The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) began a strike on March 23rd, 2020, due to the government's failure to agree on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS). Despite multiple meetings, the issue remains unresolved and the strike continues. This has affected various groups of people, including both lecturers and students.

The government has made several promises to resolve the issue, but none have been fully realized. Timeliness is crucial in ensuring the smooth operation of many systems, and the government's lack of it has resulted in negative impacts on students.

Undergraduates are the most affected group, as they make up the majority of the student population and are the consumers of the education system. The strike has taken a toll on students in terms of their mental, physical, and academic well-being. The mental stress of the ongoing strike has a domino effect on one's physical health, leading to a decrease in academic performance. The COVID-19 pandemic has also taken away students' enthusiasm for learning and studying, as they focus on developing business skills and attending training sessions.

The future of many young people is at risk as a result of the ASUU strike. The extended duration of the strike is hindering students from reaching their academic goals, including graduating on time. It is one thing to excel academically, but it is another to have a diploma to show for it. The strike has paused and prolonged a crucial stage in students' lives.

Onboarding and training are vital concepts in the integration, growth, and development of an employee.  Understanding the difference and how to employ these key concepts can move an organization closer towards achieving its overall objectives

Onboarding and training are vital concepts in the integration, growth, and development of an employee. Understanding the difference and how to employ these key concepts can move an organization closer towards achieving its overall objectives, especially because employees are key organizational stakeholders.

Onboarding, as defined by BambooHR (BH), is a human resources industry term that deals with the process by which a newly-hired employee is introduced to an organization. Noting that onboarding is a crucial part of helping employees understand their new position and job requirements, BH further states that the term may also be referred to as organizational socialization. According to Human Resources (HR) experts, onboarding should last for a minimum of three (3) months and may continue for up to a year, depending on the job requirements and the organization. Every workplace should have a proper and clear plan for onboarding its new employees, ahead of their resumption to work. Whilst there is no one size fits all approach towards onboarding new hires, clear goals should be set, which include, formally introducing new hires to the company’s policies, culture, and value; providing training on the employee handbook, facility tours, team introductions, introduction to job roles and expectations for the new hires. Regular monitoring should also be conducted to ensure employees are seamlessly easing into their roles and have the necessary information or required tools to help them work efficiently.

Traditional onboarding is often required for organizations that prioritize long-term retention of employees.

 involves enrolling an organization’s employees into programmes that help employees learn specific knowledge or skills to improve performance in their current roles. Training is similar to onboarding in that employee competence is being developed. However, the approach here is more targeted towards improving knowledge and performance on how tasks are completed. Training can be conducted in various ways, depending on the set objectives.

Training sessions should be held periodically for all employees, as they help increase employee productivity and improves employee performance and consistency. It also addresses employee weaknesses, sharpens their skills, and overall enhances the company’s reputation as a company that prioritizes its employee's welfare.

Some organizations may opine that training sessions use up work time and other resources which slows down productivity. Noting that this viewpoint is a short-sighted one, it is imperative to understand that in the long run, training will benefit both the employees and the organizations.

The major differences between onboarding and training lie in their fundamental meaning, and how often and when each is conducted. Furthermore, onboarding takes on a broader approach by attempting to cover the totality of an employee’s work experience in an organization, whilst training is more targeted and specific as it deals majorly with amplifying the knowledge base and skills of employees.

In conclusion, proper understanding and implementation of both concepts are necessary for the smooth running of an organization’s operations, maximizing employee potential, and the achievement of an organization’s overall objectives.

Stephanie Simeon

Effective Onboarding and Training Strategies for the Workplace

A survey conducted by Gartner in 2020 showed that approximately half of the companies had more than 80% of their employees working from home during the early stages of the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on individuals and businesses around the world. To prevent the spread of the virus, many organizations have implemented remote work policies and have implemented various engagement activities to keep employees connected. These activities include online family engagement practices, virtual learning and development, online team-building activities, webinars with industry experts, video conferences, online courses, and live sessions for new skill training.

A survey conducted by Gartner in 2020 showed that approximately half of the companies had more than 80% of their employees working from home during the early stages of the pandemic, and there are estimates of a significant long-term increase in remote work after the pandemic. While working from home can be beneficial, it can also lead to feelings of loneliness and isolation. To address this issue, some organizations have implemented "virtual happy hours" to prevent loneliness and increase resilience.

