In the often-rigid world of building materials and industrial logistics, a quiet transformation has reshaped how business is done in Nigeria’s construction sector. At the heart of this shift is Adedamola Sobowale, a sales strategist and innovation leader whose development of an AI chatbot at Lafarge Africa PLC (LafargeHolcim) has redrawn the boundaries of customer engagement, service efficiency, and operational intelligence in one of the country’s most critical regions.
Sobowale’s initiative, a client-facing digital platform built around an artificial intelligence chatbot, has emerged as a pioneering model in streamlining sales, logistics, and communication for Lafarge’s Eastern Nigeria market. Once a region burdened by inefficient supply chain feedback loops, miscommunication, and manual sales processes, it is now being hailed as the testing ground for a new era of business-to-business excellence in Africa.
Cement, by its nature, is a commodity of weight and volume. Its supply chain is a delicate ballet of production, inventory, transportation, and timing, all vulnerable to delay, human error, or bureaucratic bottlenecks. For Lafarge Africa, one of the continent’s cement giants, servicing clients across vast, sometimes hard-to-reach locations posed a daily challenge.
Adedamola Sobowale saw an opportunity. He envisioned a solution that would eliminate ambiguity and shorten the communication lag between client inquiries and company response. The answer: an intelligent chatbot seamlessly integrated into a broader digital platform tailored to regional client needs.
The result was a digital interface where clients could initiate orders, track logistics, resolve issues, and receive real-time sales insights, all through a conversational system designed for ease and clarity. The chatbot didn’t just answer questions; it helped clients make faster, better decisions.
Deploying this solution required aligning internal systems and redefining how teams interacted with data. Sales teams had to rethink traditional account management. The logistics division had to adjust fulfillment timelines. Management had to authorize a shift toward automation without sacrificing the company’s hallmark of personalized service.
But the gains were indisputable.
Client complaints dropped sharply. Order status inquiries that previously required multiple phone calls could be resolved in seconds. Distributors reported greater confidence in planning, thanks to real-time visibility into supply chain status. And as confidence grew, so did business.
Under Sobowale’s leadership, performance among key accounts in Eastern Nigeria soared. One major distributor’s volume jumped from 9,000 to 15,000 tonnes per month, becoming the top-ranked account in the region through improved transparency and operational alignment.
What distinguishes Sobowale’s work is not just the technology, but the empowerment it created. The chatbot didn’t replace the sales force; it liberated them. Field managers now spend less time answering repetitive questions and more time supporting strategic growth and relationship building.
Even more striking was how the system shifted power toward the client. Distributors, many operating in regions with patchy infrastructure, were no longer passive recipients of information. With just a smartphone, they became data-enabled participants in Lafarge’s regional value chain.
In the process, decision-making improved across the board. Buyers could place orders with greater accuracy, time deliveries around peak construction needs, and evaluate sales performance without waiting on manual reports.
This shift, rooted in accessibility and speed, brought Lafarge’s business into closer alignment with the needs of its stakeholders, from urban developers to rural builders.
Sobowale’s success at Lafarge is now regarded as a watershed moment for digital adoption in Nigeria’s industrial sectors. It proved that even the most traditional industries could evolve, and not just for profit, but for resilience, transparency, and client-centricity.
Today, sectors like logistics, retail distribution, and manufacturing are examining how they too can use AI-enabled platforms to enhance customer satisfaction and operational agility. What began as a sales innovation is now influencing broader conversations around digital transformation in developing economies.
Analysts view this kind of regional technology leadership as critical. “What Adedamola achieved is not just process automation, it’s trust at scale,” says Lagos-based business transformation consultant Kunle Odediran. “In fragmented markets like Nigeria’s, that’s the true currency.”
Sobowale’s ability to drive innovation is no accident. With a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the University of Ibadan and an MBA in Marketing from LAUTECH, he combines technical proficiency with strategic vision. His earlier work in organizations like GlaxoSmithKline, Nestlé, and Nigerian Breweries built the foundation for a nuanced understanding of market dynamics and customer psychology.
The story of Adedamola Sobowale and his AI chatbot at Lafarge Africa is more than a case study in digital sales. It is a glimpse into the future of African industry, agile, intelligent, and driven by the needs of those it serves.
From construction sites in Enugu to regional supply depots in Akwa Ibom, the chatbot continues to operate, proving that thoughtful innovation, even in the most unlikely sectors, can pave the way for smarter business and stronger communities
