Abuja: Dr Alim Abubakre, Founder and Non-Executive Chair of TEXEM, has called on leaders in business, government, and civil society to treat learning, sound judgment, and institution building as essential responsibilities of leadership. This statement was made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) after Abubakre was awarded the Academic Fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), following an assessment against the Institute’s Academic membership criteria. The recognition allows him to use the designation Academic FCIPD.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Abubakre emphasized that the significance of the recognition extends beyond personal achievement. He argued that leadership development must translate into stronger institutions, better governance, wider opportunities, and measurable societal improvements. At a time when artificial intelligence is transforming work, geopolitical tensions are reshaping markets, and public confidence in institutions is under pressure, nations require leaders who combine competence with judgment, integrity, curiosity, and a strong sense of responsibility. Leadership, he suggested, should be evaluated not by position or visibility but by the quality of decisions made, the institutions strengthened, and the opportunities created for others.
TEXEM has inspired over 4,000 leaders globally through its executive development programs, focusing on helping senior decision-makers convert knowledge into action and responsibility into results. Abubakre noted that the wider value of leadership development lies in its multiplier effect, where better decisions at the board or executive level can influence employees, customers, investors, communities, and public institutions, while stronger institutions can create confidence, improve performance, and expand opportunities beyond their immediate environment. He argued that executive learning should be regarded as part of good governance and nation-building.
Abubakre stated that institutions do not govern themselves, and the quality of leadership within an institution shapes its quality, credibility, and durability. His recognition has also attracted commendation from Rt Hon Graham Stuart, Member of Parliament for Beverley and Holderness, who highlighted Abubakre’s unique ability to convert academic research insights into inspiring and effective courses for political and corporate leaders.
Abubakre’s work spans scholarship, executive development, and institutional leadership. His research has examined stakeholder collaboration during the pandemic across Sub-Saharan Africa and the interconnected barriers confronting small and medium-sized enterprises in public procurement. Central to his work is the question of how leaders can make complex systems work better for the people, organizations, and societies that depend on them. He emphasized that contemporary leadership challenges are increasingly interconnected, with economic pressure intersecting with political uncertainty, and technological innovation creating opportunities while introducing new governance risks.
Abubakre stated that no single discipline is sufficient for such an environment. He described good governance as more than compliance, rules, or institutional structures, requiring leaders to ask better questions, exercise power responsibly, make difficult decisions with sound judgment, and ensure that institutions remain focused on their intended purposes.
Victoria Winkler, Chartered FCIPD, Standards and Professional Development Director at the CIPD, described the Fellowship as a recognition of professional authority and contribution. She noted that the Academic Fellowship of the CIPD is a badge of expertise, credibility, and authority, recognizing the vital role academics play in advancing the people profession through teaching, research, thought leadership, and the development of future leaders.
For Abubakre, the recognition carries an obligation to make knowledge more useful and its impact widely felt. He emphasized that recognition should increase responsibility, not simply status, and committed to making knowledge travel further from research into teaching, from teaching into organizations, and from organizations into decisions that improve performance and widen opportunities. Abubakre also serves as a Board Director of the Business Council for Africa, providing another platform for academic insight to interact with the realities confronting businesses, investors, and institutions across African and international markets.
He urged accomplished leaders not to allow experience or seniority to become substitutes for learning, emphasizing the importance of lifelong learning as a discipline of serious leadership. Abubakre stressed that leaders may obtain answers more quickly, but they must still determine which questions matter, which interests should be balanced, which risks are acceptable, and what responsible action requires. Nations need leaders who continue to learn, govern responsibly, make sound decisions, develop others, and build institutions capable of enduring beyond individual tenures.