Overall, employees are remaining committed to their organizations and motivated during this challenging time due to the shared goal of combating the pandemic. While the pandemic has had a significant impact, it has also presented opportunities for employees to develop new skills and strengthen their connections to their organizations.

Northstar Initiative

Maintaining Employee Engagement During the COVID-19 Pandemic

According to the McKinsey 2020 Women in the Workplace survey, while more women are reaching the highest levels of companies, they are still underrepresented at all levels. 

According to the McKinsey 2020 Women in the Workplace survey, while more women are reaching the highest levels of companies, they are still underrepresented at all levels. This is because organizations and leaders have not fully taken steps to eliminate bias and support and empower female employees.

When employees, especially female employees, feel welcomed, supported, empowered, and included, they tend to have better job performance, job satisfaction, and commitment to the organization. Here are some strategies to make this happen:

: Seeing women in leadership positions can inspire female employees who are climbing the career ladder or entering the workforce to pursue their aspirations. Encourage women to seek opportunities at every level.

: If a leader acknowledges that gender diversity is a critical issue that needs to be addressed, the rest of the organization is likely to follow. This will create a sense of urgency to tackle and correct this issue.

: Give women a platform to be heard. If a woman has a great idea, support her and make sure she gets the recognition she deserves rather than allowing someone else to take the credit. 

Provide public speaking opportunities for female employees both internally and externally

: Conduct a thorough analysis of your organization and gather recommendations for improvement from your employees. Educate and ensure that all goals are consistently implemented across every line of business.

: This flexibility allows employees to balance their work and home lives. Women often juggle multiple roles, such as mothers, caregivers, and breadwinners. Flexible working options provide women with the balance they need as they navigate their workplace and home responsibilities.

: Praise your female team members when they deserve it, rather than just focusing on criticisms. Celebrate their strengths and accomplishments. Recognize their contributions and give credit where it is due.

: Conduct pay equity audits to identify any inconsistencies in pay rates and ensure that all employees with equal experience and in similar roles are paid the same as their counterparts.

: Make sure that high-achieving women in your workplace are recognized and given equal opportunities. Have ongoing conversations about advancement opportunities and set career goals during regular reviews.

: Introduce female employees to people who can provide access to resources and knowledge that they need. Stronger networks can help women become better connected and find career support or mentors.

: Harassment of any kind damages morale and creates a toxic company culture. It leads to unhappy employees and lowered productivity. Reinforce the company's harassment policy, take complaints seriously, and follow through with discipline when necessary.

: Negative workplace culture can make women feel unwelcome. This should be swiftly and appropriately addressed.

: Not all women are the same, but there is still gender bias about how women should and should not act in the workplace. Your female employees must know that you value their unique qualities and embrace that each woman is an individual.

Provide training and development opportunities

: Offer opportunities for female employees to develop their skills and advance their careers.

: Create a culture where everyone feels valued and included. This can be achieved through diversity and inclusion initiatives, as well as regular communication with employees about their experiences and concerns.

: In order to support the professional development of women at your company, it is important to provide trainings on relevant topics such as diversity, implicit bias, inclusion, and flexible working. These trainings will help bring women's workplace issues to the forefront, so your company can continue to evolve. Additionally, you should work to create opportunities for professional development for women, such as coaching and sponsorship programs.

While it may not be possible to fully empower female employees overnight, consistently implementing these strategies will ultimately lead to productive results.

Divine Emekpo

Empowering Women in the Workplace: 15 Strategies

The ASUU strike's impact on undergraduates includes negative effects on their mental, physical, and academic well-being, as well as putting their future in jeopardy with the uncertainty of timely graduation.

Aminat Yakubu

The Unending ASUU Strike: A Burden on Undergraduates' Mental, Physical, and Academic Well-being

Having too many emails to attend to can stress you. That’s why you should learn to manage your inbox before your productivity dwindles.

Taking any of these actions can help you overcome the stress of email overload:

To see how these work in practice, read further and follow the guide. Let’s tame the wild horses.

: Create a sub-folder and name it ‘Fresh Start’. Move all emails in your inbox to Fresh Start.

: emails as soon as reasonably possible. Create a good balance. Whilst you shouldn’t leave emails for hours without checking, it may not be productive to check them on every notification.

: After checking new mails, create a sub folder dedicated to filing emails within that category. This helps you to keep a fresh general inbox and you can easily find emails within the created sub-categories.

: emails that serve no purpose like, Calendar invites, especially when they automatically go to your calendar app. This frees up mental space even for you.

