The Degree Can’t Wake Up At 5AM: The Chartered Vendor (Jerry More Nyazungu) on SME Growth
Opinion By:
The Chartered Vendor (Jerry More Nyazungu)
Focus:
SME Recruitment & Strategy
Let’s have an honest African business conversation…
The kind we usually whisper after two bottles of Mazoe and a serious budget crisis. Most SMEs and start-ups are out here recruiting like they are building Standard Chartered Bank, yet the business itself is still an "added struggle."
You write job descriptions demanding: “Must have a degree. 5 years’ experience. Master’s is an added advantage.” But you are ignoring the most crucial element of early-stage business survival: Hunger will always outperform certificates.
STATUS STRUCTURE SURVIVAL
The Blueprint: Rethinking SME Recruitment
You hire someone with a degree, a diploma, a master’s, and confidence that can shake your entire boardroom. They are talented, yes, but they are completely misaligned with your reality.
The Day 1 Demands
Immediately, the questions start: "What's the salary review structure? Do we have a fuel allowance? Is there a work-life balance policy?" My brother… what life are we balancing when the business is still crawling?
The Structure Mismatch
These graduates are not wired for the chaos of a growing business. They want structure, but you are still building the structure. They want stability, but you are still negotiating rent. They want weekends off, but you are still chasing survival.
The Quick Exit
So what happens? The moment things get tough, they update their CV. The moment a better offer comes, they are gone. Because to them, it’s just a job. To you, it’s your survival.
Now, look at the other side. The guy with O Levels. The girl with A Levels. No big English. No big CV. No "strategic frameworks." But give them a chance, and watch the magic happen.
The Ultimate Work Ethic
They show up early. They leave late. They learn fast. They fight for the business like it’s their last born child.
The Psychology of the Breakthrough
Why do they fight so hard? Because for them, this is not just a job. This is an opportunity. This is a breakthrough. This is their "we made it" story in progress.
In small businesses, life is simple and cash flow is brutal. Some months we catch a rabbit. Some months we catch an elephant. And guess what? The O-Level team understands this language perfectly.
Surviving the Drought
You tell them: "This month things are not okay..." They don't immediately threaten to resign. They say: "No problem boss, next month we push harder."
Celebrating the Wins
You land a big deal? They celebrate like they own shares even if they don’t (yet). That is a level of loyalty and emotional investment that you simply cannot teach in a university lecture hall.
Let’s be clear: This is not an attack on degrees. Degrees are powerful. Education is incredibly important. But here is the truth most people avoid...
The Equation of Reality
A degree does not equal hunger. A master’s does not equal loyalty. Experience does not equal sacrifice. And lack of a degree does absolutely not equal lack of intelligence.
Street-Smart Solutions
Some of the sharpest, most street-smart, solution-driven people you will ever meet don’t have framed certificates. But they have common sense, an insane work ethic, adaptability, and a heart for the mission.
Building a Tribe
You need people who will knock on doors with you, fail with you, learn with you, and grow with you. Not people who are constantly calculating: "Am I being underpaid for my qualifications?" At this stage, the business isn't paying salaries—it’s building a future.
The smartest founders don’t rigidly choose one side. They create a powerful, balanced ecosystem within their startup.
1-2 Highly Skilled Pros
You hire a small fraction of highly qualified professionals. Their job is to bring structure, compliance, high-level strategy, and direction to the chaos.
A Team of Hungry Learners
The bulk of your early team should be hungry, driven individuals. Their job is relentless execution, knocking down doors, and driving raw growth.
Because: Skills build systems. Hunger builds empires.
The Final Verdict: Recruit for Survival
"Stop hiring to impress people. Start hiring to grow the business. That quiet guy with O Levels might become your best salesperson, build your operations from scratch, and stay when everyone else leaves."
Don’t just ask: "Who is the most qualified?"
Start asking: Who is willing to fight? Who is willing to learn? Who is willing to grow with us?
Because in the early stages of business, hunger will always outperform certificates.
(Let me stop before HR people say I’m trying to remove degree requirements from job adverts!)
