Olabisi Famakinwa

I worked as a Senior Buyer for OkayAfrica + Okayplayer for just under a year. I came into this position under the premise that I would primarily buy merchandise for the company’s e-commerce channel, Okayshop.

Instead, I led extensive projects that were either tangential or completely unrelated to my original job description.Beyond that, a combination of poor leadership + lack of resources, made succeeding in the role difficult.I was set up to fail from the start.

Though the CEO, Abiola Oke, deems himself to be accessible, that was not the case. Our requests to meet with him about several issues often went ignored. Efforts to get the necessary resources to complete the various tasks at hand were often met with apathy and indifference.

And for what it is worth, employees often complained about the poor working conditions: no heat in the office, bug infestations, leaks in the roof, etc. As I saw it, he rarely expressed any urgency to get these things fixed.

As far as my own work, the Merch team consisted of 2 people; I was physically in the office, while my supervisor, a white male, was a part-time contractor that worked remotely. Though only playing a limited role, he often took credit for our highs and blamed me for our lows.

I found it odd that all of my Black women peers at the company could see the value in my efforts and constantly affirmed me,but Abiola + my supervisor picked apart many things I did,with little acknowledgment of the fact that they never put me in a position to succeed anyway.

I will never forget the time where I was forced to drive home at 3AM from the OkayAfrica office in BK to Long Island. I was in charge of a 3-day shoot and unfortunately, the stylist could not fulfill their role. That’s ok! This is the industry. Things happen.

Instead of postponing the shoot (and upsetting Abiola+my supervisor), I just stepped into the stylist role myself. All so that I could meet the unreasonable demands of my male superiors, hoping they would see my efforts and value my work.

After hours of shopping + prepping for the shoot; I finally went home. I almost fell asleep at the wheel. Prayed to God to stay awake, willing my eyes to stay open. But my determination to get things done meant nothing to them.

When I told both Abiola and my supervisor they shrugged it off. They didn’t care about my wellbeing. They didn’t “put people first,” as they say they do.

This was the norm.I worked 100s of extra hours (all of which I was not compensated for). Both Abiola + my supervisor were well aware of the extra time I spent working for the company,yet neither of them did anything to resolve the situation: not more resources/support — nothing.

Let’s be clear. I have no problems with working hard;I pride myself on always going above + beyond, regardless of any vocal praise or remuneration.

But to do so at a company where women were so systematically devalued, and support was so lacking. It would be difficult for anyone.

Despite issues beyond my control, my performance was unfairly criticized. I tried to seek support from Abiola, but he already decided that I was of no value based on what my supervisor -a fellow male leader, who was in the office a total of 3 times in the year - said about me.

I was not aware of any other formal way to address organizational and human resource issues. Abiola was supposed to be our go-to as the company leader. Instead, he made himself completely unavailable to me and so many of my other female colleagues.