Samuel Ng’ang’a is the Managing Director at MasterFound Security Group Ltd, a firm that offers security installations and technologies, and guarding services in Nakuru, Nairobi, Eldoret, Naivasha, Kericho and Nyahururu.
In 2020, businesses were hardest hit by the pandemic. However, unlike the majority of sectors, my business was resilient and managed to grow. We hired more employees in 2020 and managed to pay them in a timely manner.
We also have adequate insurance cover on Work Injury Benefit for our staff, contractual liability and employer’s liability in case of a loss to our clients. It is important to know why and who you are hiring into your business. The faster you target and hire the best brains, the faster you will grow your brand.
In my business, we have made it a priority to hire the top candidates. These include persons who may have served in the military, police stations, prisons and the criminal directorate of investigations, CID.
Looking back, I can say that practicing resilient business models, being passionate about your business and honesty have been my driving force thus far. Most people are either too lazy to be resilient, or are so over ambitious that they miss the point on resilience.
This is why we have new businesses collapsing every other month despite the ideas being workable. I have also come to learn as an entrepreneur, I must always stick to my vision. Yes, I can renovate it and add a few bits here and there, but the founding idea must always stand out.
I once spent office money to purchase a personal property that was worth Sh. 7 million. This property turned out to be a great liability. Just after acquiring this property, I got an assignment. I didn’t have money to fund it, the office was struggling, and we had to source for funds elsewhere.
This taught me not only the essence of measuring assets vs liability in my spending, but also the importance of separating office expenses from personal expenses in business. On yet another occasion, I allocated a big share to the marketing department which did not produce any fruits.
In retrospect, I should have allocated that money on training my staff. Effective training has proven to be more fruitful. Well trained personnel are the best marketing strategy.
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I used a large share of my initial capital on operational costs. These included costs of leasing big office spaces and office electronics which were not so necessary. In retrospect, I should have started small and grown my business steadily. I would have saved so much business capital, boosted efficiency, and guaranteed a steady flow of cash.
Over the time that I have been in business, I have to appreciate why it is a better way to create wealth and riches than being in employment. There is an intense thirst for success and wealth that is only cured by entrepreneurship.
I invest my money in money markets, insurance and in Saccos. It’s much easier accessing a loan from a sacco against my shares and savings unlike banks where a collateral is needed and also takes a lot of time to process. Previously I only saved with the banks.
Success is not an event, it’s a process. It is something you achieve gradually through continuous learning through both life and business experiences. I have learned that you cannot exceed the expectations of your customers unless you exceed the expectations of your employees first.
On money I have learned that kindness, humanity and integrity are more important than money. The desire to make a difference in people’s lives should always come first.
A version of this profile feature on Samuel Ng’ang’a of Masterfound Security Group was also published in the Saturday Magazine. The Saturday Magazine is a publication of the Nation Media Group.
