Uganda’s top marketers and corporate minds met at the 2025 CMO Breakfast at Kampala Serena Hotel to tackle a defining question: What does it truly take to reach the boardroom today?
Under the theme “The Leadership Leap: Positioning Yourself for the Boardroom”, the Uganda Marketers Society (UMS) curated a high-impact forum that wasn’t just talk—it was a masterclass in modern leadership.
This wasn’t your typical conference. It fused boardroom ambition with real-life lessons in media strategy, emotional intelligence, and mentorship.
Gloria Evelyn Byamugisha, Group Chief HR Officer at Dangote Cement in Lagos, delivered a rousing keynote. Her message? The future belongs to adaptable, emotionally intelligent leaders who can evolve with shifting global trends.
“Leadership is not a climb; it’s a construction,” she said, urging professionals to build themselves from the inside out. “You can only be a king in your kingdom,” she added, stressing the importance of domain expertise and continuous self-improvement.
Her metaphor comparing the boardroom to a terrain full of “lions, scorpions, sloths, pythons, and human beings” hit home—especially online. LinkedIn lit up with commentary from attendees reflecting on her vivid imagery.
The message was clear: today’s leaders must have more than ambition. They need character, clarity, and the emotional agility to navigate real challenges.
Hassan Saleh, Managing Director of MultiChoice Uganda, zeroed in on mentorship.
“I am where I am today because someone reached out to help me,” he said. His advice? Choose mentors like you would business partners—with strategy and purpose.
Adding depth to the conversation, Goretti Masadde, CEO of the Institute of Banking and Financial Services, reminded the room that leadership isn’t just about technical brilliance.
It’s about trust. “Build professional relationships people can rely on,” she urged.
But perhaps the most strategic shift at this year’s breakfast came from beyond the ballroom: media.
Thanks to a sharp partnership between UMS and Next Com—the communications arm of Next Media Group—the event’s key messages echoed beyond the elite breakfast crowd. NBS TV, social media, and other platforms amplified the discussions to a national audience.
This wasn’t just a PR stunt. It signaled a critical change in how leadership operates. Media is no longer a passive observer. It’s an active player in shaping reputations, careers, and policy influence.
As one older participant wisely posted on X: “Ideas are brilliant. But if you don’t amplify them, they die quietly.”
The point landed. Today, media fluency is not a luxury for leaders—it’s a necessity. Knowing how to harness both traditional and digital platforms can be the difference between obscurity and impact.
Next Media’s collaboration with UMS showed that building leadership now means mastering visibility. The boardroom of the future isn’t just about decision-making—it’s about communication, presence, and public trust.
Yet it was Byamugisha’s closing words that echoed longest: “Humanity is at the heart of great leadership.”
That human-centered call resonated. Leadership, stripped of ego and performance metrics, is about service. And in an age where Uganda’s business, political, and cultural ecosystems are in flux, the wisdom to serve may be leadership’s most essential trait.
The takeaway? Uganda’s rising leaders must blend courage with clarity, and strategy with soul. Above all, they must make sure their voices are heard—because in this era, silence is no longer an option.
