Nora's Copy

Chief Storyteller 

Big Change Makers

As a Social Impact Coach, I : 

- Mentor purpose-driven entrepreneurs to turn their purpose into projects
- I help you identify social missions and craft sustainable strategies to achieve them
- Refine business models so you can create social impact without a financial trade-off
- Provide guidance on securing funding, accessing resources, and building strategic partnerships
- Offer ongoing support and accountability to help you navigate challenges to your social goals
-Facilitate networking opportunities and connections within the social entrepreneurship ecosystem

Practitioner Coach

Nora's Needle

www.norasneedle.com is a sustainable fashion brand that was registered with Nigeria’s Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in 2014 and focuses on the designs of timeless pieces of female clothing using African print.  A sustainable, minimalist and urban brand, Nora’s Needle creates clothing that are elegant and at the same time eco-friendly. Using a variety of channels, Nora’s Needle advocates and raises awareness via its #whomademyclothes campaign on the environmental impact of fast fashion and why consumers should be interested in the global discussion using #whomademyclothes.

•      In this role, I managed internal communication, external communication and employee 
        engagement activities for Nora's Needle.

•	Led a 5-man team of designers to Conceptualize and create timeless and trans-seasonal clothing 
        designs that do not end up in landfills.

•	Generated web content and social media content for the brand.

•	Worked closely with the team to implement ethical and sustainable methods of production and 
        supply that ensures maximum benefits to customers while minimizing impact to the environment.

•	Designed and delivered strategic capacity building workshops that integrate ethical and 
        sustainable design principles to all employees, including but not limited to tailored tools, 
        resources, visual management or communications tools, one on one support and/or training 
        workshops.

•	Created pitches for collaborations with key partners and supervised marketing and public relations 
         efforts.

•	Supervised order fulfillment on all sales channels and general customer-retention strategies

Project Manager

Inspire Decisions Consulting

www.inspiredecisions.com is a social enterprise and certified ISO 20700 Management Consultancy Service Provider that collaborates with government agencies, civil society organizations, private sector companies and leading international development organizations to conduct research, analyse policies, develop strategies and implement programs that promote resilience, sustainable food security, improved nutrition, entrepreneurship and employment opportunities.
While with IDC, I : 

• Developed and conducted due diligence and organizational capacity assessments prior to  entering strategic relationships and partnerships with the company’s network of private  companies, financial institutions, civil society organizations, other public agencies, and 
Smallholder farmers’ cooperatives and associations while maintaining a Management Information System (MIS) for partners 
• Led the development of external advocacy and communication messages and campaigns for key donor-funded projects/assignments such as (FCDO/Palladium) implemented by Inspired Decisions Consulting Ltd.
• Managed all communication, branding, social media, video production, and web content creation processes.
• Managed the communications team and track performance 
• Managed company relationships with the media, and advertising and public relations agencies. 
• Generated sales leads through events and content marketing. 
• Supported local smallholder farmer cooperatives and associations executives to use and internalize effective mass and tailored media communication and information channels adapted to their contexts including channels such as radio, SMS, WhatsApp and interactive voice response channels (IVR).

Head of Partnerships and Communications

Seconded to Meadow Foods, I provided communications and public relations-related technical advisory services on its GrowIT Project. GrowIT targets 20,000 smallholder farmers in Adamawa and Gombe State and is funded by the Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience Activity implemented by a consortium led by Mercy Corps, alongside Save the Children and IFDC as implementing partners. I was primarily responsible for leading communications and strategically positioning the GrowIT brand. To that end, I :

