Nigerian Banking is sector is hardly the best place to grow your career

Appleyard and shym3xx will probably be feeling very confused. They just can understand how it is that Russia with all its nukes cannot be said to be on the same footing as the US. They forget that what makes a superpower is more than just nukes and a few powerful rockets. If this is all it takes, then North Korea should be doing pretty good on the superpower scale by now.

50calibre:
Well I don't know where you've been checking, because the US economy isn't twice that of china, That of California isn't bigger than Russia, maybe you need to verify your sources.
The US military is the only thing which experienced significant growth in the last decade and at the moment, is being downsized. The American government prefers to spend their money on Arms and WOMDs than put food on the table of average Americans.
America still sits on top, that's not in question, the problem is.. It's fast losing that spot.
I can't remember when last I used a Russian product and at the same time, I can remember when last I used an American product. Most of the American products I have, weren't made in America.
Allow me to demonstrate the decline of your dear country in 3 simple charts

You are right:

America's GDP = 16.8 trillion USD
China's GDP = 9.2 trillion USD

Now, that's not necessarily twice, but close enough to use twice in a context.

Based on 2013 figures:

California's GDP = 2.203 trillion USD
Russia's GDP = 2.118 trillion

Your charts are very useful information. But i fail to understand how it can be useful in this context without relative information. E.g Are those charts showing an America in decline relative to e.g China or India or is it simply showing me a once overheated economy that slows down into long term sustainable growth rate? For instance in 1997, it shows me that US businesses are adding 2 million jobs but by 2014, the same businesses are adding 1.4 million jobs - how can you argue that this proves a "decline" and not necessarily an economic cycle? and how can you make those argument without showing relative position with the rest of the world - e.g what are other countries doing in the same period?

Absolute statistics are useless information in these sorts of scenario. The chart below shows China's annual GDP growth rate, does it "prove" that China is in decline?

SirShymex:

What are you on about? If I were born and raised in Russia, I have no choice but to live there. And Russia is definitely a country I'm fascinated by and if not for the weather, I won't mind going there. And that's also the reason why I have never been to Canada as well.

I'm sure there are black people born and raised in Russia and they love it there. It's also one of the countries with the highest number of migrants - a simple google search will educate you.

This isn't about hating the West, America isn't just the West - it's about America's excessiveness everywhere. Why should Europeans suffer, just because some mutters in America want an inconsequential Ukraine? Based on your logic, I guess most Europeans who are tired of America's mess also hate the west, which is more or less Western Europe, no? I don't know what part of the planet you rest your head but out here in the UK, the people are tired of America and its useless wars it keeps dragging the UK into.

Btw, I live in my country of birth.

"If I were born and raised in Russia, I have no choice but to live there"

Oh that's not really true! You can actually emmigrate to these places if as you claim - "You are really fascinated by it". I have no doubt you were born and raised in Britain, but someone made that choice to leave Ijebu land for London and not Moscow or Russian Siberia! That choice was probably borne out of the idea that London presents the best opportunity for future generations of the shymexx family to live, thrive and prosper, based on its values of freedom, its justice system and its ability to open its arms to welcome all sorts of people - even those from Ijebu land.

I was born and raised in the UK. I have also spent some time in Russia while on an offshore project - It is really one of the worst places anyone will choose to live if they are black! - you will really have to be on drugs to swap your life in London for a life in Moscow!


America's excessiveness may be everywhere, i hate the stupid wars and human suffering, but that said, the lingering question is why does Moscow present a suitable alternative? If Russia wasn't excessive, why does it not have good relations with Romania, Lativa, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, and Georgia and why do all these countries run to the "West" for security guarantees? Keeping in mind that America shares the worlds largest unmanned border with Canada!


I don't understand your logic behind "European suffering"...here in the UK, the economy is the healthiest it has been in over 5 years, unemployment rate is low, and cost of funding for new businesses remain equally low, who is "suffering"?

50calibre:

Loooool my dog feeds better than you

you sound so emotional and frustrated, are you man-strating? It's either you're in denial or you're just plain stup*d, take your pick.

This talk of super power is just basic talk I can get from a market woman, it means nothing.

America is in decline, counter it with facts if you can, tell me when you're ready.

How do you define "decline"?

