From Sending Emails to Designing an App for over 2,000,000 people: Ema Reveals how she became the first female Engineer in BuyPower.

Mar 08, 2023

Happy International Women's Day! The theme for this year's celebration is "Embrace Equity,"  with a focus on why equal opportunities aren't enough.

Just in case you’re a man reading this, remember that the fight for gender equity is not for women alone. For the economic, political and social advancement of women, all hands should be on deck.

For this year's International Women's Day 2023, we will be talking to four amazing women in the month of March to showcase the inspiring things they've done, their journeys, and their motivation.

Today, we have a unique individual who happens to be the first female full-time staff in BuyPower's Engineering department. In this interview, we talked about her entry into tech, how she transitioned from a customer support executive to a UI/UX designer, and practical ways to put yourself out there to get what you want.

Can you please introduce yourself?

My name is Emaediong Ibanga. I'm from Akwa Ibom State and I'm a UI/UX designer at BuyPower.

I'm actually shocked that you're from Akwa Ibom. I've always assumed you're Igbo.
Oh, really? Why? I'm from Akwa Ibom o 😄

Emaediong means been blessed.

Aww, that's so cool. Did you also go to school there?
No. I studied at Covenant University, where I studied Management Information Systems.

So you schooled in Ogun State for 4 years?
Yes. Hmmm, the way you said Ogun State, the next thing you'll ask me is if I learnt Yoruba.

That's where I'm going to 😄😄
You see. I don't know why people ask that question a lot. Did I go to study Yoruba, or do you think my lecturers taught me the language? 😄

I went to school in the North (at Nassarawa State University), and most people just think that I should know how to speak Hausa even though I don't. So I get how frustrating it can be

Where did you have your NYSC after school?
I served here in Abuja at the Central Bank of Nigeria, and after that, I did some NGO work with VSO.

I was taken to Kwara State, where I worked with some schools. I did that for about 3 or 4 months, after which I got into BuyPower as a Customer Support Executive. That was my role up until February 2022.

Why did you leave the Central Bank of Nigeria? Like, you did not hold them? 😄
It's not easy. I would have loved to be there, but it didn't work out for me, so I had to embrace the cold world out there.

Hmm, I feel you.
You mentioned that you did some NGO work with VSO. What was that about?
VSO means Voluntary Service Overseas. They work with a lot of volunteers and have different projects in different countries. ICS (International Citizen Service) works with a bunch of partner NGOs, whereby they get volunteers and work on various projects. VSO was the organization handling ICS for Nigeria. They would bring in volunteers from the UK and Nigeria and then send them to different communities to work on specific projects.

ICS in Nigeria has an educational project and a livelihood project where they work with farmers. The research they carried out in the West showed that the level of education, especially in Kwara State, was low and the number of out-of-school kids was high.

We worked with four different schools in a community called Apata in Eiyenkorin, assisting the teachers and introducing interesting ways for the students to learn. We also tried to do some renovations because one of the blocks of classes (JSS1 to JSS3) at the school I went to had no ceiling and window frames. They just had bamboo over their heads, and the classes were sandy. There were no windows, and there was dust everywhere when students were moving around.

It opened my eyes to the harsh realities of some people. People experience Nigeria differently. I never saw that growing up, and seeing people live like that in 2018 was eye-opening for me. We raised funds while we were there and did what we could to improve the situation of the schools we were at.

Unfortunately, as of 2019, they stopped having ICS volunteers in Nigeria because they said Nigeria was too high-risk and they were not going to send any more volunteers.

The insecurity in the country has thwarted the whole process of trying to make things better in Nigeria. The experience was really good, and I try to keep in touch with some of the people I worked with.

I believe that’s part of what NYSC does. It exposes us to different parts of the country and different cultures and opens our eyes to see how people in different parts of the country live. It did that for me when I served in Zamfara State.
Really? Wow. The whole year?

Yes, the whole year. It was a sharp contrast from what I was used to in the Southwest. It was really an experience.
What’s one interesting thing about you?
Hmm, I’m not that interesting. Well, I like to learn new things. If I hear about a topic I’m interested in, I’d like to do some research and add to my knowledge about it. I Google a lot, and I like to watch YouTube videos because I’m a visual learner.

You mentioned that you joined BuyPower as a Customer Support Executive, but right now, you’re a UI/UX designer. How did you get into this current path of product design?

My quest for knowledge started during the lockdown year. In that year, I worked from home for the most part, and out of the myriad of things going on, some people lost their jobs while some people got new jobs. One thing that piqued my interest was how I could acquire a skill that would be needed anywhere in the world because I saw that some people were getting jobs.

What did those people have that others who were losing their jobs didn’t have? That was how I started my research, and I found UI/UX design. I was mostly reading about this field, and I saw how it was related to my former role because they both have user satisfaction in the middle.

After I realized that I was interested in this, I reached out to some designers on LinkedIn on how I could start. One of them pointed me to YouTube and then a course on Coursera. I started taking courses, the first one was visual elements of user interface design & fundamentals of UX design on Coursera. I followed UX design topics on Twitter so I was exposed to more tweets on the topic and that's how I found and joined communities on Slack like HerTechTrai and followed some people on social media who posted important content about what to learn like Nabhel and Joe Brendan.

