HR Focus Africa Magazine recognises over 20 organisations, HR teams at HR Focus Awards

“The Government through the Ministry of Employment & Labour Relations will throw in the needed support behind organizations who are poised to stay innovative and support a great People Agenda especially as the world continues to stay relevant in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic” were a few words from the sector minister through Mrs. Gloria Borteley Noi, the HR Director at the ministry.

The date was Friday, 15th October 2021 and the venue for yet another industry Awards night was the adorned Omanye Hall of the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra with special attention to seating due to the Covid-19 pandemic which was filled to capacity welcoming tons of HR Practitioners, Business Leaders, Parastatals and other industry think-tanks to witness the 2021 HR Focus Awards, a biennial event organized by HR Focus Africa that usually pulls one of the largest crowds.

The evening paved way for an interesting catalog of award recipients for both Individuals and Organizations with a few new categories injected into the mix this time around to further highlight best practices.

A total of thirty-nine categories of awards were given to the Awardees as presented below:

SECTOR AWARDS

“Best HR Management in Financial Services” – Fidelity Bank
“Most Promising HR Management in Financial Services” – Ecobank Ghana
“Best HR Management in Hospitality” – African Regent Hotel
“Best HR Management in Manufacturing” – Olam Ghana
“Best HR Management in Healthcare” – Nyaho Medical Centre
“Best HR Management in Energy & Natural Resources” – Newmont Ghana
“Best HR Management in Telecommunications and IT” – MTN Ghana
“Best HR Management in Public Sector” – Bank of Ghana
“Best HR Management in SME Sector” -- Herbalife
“Best HR Management in NGO Sector” – WorldVision

FUNCTION AWARDS

“Best Organization in Learning and Development Practice” – Newmont Ghana
“Most Promising Organization in Learning and Development Practice” – VIVO Energy
“Best Organization in Employee Relations Practice” – Vodafone Ghana
“Most Promising Organization in Employee Relations Practice” – Cirrus Oil
“Best Organization in Rewards Management Practice” – MTN Ghana
“Best Organization in Performance Management” – MTN Ghana
“Most Promising Organization in Performance Management” – ABSA Ghana
“Best Organization in Recruitment and Selection” – Vodafone Ghana
“Best Organization in HR Information Systems” – Newmont Ghana
“Best Organization in Organizational Culture” – MTN Ghana
“Best Organization in Employer Branding” – MTN Ghana
“Best Organization in Safety, Employee Wellbeing and Workplace Design” – Vodafone Ghana
“Most Promising Organization in Safety, Employee Wellbeing and Workplace Design” -- DVLA
“Best Organization in Diversity and Inclusion” – Newmont Ghana
“Most Promising Organization in Diversity and Inclusion” – Standard Chartered Bank Ghana
“Best Organization in Localization” – Newmont Ghana

COVID-19 SPECIFIC CATEGORIES

“Most Exemplary Employer” – Vodafone Ghana
“Most Outstanding Corporate Response” – MTN Ghana
“Most Promising Corporate Response” – Advans Ghana
“Most Outstanding Public Sector Response” – Volta River Authority (VRA)
“Most Outstanding Non-Profit Organization (NGO) Response” – WorldVision

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

“HR Rising Star” – Jehoshaphat T. Abaya (Category Winner -- Old Mutual)
“HR Manager of the Year” – Peter Mate Crabbe (Vodafone Ghana)
“HR Oriented CEO of the Year” – Patricia Obo-Nail (CEO, Vodafone Ghana)
“HR Team of the Year” – MTN Ghana
“Most Promising HR Team of the Year” – Enterprise Group
“HR Practitioner of the Year” – Hannah Ashiokai Akrong (Vodafone Ghana)
“Overall Best Organization in HR Practice” – Newmont Ghana
“Honorary Award for HR Excellence in Diversity” – ABSA Ghana

MTN Ghana, Vodafone Ghana, and Newmont Ghana were evidently the ‘show-stopping contenders’ for the night bagging several categories of awards amongst the lot.

One of the new categories for this year is the “Honorary Award for HR Excellence in Diversity” which was bagged by ABSA Bank due to a people-centered initiative they championed by acquiring a Braille Machine for an employee who lost his sight in line of duty.

In a keynote speech read by Mr. Ewool, Executive Director for Buena Vista Homes and a Board Member of L’AINE Services Ltd, he beseeched organizations and businesses to fully embrace technology as this was the sure way of staying relevant in today’s world of work even in the face of the pandemic and further admonished business leaders to create the right atmospheres for the changes the ‘New Normal’ has presented us with.

In a response to a question posed by the Master of Ceremonies (MC), Mr. Jerry E. Adjorlolo Jnr who sought to find out how newly churned out University Graduates could find a fit in the employment space, retorted that students should look more to job creation as opposed to job-seeking as there were lots of problems around the world awaiting solutions which could inevitably be realized once they developed that co-creation spirit.

To cruise event attendees through the evening were the Music sensation Kofi Kinaata as well as the ‘White Chapel Band’ who intermittently took turns to wow the crowd.

The “HR Practitioner of the Year” Award recipient Hannah Ashiokai Akrong, HR Director of Vodafone Ghana who took over from Amma Benneh Amponsah (HR Director of MTN Ghana) expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the HR Focus Africa Team first and foremost and then to her amazing HR Team at Vodafone for pushing harder during the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic to forge new Policies and break new grounds all in a bid to achieve shareholder value and put their people at the forefront of the business.

Awo Quaison-Sackey, Regional VP of HR for Newmont Africa who picked up the award for “Overall Best Organization in HR Practice” appreciated her Team for putting in the work to realize this feat and further stated that she dedicated the recognition to all colleague awards recipients who demonstrated one form of best practice or the other.

This year’s 2021 HR Focus Awards could not have been a reality without the special kindness of the following sponsors: Goil Ghana, L’AINE Services, Labadi Beach Hotel, Akai House Clinic, Acacia, Zoomlion, Crystal Oasis, Hollard Ghana, Kasapreko, Enclave Ghana, Opportunity International, Petra Trust, Suits & More, Multimedia, TV3, BNFT, and MX24.

Mr. Kofy Hagan, Executive Director of L’AINE Services and Publisher for the HR Focus Africa Magazine sent immense gratitude to this formidable team for consistently producing thunderous shows for a decade since its inception in 2012 and in the same breath assured attendees of more delectable and purpose-driven events in the future.