Prosper Ibe has received the Enterprise Software Innovation Award at the recently concluded 9th edition of the Nigeria Technology Awards, NiTA 2023, in recognition of his contributions to product innovation and enterprise software engineering within Nigeria’s petroleum retail sector.

The award, presented at the Nigeria Technology Awards night on 9 December 2023 at the Virginrose Resorts, Victoria Island, Lagos, spotlights professionals whose individual efforts have driven meaningful progress in technology innovation, software engineering, and digital transformation throughout the sector. Prosper Ibe, who is a Lead Software Engineer with Smartflow Technologies Limited, emerged winner after a rigorous nomination, screening and public voting process was conducted by the Awards Judging Panel and Advisory Board.

The recognition followed Ibe’s work on technology products designed to improve business operations and support the digital transformation of the petroleum retail sector through innovative solutions.

The award recognised Ibe’s role in leading the development and launch of Smarteye, an enterprise software platform designed to support fuel retail operations, while serving as Lead Software Engineer at Smartflow.

The platform brings together key aspects of station management, including sales monitoring, inventory management, payment processing, financial reconciliation, reporting and operational oversight.

By connecting these activities within a unified system, Smarteye provides fuel retail giants with improved visibility over their operations and better access to the information required for day-to-day decision-making.

As Lead Software Engineer, Ibe helped shape the technical direction and product vision of the platform, translating industry requirements of petroleum retailers into software capable of supporting businesses across different operating environments.

Speaking on the recognition, Ibe said the award reflected the growing role of software in improving how established industries operate.

“Software can create significant value when it is designed around the realities of the industry it is intended to serve,” he said.

“Smarteye was built specifically for the Petroleum retail sector, automating much of the supply chain and enabling previously unheard of levels of customer self-service. This in turn frees up time and resources, resulting in outstanding service and efficiency.”

He added that developing software for traditional industries like petroleum retail requires a combination of engineering knowledge, product thinking and a clear understanding of Industry domains.

“In industries where many activities have historically been coordinated manually, the software must reflect the relationships between different parts of the operation,” Ibe said.

The Nigeria Technology Awards recognises individuals, organisations and products contributing to the development of Nigeria’s technology ecosystem.

The annual awards cover areas including enterprise software, financial technology, telecommunications, digital services, product development and technology innovation.

The award also reflects the contribution of Nigerian technology professionals building software for sectors that have traditionally received less attention from mainstream technology providers.