Purity Mumbe gets the job done. She lists these as the sharpest blades in her Swiss Army Knife kit: adaptability, transparency, and clarity. It’s what got her the CFO job at 32.
“I would say I spend roughly 30 percent or 40 percent on what I would call core finance. But the 60 percent is spent more in business partnership, strategy, and just thinking about what’s the next big thing,” she says.
Having joined East Africa Reinsurance Company (EARe) at the start of Covid, in 2020, when the world was shutting down, it was one of her calculated risks, and the odds were in her favour.
If you ask her, she would tell you she has always loved mathematics. “And solving problems,” she says, a function of mathematics.
Her journey, however, has been matriculated, all its obstacles surmounted, moving from promise to promised land.
"Don't shy away from opportunities. Raise your hand as many times as you can. Even when you're scared, raise your hand."
With a degree in Finance from the University of Nairobi and a CPA to boot, she was earmarked for one of the traditional Big 4, jettisoning her to PwC for 10 years as an auditor, followed by career stints in London and the USA. Later, in 2021, she’d graduate cum laude with an MBA from Warwick Business School.
Now as CFO of EARe, Mumbe is responsible for shaping and executing the finance, actuarial, and IT strategies that drive EARe’s growth and sustainability, while creating value for shareholders.
“I am extremely proud of our market expansion in Tanzania, in 2023, where I led capital planning, capital allocation and deployment, and people recruitment and development.” That Tanzania business now contributes 25 percent to the group’s performance.
“Don’t shy away from opportunities,” she proffers wisdom. “Raise your hand as many times as you can. Even when you’re scared, raise your hand.”
Even then, she concedes that grass can grow under your feet if you stay still. That’s why she is developing other women leaders. “Consistently sending the elevator down.”
Success has demanded its pound of flesh. “You will always have to race against time, the things you like to do out of work.”
And, she says, if you are not careful, the weight of it can bog you down. “The weight to keep presenting a perfect leadership story, which it isn’t.”
But while she is serious at work, she doesn’t take herself too seriously. Have fun, she counsels. Which is why you’ll find her at the golf course, juggling the balls of family, work, fun, knowing what to prioritise, and when; the ultimate Mathematics query
-Eddy Ashioya