There is this Nigerian song I love. It says ‘enjoy, because trouble never finishes.’ The line has always stuck with me.
As the sun rises over Lagos, the streets become pulsing arteries feeding the city's restless heart. The temperature rises rapidly as life in the bustling Nigerian metropolis of 24 million people awakens loudly. In the traffic, the heat fights a perpetual battle against thousands of air conditioners on full blast. The city moves slowly as cars crawl through its veins, calling it to life.
Half a world away in Hamburg, Germany, Ijeoma Nwoke still hears the distant music of a Lagos morning. “You want to hear about my route?” Ijeoma asks, settling into her chair with an easy smile. The hum of Hamburg’s streets drifts in through the window behind her. At Hapag-Lloyd, mornings typically unfold in a calm, structured routine – far removed from the lively, buzzing streets of her hometown in West Africa.
“My mornings in Lagos were quite a different story,”
she says. “Back then, I was up at six, trying to beat the traffic. Now, I read on the train. It is peaceful – but sometimes I miss the chaos.” Her voice reveals a playful tone: “There is this Nigerian song I love. It says, ‘Enjoy because trouble never finishes.’ The line has always stuck with me.”
While listening to her, it becomes clear that this mindset – the ability to embrace both chaos and calm – has carried her across continents and industries. From the bustling excitement of Lagos to the quiet rhythms of Hamburg, her story is shaped by decisive moments.
Ijeoma’s journey is marked by four leaps of faith: the bold move from Lagos to Northern Scotland, a deep dive into the world of Big Tech, the decision to move to Hamburg during her self-declared “Year of Risk” – and one final leap still waiting beyond the horizon.
“Well,” she says, leaning back slightly.
“My route begins somewhere between Lagos traffic jams and the Scottish Highlands.”
Did you know: Lagos has the world's highest traffic congestion
70 minutes every day
Commuters spend an average of 70 minutes in traffic every day.
Source: businessday.ng
Comparison of the population of Lagos, Aberdeen, and Hamburg
Find out how working in a global team changed Ijeoma's perspective
Moving up North
The decision to leave Lagos was a first pivotal moment. It was not just about studying abroad – it was about distance. “My brother picked Wales. I picked Aberdeen,” she laughs. “I wanted to go far, somewhere my family would not visit every weekend. Northern Scotland seemed far enough.”
There, she found herself drawn to unexpected paths – like joining the Army. “I have always loved sports, and the Aberdeen University Officer Training Corps booth at the career fair looked fun. Plus, it was a legal way to try out all the cool gear,” she says with a grin.
When Ijeoma found herself wading through the wettest and muddiest bogs the Scottish Highlands had to offer, she began to re-evaluate her choices. Still, she managed to find a positive lesson hidden in the marshes. “My time in the corps taught me how to lead under pressure – and the importance of supporting others when they falter. Your platoon is only as strong as your weakest comrade,” she says. “That is something I deeply internalized. I never win alone – when I win, my team wins – and vice versa.”
When you’re in the army, your platoon is only as strong as your weakest comrade. If he cannot go on – you carry him.
You can’t wait forever for approvals. Sometimes you just have to act.
Ijeoma’s Big Three in Tech
From the discipline of the military, Ijeoma followed the call of Lagos once more. With her studies finished, now was the decisive moment to find a fulfilling job. So, Ijeoma dove into the fast-paced Nigerian tech world. Lagos is often referred to as "Africa's Silicon Valley" with a booming start-up scene. Global players such as Microsoft, Google and Facebook (Meta) have major investments and developer hubs there. “Tech was a whole different battlefield,” she says. “In Big Tech, you’re trained to make decisions fast and take responsibility for them.” After a short check-in at Hewlett-Packard, she joined Oracle in 2013 and got into Human Capital Management (HCM) – where she made friends that would later turn out to be invaluable contacts. Her next stop was Microsoft. “That mindset in tech shaped how I work today. You cannot wait forever for approvals – sometimes you just have to act.”
After nearly a decade of working on the provider side of enterprise systems, the desire for a new challenge started to grow in Ijeoma. Coincidentally, a former colleague from Oracle, now working at Hapag-Lloyd, called in 2023. “She told me they were putting a new project into practice called ‘MYPORT’,” Ijeoma says. “It was a project built on the Oracle HCM system, which I had managed for almost nine years. She asked: Do you want to join the project?”
After more than a decade in the tech world, Ijeoma was ready for her biggest leap of faith yet.
I’ve worked in big companies, but the level of care at Hapag-Lloyd was something new.
