How three months as a Computer Systems Engineering student in the Entrepreneurship Unit shifted my perspective on technology, confidence, and what it truly means to innovate.

By Inonge Kapya

Three months ago, I walked into BongoHive with a notebook full of curiosity and a mind full of questions.

Like anyone starting their very first professional role, I was excited, but equally aware of how much I didn’t know. I remember spending my first few days focusing on the basics: understanding how the organisation functions, getting familiar with internal systems like ClickUp, learning programme structures, and simply observing. Every meeting felt like a classroom, every conversation introduced a new concept, and every task, no matter how small, became an opportunity to learn.

At the time, my biggest goal was simple: contribute positively.

Looking back now, it’s incredible how much can change in just 90 days. Somewhere along the journey, I stopped feeling like I was simply trying to keep up and started feeling like I truly belonged.

What made that shift possible is the unique culture at BongoHive. Although I am attached to the Entrepreneurship Unit, I quickly realised that BongoHive isn’t an organisation where departments operate in silos. Collaboration is woven into everything.

Whether supporting entrepreneurship programmes, contributing to marketing content, assisting with community engagement, or working alongside colleagues from different teams, everyone is encouraged to contribute wherever they can create value. That culture gave me something incredibly valuable: permission to grow.

As trust grew, so did my responsibility. The questions gradually shifted:

From “Can you sit in on this meeting?” to “Can you facilitate this session?”

From “Can you observe this programme?” to “Can you coordinate this activity?”

From helping behind the scenes to engaging directly with founders, SMEs, partners, and stakeholders.

Of course, every new responsibility came with guidance and mentorship from my colleagues and supervisors. But being trusted to take ownership of different aspects of our programmes has been one of the most rewarding parts of this journey.

Over the past three months, I’ve had the opportunity to help coordinate startup initiatives, facilitate orientation sessions, moderate discussions, conduct SME needs assessments, write impact stories, manage founder communities, and contribute to programme design and marketing campaigns. Each experience stretched me differently.

“Behind every startup or SME is a person carrying a vision much bigger than themselves. Our role isn’t simply to organise programmes; it’s to create opportunities that help people move one step closer to that vision.”

One of the most memorable experiences was engaging directly with business owners during the Lumwana Business Accelerator Programme. Hearing them talk about the day-to-day realities of running a business (such as cash flow constraints, compliance, access to contracts, and digital transformation) completely changed how I view entrepreneurship.

As a Computer Systems Engineering student, I naturally came into this internship viewing innovation through the lens of technology. BongoHive completely expanded that perspective.

Today, innovation means much more to me. It means:

Understanding people before building solutions.

Creating ecosystems, not just standalone products.

Connecting founders with mentors, investors, partners, and opportunities.

I’ve come to realise that some of the biggest innovations don’t happen because someone wrote brilliant code, but because someone listened carefully, collaborated intentionally, and built something people genuinely needed.

Perhaps the biggest personal lesson has been discovering that confidence doesn’t appear overnight; it grows quietly. With every meeting facilitated, stakeholder engaged, report written, and challenge solved, I found my perspective changing. Without even noticing, I stopped approaching conversations as “the intern” and started speaking as someone genuinely invested in BongoHive’s mission.

That has been the greatest transformation. It’s not that I’ve learned everything, far from it. But I’ve learned enough to know that I belong in these rooms, that my ideas have value, and that growth happens when people trust you before you feel completely ready.

Meaningful careers aren’t built in giant leaps. They’re built one opportunity, one conversation, and one act of trust at a time.

Three months ago, I joined BongoHive hoping to make a positive contribution. Today, I am no longer just learning about the Hive: I am becoming part of it. And with months still ahead, I can’t wait to see what the rest of this journey brings.