On my return to KPMG, I knew I had stepped on some toes and made some foes at the top. Getting promoted from an SM to an Associate Director (AD) wasn’t popular among a broad section of the partnership. They felt they were rewarding someone who wasn’t loyal. I understood where they were coming from. So, when Seyi announced his retirement as Managing Partner, I knew my days at KPMG were numbered. I started evaluating my realistic alternatives. Then came a call from a former KPMG colleague saying that someone wanted to have lunch with me to talk business. I was hoping it was a partner from Deloitte, since that was the only Big 4 Firm in the market that I hadn’t worked for. So, I quickly asked for his name. It was Olaleye Adebiyi (Oga Leye), my current boss. I checked him out on LinkedIn and realised he was the Managing Partner and Founder of a relatively small Tax Firm, WTS Adebiyi, made up of lawyers. I was disappointed. I told my wife there was no point in honouring the meeting. It has to be one of the Big 4, or I’ll stay put. However wifey convinced me to honour the meeting. I met Oga Leye at the Southern Sun Hotel. He shared his vision of reviving the iconic Andersen brand in the Nigerian market, and I came highly recommended. After the meeting, I reached out to Oga Seyi to seek his counsel since he used to be a Managing Partner for Arthur Andersen Nigeria before the implosion in 2002 and, more recently, KPMG Nigeria. His advice was that I had a good problem that should enable me to have very candid conversations with the head of tax at KPMG with respect to my prospects of becoming a Partner, and with Oga Leye relating to the funding of Andersen Nigeria. When I informed him of my decision to take a leap of faith with Oga Leye and his ambitious project, I couldn’t tell from his face whether I had disappointed him or not. A fewmonths later, I learned that Oga Seyi would be coming out of retirement to join Andersen Tax as our Africa Regional Managing Partner to lead the expansion in Africa. I also learned from Oga Leye that the excellent recommendation came from Oga Seyi. Once again, Oga Seyi helped me out of another difficult situation inNigeria. Like the invisible hand, he always came to my rescue behind the scenes. He finally recommended me for the Africa and Middle East (AME) Regional Coordinator for TP role before his sad and untimely passing. Oga Seyi was the consummate leader and the ultimate Boss! Having the opportunity to be in the same boardroom as him and to learn directly fromhimwasmy biggest break inmy career development. He would have his hands clasped together and listen attentively as we babbled on. He would then come A section of Andersen Nigeria Partners during the celebration of the firm's 5th Year Anniversary in July 2022 42
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