An unexpected opportunity in the year of risk
“I give each year a motto. In 2023, it was ‘risk’,” she says. “Sometimes even days. I do not overthink it and just assign these little missions to myself.” So, when her friend asked her to come to Germany for a new role, Ijeoma did not hesitate for long. “It was the year of risk after all,” she explains. “But more than that, it was a rare opportunity to shift perspectives – moving from the tech provider side to working directly inside a global player like Hapag-Lloyd. That was something I knew would broaden my skills and challenge me in a whole new way.”
Recalling how smooth Hapag-Lloyd made the transition, Ijeoma smiles and says: “They even sent a shipping container to move my things.” It was all mapped out: immigration lawyers, relocation services, even someone to help with German taxes.
"I’ve worked in big companies, but this level of care was something new."
While Lagos was fast-paced and bursting with energy, the different way of life in Hamburg eventually won her over. “The first months felt like a culture clash, as everything is quieter here,” she says. “Plus, I underestimated the language barrier. There are norms I needed to get used to – for example, on the train. But this time also gave me space to think, to settle into myself.”
Ijeoma also found ways to make her new home a place that was truly hers. “For the first time in years, I had an apartment of my own,” she says. “I had a place where I could hang up all the art I had collected. In Lagos, my mom would decide where things went. Now, I walk into my flat, and I see my story on the walls.”
Yet, for her, collecting art was never just about creating a home. It mirrors how she approaches her work: spotting potential and going for it.
The art of spotting talent
“I started collecting about three years ago,” she explains. “Mostly sculptures, black-and-white paintings, and photography from emerging African artists.” Her friend, an art curator, often tips her off when a promising talent is on the rise. “I like to catch them before they are polished, when the passion is still raw. That is when they are the most authentic."
It is the same instinct she applies to her job. “Spotting great talent is like collecting art,” she says. “You must catch it early. If you hesitate too long, someone else will grab it. It is about intuition and timing.”
At Hapag-Lloyd, this mindset helps her look beyond the obvious. “I build and manage HR systems that manage the entire employee life cycle – from recruitment to development,” she says. “That is why I see paths for all kinds of profiles. It still surprises me when people do not take the big shots.” That is why Ijeoma is committed to helping women and members of underrepresented groups discover roles they might not have considered.
For her, breaking silos and lifting others is part of her personal ambition as a woman in tech. “I am enthusiastic about showing women that tech is not just coding,” she stresses. “There are so many ways to build a career in tech without writing a single line of code.”
Spotting great talent is like collecting art. If you hesitate too long, someone else will grab it.
Women in tech on the rise
Source: womentech.net
Untitled
A commissioned artwork by TEDA, 2022.
Untitled
Another artwork by TEDA, displayed in Ijeoma's home.
FACE MASK
Artwork by Omojke Benjamin, 2021.
ENIGMA
Artwork by Atinuke, 2024.
CONFUSED IDENTITY
"Nothing works when a nation is neither here not there". Artwork by TOSAN.
BREADWINNERS - Resources of a progressive society.
Artwork by TOSAN.
UBUMUNTU - To be human
Artwork by unknown artist.
HEIRLOOM
Artwork by Fiyinkoko, 2023.
Bridging cultures and continents
Overall, we have 116 Nationalities working at Hapag-Lloyd
Source: Hapag-Lloyd (2024)
Bridging cultures and re-thinking diversity
Working at Hapag-Lloyd has given Ijeoma the chance to engage with colleagues across the globe, from Chile to India to Italy. “I’ve learned that every region has its own tempo and character,” she says. “How I interact with my Indian colleagues is different from how I relate to my Italian ones. You must adapt to each culture. I learned to become a chameleon.” Her role in HR connects her to employees across continents, deepening her understanding of how diversity drives performance. “I see firsthand how much better a team functions when there are different backgrounds and perspectives in the room.” Reflecting on this, she says, “The future belongs to companies who practice what they preach when it comes to diversity and inclusion – not just for the numbers, but because it’s smart business.”
Routes to New Horizons
The street noise fades as the morning commute winds down. Ijeoma is sitting in her chair with wide eyes and a smile. When she is asked where her route will take her next, she shrugs. She is not in a rush. Ijeoma is someone who believes that life unfolds in its own time. “I don’t do five-year plans anymore,” she smiles. “COVID taught me that much.”
While Hamburg has given her space to breathe and reflect, her heart is still set on the continent she calls home. "In the long run, I want to go back to Africa. Whether it's Nigeria, Kenya or Namibia, I want to be back on the continent. But not yet." With that, Ijeoma leans back in her chair and looks out the window. "Either way, there will be good times and hard times ahead," she says. "We cannot control that. But what we can control is our attitude. So no matter what the future holds, remember to enjoy it – especially during rush hour."
So no matter what the future holds, remember to enjoy it – especially during rush hour.
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