Esther Cobbah - Doing business to the glory of God
Esther Amba Numaba Cobbah practises management according to the principles of Jesus Christ. She wouldn’t tell you much directly, but in every statement, she makes concerning her life, her goals, her work, and any of her numerous social causes, you will find her faith in Jesus Christ is what drives her.
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She is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Stratcomm Africa - a communications, reputation management and communication research agency that has as a core value working to the glory of God. Staff - they don’t have to be Christian- are encouraged to appreciate and uphold principles that include integrity, professionalism, creativity and timely delivery, teamwork, confidentiality and believing you can.
And no, it is not the wanton use of religious favour, but a strong and proven commercial pragmatism that has driven her thinking over the years. She explains the practical application of her faith as a business management philosophy as follows: “I feel that practising biblical principles at work makes business sense also. The Bible is not only a spiritual document; it’s also a business guide. When you work to the standards of the person that created the world, you find that your organisation achieves more, because your standards are not earthly standards”.
The journey
Ms Cobbah started Stratcomm Africa twenty-three years ago this month, on a small study table in her home office with the objective of furthering her lifelong passion of using communications as a tool for development. She has been able to grow the organisation from that study table, first to a small shipping container office and then to the modern office complex located at Asylum Down in Accra, which is the head office of the company.
When she was still a child, frequently travelling between her hometown, Komenda, and Sekondi as well as other parts of Ghana -her father was a Postmaster who served in different places with her mother, the housewife entrepreneur - she silently worried about the plight of the people in the communities she was exposed to. She pondered over what could be done to propel development and improve livelihoods in those communities.
Years later, God equipped her with some tools to help address the concerns that little Esther Cobbah had been pondering in her heart. She discovered in the communication discipline a powerful tool for understanding society and for social transformation. Ms Cobbah is not pointlessly preachy in the practice of her work.
Her record of professional achievements speaks for themselves and demonstrate that her methods work. At the 2016 International Public Relations Association (IPRA) Golden World Awards for PR Excellence, Stratcomm Africa won the IPRA United Nations Award for Public Relations and Sustainable Development being only the second organisation in Africa to have won this award and the first in Ghana. Stratcomm Africa, a member of Ghana Club 100, has over the years, won several other awards, including being named the IPR Consultancy of the Year in 2013 and 2014. .
Track record
Esther’s track record is exemplary. She built the PR team at the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) from scratch after she was hired as a member of its pioneering team of the Corporation in the 1980s. Her innovative approaches were effectively deployed to help promote Ghana’s potential for oil production to international investors and also to stakeholders in the country at a time when many did not believe in that potential. She was later invited by Chevron and the other sponsors of the West African Gas Pipeline project to be the first External Affairs Manager of the newly formed West African Pipeline Company (WAPCO) on secondment from GNPC.
Stratcomm Africa currently has five subsidiaries and undertakes many social causes. Harnessing the advantage of a combination of a communications acumen and event management expertise to impactful ends is what Stratcomm Africa does so effortlessly. The oldest of such social causes is Praise Jam. Now in its eleventh year, Praise Jam provides an avenue for Stratcomm Africa and its stakeholders to worship and give thanks to God at the end of each year.
Then there is “Read It. Write it. Say it”, Stratcomm Africa’s campaign to improve the reading, writing, analytical and creative skills of children in communities such as Komenda, and Kanda and La, in Accra who have benefited from this ongoing programme.
There is also the Ghana Garden and Flower Show, now in its fifth year, the flagship event of a larger movement to communicate the income generation, job creation, environmental conservation, aesthetic beauty and health benefits of horticulture and floriculture. The show seeks to communicate to Ghanaians that Ghana can be greener, wealthier, healthier and more beautiful.
As an astute and determined entrepreneur, she is not only a change maker, but an influencer and facilitator who help others start their own journeys of change. She is making her mark every day in the world – like Jesus admonishes – salt to the earth.
Anyone can pick a note or two from her playbook to achieve his or her own excellence in entrepreneurship.