Toluwalase Adeyemi

Do you struggle with email overload?

More often than not, employers look for skills that go beyond your qualification and experience. Employability Skills are transferable skills...

Employability is having a set of skills, knowledge, understanding, and personal attributes that enable you to gain initial employment, maintain employment and obtain new employment when required. It is not just about getting a job but also includes skills and attributes that will enable you to be successful throughout your career. This benefits the workforce, the community, the economy and yourself. It is essential because it helps you to remain competitive and achieve your goals.

More often than not, employers look for skills that go beyond your qualification and experience. Employability Skills are transferable skills needed by an individual to make them employable. These are a set of skills employers look for in a potential employee. It involves the improvement of expertise that makes a person more attractive to employers.

Employment skills are sometimes called soft skills or transferable skills. Soft skills complement hard skills. They help improve performance, promote collaboration with co-workers, and enable effective and efficient execution of roles.

Employability skills are general skills that apply to all jobs and businesses. It helps you stand out among other candidates applying for the same position though you have the same qualifications and experience.

This is a necessary employability skill because it is an essential part of any job. Communication skills are required to exchange information, news, and ideas accurately amongst people. This can be verbally or non-verbally without misunderstanding or misinterpretation. Verbal communication involves using words while speaking or writing, while non-verbal communication involves using body language and tone of voice. Good communication skills also include active listening to understand and interpret the information passed across and emotional intelligence which is the ability to recognize, understand and manage your and other people’s emotion. It also conveys your thoughts and ideas.

This is the ability to work with other people in groups or teams. It also refers to the ability to work harmoniously with your co-workers to achieve the desired goal. These skills help contribute to a more positive working environment.

This involves identifying key issues, clearly understanding problems and determining the most effective solutions. It involves the ability to break down complex problems into parts that make them easier to understand and solve. This is an essential skill that can set you apart from other candidates as you can play an important role in troubleshooting issues which enable your team to overcome obstacles. This skill complements research analysis and decision-making skills.

This is a vital employability skill that makes employees valuable. The initiative involves making out a problem and solving it, preparing for a possible crisis by taking preventive action and taking advantage of opportunities. It portrays employees as self-motivated. As an initiative person, you have a strong drive to succeed and the urge to keep improving yourself. This makes you an asset to any organization.

This involves understanding new concepts and methods quickly, taking on new tasks, adapting to changes easily and constantly improving your knowledge and skills. Good learners fit in and adjust to challenging roles. You can improve your learning skill by taking courses such as memory-boosting and researching.

Employers want candidates that can use the latest technology to get the job done efficiently. The technology skill needed may vary depending on your position. These skills are acquired through continuous learning practice like taking technology courses and trying out new apps. Tech skills make you stand out amongst candidates applying for the same job.

This refers to the ability to perform job duties satisfactorily with little or no supervision. Good management skill helps save time and effort hence, increasing productivity. Also, self-managed employees can motivate themselves to deliver good work performance consistently. This skill can be developed by creating schedules and sticking to them. You need to know how long tasks will take and which to do first to deliver effectively.

This involves working well with other people. It allows you to perform effectively and efficiently as a team player, satisfy customers’ expectation, and resolve problems as it relates to other people. Good interpersonal skill helps build a good rapport with co-workers, employers and customers.

Being able to organize and plan effectively helps improve workflow and save time. It ensures that work and projects are completed on time and prevent errors that can be costly to the company. It helps you to be able to identify tasks, prioritize them and create schedules around them to complete them on time.

This also means being trustworthy and conscientious. It means doing what you say you will do and also helping out others when the need be. You take responsibility for your action and maintain particular values. You perform your job effectively and efficiently and meet up with deadlines. It also means being trusted to get things done without being told. This is an essential skill every employee should possess.

In conclusion, your education and experience may make you suitable to apply for a job, but employability skills or soft skills are required to be successful at this job. Employers are willing to teach employees the job-specific skills required, such as how to use particular pieces of machinery or certain packages specific to that role or company. However, they usually want to see that you already possess other ‘soft skills’ before hiring because they are much harder to teach.

Enhancing Your Employability: 10 Strategies for Standing Out in the Job Market

Graduate training programs can provide new employees with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in their careers, leading to increased job satisfaction, productivity, and retention rates.