In February 2021, I attended my first Design program with Dufuna. I was selected with 29 other people to learn for 2 months, free of charge because UK-Nigeria Tech Hub sponsored it. We had to take a qualifying test though. After that, I practised and watched YouTube videos. While I was working as a Customer Support Executive, I would learn and get better during my free time. When I felt comfortable enough, I started looking for internship roles. That’s how I started.

That sounds great.
There were some moments when I didn’t have a laptop, and I had to invest in getting one so I could work. It wasn’t easy, but it all worked out.

How did BuyPower come into the picture from the onset?
To be honest, I don’t even remember. During that period, I was applying for a lot of jobs. All I know is that I got an email to take a test. I took it and went on with my life. You know that period that you don’t really put much hope in it.

Yeahh, been there, done that.
About 2 weeks later or so, I got feedback to come in for an interview with BuyPower. At the time, I was already using BuyPower to purchase electricity units online, so I was aware of what the company did. I was asked basic interview questions; I got an offer later on, and that’s how I started with BuyPower.

That’s great.
When you wanted to switch departments, was it easy? Did you have to go through a series of interviews again?
By the time I was looking for internship roles, BuyPower already had a product designer, and I doubted the possibility of being given a chance. I spoke to some people, and some said I should try; you never know if you don’t try, while others asked me to forget it. I just thought to myself that the worst they could say was no, and I’d move on.

So I typed a lengthy email to the CEO and COO stating how far I’ve come, how I started learning product design, and how I’d like a chance to work with the engineering department. I also made use of my knowledge of the BuyPower product to gain an advantage. I had a few suggestions for improvement about the app, and I put all that in the email and sent it.

There was a lot of back and forth. I was given a test, and from the time I sent the email to the time I was given an offer, it was about 6 months. There was a lot of discouragement along the way, and at a point, I was like, "Abeg, let me just move on," but on March 1, 2022, I was given the opportunity to start in this new role as an intern for a probationary period of six months before being offered a full-time role.

Aww, such an inspiring story.
Yeah, that’s how I started as a UI/UX  Designer at BuyPower. The end of February 2023 will mark one year since I made the switch to product design.

Do you have any regrets?
No, I do not have any regrets.

What does a typical workday look like for you?
There is no specific routine, but right now, we’re working towards going live with the new mobile application. A typical day starts with a stand-up meeting to get updates on what everyone is working on, and I work closely with the Mobile Developers to make any updates or iterations that are needed on the design. My day-to-day involves making updates and changes, knowing what works and what doesn’t.

Apart from Figma, which other tool do you use to make your work easier?
I would say Slack because of remote work. I need it for communication with other members of my department.

How long have you been working with BuyPower?
I started working here in August 2018, so this year will make it 5 years in total.

Would you say that working here has made you better?
Definitely. BuyPower has provided an environment where I can learn and be better at what I do.

Would you say that there is an opportunity for growth in the company?
Yes, there is, but I think you have to also put in the work. Growth will not just come to you if you don’t push yourself to grow.

I think that’s accurate.
When Ema is not working on Figma or Slack, what does she do for fun?

Well, fun is relative. I enjoy painting and I like to play tabletop games. So, I have this cafe, Nibcard, I go there in my free time. They have a lot of games where we play and meet people. I occasionally host visitors. We talk and play games.

Lately, I’ve also developed an interest in true crime documentaries on YouTube. I watch a lot of serial killer stories—how they commit murder and all that. There’s a lot to learn, and I realized that, omo, some people are wicked in this life.

You said there’s a lot to learn, what do you learn from it?
You just get to know the minds of these murderers. The funny thing is that most of these people do these things because of issues from their childhood. Either they were verbally or sexually abused at some point in their lives, or maybe a parent was being neglectful, not paying attention to them growing up. It’s just interesting how a person’s childhood can determine how he or she turns out in the future.

Would you describe yourself as an introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Do you easily make friends and mingle?
An introvert.

I like having my own space, to be honest. I would probably only talk to people when I feel comfortable. I won’t say I always look forward to meeting new people. I’m not that kind of person. I’m the kind of person who would be in the corner observing people at a large gathering. I’m not the loudest person in the room. I think I like to observe people before speaking with them. So I think I’d call myself an introvert. I prefer to stay home rather than go out to meet new people or party. I’m an extrovert when I’m with the right people 😄

Would you mind sharing your social media handles?
I’m on LinkedIn

I don’t tweet a lot, but I read a lot of tweets.

Thank you for your time, Ema. It’s been wonderful speaking with you.
Thank you for having me.


We hope that you enjoyed reading this as much as we enjoyed writing it.

If you only remember one thing from our conversation with Ema, make it this: don't listen to the naysayers and take your shot.

We hope that this inspires you to start that journey, finish that online course, and go for what you want.

Watch this space for our next IWD interview.


P.S: To share your thoughts with us, sign up for a free Disqus account. We'd love to hear from you in the comments section.

Did you find this post helpful? Sign up here and we'll let you know whenever we publish a new one.

Simbi

Hi. My name is Simbi. Follow me to get tips on how to improve your electricity, upscale your business and solve all utility challenges today.

Great! You've successfully subscribed.
Great! Next, complete checkout for full access.
Welcome back! You've successfully signed in.
Success! Your account is fully activated, you now have access to all content.