The Alausa Chapter of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM), led by its Chairman, Mrs. Olubusola Abidaku, has visited Ministries, Departments, and Agencies of the Lagos State Government to explore avenues for intensifying and enhancing Human Resource professionalism, staff performance and administration, and public servant participation in the professional body’s activities.
She made the remarks during a courtesy call to the Ministry of Information and Strategy, noting that the team had set out to visit some core Establishment agencies of government in furtherance of previous engagements aimed at ensuring the registration of all Administrative and Human Resource Officers as professional members of the institute, as well as full participation in the monthly Knowledge Sharing Sessions (KSS).
Mrs. Abidakun emphasised that involvement in Chapter activities offers several advantages such as networking and being current on developing trends in human resource management, saying, “It makes you know your onions, be confident, and ever consequential. There will be no room for intimidation or inferiority complex as regards the private sector counterpart. We have bespoke tailor-made HR models and excellent brains in the Public Service”.
The Chairman of the CIPM Alausa Chapter, who is also a Director of Administration and Human Resources in the Lagos State Government, said that various changes are being implemented to eliminate the ‘rod’ attitude in the public sector.
She described the ‘rod’ approach as a time when punitive measures, rather than empathy, were used to deal with inefficiency and poor service delivery, whereas the current approach to bringing out the best in the workforce considers human reality, emotional intelligence, mental health, employee engagement, and experience, among other things.
Speaking about the importance of workforce training, Mrs. Abidakun stated that it is the responsibility of Human Resource Strategists in various MDAs to ensure that their subordinates take full advantage of the reskilling and upskilling opportunities provided by the Lagos State Government, particularly professional training and the online Learning Management System (LMS).
Her words: “Our mantra is if you don’t train them, don’t blame them. Therefore, we should make it a point of duty to ensure that our versatile Lagos State Workforce undergo Learning and Development from time to time to ensure they are conversant with cutting edge Human Resource trends to increase their efficiency and effectiveness”.
She added that preparations are in the works to organise a “family meeting” of Human Resource Administrators in the State public sector to address issues in the field and offer strategies to breed a new generation of officers with a revitalised enthusiasm for the discipline.
During the visit, Mr. Jamiu Awe, Vice-Chairman of the Chapter, revealed that the CIPM Lagos State Branch has twelve branches, with Alausa Chapter leading the way with the most members in Lagos State.
Awe also urged non-member Administration and Human Resource officials to join the Institute and work their way up the ranks to become chartered professional members by taking use of the concessionary pathways accessible to public servants.
In response, Mr. Olumide Sogunle, Director for Public Affairs at the Ministry of Information and Strategy, praised the Chapter’s efforts and urged that the body’s Knowledge Sharing Session be made accessible to other cadres in the Public Service.
He emphasised the need of Human Resource Directors developing a campaign to promote traffic to the Lagos State Government’s Learning Management System site, claiming that it provides an outlet for workers to study in an easy, pleasant, and stress-free way.
Mrs. Sope Akinsemoyin-Malomo, Director of Administration and Human Resource, also spoke, emphasising the importance of regular training, noting that weekly sessions are organised for Administration and Human Resource staff as well as youth corps members deployed to the Ministry of Information and Strategy.
The delegation from the CIPM Alausa Chapter also paid a courtesy call to the Public Service Office (PSO), the Office of Transformation, Creativity, and Innovation (OTCI), and the Ministry of Establishments, Training, and Pensions.
Mrs. Lolade Aina, Director of Training, hinted during the team’s arrival at the Ministry of Establishments, Training, and Pensions that a “family meeting” would be organised for Directors of Administration and Human Resource to develop a blueprint and other modalities for a more robust and topnotch practise of the profession in the Lagos State Public Service.