 *Led the development of external advocacy and communication messages and campaigns for key donor-funded projects/ assignments funded by USAID through Mercy Corps Nigeria's Rural Resilence Activity.
* Managed all communication, branding, social media, video production, and web content creation processes. (Create a social media calendar, create captions for each post and schedule posts on Hootsuite and other apps so I can Copy Once & Post Everywhere -COPE )
* Managed the communications team and track performance
* Managed company relationship with the media, and advertising and public relations agencies.
*Managed strategic communications for Meadow Foods Co-founder
*Worked with Directors, Deputies, and Program Managers or their designates so I can write, edit, design, and produce engaging, accurate, and useful knowledge products and resources including print and digital handouts, FAQs, talking points, newsletters, success stories, articles, blog posts, presentations, infographics, posters, journal articles, conference and event materials and training resources.
*Created and managed an editorial calendar while maintaining editorial vision: voice, image across all content and assets.
*Ensured that the GrowIT project is on the major screens, airwaves, social media, print etc so that the project gets measurable traction and mileage which eventually converted to sales.

Communications Consultant for Meadow Foods GrowIT Project

Ciphermedia Limited

www.ciphermedialtd.com is an information technology firm  with the primary objective of helping businesses leverage on the power of the internet by having an online presence in the forms of ecommerce sites, content management systems and/or online marketing. 

•	Led a 3-man team of content producers to ensure contents met clients’ brief and overall objectives of their website.
 
•	Collaborated with the design team to plan and develop content, style and layout that were consistent for 20 brands, across 10 industries.

• Provided audience mapping and created compelling content for Ciphermedialtd subscribers via
Mailchimp marketing.

•	Edited the "About" and "Services" pages for www.ciphermedialtd.com 

•	Built staff capacity through trainings on SEO and SEM to ensure that clients’ ranked high in search results.

•	Worked closely with the team to create business pitches to attract new projects for Ciphermedia Limited.

Communications Manager

Etisalat Nigeria

Etisalat Nigeria (now 9mobile) is a multinational Emirati based telecommunication services provider, with operations in 15 countries across Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

•	Provided superior customer service via phone and email both as a caller and receiver.

•	Employed questioning and listening skills to support callers/clients 

•	Escalated high level queries to support units

•	Appropriately communicated with different behaviour types on the telephone and via email and managed irate customers. 

•	Appropriately communicated with different behaviour types on the telephone and via email and managed irate customers. 

•	Marketed the company’s products and services through various cross-selling strategies.

Customer Care Executive

MTN Nigeria

MTN is an emerging markets mobile telecommunications operator at the forefront of technological and digital changes. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, its operations cut across a number of African, Asian and European countries. 

•	Answered incoming calls from Pay As You Go (PAYG) and contract customers. 

•	Provided first call resolution on customers’ queries on products and services as well as network-related issues. 

•	Referred advanced queries to high level support. 

•	Logged all call types for record keeping. 

•	Telemarketed and provided after-sales services

•	I used Single View, Minsat and other applications to check the status of callers’ lines.

•	Achieved Customer Satisfaction Rating of 98% within the first six months of joining the company, thus increasing customer retention.

•	Consistently maintained a Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) of over 95% for ten months.

Online Customer Care Rep

"I do this for Lucy. I'd do anything for her. Because if my presence doesn't make an impact, my absence won't make a difference".

One hot afternoon in May 2005, Nora walked into her friend Lucy's mother's empty restaurant. There, she found the woman in excruciating pain, sobbing as she rubbed some balm on her sore knees. It was clear her line of work exacerbated her arthritis.

Curious, Nora asked why she stuck with a job that worsened her health. 

"I do this for Lucy. I'd do anything for her. Because if my presence doesn't make an impact, my absence won't make a difference, she said."

Those words hit Nora hard and stayed with her through the years. 'No life is complete unless it impacts another'.

From Quilla Bohannon, who brings joy to kids with hair loss through "Free Wigs 4 Kids", to Nigerian Hydroponic Farmer, Samson Ogbole,  and all the purpose-driven individuals whose stories she has told…these impact stories, they're her jam.

With a background in development communications, feature writing, and digital storytelling, Nora has over 12 years of experience in humanitarian and gender-based issues.

