遇见Precious Eniayekan：赋能男孩投身科技的女性创始人

Women are committed to creating opportunities for boys through technology: The story of Precious Eniayekan

A woman's focus on creating opportunities for boys in the field of technology is unique in itself. While advocacy to push more women into technology is still shaping the industry, Precious Eniayekan raises a different question: What happens when we deliberately create more ways for boys to enter, grow and thrive in technology?

Since Eniayekan founded "Boycode Africa" five years ago, this non-profit organization aims to provide African boys and young men with the opportunity, vision, mentoring and skills needed to build extraordinary lives, of which technology is one of the main empowering means.

The organization empowers young men aged 13 to 25 to equip them with digital skills, emotional intelligence training and leadership training. However,"Boycode Africa" is not just about teaching boys how to write code or preparing them for jobs in technology. Its larger ambition is to help shape young men who are capable, highly emotionally intelligent, financially independent and aware of their role in the community.

Filling the gap: vision and mission

"I founded Boycode because I became increasingly aware of a gap that troubled me: there are many extremely talented young people who have the desire and potential to build extraordinary lives, but often cannot get the right exposure, skills, mentors or opportunities. I wanted to create something that would bridge that gap,"Eniayekan said.

She envisioned a platform that would allow young boys to access technology, mentor guidance and skills development, while developing the character and confidence they needed to navigate the world after leaving the classroom. "Sometimes, the difference between successful and unsuccessful people is not necessarily talent. It's about exposure. Someone opens a door for you. There is a mentor who tells you 'you can do it'. It's about having the tools to turn ideas into reality,"she said.

The goal goes far beyond cultivating young people who can operate technology. Eniayekan hopes to help cultivate young African men who are well-educated, highly emotional intelligence, financially independent and capable of making meaningful contributions to society. The future may be women's world, but the founders of "Boycode Africa" are making sure boys are ready for it, too.

About Precious Eniayekan

Precious Eniayekan is a marketing and brand communications professional, entrepreneur and social influence advocate who currently serves as the Marketing Director of SLOT Systems Limited. The intersection of people and technology, communication and possibilities shaped her career.

She studied Management Information Systems at Houdegbe North American University. Over the past 13 years, she has accumulated rich experience in the fields of marketing, brand strategy, communications, digital technology, entrepreneurship and technology. She has also been the founder of a technology company twice.

Before founding Boycode Africa, Eniayekan founded PropFunds (a real estate technology platform) and VVEND (an online fashion rental company), which allowed users to rent high-end and luxury fashion items-including clothing, bags, shoes and jewelry-for a fraction of the retail price. VVEND combines technology, an extensive supplier network, sustainable fashion principles and the sharing economy, allowing people to enjoy high-end fashion without having to bear the financial pressure of purchasing every item they want.

In these different entrepreneurial experiences, Eniayekan has a common thread in understanding people's interest and transforming this understanding into creating value Ideas, brands, and experiences. For her, technology is particularly attractive because she has gradually realized that technology is not just about equipment and software, it is an enabler. It has changed the way people communicate, work, learn, build businesses and experience the world.

Marketing, on the other hand, is about understanding people deeply enough and conveying value in a way that moves people. For Eniayekan, the intersection of the two is always attractive. The journey eventually took her to SLOT Systems Limited, a company with deep roots in the technology retail space in Nigeria, and she is helping shape a new chapter.

为男孩构建科技未来的主要挑战

Eniayekan 学到的最大教训之一是，构建任何有意义的事业很少是一条直线。“我曾有过质疑自己的决定、能力，甚至是否还有足够动力继续下去的时刻。尤其是创业，往往是孤独的，因为人们通常只看到结果，而不一定看到结果之前的不确定性、艰难决策、财务压力、失败的想法、拒绝和责任，”她说。

在一次采访中，Eniayekan 承认自己在途中也经历过不少艰难时刻，但她学会了解释困难并非停止的信号。相反，她将困难情境视为信息信号，表明某些事情需要改变。“我学会了问自己：这个情况在教我什么？我需要变得更好吗？我需要改变策略吗？我需要寻求帮助吗？我需要放下些什么吗？或者我只是需要继续前行？”她说。

她还强调了人的重要性，指出没有任何有意义的旅程是独自建立的。导师、朋友、同事、合作者以及在您没有所有答案时依然相信您的人，都能产生巨大的影响。也许最大的教训是：**韧性不是假装事情不影响你，而是允许自己承认某事很艰难，但仍然决定找到前进的道路。**

SLOT Systems 的现状

对 Eniayekan 来说，加入 SLOT Systems 是一个既令人兴奋又意义深远的机会。SLOT 是尼日利亚科技零售空间中享有极高知名度和深厚底蕴的品牌。多年来，它与消费者建立了关系，成为尼日利亚人获取科技产品的一部分。因此，当这个机会来临时，她明白自己不仅是踏入一个市场营销角色，更是进入一个拥有历史、规模和期望的品牌。

“我在市场营销、品牌建设、传播、创业和技术方面的先前经验为我提供了准备，但我认为领导职位的获得不仅仅依靠简历。它们需要具备战略性思维、理解业务、领导人员、解决问题并对结果负责的能力。这就是我带来的心态，”Eniayekan 说。

有趣的是，她已经在这个岗位上工作了两个月，而她强调最令人兴奋的事情之一是帮助塑造 SLOT 的下一阶段。“对我来说，市场营销不能仅仅关于创建活动或制作内容。市场营销必须与业务相连。它必须理解客户、创造需求、加强信任、支持商业目标，并在市场变化时建立一个保持相关性的品牌，”她说。

她补充道，她的雄心是帮助建立一个富有创意、商业智能、以客户为主导且能以国际标准竞争的营销职能。

Precious Eniayekan 的心声与建议

Precious Eniayekan's first piece of advice to women looking to build a career in technology is: ** Don't wait until you feel fully ready to act. ** Although she acknowledges that preparation is important, she believes that confidence often comes after the first step is taken, not before. There will always be reasons to wait for another qualification, another year of experience, another certificate, another connection or another achievement. Sometimes you just need to walk into the room and learn how to dominate your place.

The second piece of advice is to ** master what you do **. According to Eniayekan, talent may open some doors, but ability keeps those doors open. Understand numbers, understand technology, learn how to communicate, learn how to negotiate, learn how to lead others, learn how to sell your ideas.

"Don't be afraid of ambition. There is nothing wrong with wanting to lead, there is nothing wrong with wanting to build something important, and there is nothing wrong with wanting to gain financial success, influence, or a seat at the table. You don't need to reduce your femininity in order to become stronger,"Eniayekan said.

The third piece of advice is ** understand that leadership is not about being the loudest person in the room **. For Eniayekan, leadership is about clarity, ability, courage and the ability to create value. She believes that women can lead effectively without catering to a specific leader's image or voice concept.

Finally, Eniayekan advises women to create something bigger than titles. Titles, companies or positions may change, but the value a person creates, the talents they cultivate, the ideas they realize, and the lives they influence can be a real legacy.

If she could say one thing to her young self, it would be: ** Don't spend too much time worrying about whether you belong in that room. Spend that time becoming the kind of woman who makes the room better. **