Young people must develop strong decision-making abilities, adaptability and leadership skills to effectively navigate the uncertainties created by rapid technological and societal changes, the Chief Executive Officer of Scrum Consult, Mrs Edu Ekpo, has said.
Ekpo made the call on Tuesday during a four-day Agile project programme organised for students of Kuramo Senior Secondary School, Victoria Island, Lagos, as part of Scrum Consult’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative.
She said the programme was designed to prepare teenagers for adulthood by equipping them with practical knowledge, leadership skills and the right mindset to respond effectively to emerging challenges.
According to her, leadership begins with the ability to make sound and evidence-based decisions, adding that young people must learn to assess situations, gather relevant information and make choices that would positively influence their future.
“For me, it is about them being able to make decisions. Leadership is about decision-making and how they are able to have the right way to make decisions that will impact them in today’s era.
“They should consider the things they are going through, gather evidence and make insightful decisions that can help them tomorrow,” she said.
Ekpo said the rapid pace of technological development made it necessary for young people to acquire skills that would remain relevant even as circumstances change.
She noted that society had gone through several revolutions, stressing that young people must be prepared to participate meaningfully in emerging developments rather than merely react to them.
She said the objective of the programme was not to teach students how to predict the future but to provide them with frameworks and mindsets that would enable them to adapt to whatever changes they encounter.
“The whole idea is not just to prepare them for today’s era. We are preparing them for tomorrow, the future of tomorrow.
“They don’t need to start predicting what will happen tomorrow. All they need is to have the right framework and the right mindset,” she said.
The Scrum Consult CEO also urged the students to embrace servant leadership and understand that leadership involved positively influencing others and contributing to society.
She said the initiative, based on the principles contained in the book Leading in Uncertainty, was aimed at helping young people internalise practical approaches to leadership, decision-making and personal development.
Ekpo expressed the hope that the four-day programme would produce a positive change in the participants’ mindset and behaviour.
“At the end of this four-day programme, I want to see a new mindset. I want them to be empowered and transformed in and out.
“I want to see how they guide themselves, how they guide their habits, how they make decisions and how they become better leaders for today and tomorrow,” she said.
She added that the programme focused not only on technical knowledge but also on personal discipline, critical thinking, problem-solving, leadership capacity and responsible decision-making.
Ekpo said artificial intelligence, automation and digital technologies were reshaping the world in the same way industrialisation had transformed earlier generations, making adaptability and continuous learning increasingly important.
“Human beings have always solved problems with the knowledge, tools, and resources available to them. The tools may change, but the ability to learn, adapt, collaborate, and solve problems remains essential,” she said.
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She explained that the students were being introduced to practical concepts including empirical process control, value prioritisation, critical thinking and problem-solving to help them respond to change, make better decisions and focus on activities that create the greatest value.
Ekpo said the initiative represented an investment in young people, expressing confidence that equipping them early with leadership and decision-making skills would help produce responsible citizens capable of contributing to Nigeria’s development.
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