 7 strategies for business continuity in tough seasons are available on his website store as well as on Amazon.
He is a recipient of several awards and recognition such as the 2019 Coaching Icons Award, the Lagos State Award of Excellence in Youth & Social Development, the Symbol of Hope Humanitarian Service Award and the Google award for Youth Empowerment in Africa amongst others.