Last time i checked, the US still has an economy that is bigger that the whole of the European Union combined and almost twice that of China. California's GDP is bigger than that of the whole of Russia!

Last time i checked it still has the world's biggest military and its military spending is still much more than the next ten countries combined.

It is still at the fore front of products, innovation and medical research! Since the Ebola outbreak, how many countries have you heard has an active research in testing phase for the cure? yep! America, anyone else?

What does Russia give to the world besides its gigantic nuclear arsenal, polonium tea and gas? - basically nothing! when was the last time you used a made in Russia product?

why is Russia a better alternative to the West?

SirShymex:

Apparently, they have started moving billions of dollars to Hong Kong. And I read somewhere that Russia and China just signed some monetary agreement, and everything is going to be in Ruble and Yuan, or something like that(I'm about to go out but I'll post links later tonight).

I understand what you mean...and it's just embarrassing because of that "special friendship" nonsense. However, I think because of the Iraq war debacle - the puppeteering has been limited a little bit. As for the spying thing, they can't do nothing to you once you know your rights. That's stolen information.

I think a few Tories spoke out. And a lot of old Tory heads, and former Tory MPs and ministers also spoke out.

If you have a choice to either live in the London, Las Vegas, Amsterdam or St Petersburg, which will you choose? Oh i forgot, you probably made your choice already!

Many here hate the West so much that they constantly pray for its downfall, yet they prefer to take the quality of life, the freedom and the justice system that guarantees their human rights over the polonium tea in St Petersburg! They constantly forget or ignore that in Russia, dissent is not allowed, you could end up facing jail for like 10 years, for the most incredible trumped up charges.

What amazes me more is the amount of hatred they are much likely to receive from people in these places versus the West. In many places in Russia, you are considered a scum for being black, meanwhile the same black folks that thrive as lawyers/bankers in the West constantly pray for the speedy decline of the West! talk about shitting and eating in the same bowl, makes you wonder about human judgement though.

The USA/the UK may have their many errors for which history will forever curse their leaders - but their role in certain parts of the world can not be ignored. Yes US waged war on Iraq for all the wrong reasons, but should Obama had chosen not to intervene when he did, genocide may have descended on Iraq in a scale that shocks all of our conscience - One may wonder why in all of this, US seem to be going it alone, yet they are still hated for "playing the world's police"?

Sometimes, you get the feeling that many probably just hate the west, because there is simply no one else to hate .....ironically, if war broke out between the West and Russia, i many times wonder if all of these guys who simply hate the West will move en-masse to Russia to join the Red army or stay in their London homes and make a thin prayer to whatever gods may be that the West prevail? LOL!! makes you really wonder about human judgement.

Israel has started again with their aggression.

Why for f**ks sake will you choose to strike a sovereign country under the covers of "protecting your own security concerns"

I expect some strong reactions to come from Moscow, might as well drag the Russians into the conflict and they will be justified in doing so.

It is such a big shame that America provides the cover under which Israel commit such atrocity.

The big war - coming soon to a place near you!

Jarus:

Thanks, my good bro in career land.

Sorry for the outburst, Egbon. I know you understand sometimes, we all need a gentle admonishment.

Sisi_Kill: I'm sorry if I come off a bit unfeeling but I can't understand why people are saying thank you for this post and acting like they've just been told some top secret.

I mean is there anyone out there who woulda have followed complete strangers to go make covenant over the sharing of a dead man's property if they hadn't seen this post?!!!

If there is then being kidnapped should be the least of your problems. ...you should be wondering who has cooked your brains with semo and fed it to dogs.

Are you saying it is ridiculous to loot and share a dead man's property?

Wait till you hear the testimony on Sunday!

"Praise the Lord, he has done it again! Even while i walked in the shadows of death and contemplated stealing another man's wealth, he was there with me, and rescued me from the hands of evil men who may have sold me for body parts!"

Fifty men on the dead man's chest.
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum

Someone wake me up to reality. Why in God's name are we thanking God that a would be pirate escaped Baba's mortar and pestle?

The president has just descended to new lows with this latest decision. Thousands of innocent people have been killed by rascals who have no obvious motives beyond bigoted religious ones; While several Families have watched their world thrown into disarray and would mourn their beloved ones for the rest of their days, the President makes the most repulsing decision one could ever think of - Grant pardon to these murderers!

