-Oluwatimileyin Sanwo, CEO, CrystalHills Softwares Limited
While most of his contemporaries have been condemned to fate by the surge of unemployment currently ravaging university graduates in Nigeria, Oluwatimilehin Joseph Sanwo, the Chief Executive Officer/Managing Director of Crystalhills Software Limited is thriving and prospering as a Senior IT security Consultant and an Entrepreneur . Though still in his 20’s, but Sanwo has created an alcove for himself in IT business in Nigeria. The innovative and creative ideas he has introduced into IT sector in Nigeria are consummate and unparalleled. A native of Ijebu-Mushin, Ogun State, this dark skinned-complexioned IT expert is not just an employer of labour, his zeal for success is awe-inspiring and astonishing. In this interview with TheElite Times Publisher/Editor-in-Chief, Sanwo speaks about his humble beginning, how government can wage war against insecurity and corruption in Nigeria and check employees’ indiscipline through IT.
Excerpts;
You are in your 20’s, yet, you have achieved much in the field of information technology (IT). Can you let us know about your struggle from the beginning, academically and professionally, till date?
I am Oluwatimileyin Joseph Sanwo, the CEO of Crystalhills Softwares Ltd. I graduated from Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ago-Iwoye in 2011. I studied Food Science. I grew up in a computer savvy family, where we were exposed to computers since the days of Apple II and the early days of Microsoft Windows. Growing up in the background helped us develop a sound knowledge and passion on the basics of computer. I finished secondary school quite early. After school, I was having issues securing admissions to study computer science in the University of my Choice. During this period, I started my Internship with a Software company back then which was how my career started as a software developer. After few years, I settled to studying Food Science. I took advantage of the numerous industrial actions embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to start my journey as an Entrepreneur.
Today, developed countries are fighting insecurity, corruption and administrative inconveniences through IT. As a young IT expert, it was reported that you have introduced some hi-tech innovations aimed towards eradicating stress in corporate and public services and insecurity and fraud in the society at large. Can we know about these services and your brands?
As an Entrepreneur and a student, I limited my services to Web development and creation of E-business platforms as it was easy to work remotely. When Crystalhills started, I thought about how we could use the skills acquired in programming to solve pressing problems in the society. We focused more in creating customized IT security solutions that includes various types of biometric Data capturing, GPS tracking solutions, Access Controls Solutions, Automated and Embedded systems and System Automations. With excellence being our watch word, we have successfully conducted several biometric capturing exercises for several governmental and non-governmental organizations. This system helps in the eradication of ghost workers, unpunctuality and comprehensive data capturing of employees. In the same vein, we launched an employee shift and attendance management system that can be integrated with various biometric attendance devices. We also majored in the construction and installation of access control systems. This includes security turnstiles, fingerprint controlled doors locks, Automated Gate systems and related solutions. We also developed various tracking solutions including fleet management systems, fuel monitoring systems for both static and moving tanks. The tracking activities were made possible with our Customized portal to proffer the most suitable solution to our indigenous security challenges. I have also expanded on my background by creating a software development team which focuses on the development of software solutions that can be used to reduce human intervention in management and create better reporting. This includes a School Management software commonly known as the School Clerk and Human Resource management software called CrystalHRM. They are both wildly used across the country. We have also been gaining international recognition since we took advantage of the various software selling platforms.
How sustainable and user-friendly are IT Security solutions recently deployed by your organization and how does it curb issues of indiscipline and truancy in corporate and public organizations?
In our pursuit for excellence, we install, support and maintain all solutions we deploy. We also haves stand-by support engineers so as to ensure all customers’ needs are met. Aside from this, we constantly update our technologies labeling them in versions and models. We have team of experts that consistently work on improving the look and functionality of our solutions and we believe sustainability will be assured if customer’s needs are met.
Insecurity is becoming rampant in the urban cities nowadays. From your experience, how can this menace be curtailed through IT?
So many of the insecurity in our Environment can be curbed through technology. In fact, if the government can pay more attention to IT, it should be able to curb at least 70 percent of the corruption in our system. Over the last few years we have consulted for several organizations in the area of IT security and curbed lots of atrocities in their system. We get invited for inspection, check out the vulnerabilities in their environment and we work with the team to install IT related technologies to create an automated security system for the environment, some of which we installed hidden surveillance camera systems, various human detection and alarm systems, bomb detectors, electrified barriers and fences and in some cases thermal cameras to see through walls and barriers. Also with our software, we build customized softwares to detect and bring to books fraudulent activities that have eating into some of their system for years.
As a young entrepreneur, can you tell us some of the set-backs you are currently facing in the Nigerian market and how you think government can intervene?
Sincerely I feel the government has done a lot over time in the creation of agencies and policies for development of SME’s but the thing is, do these policies really get accessed by the right people? No it doesn’t! There is also no working system in place to check for quality control and because of this, so many sub-standard products are in the market which makes excellent job delivery a higher priced solution. I also feel the government needs to pay more attention to talent discovering and management. The government needs to pay more attention to biometric data capturing and statistics as it will give us genuine population figures because without this, decision making will not be based on facts. It will also save cost while enforcement of law will be easier as every Nigerian will have an identity. Also, traffic control and live patrol surveillance will also be cheaper with IT security cameras installed in all nooks and crannies.
What is your advice to young people like you?
There is no short cut to success; the journey to success is narrow and there is always a price for any achievement. My generation needs to understand that we are all gifted in various ways and have equal opportunities. The fact that you don’t perform excellently academically does not mean you are not intelligent. In some cases, academic intelligence is not what determines your outcome in life, thus stand firm and stay strong to what you believe, be bold and courageous and take advantage of the internet and see it as a gift to the world. Don’t see the internet as an avenue to perpetrate fraud as it is a pathway to destruction. It was more difficult during our parents’ time; they needed to visit libraries and travel far in search for knowledge. They didn’t have access to the internet like we do today. Most significantly, don’t just stop at the basics, work towards being the best in whatsoever you are doing. Stay dedicated to your dream as there are opportunities out there for people that know what to do.