By Chinedu Okafor, Business Correspondent
Dr. (Mrs.) Catherine Adesomoju, Managing Director and CEO of Spectrum Holdings, has called on African entrepreneurs to embrace value-driven leadership and succession planning as the foundation for building businesses that last across generations.
Speaking at the 2025 edition of Time-Out With Kate, a flagship entrepreneurship and business-growth conference held in Lagos, Adesomoju underscored the importance of systemising operations with strong structures and scaling strategically to ensure sustainability.
Now in its third year, the conference themed “Building Transgenerational Businesses” drew over 250 participants, including entrepreneurs, business owners, and top executives. Among the notable speakers were leadership strategist Niyi Adesanya, and SoFresh co-CEOs Goke and Abimbola Balogun, who shared insights on balancing business growth with health and family life.
Adesomoju, who leads Spectrum Holdings—the parent company of Spectrum Innovation Technologies Ltd and Spectrum Phones Ltd—remarked:
“Entrepreneurs are creators who must deliberately start with value, systemise with structures, scale as they grow, and develop others for succession so that sustainability is achieved.”
Delivering her keynote address titled “From Rich to Wealthy: Building Transgenerational Wealth”, she introduced the acronym R.I.C.H., describing “rich” individuals as revenue-focused, image-driven, cash-heavy but capital-poor, often hustling without long-term integrity or structure.
She contrasted this with W.E.A.L.T.H.Y., which she defined as wise, enthusiastic visionaries, action-driven learners who leverage technology, prioritise health, and yield to God for guidance in enterprise building.
Adesanya reinforced the message, noting that true transgenerational success rests not only on assets but also on transferable mindsets, systems, and structures. Other distinguished speakers included Prof. Folu Olatona, Dr. Abiola Salami, and Mrs. Yomi Adewale.
The free conference was sponsored by His Presence Foundation, a humanitarian organisation where Adesomoju serves as a board member. The foundation provides educational scholarships, business grants for struggling startups and women-owned SMEs, and charitable outreaches offering food, Bibles, and interdenominational support.