In order words, Mr President is saying to the families of the victims to f**k off! No hope for Justice for them now or ever! in order words their loss! - Those victims? As far as Mr President is concerned, mere statistics!

I have heard someone say "A corpse is just a corpse until that corpse is your pops" - these words have never been truer! Perhaps if Mr President have at one point in time or the order, had to pick up pieces of his wife or kids body parts blown apart by rascals pursuing bigoted religious motives, perhaps he may have found the decision to grant pardon to these murderers a tasteless repulsive one? who knows?

Posterity shall Judge. As for me, any little respect I have left for the President has just gone through the window!

You can watch it online here

http://www.1channel.ch/watch-1386995-Game-of-Thrones

AjanleKoko:

Everybody makes mistakes all the time. From the investor who gambles on a potentially risky stock, to the CEO that commits shareholder funds to loss-making projects, mistakes tend to happen in the corporate world. I've been part of a couple of errors myself, though maybe not at the level of $600k cost

I don't think any employee should be fired for that kind of mistake, unless it could be proved that the employee either (a) acted maliciously, or (b) did not seek appropriate approval or authorization to carry out the task that led to the mistake. A good corporate leader should discourage opportunities that showcase scapegoating and buck-passing. Usually, mistakes are made when a lot of people weren't paying attention, and it usually gets blamed on one poor sod. If I were to fire anyone for a mistake, I'd also can their boss along with them.

If you would observe, my post took on two different perspectives: The Managers and the shareholders.

As a shareholder, I'm not inclined to believe in the theory that everybody makes mistakes. Cash is the soul of a business, if someone pisses of 600 grand in a single flick, I would want to know if that person is actually the most suited for that job, and why, if for any reason, should they remain at that role? I want to see someone take responsibility and I want to be sure appropriate checks and balances are put in place so that such mistakes do not repeat themselves again in the future.

Every mistake has a cost. I am currently helping to co-manage a pension fund product and we know that the ultimate beneficiaries of that product are people in their mid 60s to late 90s. These are people whose survival depend on me and my colleagues doing our jobs well, which meant selecting the best investments for that product. Supposing a huge percentage of my holdings is on IBM and a certain employee at IBM has just made a "mistake" which resulted in a huge economical cost for the company, then I would want to know if the future of IBM is actually in the right hands otherwise, how am i going to explain the consequences to my clients? How do I explain to a 70 year old that she wouldn't be getting any pensions that month because one of the companies we invested in had a "huge loss" due to "mistakes" made by a certain employee - who for some reason, is still at that same company, in that same role? Obviously, a 600 grand loss is nothing to IBM, but more than the amount of current loss, is the potential for future losses, and the fact that the 600 grand could easily have been a lot higher than that.

I saw you mentioned "an investor who gambles on a potentially risky stock" or a "CEO that commits funds to loss making projects" - in the eyes of a shareholder, these aren't necessarily mistakes. First, because investing with someone who "gambles on risky stocks" comes with its risk and you are responsible, as a shareholder for understanding these risks.

For instance, i know that investing with a trader at Goldman sachs who may potentially lose 1 million in a single trade and make 2 million in another, is a risky thing to do. I have an alternative of investing that same money in gilts where i can be sure of getting my money back any day any time. If i want to go in the way of the former, then it meant i fully understand the risk involved and would be demanding for higher returns than the latter.

Also when a CEO commits funds to a project, the intrinsic value and the share price of the company may likely rise or fall once the news is dissipated regardless, whether or not the project is a winning shot. The rise or fall in the intrinsic value represents shareholders judgment of the risk of the projects. When RBS insisted on buying ABN Amro, the share price fell by a huge amount, reflecting the fact that shareholders were not comfortable with that idea.

As a manager, I understand what you meant by discouraging scapegoating and buck-passing, but as a shareholder, I am only interested to know that the future of the company is in the hands of those who wouldn't pass off 600 grand loss as a "cost of training" the employee. When JPM whale, the same dude who had made the company huge benefits in the past, recorded a 2billion dollar loss, JPM insisted he wouldn't be sacked. But the outcry from shareholders was too much and several people at the top of the food chain eventually have to take some responsibility and bow out.

