Driving Financial Empowerment: Onyeka's Impact at Brass

What do you do at Brass?

I’m a product manager at Brassmoney—the sister company of Brass.

Have you always worked as a product manager?

I started my career in business development. Product management was something I tried when I was working on my masters in 2020. I was in charge of creating a platform where job seekers and employers got to meet each other. It was like Hinge but for employers. While we were developing this platform, I learnt about product management. However, I didn’t pursue it as I was still intent on using my business degree.

When did you decide to try out Product Management?

I always say it happened by accident because initially, I applied to business development roles and interviewed for one at Brass, but the CEO spoke to me about a new product in the pipeline. The conversation moved from discussing business development to trying my hands at product management. That’s how I stumbled into it. But I started with product operations.

How did that go?

It was initially overwhelming, but it helped me ease into my role. I was able to understand the product from an operational side of things. I was working on PRDs, helped with QA, followed up with engineers and handled the 360 of the product as opposed to the sole vision of what product managers get to do for the product. It was a bit overwhelming and challenging then, but it was very helpful as it improved various aspects of myself. I write better and think better about processes and operational aspects of products. It made me well-rounded in a way.

What sets Brass apart from other places you have worked?

The inclusivity of the culture. That’s one thing I appreciated when I joined. It is a place where you can make mistakes, and you’ll not be defined by the mistakes that you’ve made. This is also a space where you have the opportunity to grow and are always helpful.

What’s the one thing you learned while working here that has helped you grow?

I believe it’s how to manage people better and being able to also ask for help when I’m stuck. I used to be the type to always get frustrated when something wasn’t going my way. This is also a space where you have the opportunity to grow and put your skills to good use.

What’s a typical day at work for you?

Because of the stage we are in, a typical day for me starts with checking my laptop and reaching out to engineers to ensure we are still on track with our timelines. I do a bit of QA, record my findings on a test sheet and see how we can solve it. In the afternoon, I review the PRDs my teammates worked on and manage the product’s lifecycle.

How does your work impact financial lives?

o ensure that everyone experiences financial freedom, we not only care about the businesses you run, but also your personal or family finances. We created features like ‘Safe to Spend’ that puts a cap on your spending limit and calculates how much you can safely spend weekly or monthly. A budgeting tool that safely lets you track and budget for future short and long term expenditures and a shared account feature that allows you and your partner save together.

Working on a B2C product, what have you learnt so far?

As much as we say we are all the same type of people, we are also very dynamic in what we want and how we want them. I’m learning that it’s not a one-cap fit for everyone. Some people will like certain features you come out with, while others won’t. I have also learnt to accommodate or listen to different people’s ideas and note that you can’t build everything for everybody.

When you are not working, what do you do?

More work. When I’m not working, I plan events. And if I’m not doing any of those, I’m trying to just lie down and be on my phone.