In 2005, for example, she conducted the first-ever project on Female Genital Mutilation for the Department of Mass Communication at the University of Maiduguri. This research yielded vital recommendations and laid the groundwork for development communication efforts in the Zawiya Community.

In 2022, Nora kicked off "Tell Your Brand Story," a 51,000-subscriber-strong newsletter that has empowered professionals and entrepreneurs with the tools to master brand storytelling. 

She’s also the creator of “The 7-Day Personal Branding Email Challenge,” where she's trained 112 entrepreneurs from 7 countries to build stellar brands on LinkedIn.

She is a strong advocate for climate action, a loving wife, and a mom.

Nora is a LinkedIn Top Voice in Storytelling and Social Impact. She has been featured in LA Weekly, InStyle, Insights Success, the Guardian, Vanguard, Daily Trust, and Marketing Edge.

In 2023, she was listed as one of the top 100 Content Creators in Nigeria and #1 in Writing and storytelling by Favikon. 

Nora is committed to empowering organizations, entrepreneurs, and professionals to harness the power of storytelling for sustainable impact, influence, and income.

Nora Agbakhamen

StandOutIn90Sec

I host guests in 90 second conversations by asking five questions. And creating impactful videos that humanizes them instantly!

Who can use this?

👉 Cybersecurity Startup CEOs to connect with CISOs, future employees

👉 New CISOs to connect with their new teams, build social brand

👉 Cyber conference organizers to humanize their speakers before the event

And my broad community reach across the CISOs, vendors and newcomers helps with amplification.

That's not all, as my way of giving back to the community, I host newcomers for free! I share my availability periodically so follow me if you want to grab a spot.

If you are a cyber startup executive, cyber conference host, or CISO, let's talk

📥 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 or 📧 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 me 𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐰𝐢𝐧@𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐧𝐚𝐧.𝐦𝐞

Host 🎤, Producer, 🎬 Amplifier 📣- Stand Out in 90 Seconds

Self-Employed 

Contributor - TechTarget

IDG (International Data Group)

IDG Influencer

Mobilematics, Inc.

Consultant

Chief Diversity Amplifier

UGATIt

#UGATIt is 𝖀nabashedly 𝙂iving 𝘼ll the 𝐓ime
And this live show is highlighting amazing human beings who are leading the #UGATIt life.
Every Wednesday @ 5pm PST.

LinkedIn Live Host

The Tefon Tales

#TheTeflonTales is a lively discussion where we meet guests who live the Telfon life to make their business & personal lives more impactful and purposeful.
What is a Teflon life? Heating up quickly,, Cooling down quickly, Remaining non-sticky, Being highly flexible, Demonstrating versatility.
👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻
Follow #TheTeflonTales on LinkedIn for more inspirational Teflon stories
👆🏻👆🏻👆🏻

SecureDynamics

Working with an amazing team of passionate security folks with a mission to  educate, engage and give back (The what) and in the process close the chasm of cybersecurity skills, transformation and conversation (The why) using podcasting, training and services (The how)

Chief Communicator

CIO Online

IDG Contributor

HyTrust

Leading Product Management, Strategy and Program Management functions. Right @ the nexus of Cloud, Virtualization, Security

SVP Product Management + Strategy

Brocade

Business responsibility for NFV and SDN products - virtual router, firewall, VPN, ADC/load balancer and SDN controller, leading a team of top notch product management and technical marketing professionals

Head of Products (Senior Director), Software Networking Business

My typical conversation starter used to be…

Where do you work?

Looking back, I go “Duh!” Because now I ask:

“What advice would you give your younger self?”

See the difference? One opens with status. The other opens the heart.

I’m Ashwin Krishnan, and as The Human Catalyst, I help mid-to-large organizations rediscover the power of authentic human connection — one 90-second video at a time.

Through my platform, StandOutIn90Sec,I have created a human connection engine for building recognition, belonging, and trust through one unforgettable story at a time. In 90 seconds, I ask thought-provoking questions that reveal the person behind the professional. The answers are raw, real, and unforgettable.