It will depend on the nature of the mistake. If employee is a "true asset" and the mistake made could provide experience, clues and answers that may potentially lead to ground breaking profits for the company, then no wahala. Otherwise, if the mistakes made was due to recklessness, or a lackadaisical attitude to work, i wouldn't just let the employee off, I would also be suing to recoup cost of damages made to the company.

As a shareholder, even if the employee is a "true asset", I would question the quality of experience gained by losing 600 grand, and the Judgmental call of the CEO who says such an employee could remain at his job. If there are no consequences, then how much has the employee really learnt? To call this a a "cost of training" is not only wrong but sends a wrong message. In the end, if the company files a chapter 11, it's not the CEO that loses, it's the shareholders!

It's April fool

^^

I think it is an April fool from Virgin Atlantic.

Virgin launches glass-bottomed plane

By Richard Branson


I’m thrilled to announce that Virgin has created another world-first with the introduction of the technology required to produce the world’s first glass-bottomed plane. This technological innovation coincides with the start of Virgin Atlantic Airways’ first ever domestic service to Scotland.



In 1984 we started the wonderful airline that is Virgin Atlantic. I am incredibly proud of yet another aviation breakthrough which has been years in the making. I can’t wait to experience the first flight for myself with my family and other natural born explorers.



2012 was a year of celebrating what is brilliant about Great Britain and I’m excited that in 2013 we are continuing this uplifting spirit by developing an experience that will enable Little Red passengers to appreciate the beauty of the British landscape. And with an unrivalled view of Scotland I hope this gives Scottish tourism an even bigger boost.




We hope to trial the glass bottom technology with other Virgin airlines in time and have asked other Virgin companies to support this innovative trial and launch our new domestic Scottish route. This really is a team effort from all corners of Virgin


http://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/blog/virgin-atlantic-launches-worlds-first-ever-glass-bottomed-plane

"We're so close to the end," explains YouTube's "Competition Director," Tim Liston, in the video's opening scene. "Tonight at midnight, YouTube.com will no longer be accepting entries. After eight amazing years, it is finally time to review everything that has been uploaded to our site and begin the process of selecting a winner."


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh-Ck3cVgLo

Life is too cheap in Nigeria. More than 160 people may have died in a fell swoop and the first place I'm reading about this, is on Nairaland where people simply go "Eeya! what a loss!"

once a boss, always a boss!

A-ZeD:
Those who say its not African to show b.west should please tell me if Africans invented cloths?

PS: I think they should cover up

Nor mind them jor. The same people would have considered this "cultural" and acceptable.

sanb: I’ve got one word to use RIDICULOUS….

Sometimes, people tend to forget that we’re Africans and we have a culture to respect. The last time I checked, decency still exists in the dictionary as a word. This dress sense displayed by the pair of them; is nothing but operation show me your chest; which is RIDICULOUS. Let us call a spade a spade and what is bad is bad finito.

Please shove your "we are africans who must live by a set of rules created by Dim Who's Dat" somewhere where the sun don't shine. This hypocrisy stinks. The same Africans would have gladly approved if Rihanna wore something much more provocative!

I wonder how many of you started having s e x before you turned 10, defying all sorts of African beliefs, rules and traditions but would gladly come over here to shoot ICBMs just cos someone is comfortable in their own skin.

sweetcheecks:

I know this is beside the topic but your comment gets one thinking. Is this guy not the Pastor with 3 jets or so? Why does he need 3 jets when he cannot fly them at the same time? If he wants to take more church people why did he not just get a boeing? This is gluttony at its best. You know its amazing how the new pastorship of the church are soo choosy on what they concentrate on depending on their own desires.

My mom always tells me or even scold for having too many clothes, shoes and bags some of which I bought never even opened let alone wearing them and stacked up in my closet. She always sternly warn me that it is sinful to gather more than you have use for when millions are in need. Mind you I worked for these no donation or offers from anyone but I always feel so convicted by her words.

What about these pastors. This ministry system has corrupted the church for in former institutionalised churches the tithe were sent to the church head office to be shared and pastores recieved salary every month, free lodging and transport etc.

It is amazung that the wine will be such source of distraction when gluttony is not. Just thinking.

Yeah, funny innit? God is actually likely to get angry if you drink wine (which is much more healthy than drinking 5 alive or coke) than he is if you brain-washed thousands into submitting 10% of their earnings and spending the same on luxury (that you can actually do without) while millions around the world starve to death or go homeless!

