A Tech Executive, Author and Angel Investor. Se is currently the MD-CEO of Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited, The Nations foremost Agency in charge of managing the operations and services of the communications satellite owned by Nigeria.
She was the Head of Sales , Middle East and Africa for Meta ( Facebook). Prior to that she was country manager Nigeria and the regional sales director for the West African branch of Avanti Communications Group PLC. A satellite company based in the United Kingdom with a fleet of satellites. She cumulatively spent 13 years in Sales and Management in the Telecommunication Infrastructure giant Ericsson. She also worked as a Cluster lead for Nokia Siemens Network in West Africa.
Jane was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria. She graduated with a second-class upper degree in electronics engineering in 2001 from the University of Nigeria, Nusska. She furthered her education at Warwick Business School in the UK, where she received a master’s degree, and she received an executive education at both Harvard Business School and Yale School of Management in the United States. She has worked in the telecommunications industry in Africa for more than 17 years. Prior to working for Meta
and Avanti, she worked for Nokia and Ericsson. Her knowledge of technology, her ability to manage complex stakeholder relationships, and her skill to manage teams and create strategies to support growth and drive business are keys to her success.
Being one of the few females heading key business areas in the tech industry has exposed Jane to numerous professional and personal challenges peculiar to women. Spurred by discussions with fellow female executives around the globe, she organized a forum at Ericsson in which emerging and experienced female leaders could support each other in developing their careers. The overwhelming success of the forum led her to found Women and Career (www.womenncareer.com), to reach women beyond her Organisation and to support girls seeking careers after school.
In March 2020 published a book she wrote, Be Fearless: Give Yourself Permission To Be You. She drew from her more than 15 years of experience as a telecommunication executive in Africa to help women build lasting careers, especially in the male-dominated STEM industries. The book hit seven Amazon best seller lists on March 17, 2020, climbing all the way to number one in the Business Ethics and Knowledge Capital categories. The book also took top ranking in several career and leadership categories as well as appearing on seven New Release list.
Jane’s passion for promoting girls in science, technology, engi-neering, and math (STEM) can be traced to her undergraduate days as a member of the International Institute of Electronics and Electri- cal Engineers (IEEE). Along with the late Clementina Saduwa (nee Uvieghara), she cofounded IEEE Women In Engineering. Jane has continued to be actively involved in speaking to girls and women about STEM careers. She has spoken at TEDx programs, the Afri- can Science Academy, Asheshi University in Ghana, and CFA’s Start- ups Hangout. The latter program, founded by Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, Jr., allows African entrepreneurs to meet, network, and learn so that their startups can excel. Jane has also spoken on several tele- vision programmes.
Jane does volunteer work for the ACE Foundation’s Young Career and Graduate Mentorship Programme, and she is an aspiring fellow for the Aspen Global Leadership Institute. She was a board member of the Ericsson Diversity and Inclusion Board and of Moma Mater- nity, a retail division of Telfrent Solutions. A home girl at heart, she is active in giving back to the Ajegunle community of Lagos through the Sozo
Network’s #BeforeITurn18 programme, which prepares underserved teenaged girls for life, career, and leadership.
A quintessential extrovert and physical fitness proponent, Jane enjoys golf, cycling, and salsa. She also writes a regular telecoms column for Business and Financial Times Ghana. She and her hus- band, Egerton Idehen, have a son, Asher, and a daughter, Sarah, who inspire Jane to continue to push for diversity in male-dominated fields. Although she travels extensively, Jane continues to make her home in Lagos.
