THE Zenith Bank Plc, on Tuesday, March 19, announced the appointment of Dr. Adaora Umeoji as its Group Managing Director (GMD)/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with effect from June 1, this year.
This was disclosed in a notification sent to the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) by the bank’s Company Secretary, Mr. Michael Out, which indicated that the appointment was subject to approval by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Otu said Umeoji takes over from Dr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, whose five-year term expires on May 31, this year.
He noted that Umeoji’s appointment was consistent with the bank’s executive transition tradition, succession plan and strategy of grooming leaders from within and makes her the first female GMD/CEO of the bank since the inception.
Otu said that prior to the appointment, Umeoji had been the Deputy Managing Director (DMD) of the bank since October 28, 2016, with close to 30 years cognate banking experience, of which 26 years had been with the bank.
Umeoji is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School, where she attended the Advanced Management Program (AMP), and an alumnus of Columbia Business School, with a Certificate in the Global Banking Programme.
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Jos, another Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and a First-Class honours in Law from Baze University, Abuja, as well as a Master of Laws degree from the University of Salford, United Kingdom (UK), a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Calabar and a doctorate in Business Administration from Apollos University, United States (US).
She also holds a Certificate in Economics for Business from the prestigious MIT Sloan School of Management, US, and has attended various management programmes in renowned universities around the world, including the strategic thinking and management programme at Wharton Business School, US.
Umeoji is a Fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute, UK; Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria; Nigerian Institute of Management; Institute of Credit Administration; Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Nigeria; Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators and Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria, among others.
She is a 2022 recipient of In 2022 national honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) by the Federal Government of Nigeria in recognition of her contributions to nation building.
She is a Lady of the Order of Knights of St. John International (KSJI) and was awarded a Papal Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester by His Holiness, Pope Francis.
