Week One

Kicked off the week with a visit to IBM Nairobi to meet with the General Manager of IBM East Africa to debrief him on our projects. The IBM office was very nice and we spent the rest of the day working on our client kickoff presentations.

 

 My Team at IBM Nairobi Office - Amit (India) Tatiana (Brazil) Joseph (China)

Tuesday was our initial kickoff with our client. There was a little uncertainty heading into the meeting due to some slight communication issues before we arrived in Kenya. Fortunately, the meeting went very well and the client was extremely excited for us to start working... that is after we have some tea first.



The rest of the week was spent conducting interviews with the KNCCI staff to baseline their current environment and start to understand their challenges. KNCCI has been around since 1965, however they have completely restructured and most employees have worked there less than 6 months. It's basically like working with a startup company which is very exciting. At this point their organization structure, business process, and marketing strategy are really just in development. Any solutions or recommendations will have a big impact on their growth!

Welcome to Kenya

To kick off the first weekend in Nairobi, DOT had some great activities planned for the team! First stop, the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. (http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org). DSWT is an orphanage for baby elephants who in many cases lost their parent due to human poaching. The baby elephant are raised and effectively reintegrated back into the wild herds of Tsavo National Park. The team really had a great time! The baby elephants put on a great show.

Next stop was Nairobi Safari Walk. The Safari walk is part of the Kenya National Park System and contained rhino, lion, cheetah, leopard, crocodile, hippo and many others

Arrived

I have arrived safely and on-time in Nairobi. Had to sprint through the A Terminal, under a runway and back to the international departures at Boston Logan. Pretty sure I was the last person to board the plane. Regardless, I'm here and ready to start my experience in Kenya! 

Take Off!

Ready for take off!! All packed, ready to pick up Anderson at day care and head to the airport when the phone rings. It is Delta Airlines. My flight from RDU to JFK has been cancelled. Now I have to get Delta on the phone asap and rebook my flight. I'm suppose to arrive in Nairobi Friday evening with a full day of activities planned for Saturday. Fortunately, I get a good agent on the line and after discussing a few options he is able to book me for a flight to Boston that would enable to me catch my original flight from Amsterdam to Nairobi. Only issue is I have 30 minutes to catch my flight to Amsterdam. Better get ready to run!

If there was one word to describe the past week, it would be hectic. Ten weeks of planning coming down to the last few days. Over the past few months, I've received vaccinations for typhoid and hepatitis. I've been given boosters for childhood vaccinations such as polio and MMR. I also now have an abundant supply of malaria pills. With the medical items taken care of, I then turned my focus on what to wear? Nairobi is at altitude as has a pretty mild climate with warm days and cool evening. Dress at the client will be formal so I will need pack a couple suits, shirts, and ties. We have plans for a safari and hiking trips (from the pictures I've seen it looks pretty amazing. super excited!). As for someone who rarely checks a bag, this is going to be a challenge. I started laying out my cloths a few days in advance which makes Bodie very anxious. He definitely knows what happens when the luggage comes out...

In addition to packing, work has been extremely busy trying to wrap up projects and ensure coverage while I'm away. Hopefully, I'll have everything squared away for Thursday! Now it's time to go mow the lawn..