I have stopped listening to these people who all claim to hear from God. I was in a Nigerian church sometime early this year and the pastor actually said "If you don't contribute to the building and construction of God's house this year, God will call you home". It took more than an ordinary measure of human restraint to stop me from yelling "F-uck off you dirty scumb-ag" right there and then.

PHIPEX: Correct me if am wrong but the issue at hand here is alcohol and not WINE. The last time I checked not all wines are alcohol. Jesus turned water into WINE not ALCOHOL. The condemnation here is alcohol and not wine except if it's alcoholic wines. For those insisting on taking a little remember that "a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump"

Yeah right, my neighbor's Honda accord is actually a mini-Lamborghini

There's WINE, and then there's Juice!

It can't be called Wine if it hasn't undergone fermentation, so if Jesus turned water into Wine, then he turned Water into WINE! You can't separate Alcohol from Wine.

The truth is, any Christian sister who allows her husband to drink alcohol is simply setting the stage for strange things to happen in her home. Is your husband saying, 'It is just a little harmless sip once in a long while', remember a little occasional sip today will become an uncontrollable gush tomorrow. Be warned! In addition, having a bar in a Christian home completely negates the ethics of godliness. It is an invitation to the spirit of liquor to have its permanent abode in that house. That house will no longer have peace! Having a bar in your home is having an altar for Satan in that home. You can be sure that the Holy Spirit will simply step aside. Believers' homes should be identified by the serenity of the place and by the provision of a prayer room for God. You should have an altar where God will meet with you daily. If you don't, convert your bar or one of your rooms into such an altar for the King of kings today!

But erhm sir, I pretty sure it says somewhere in my Bible that the Lord Jesus at some point in his life turned water into wine at wedding reception...are you suggesting that the Lord must be wrong to have done this as the wedding guests are likely to have mistresses just because they love wine?

You have to ask yourself what you live for. The moment you model your life around other people's expectation and standards, that moment you set yourself up for a big crash. Damn everyone! Just live your life! In the end, the decisions you make is what determines how far you'd go in life. Why do you care if a lot of people get disappointed anyway? What are you? the world's granny? Regardless of what you do, someone's always going to be sad anyway, you might as well just do what you want and damn whoever is having nightmares over the the things you have chosen to do with your life.

You should also grow some ballz and do something about your self confidence. Neither your dad nor his friends nor yours will be paying your bills in a couple of years to come, so why must you let them make your decisions for you?

When i was a teenager, my dad would tell his friends that his son will one day become a really fine surgeon, I told him point blank at some point that he can shelve that dream cos I wasn't interested in any of that stuff and i made sure he understands that nothing can change my mind about that. Sure the dude was disappointed at that point, but a part of him marvel at how an Eighteen year old could be so firm about his choices, and that was the moment i earned my voice.

You've got to grow up son, you are not a kid anymore.

vokal_guy: I was on the phone with a friend of mine yesterday who was telling me about her experience at the Embassy of the FRN in Washington D.C. Here are the issues currently facing this embassy.


So the question I am asking is who do we blame for this shenanigan? We are the ‘giant of Africa’; our embassy should be filled with people who are WELL QUALIFIED to do the job, not with people who got the job because their mother is a friend of the big boss. Everybody should be treated equally irrespective of what your status is. My suggestion will be to close the embassy down for a few months, weed out the incompetent workers, hire dedicated workers, and hire an accountant! (That embassy is making money but it is going to the wrong pockets), upgrade the technology in there and reopen it.

***dies** after getting to the bolded bit.




Giants of Africa indeed.

Richfella:

My partner cheating, from where I am now, is not something I remotely bother myself with.

On a certain level, my mind and my emotions will blare their usual alarms. But I am too far detached to respond to it in any fashion. You are not your mind, neither are you your emotions.


If your partner cheats, ask yourself "what happened?" Some dude took a little piece of meat and put it into some dark place - which happened to be on my partners body. Complete detachment.

Your emotions are just programmed impulses which compel your body to certain actions. You are not those emotions.

It could only be considered an issue if we agreed not to.


'Cheating' (as we choose to call it) is an evolutionary reproductive strategy hard-coded in all of us (I'd recommend you check out the book Spérm Wars). Statistically, women are more likely to cheat when they are ovulating and hence most fertile. Alpha genes baby!

