Cascador, a transformative programme for mid-stage entrepreneurs in Africa founded in 2019, has stated that the firm’s ultimate goal is impact.
This was stated during the alumni meeting of the company held recently in Ikeja.
According to the Founder of Cascador, Dave DeLucia, “Impact can come in a variety of forms: social impact, job creation, innovative solutions to problems, or providing opportunities for women, the poor, or disadvantaged communities to advance. Rather than offering grants or working through NGOs, we have elected to empower the entrepreneurs who are solving problems and making an impact through for-profit ventures.”
He said: “By developing leadership skills, financial acumen, connections, sources of capital and other resources to help them scale, we turbo charge their companies and make their impact possible. We also hope to inspire a spirit of humility, philanthropy and community that drives them to become leaders who give back to their country and community for years to come.”
Speaking about the programme curriculum in 2024 and how it has helped the entrepreneurs, Director of Cascador, Trish Thomas, said: “Our cohort members today have a much more expansive learning experience than our early Cascadors. A practical example of the improvement to our curriculum and timeline is that Founders have time to take their education back to their team and apply it in their real-world operating environment.”
She added: “We taught the importance of knowing your customer and building your products, services and experiences around their needs. Today, our founders have time to complete a 3-week customer research project with their team, share their insights, and get our help in applying their findings to their business model. We also create a more lasting bond between the founders in each cohort through extended interaction, and teach a more holistic curriculum than before.”
She Global Awards Return to Nigeria, Set to Honour Women in April
Agnes Ekebuike
Five years after transcending the borders, She Global Awards will be celebrating unsung women from all walks of life that have made significant strides in business, leadership, innovation and community impact.
The women will be awarded for their roles in inspiring the future generation of women to dream bigger, and to go further in achieving the impossible.
Tagged ‘The Lipstick Force’, this year’s awards seek to illuminate the exceptional contributions of women and elevate the essence of the lipstick force.
The award is billed to hold April 13, 2025 in Lagos, but there will be a tour of all awardees to different tourist destinations in Lagos, beginning from April 11.
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos to announce the awards, the oganiser, She Global Awards, who doubles as the Founder, Ladies in Business Magazine Global, Amb. Adeshola Helen Onadipe, said: “At Ladies in Business Magazine Global, we have made it a mission to ensure that the voices of these remarkable women are heard, seen and celebrated. Our platform continues to champion the women in business globally, recognising not just the well-known, but the unsung heroines as well, who have worked tirelessly behind the scenes.”
Explaining the choice of the theme, Onadipe said the lipstick, which every woman used for makeup, whether red, white or purple colour, has strong force that speaks of the unique personality about the boldness and audacity about a woman.
“The lipstick is not just about the colour, but the empowerment, and the force behind a woman applying a lipstick and speak at every event or anywhere she found herself with that boldness and audacity to say here I am,” Onadipe said, adding that the lipstick is a symbol that reminds women of the strength, the resilience, and the grace endowed in women.
According to her, this year’s edition in Nigeria will bring together thought leaders, industries professionals, policy makers, entrepreneurs and activists from across the globe. “We will celebrate not only the individual achievements, but also the collective power of women in creating a better future for all, and I would like to use the opportunity to take this movement and thank our incredible stakeholders and sponsors,” Onadipe further said.
She explained the awards would feature international guest speakers, as well as speakers and guest speakers from within Nigeria.