Ayodele Fakulujo
THE PATH LESS TRAVELED
Ayodele Fakulujo was born in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, and raised in Lagos, a major economic center in West Africa. The name, “Ayodele,” means “my joy has come home” in Yoruba — indicating his parents’ delight at their first-born son. For as long as he can remember, Ayo was told by his mother that he would one day become an engineer. The only choice he had in the matter was deciding on which field to specialize in. Following this path, Ayo went on to pursue a degree in civil engineering from the University of Ilorin in Kwara State, and an MBA in marketing from the Obafemi Awolowo University.
After graduating, Ayo joined an emerging satellite dish company, a business that was rapidly growing at the time. Although he was hired as an engineer, he discovered that he had a knack for selling while on client appointments. Not long after, Ayo was outselling every person in the entire sales department, so the owner of the company put him on the fast track to market and sell their products at large consumer trade fairs.
With this rapid growth, Ayo began mentoring others on how to become successful in sales. Once he began educating others, he discovered that this path felt most in line with his purpose. He shifted careers and joined a consulting firm where he specialized in training soft skills. It was at this point that he decided to search for opportunities abroad, having planned to move with his family to the United Kingdom. Fortunately, his wife had entered the family into a visa lottery for the United States, and despite the odds, they were selected. Not letting this opportunity pass them by, they followed their instincts.
Some time later, Ayo joined Freddie Mac as a customer training manager on the Business Management team. After 13 years with Freddie Mac, Ayo is now the director of Multifamily Education on the Marketing & Customer Experience team. Ayo and his team are primarily responsible for facilitating external educational content and training for Multifamily. This includes creating online courses on Optigo® Academy and managing presentations, internal trainings, workshops and more.
When Ayo is not busy organizing events or bringing about smiles with his contagious laughter, he enjoys volunteering, golfing with his friends, and spending time with his wife and three children. He even found the time to continue his studies and is working towards earning his PhD in industrial & organizational psychology.
Now, let’s hear more from Ayo himself.
February is Black History Month; what does that mean to you?
A: Black History month is always a special time of year for me. Growing up in Nigeria, we were always taught that nothing can or should hold us back. When I first came to the states, the lack of opportunities available to the black community was immediately apparent – this motivated me to do my part in leveling the playing field. I volunteer at a local non-profit, and every February, we host a series of programs and mentorship opportunities to empower our community. These often continue throughout the year, like our leadership institute. Through this program, we provide training to young adults to enhance their careers and connect them with leaders across the world.
Ayo and his family on vacation in the Caribbean.
Do you have any hobbies that you enjoy doing outside of work?
A: I really enjoyed playing basketball when I was younger, but nowadays I’m more of a spectator, so I frequently support my daughter who plays. She is the captain of her high-school basketball team. It’s funny because she doesn’t believe me when I tell her I used to be good at the sport. I also loved riding motorcycles when I was younger, so I’ll still do that with my son from time to time. Most recently though, I’ve taken an interest in golf, and I’ve really been working on improving the consistency in my game. My wife would tell you it has become my latest obsession.
Ayo and his wife at their daughter's senior night basketball game.
What piece of advice would you give to your younger self?
A: Early in my career I was very focused on just getting things done. Knowing what I know now, I would have spent more time nurturing and developing meaningful relationships. Building connections with people on your team and even those in other divisions is very valuable. It will help you get things done more effectively than simply being an individual performer. So, the advice I would give to my younger self would be to intentionally network and develop relationships, while continuously strengthening those bonds over time. I didn’t realize how beneficial it was to my career until after I started doing it.
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