CMO spotlight: Kevin Johnson-Azuara

About the Series

In Inc.Africa’s Big CMO Interview Series, Managing Director of Idea Engineers, Katlego Mahura journeys deep into the new world of marketing and engages influential Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) on the most pressing issues in branding today.

With sustainability and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) driving transformative changes in marketing strategies, companies are compelled to commit to responsible practices, highlight purpose-driven initiatives, and foster trust with a public that increasingly values ethical and environmentally conscious brands. 

In this interview, Mahura speaks to Kevin Johnson-Azuara, Chief Marketing Officer at Nigerdock about ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) in the African context and the responsibility to tell African brand stories the African way. 

Katlego Mahura: Tell us about yourself, and what legacy you aspire to leave? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: I’m a mosaic of heritage, cultures, and lived experiences. I approach life with clarity, composure, credibility, and I’m a big believer in a human being’s intangibles. Legacy is a facet of life I’ve consistently pondered, as it sustains the memory of your interactions with others. In my engagements with friends, acquaintances, family, and colleagues, I purposefully focus on understanding, empathy, and impact, and not just making an impression. Impact is sustained, impression is fleeting. I’m hopeful that when all is said and done, the integrity and servant-leadership I have exhibited throughout my career, as well as my ability to embrace the uncomfortable will be noteworthy. 

Katlego Mahura: How does your brand define success, and how do you balance between profit and broader inclusive value? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: Our strategic identity at Nigerdock is driven by reach, retention, and revenue. My daily line of sight is to ensure that the financial interests of my internal stakeholders inherently align with the brand equity we provide to all external stakeholders. Marketing is not a ‘cost-sink’ or an exact science, and it is up to us to translate insights into impactful trends to enable us to understand, leverage, and ultimately set up for long-term growth and success.  

Katlego Mahura: Drawing from your experience, how does adopting a stakeholder-focused approach contribute positively to long-term success and reputation? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: To garner attention and connect in today’s environment, brands must design for trust and ultimately, loyalty. This entails implementing initiatives to attract, deserve, and preserve the commitment of everyone related to your enterprise—particularly customers and employees. A hybrid culture of performance, feedback, and empathy will drive your value propositions to your diverse stakeholders. Key market segmentation enables brands to take extensive consumer data and craft hyper-personalised content at scale and unprecedented speed. 

Katlego Mahura: Could you share insights on the social and environmental gaps within your industry that require attention? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: With the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) setting 2050 emissions targets, greater attention needs to be given to the reduction of greenhouse gases across the global maritime industry. Africa’s port infrastructure is growing, players have embraced the concept of a ‘Blue Economy’ and are addressing key challenges such as technology, governance, infrastructure, skills development, and investment. The implementation of targeted trade and industrial policies can play a significant role in promoting backward integration and industrialisation. In turn, this will increase value creation, job opportunities, and socio-economic advancement.

Katlego Mahura: How does your brand perceive sustainability within the African context? What opportunities and challenges do you encounter in pursuing sustainable actions? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: There’s unwarranted pressure on emerging economies to immediately limit environmental impact and adopt accords such as the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement, or the latest COP initiative. 

Turning your company green requires a significant commitment of time, effort, resources, and people. It must be a gradual process, equated with transformation rather than efficiency. Our sustainability approach at Nigerdock has been multifaceted, centering on operational excellence via clean energy infrastructure and socio-economic empowerment of our surrounding communities through education, training, job creation, and provision of much-needed amenities.

The goal within the African context for many companies is to translate environmental efforts into profitable products and services. To avoid a ‘copy and paste’ pretext, the onus is on said companies to define what sustainability means to them within the context of their operations. 

There have been significant financial pledges made by several African governments on the sustainability front, but for any success to occur there must be sector-agnostic stability, robust regulatory environment, intentional policymaking, monitoring, enforcement, and evaluation.

Companies also need to be incentivised to set and adhere to agreed principles around sustainability with better implementation of required global standards. Overall, we must do more to promote transparent reporting to dissuade greenwashing.

Katlego Mahura: Besides your own, which company excels in effectively balancing shareholder and stakeholder interests? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: Burger King’s “The Moldy Whopper” campaign which announced the brand’s milestone of removing artificial preservatives from the Whopper sandwich in most European countries and select markets in the United States, was quite immersive.  Budweiser’s Budweiser Zero, made for those who want to cut back on alcohol consumption, has provided considerable value for stakeholders. I was also considerably moved to action by Barilla’s cost-effective, nonlinear campaign on leftover pasta, which reached over 110 million people on TikTok and helped save more than 500,000 meals. 

Katlego Mahura: How does your brand integrate the needs of local communities, the environment, and society with your financial objectives? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: One of Nigerdock’s long-standing commitments is the training and integration of skilled workers from our surrounding communities within our workforce. We have also implemented numerous projects in health, education, infrastructure, and skills development which foster development and economic growth. For business success and our vision of achieving green port status, we are prioritising renewable energy sources such as solar and gas to power our operations.  

Katlego Mahura: Can you share examples of successful purpose-driven initiatives in your industry that have resonated with consumers in the current landscape? 

Kevin Johnson-Azuara: I was quite impressed with the Ocean Network Express (ONE) year-long