Graduate training programs have long been a popular way for companies to invest in the development of their employees. These programs are designed to provide new graduates with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in their careers, and have been shown to have a positive impact on employee performance. In this article, we will explore the impact of graduate training programs on employee performance, citing statistical findings from studies conducted across different countries.

Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)

, employees who participate in graduate training programs show increased job satisfaction, increased productivity, and improved retention rates 

compared to those who do not participate in such programs.

 This is supported by another study conducted by the 

, which found that employees who participated in graduate training programs had a higher level of engagement with their work and reported higher levels of job satisfaction.

In addition to improving employee performance, graduate training programs can also have a positive impact on an organization's bottom line. A study conducted by the 

 found that companies that invest in graduate training programs have a higher return on investment compared to those that do not. This is because employees who have received graduate training are more likely to stay with the organization for a longer period of time, leading to reduced turnover and associated costs.

It is worth noting that the impact of graduate training programs on employee performance may vary depending on the specific program and the industry in which it is implemented. For example, a study conducted by the 

 found that graduate training programs in the healthcare industry had a greater impact on employee performance compared to those in the manufacturing industry. This suggests that organizations should carefully consider the specific needs of their employees and the industry when implementing graduate training programs.

In conclusion, graduate training programs have been shown to have a positive impact on employee performance, with employees who participate in such programs showing increased job satisfaction, increased productivity, and improved retention rates. These programs can also have a positive impact on an organization's bottom line, with companies that invest in graduate training programs experiencing a higher return on investment. While the impact of graduate training programs may vary depending on the specific program and industry, these programs can be an effective way for organizations to invest in the development of their employees and improve overall performance.

The Impact of a Graduate Training Programme on Employee Performance

Employees are constantly in the process of learning and making decisions that are essential for the implementation of their career plans and they expect their current jobs to fit in the path to achieving their career goals. 

Employees are constantly in the process of learning and making decisions that are essential for the implementation of their career plans and they expect their current jobs to fit in the path to achieving their career goals. They expect their employers to help them improve their skills, gain more experience and generally develop. Conventionally, employees are more engaged when they feel their employer is interested in their growth and provides avenues to reach individual career goals while fulfilling the organisation’s mission. Hence, it is just right for an organisation to make employee development a priority.

Career paths and career ladders are methods by which an employee can develop and progress within an organisation. A career path is a track of employment with a progression of acquired education, experience, achievement and responsibility, moving through job positions within a professional field or organization while a career ladder is a series of steps within a job classification, each with increasing responsibility as expertise is developed with allowance for recognition of professional growth.

Though every employee has a unique career plan goal, their career plans are still achievable within your organisation. Their career path is an advancement route mapped as they go from a lower-level position through successive positions to attain their goals. It is a structured timeline with short- and long-term benchmarks.

How can your organisation create career paths?

Organizations can create career path programs for their employees by having organizational charts, properly defining job descriptions, tracking roadmaps for each skill track, identifying training needs and providing training/development programs.

Having an up-to-date organizational chart that aligns with your business plans and shows how your organisation is structured is an essential start to creating a career path program.

Now that an organizational chart is in place, thorough and detailed job profiling is done. To each job description, add the education, soft and hard skills requirements and also list the key responsibilities.

It is time to look at the overall picture right after defining job positions. Here, you create roadmaps/paths for each department or team in the organisation. Design tracks that show how entry-level employees advance through roles (how they climb the ladder). It is important to keep the tracks flexible as more than one path can connect a particular role to an advanced role and the more career paths (or career ladders), the better.

The next thing is to analyze if employees can fit into the designed paths. Can employees advance through the career ladders with the current training programs in place? Identify the necessary training programs required, invest in training/coaching and create a timeline for implementation of the programs.

Why should your organisation create career paths?

It is as beneficial to the organisation as it is to the employees to create career paths. Well-defined career ladders help your organisation:

Retain your best employees and attract the top ones

Give employees a sense of purpose and interest

Increase cumulative ability and diversity in your workforce

Generally, create a better working experience and ease of flow of operation

Quick tips on how to support your employee’s career development:

Similar to what was stated earlier, another way to look internally to support employee growth and professional development is to incorporate training and mentoring into your organization’s affairs. This is a great chance to help employees improve their skills and acquire more knowledge.

You must keep employees happy and encouraged to support growth and development. This can be achieved by creating a culture that rewards and recognizes exceptional work in your organisation.

Though productivity is important, organizations also need to take a proactive approach to assess and develop soft skills for employees and managers.

