Building Culture Beyond Pink Ribbons

"Is your CEO a woman?"

Back when I was still leading Nsano, that question came up more than once.

People looked at Solace leading operations, Priscilla running business development, Linda in customer service, Akosua managing integrations, Jessica as executive assistant—and assumed the CEO must be a woman too.

I never did media interviews. I stayed behind the scenes. The women I'd hired became the visible face of Nsano.

The question was evidence that we'd built something different, even if unintentionally.

(And yes today, a woman—Priscilla is CEO.)

It started with my mother—a teacher, trader, and sole provider for five children. I watched her stretch one Cedi to do the work of ten.

And my sister—enduring monthly pain that would flatten most men, and still show up.

That quiet strength shaped how I saw leadership long before I founded a company.

When Nsano began hiring, I didn’t set out to ‘empower women.’ But women were drawn to the mission — and naturally, they thrived.”

Hiring women is easy. Building an environment where women thrive, that's the work.

I made mistakes early on. I didn't understand maternity needs. I underestimated late-night safety concerns. I didn't realize accommodating menstrual pain wasn't "special treatment"—it was basic humanity.

Over time, I realized that empowerment isn’t a program — it’s a posture

So we became deliberate: generous maternity leave, flexible policies, space without shame. When you build that environment, people willingly give themselves to building the systems.

Competitors tried to copy the "female-led" optics but kept the same rigid, masculine culture. It failed every time.

Because inclusion is design, not branding

As the team evolved, so did we.

Solace went to Zambia for a year to open operations. Priscilla joined "for 18 months" and is now CEO eight years later. Akosua and Solace endured brutal boardroom interrogations and emerged sharper.

Linda now operates our UK business. Jessica grew from executive assistant to chief of staff. Dorothy led business development, then became head of human capital for the group.

We organized regular breast cancer and health screenings—understanding that health concerns are business concerns.

None of this was about gender—it was about competence meeting opportunity in an environment that didn't get in their way.

Many companies talk about "empowering women." Few redesign their systems.

Real empowerment isn't visible. It's coded into tone, policies, empathy, and rhythm.

We didn't set out to build a female-led company. We built a humane one and that's what made it female-led.

Culture is what you design, not what you declare.

When culture becomes genuine, empowerment stops needing a label.

Today, we're balancing our gender ratio more. One truth remains: design for humans, and your culture will speak louder than your slogans.

What have you had to redesign in your company to move from rhetoric to reality?