Meet Oliver Zayzay: Senior Matchmaking Officer - Building Markets

Meet Oliver Zayzay: Senior Matchmaking Officer

by Building Markets
April 30, 2012

One thing we’re keen to do on Building Markets’ country blogs is help you get to know the people behind each project’s success. We like to talk about success, but we also want to showcase the people who are directly responsible for it. With our newest project in Liberia ramping up, we’re taking the opportunity to do that right from the start. Every Monday and Thursday we will introduce you to a member of the team in Liberia through this blog. Read on for one profile below.

Oliver Zayzay joined Building Markets as a Business Verification Officer. He comes to Building Markets after working for international media organizations and as a logistics coordinator for international NGOs. But his dream was “to work for an NGO that was going to promote local businesses and boost the economy of Liberia.” His dream came true when he heard about Building Markets.

“After reading about Building Markets’ projects and success stories in other countries, I was really impressed,” Oliver says.

When he started, Oliver worked with the Verification team collecting information from local businesses in Liberia in order to list their business on the Building Markets business directory. The business directory is the foundation of the Sustainable Marketplace Initiative as it provides the basis for the other services. Without it, Building Markets wouldn’t have businesses to send tenders to nor the information to be able to match buyers with local businesses. The information that is collected includes statistics about their business and details about the goods and services the business offers.

Oliver recently transitioned into the role of Senior Matchmaking Officer.  He is now responsible for receiving specific buyer requests and working to match them with capable local suppliers. The business directory is an important starting point, but this often involves additional research to find local businesses that have the potential to meet a buyer’s specific needs. After fulfilling a matchmaking request by introducing several capable local businesses, the buyer will proceed to choose a local supplier according to their own procurement procedures.

Oliver has a positive outlook on the Liberian marketplace. “The strength of the local market is the ability of business owners to travel to Asia, Europe and America to get goods for the market,” Oliver says. “More multinational investments in the country provide opportunities for local businesses to grow.”

Tags : Sustainable Marketplace Initiative

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