It’s election day. You’re leisurely strolling to your polling booth, PVC in hand, feeling like a G, making a difference with your vote. You cast your vote for your preferred candidate, you watch everyone vote, you keep a stern watch over the ballot boxes and their handlers. You follow the ballot boxes as they are moved, watch as votes are counted. You record, share on social media, keep track of happenings at other polling booths in your local government, states and the country at large. From the looks of it, your candidate is definitely in the lead.

All that talk about social media president seem to be just that – talk. Hallelujah! This is a new beginning for Nigeria. This is the Nigeria you believe in. This is the Nigeria you decided to leave ‘the abroad’ to come back and build. This is the Nigeria that…

Hold up! INEC Chairman just came on Channels TV. Election results are inconclusive. They need to recount. Hian! They have come again ooo. You know what this means. You’ve been a Nigerian long enough. You spend the next few minutes shouting and cursing at all the politicians in the country. Then you resolve to become more active in politics going forward. Yayyy you!

Oh wait! You remember you’re Product Lead at Innovative Startup Inc. Ewoo! What does this mean for your product?

Possible election-related disruptions

I’ve highlighted a few possible disruptions and grouped them along these topics, so I don’t lose you.

• A – Logistics (we may have lockdowns)
• B – Insecurity and its fallouts
• C – Further devaluation of the naira
• D – Policy changes
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A – Logistics (we may have lockdowns)

Thankfully, COVID lockdowns forced most people to optimise for remote work and access to services.

Ensure everyone that needs to have access to whatever does, just in case we have another episode of #endsars.

B – Insecurity and its fallouts

• Network (and other infrastructure) access – we’ve experienced suspension of telecom and satellite services, electricity etc due to insecurity in the country. Now is the time to ensure that your cloud backup jobs are running, that you have enough diesel in your generator tank and any other proactive measures to mitigate against these possibilities.
• Access to funds – this is mostly applicable to fintechs who depend on incumbents to provide some of their services. Does your collection / suspense account have limits? Now may be the time to increase it.
• Investor funding – uncertainties around our elections is an easy trigger for investors. What are you doing to assure your investors? Has that last check been deposited? Setup check-in calls today!
• Japa syndrome – good talents continue to japa from Nigeria every day. You’re happy for them. We all are, but, err, business needs to go on. Beyond international japa, there’s also a possibility of local japa – people moving to less insecurity prone locations for this period to avoid stories that touch. For instance, I’m running to ijebu to hide in my mother’s house at least 1 week before the elections. Engage your team members and find out their plans. Ijebu ode has terrible network o! Team meetings may become a painful experience of “Can you hear me? I can hear you.”.
• Increased fraud – desperate times they say… you know the rest. There’s been a gradual increase in robberies, fraud and all sorts of evil acts. A prolonged lockdown (or fallouts from insecurity) may lead to more fraud attempts on your product. This is a good time to beef up security. God no go shame us o.
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C – Further devaluation of the naira

The fear of dollar denominated OPEX is the beginning of startup wisdom. Take care of your OPEX. Do I need to say more about this? I don’t think so.

Oh! If you’re a startup founder that still pays staff in dollars, toh, good luck o. God is your strength.

D – Policy changes

Policy changes can happen as a result of impending change in government, or in response to insecurities or other development.

We have a lot of examples of these from recent times. The three most recent ones are –

1. CBN licensed more players
2. CBN domestic card scheme
3. Cashless policy and New Naira notes
   ‍

So, back to my question - Is your product fortified against disruptions?

Better safe than sorry. Abi how does that saying go?

Our environment may experience even more volatility over the next few weeks. Product teams should ideally be proactive and innovative, not reactive, but there'll always be situations beyond our control.

So, what are some change buffers that you can put in place to help you ‘react’ faster and easier when those letters drop?

As always, I’ve grouped these into categories to make for an easier read –

• Technology-Related
• Process-Related
• Relationship-Related
  ‍

▪️ Technology-Related

1. Configurable Variables - Structure your app components such that variable inputs are always configurable at the application layer.
2. Microservices - Employing microservices helps to improve deployment, maintenance and testing. Yes, distributed systems are more complex, but the pros outweigh the cons for continuous deployment.
3. Individual/Distributed components - Beyond taking a microservices approach for software development, it also helps to break your product into modules/components from use case or user type perspective.
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▪️ Process-Related

1. Pre-Approved Change Management Protocols - Every organisation should have defined change management processes, and these should include contingency plans for sudden changes especially regulatory-dependent ones.
2. Defined sprint management tools and processes. Do you know your team’s velocity? Can you correctly estimate deliverable timelines? How accurate have your story points been in recent times?
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▪️ Relationship-Related

1. Make friends in ‘the right places’. One of your superpowers as a PM is information. Cultivate relationships with industry stakeholders, colleagues who work for competitors, thought leaders etc. Being in the know sets you apart and helps you deliver your 120% with minimal anxiety. Lol… of course the anxiety is not going anywhere, but at least you can reduce it.
2. Make friends in ‘the right places’. No this is not a repetition. As a PM who ‘leads’ with influence and not authority, your internal stakeholders should be your best friends. TGIF hangouts with your devs, QAs, designers and everyone in between should be a regular occurrence on your calendar. God no go shame us ooo.
   ‍

As we look forward to the upcoming general elections in Nigeria, please be vigilant and careful. May we come out at the other end with a better country and leaders who have the best interests of Nigerians at heart.

PS: my opening scenario was just that – a scenario. We pray to have peaceful and successful elections. May the best men and women for Nigeria and Nigerians win.

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