According to a study from Wakefield Research, more than 90 percent of employees would prefer that their managers address learning opportunities and mistakes in real-time instead of during quarterly or annual reviews. Knowing your weakness is an essential step in personal and career development.

E. Constantly look for developmental opportunities

Career development is a lifelong process hence, it is necessary to grab development opportunities continually. Employee growth initiatives and skill development are long-term programs that provide the foundation for improved employee experiences.

In conclusion, creating career paths and ladders for employees is crucial for both the organization and the employees themselves. Not only does it retain top talent and attract new hires, but it also improves the overall working experience and increases diversity within the workforce. Employers can support their employees' career development by encouraging mentoring and coaching, providing incentives and recognition, developing soft skills, giving real-time feedback and constantly seeking out developmental opportunities.

The Importance of Organizational Support in Advancing Employee Career Development

We often tease management consultants for their never-ending use of frameworks to solve clients’ problems. These frameworks include popular ones like SWOT and PESTEL for situational and macro-environmental analysis respectively... Beyond PESTLE is choosing to liberate your analysis from the confines of targeted frameworks, albeit very useful.

We often tease management consultants for their never-ending use of frameworks to solve clients’ problems. These frameworks range from popular ones like SWOT for situational analysis, PESTEL for macro-environmental scanning, and Porter’s 5 Forces for analysing an industry’s competitiveness: to others like Forecasting, Scenario Planning, etc. How useful these frameworks are, depends on the ability of the user to draw out their focal points. These points then help to constrain the user to consider critical factors that help to solve the problem at hand.

PESTEL (and its other variants) is quite popular for conducting macro-environmental analysis. It is such a useful framework because organisations do not operate in a vacuum and can hardly function outside their bigger environment. PESTEL helps to analyse the Political, Environmental, Sociocultural, Technology, Economic and Legal Factors surrounding an organization. Yes, each of these external factors has rightly ascended to become forces to reckon with globally but are they complete? Has the world moved beyond using these six (6) factors as a starting point for environmental analysis? Would they highlight the possibilities of incidents like the COVID-19 pandemic? What other unforeseen external factors can they miss out on? Going forward, should we be looking beyond PESTEL in our environmental scanning?

Having established the usefulness of the PESTEL framework, this is not aimed at trivializing its impact. Its limitations, however, should be questioned if not for any reason but because the world is evolving rapidly. Consider Porter’s 5-Forces framework which has been expanded to include a 6th force – the role of Complementary Products that helps to analyse how complementary products and services shape the competitiveness of an industry. And even a 7th force – the extent of government regulations (e.g., consumer protection commissions regulating the extent of price setting). In light of these, we should perhaps consider expanding PESTEL and look beyond it when conducting environmental analyses.

To conduct an analysis using ‘Beyond PESTEL’, we are simply saying after considering PESTEL, let us consolidate on lessons learned from previous experiences such that we can, in addition, consider useful factors that may be peculiar to us but may not apply broadly. In simple words, Beyond PESTLE is choosing to also liberate your analysis from the confines of targeted frameworks, albeit very useful. A simple way to develop broader thoughts outside of the framework in use is to consider those critical black swan events and try to tease out patterns observed or just lessons learnt. Dr. W. Abiola, Strategy & Business Policy Facilitator at the University of Lagos Business School, drew my attention to a similar approach using COVID as an example. She suggested ‘Conducting a PESTEL Analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic, hinting that this exercise will lead to drawing out useful insights to help appreciate the lessons learnt from the pandemic. These insights can then become guiding points for future environmental analyses.

It does not have to stop at PESTEL, this can be applied to anything. Use your frameworks to get targeted insights and use Beyond Anything to liberate your thoughts on the subject.

Beyond PESTEL, Beyond Anything

A significant number of employees start out super excited and bring their A-Game to work. As time goes on, however, different experiences often result in the changing behaviors of employees.

A significant number of employees start out super excited and bring their A-Game to work. As time goes on, however, different experiences often result in the changing behaviors of employees. Some transition into star performers, others remain average, whilst some become freeloaders. On the surface of it, the simplistic decision is to let go [fire] of these freeloaders, but a deep probe into the issue may reveal that some factors on the part of the organization and employers played a role in the transformation of a once excited employee to a freeloader.

In answering the question of whether an employer should fire a freeloader, it is useful for the employer to review its performance management system. Have the following questions been asked and answered satisfactorily:

 Have the employee’s areas of strength been highlighted to him/her in the form of feedback?