If you're a business leader who cares about retention, engagement, well-being, and belonging – let’s talk. 


My mission? To help leaders spark deep, lasting connections — whether inside their teams, with customers, or across communities. Because human bonding isn’t a “soft skill.” It’s a business superpower.

If you care about building stronger organizational culture and creating true employee engagement, StandOutIn90Sec can help you do it—beautifully and fast.

🎥 See what human connection looks like: https://www.youtube.com/@StandOutin90Sec/

📩 Message me or 📧 email ashwin@ashwinkrishnan.me — let’s talk about igniting human bonding at scale.

Ashwin Krishnan

When an amazing youngster asks you to speak to her incredible team of nonprofit interns…
 
you just say yes!

That’s exactly what happened when Ria Sethi, founder of Cyber For Youth, invited me to join their intern session a few months ago.

The work this group is doing is nothing short of inspiring — giving young minds the tools and awareness to navigate an increasingly complex digital world.

Here’s a short clip from our hour-long conversation (yes, for someone who lives in 90-second conversations, this was way outside my comfort zone 😉).

Thank you, Ria, and your amazing team — for reminding me that awareness and empathy are the real cybersecurity tools this world needs. 💙

👉 To business leaders reading this:
 If you want your people to build the same awareness, empathy, and trust that drives connection and culture — let’s do it through StandOutIn90Sec.
 One story at a time. One human at a time.

Host of StandOutIn90Sec - Catalyzing Human Stories | Helping Leaders Build Recognition, Belonging & Trust

Not as the ex-CEO of PayPal.
 Not as the new CEO of Verizon.

I remember Dan Schulman as the leader who once spent 24 hours on the streets of New York — as a homeless man.

Why?
 Because that story gave me goosebumps. And taught me about leadership and empathy in those few minutes of reading the article.

He wanted to understand what it truly felt like — to have no one make eye contact, to beg for food, to feel invisible.
 He did it to better lead a nonprofit he supported, StandUp for Kids-National, which helps homeless youth.

He later wrote in The New York Times (2009):
“No one paid attention to me on the street. I consider myself a good communicator and a good salesman. It took me five hours of begging to raise less than a dollar.”

I first read about this over a decade ago — and I’ve shared it hundreds of times since.

 In panels, over coffee, in posts and quietly with myself whenever I catch that urge to judge someone I don’t know.

Because if I can’t live it, I can’t judge it.

Dan — congratulations on your new role. As a Verizon customer, I’m thrilled.
 And I’d be even more thrilled if you’d join me for just 90 seconds on StandOutIn90Sec to share the story behind the story. 🙂

Life in perspective — in just 10 words!

 From the one and only Snoopy 🐾

We’ll all have that day…
 But on every other day, we get to create meaning, connection, and legacy. 🙏

If you’d like your teams to reflect on what they want to be remembered for — let’s make it happen through StandOutIn90Sec.

✨ See examples in the comments below 👇 

Image Credit:Peanuts

“You became more emotional and started digging more into the human side of people after that incident.”

That’s what someone I’ve known and loved for decades told me recently — completely out of the blue.

The “incident” she was referring to was the loss of a teammate and friend, Yue — over 10 years ago.

I still remember the day he walked into my office and shared his Stage 4 cancer diagnosis.
 And in the months that followed, I stopped by El Camino Hospital dozens of times on my way home from work — watching his life slowly slip away, but never his smile or his courage.

I didn’t realize until yesterday how deeply that time shaped me — how it made me more present. More emotional. More human.

Sometimes it takes someone who really knows you to hold up a mirror.

Yue’s smile in this photo still says it all.

👉 What’s one incident that transformed you as a human being?

taplio

The Battle

Nora Agbakhamen

Ashwin Krishnan

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreAshwin Krishnan's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Nora Agbakhamen

Ashwin Krishnan

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Ashwin Krishnan's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreAshwin Krishnan's LinkedIn Performance