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Union Bank CEO Yetunde Oni Shares THRIVE Blueprint With Lateef Jakande Fellows, Urges Boldness, Character
By Prince Benson Davies
Thirty young Nigerians sat face-to-face with one of the country’s top bankers last week, and the conversation went deeper than titles or balance sheets. Yetunde B. Oni, Managing Director and CEO of Union Bank of Nigeria, met fellows of the Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy for a candid session on leadership, setbacks, and the habits that sustain growth over time.
The stakes were clear from the start. Out of 25,000 applicants, only 30 were selected for the Academy, a Lagos State initiative named after the state’s first civilian governor, Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande. The fellowship, facilitated by the Africa Leadership Initiative, West Africa, ALI WA, pulls together emerging leaders from different professions, regions, and sectors, with a focus on ethics and principled leadership.
Mrs Oni didn’t deliver a speech. She opened a conversation. She walked the fellows through her own journey of over 30 years in banking, the doors that opened, the failures she faced, and the values that kept her grounded. At the center of her message was a simple framework she called THRIVE.
The THRIVE Framework
T — Take ownership of your relationships. Careers are built on people. She described relationships as infrastructure, not accidents, and urged deliberate stewardship of family, mentors, and peers.
H — Honour God. Faith, for her, is an anchor that keeps ambition in check and connects success to purpose beyond self.
R — Recharge and refresh. She pushed back on burnout culture. Mental and physical health are non-negotiable for leaders who want to last.
I — Invest in your growth. Continuous learning isn’t optional. Staying relevant demands heavy, personal investment in development.
V — Value your work. She challenged the fellows: What do you stand for? What value do you create? Identity and brand matter.
E — Embrace setbacks. Failure isn’t the end of progress. The leaders who endure are those who process disappointment and keep moving.
Credit Where It’s Due
Mrs Oni was direct about one thing: she didn’t get here alone. She pointed to family support, her parents and husband, plus mentors, coaches, sponsors, and friends who shaped her at key stages. She clarified the difference between a mentor and a coach — roles she said are often mixed up — and tied much of her rise to core Nigerian values: hard work, honesty, integrity, courtesy, and respect. Those qualities, she said, earned trust and opened doors.
“Relationships must be managed with the same discipline you give your work,” she told them. “So must your time.”
On Risk and Self-Belief
The room leaned in when she shared her own doubts. She never thought she’d become MD/CEO of Standard Chartered Bank, Sierra Leone — not from lack of qualification, but lack of belief. Her husband urged her to apply. She did. She got it. That role made her the first woman to lead a Standard Chartered operation in that market.
Her Union Bank appointment came the same way: through people. She wasn’t even aware the position existed after the CBN intervention. While in Sierra Leone, her name was put forward by those who knew her work.
Her charge to the fellows was blunt: Believe in yourself. Apply anyway. Take the risk. The opportunity you want may come through people you haven’t met, for roles you don’t yet see.
Why It Counts
These sessions don’t move stock prices. But they build what lasts. Union Bank’s decision to engage speaks to a long view: institutions grow when they invest in people. The Africa Leadership Initiative, West Africa, and the Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy deserve credit for running a rigorous process that turned 25,000 applicants into 30 leaders ready for more.
For Yetunde Oni, the afternoon wasn’t about her resume. It was about handing over time, story, and counsel to the next generation. That, in the end, is what real leaders do. They light the way — and they THRIVE.
