Make your presence felt in the informal sector – EBID president to HR practitioners
The President and Chairperson of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), Dr. George Agyekum Donkor, has called on HR Practitioners to make their presence felt in the informal sector.
He said HR practitioners have been missing in the sector for years, although the majority of the workforce is now coming from the sector.
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He, therefore, urged them to reconnect and provide mentoring opportunities for them.
“A bigger number of the coming workforce will be in the informal sector where HR has been missing for many years. Your name is HR Managers not HR Managers for the Formal Sector. Look for ways to make your expertise felt in the informal sector. They need you.” he stated
He made the call at the Vodafone HR Forum at the just-ended HR Focus Conference 2022 held in Accra on Friday, October 14, 2022.
He also advised them to be good listeners, “the best way to understand the coming workforce is to learn to listen to them more. Engage them, and offer them internships to prepare them.
He further stated that HR practitioners must not behave as though they were favoring their employees, “Let it not be a favor. Let there be a structure that allows the coming workforce to spend time in our organisations. Elsewhere they have Co-Ops which allow students to learn and work at the same time. We need to have that for our coming workforce. That way by the time they are ready to work they are already equipped”.
He also commended HR Focus for being consistent in organizing its annual conferences, geared towards improving the relevance of HR in Ghana and beyond.
The conference, being its 10th edition, saw over 300 HR Practitioners and Business leaders gather to discuss “HR’s Role in Embracing the Future of Work during Economic crisis”.
Other speakers at the event include the Founder and CE of the L’AINE Group, Dr. Mrs. Ellen Hagan; Vodafone HR Director, Hannah Ashiokai Akrong, Chief HR Officer of The Multimedia Group, Nana Elegba, Advisor to the CE of VRA, Dr. Mrs. Irene Stella Agyenim Boateng, Michael Otchere Duah- HR Director, Unilever Ghana, Clement Wiredu, CEO Becksworth Consulting, and Gideon Ataraire, CEO, Allianz Life Insurance Ghana.
The CEO of Allianz Life Insurance Ghana. Mr. Gideon Ataraire encouraged other HR practitioners, to understand the coming workforce.
With this, he pointed out the benefits of getting to better understand workers of different generations in a way that will benefit HR Practitioners’ organizations.
During the event, HR Focus launched the first-ever edition of the Ghana HR Report; a document containing guiding principles for key HR Functions such as Performance management, organizational culture, and recruitment and selection. Additionally, guests were given the opportunity to participate in breakaway sessions, networking sessions, and other avenues of shared learning.
The HR Focus Conference is organized every year by HR Focus for HR Practitioners of all levels and in all industries.