Africa is on the move: foreign investors and businesses alike are flocking to the most promising African markets as well as to the countries endowed with rich natural resources. But to succeed in their endeavors, they need local human resources…more precisely local qualified human resources. For decades, structural adjustment programs have forced African governments to [...]
Thursday, August 25, 2011
During the years I have been living in different African countries, I have met with many expatriates who treated their local colleagues, subordinates and peers with the highest respect. At least that was what they were convinced of… Interestingly enough, during my field research and during the interviews I made with local human resources, I [...]
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Visiting the largest bookshops in Nairobi gives a broad overview of what Kenyans read and how they get prepared for their working life. In the Business section, piles of imported books feature the golden rules paving the way to successfully doing business… Titles such as How to get what you want in the workplace? …Marketing [...]
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
For decades, Africans’ capacity building has been occupying a considerable place on the budget of foreign development agencies. So far huge amounts of money have been poured into public servants’ technical and managerial skills development. In addition to that, cohorts of Africans have been enrolled in foreign universities in order to become the efficient and [...]
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
The integration of African countries in the global economy is operated through a vast array of macro and micro economic measures. At the micro economic level, efforts are devoted to develop African human resources capacities in order to enhance their productivity and subsequently the competitiveness of their organizations. The prospective need for capacity building is appealing [...]
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
I grew up in a society where learning does not start with hands-on activities such as ice-breaking exercises. On the contrary, at the beginning of a training session, learners are expected to be attentive to what the trainer/teacher says. The introduction sets the context and presents the structure of the session. Setting the context helps [...]
Monday, February 14, 2011
In the frame of their HRD policies, firms and organizations involved in international operations globalize the use of their HRD techniques in their foreign subsidiaries and offices. Among the arsenal of tools and techniques, ‘coaching’ is more and more used to unlock employees’ potential and to achieve performance. The transfer of coaching beyond its original [...]
Thursday, November 11, 2010
In its last edition, The Kenyan Institute of Management features an interesting article on business education in Kenya. Prof. Noah Mindamba, the new Vice-Chancelor of KCA University, who spent three decade in the USA, offers his view on how the education sector can be improved in Kenya. Prof. Mindamba’s view is that the education system [...]
Thursday, July 1, 2010
The economic and financial crisis has drastically affected the job market in many Western countries and the prospects are gloomy for the near future. With Africa featuring encouraging economic indicators, many experts are now considering the continent as The place to be. Today, many investors and workers alike are tempted by the idea of repatriation. [...]
Thursday, June 3, 2010
At a time, when many social scientists were trying to identify the most appropriate leadership and management styles that would be suitable in different societies, I was attempting to do the same in the African countries where I was based. However, the search for the local workers’ values and attitudes as well as expectations to [...]
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Thursday, September 15, 2011
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