All morality is relative. A clear example would be our most recent ancestors walking about in the nude - about a hundred years ago. My paternal grandma told me they ran into the bush when the whites came to give them clothes . Wear a mini skirt now and everyone will condemn you to be burnt at the stake.

Fidelity, doesn't mean your partner will be fun, brilliant, open minded, share the same interests with you, can cook, give you a home or dare I say make you happy in several different ways.


If you know the kind of fantasies your 'innocent' girlfriend has (even while you're hammering away), you'll will be SHOCKED. If you ever get to find out that she maybe wants to be raped, spanked, rough handled and thinks of some strange men ravishing her mercilessly. You might might just buy a noose

Women are not docile as we want to believe. They are also sexual as us males, if not more. [s]Who has an entire organ dedicated to ONLY pleasure[/s]? With about 8,000 nerve endings concentrated on a tiny spot. Believe it or not, we are only let in on as much information as our hypocrisy can handle.

I found this post by a female NairaLander really funny. You should check it out: Embarrassing Moment.

What??


Kamari ni Pauli wi!

I wouldn't sack him, i could consider putting him on probation with a performance target.

You should also consider if you are the one with the poor leadership skills required to bring out the best from your team. I used to have a supervisor who was bossy and demanded that things be done her own way even if there are other ways i can achieve better result. I hated this, and it reflected on my output. During a conversation i had with her own supervisor who also happen to be the global CIO of the firm, he immediately recognized that my skills are not well employed, so he decided to work with me directly himself. Three months later,the results were staggering; Got exceptional performance reviews, a nice pay bump and a really juicy bonus.

I guess my whole point boils down to the fact that unless you can objectively determine that the dude does not have the requisite skills for the job - and i don't see how you can do this given you are already bias and have concluded that left to you, the dude would have been a gonner - you must continue to look for ways and avenue to develop and bring out the best in your team. This is your primary responsibility.

Speak to him and find out if he has personal issues that the company's counselling team could help with.

Ask him to come up with his own goals for the team and how he intends to achieve those goals.

I imagine, from reading your email, you may have already passed across the message that you are fed up with his output. This itself is a damper on morale and no matter how hard he pushes himself to impress you, he would always end up coming short. Show gratitude and express some praise for very little efforts. There are some employees who would put in 100% just to hear their supervisors say "Woah, that's a real smashing effort, good work mate!"

Additionally, losing one's mum or dad is not always an easy thing. The least you should do as a supervisor is offer him any support you can afford. Yes, he earns salary, but he is NOT a servant, he is YOUR COLLEAGUE, you should treat him the same way you would treat your mates and your superiors - with respect and with the knowledge that no human is born a vacuum.

graluxxy054: I don't know y people like creating problems for themselves. I don't know y people like involving themselves in things that does not concern them? Leave God and pastors matter alone before you incur Gods wrath upon yourself. Don't add or subtract anything to/from the Bible. I've read my Bible and I've not seen where God instructed us to give our offerings and tithes to the poor. If u want to give to the poor, do it the right way and at the right time. Stop twisting Gods word to suit yourself and situation!

If you're in d league of those that tell people things that are not in d Bible, desist from it now cos God will hold u responsible for every soul you mislead

Religion, they say, is the opium of the people, and this poster has sure had more than a fair dose.

God will hold me responsible for advocating that my Pastor does not need another JET, nor my church a new building, nor the assistant Pastor a fourth car?

I become truly angry each time someone says some BS about incuring God's wrath once you begin to ask questions. Sometime ago, an iidiot, told me something will happen to me within six months for calling a slap-giving Bishop a mad Bully, more than a year after, i've kept pushing forward in everything like a determined nuclear tipped torpedo.

You religionists should really give up painting God as an unpleasant character of fiction - an unforgiving control freak; a vindictive, capriciously malevolent bully.

God is not a model of human frailty. He'd surely not strike me dead because i think it is ugly and disgusting for a single man to take the collective earnings of thousands of others in the name of God and use same to purchase vanity, while there are millions of mouth which knoweth not where there first meal of the day will come from??

You have a mind, a brain and thoughts to think, create and question logic, it is why you were created in God's image in the first place.