 Have the areas of improvement been indicated?

 Has the employee’s line manager had a feedback session with the employee?

 Are the resources required for the employee to perform his/her task optimally deployed?

Where answers to these questions and more reveal that the employer needs to improve its processes and procedures, then steps must be taken to address them. Where, however, it has been established that the employee for one reason or the other is no longer a good fit for the organization, due to his/her freeloading status the employer must be swift to act before such negative behaviors permeate through the entire organization.

Employees can be made to watch out for one another. Upon assigning responsibilities, a pairing system may be utilized such that high-performing employees are paired with potential slackers with an objective to inspire the latter to improve performance. A visible task tracking system may also be employed to record employee progress as well as their colleagues. This form of transparency may serve as motivation to freeloading employees.

Another useful tool to help address the issue of freeloading employees is ‘Coaching’. Senior team members should embrace the responsibility for passing down the knowledge and experience they have garnered over the years. This also ensures that the pool of talents in the organization’s succession plan is robust and well managed. Beyond boosting the morale of staffing the organization, this has the potential of reducing costs for the organization, maintaining the culture and values, and creating a healthy competitive environment for all stakeholders of the organization.

Furthermore, an automatic reminder system can be used to remind the employees of key deadlines by email, direct message or promptings at weekly meetings. The reminders could be spaced in the form of one week before the deadline, three days before the deadline and so on. This will help retain employees’ consciousness of the key deliverables and management expectations especially when combined with accountability in the form of weekly to-do reports.

Maintenance of a high level of employee engagement can be achieved by ensuring tasks are distributed fairly and appropriately to help create a fair balance with workload. Spotting burnouts, encouraging employees to take leave off work, giving compliments in the face of excellent performance, and ensuring feedback is always constructive will help yield desired results.

Finally, great employers are known as having the ability to identify, tap into and continue harnessing the potentials of their employees. Addressing the issue of freeloaders or indeed even preventing the creation of one requires a partnership between both employers and employees. Identifying and taking swift action to correct the disengagement process that occurs in freeloading employees before it happens and even after, is a task that should be taken with all seriousness as the people make up the organization.

Should Employers Fire Freeloaders'

Early career professionals (ECPs) face unique challenges in today's job market. To succeed, ECPs must ...

In today's competitive job market, early career professionals (ECPs) face a unique set of challenges as they navigate the transition from education to the workforce. With an increasing number of ECPs entering the job market each year, it's more important than ever to understand the strategies and skills necessary to succeed in your chosen field.

One key strategy for success as an ECP is to conduct thorough research on your chosen field. This includes researching the industry and the specific role you are interested in, as well as reaching out to current professionals for advice and guidance. It's important to understand the nuances of the field and to have a realistic understanding of what the job entails. Avoid choosing a career path simply because it sounds good or because your friends are pursuing it.

Another important strategy is to surround yourself with other professionals. The people you surround yourself with have a significant impact on your career success. Building a professional network of individuals with similar goals can be incredibly valuable in terms of gaining access to opportunities, advice, and support.

In addition to networking, it's important to invest in your own professional development. There are numerous online learning platforms that offer courses and resources to help you gain the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in your chosen field. Additionally, seeking out a mentor who has already achieved success in your chosen field can provide valuable guidance and help you avoid common mistakes.

Another key element in preparing for a successful career as an ECP is to be open to learning and growth. This includes being willing to ask questions, accepting feedback and corrections, and being adaptable to new information and changing circumstances. Setting specific, measurable goals can also help you stay focused and motivated as you work towards achieving your career aspirations.

It's also important to be disciplined and proactive in your job search and career development. This includes being organized, setting priorities, and taking action to achieve your goals. Additionally, consider volunteering or taking on internships to gain valuable experience and build your professional network.

In conclusion, success as an ECP requires a combination of research, networking, professional development, goal-setting, and discipline. By taking the time to understand the unique challenges and opportunities facing ECPs, and by implementing the strategies outlined in this article, you can set yourself up for success in your chosen field.

Elizabeth Whensu

Preparing for a Successful Career as an Early Career Professional: Strategies for Success

A strong company culture can make a huge impact on the success of an organization. The data shows the importance of a well-defined and prioritized company culture, with increased employee engagement and profitability as key benefits.

Starting your career can be an exciting time, but it can also be challenging to find the right company to work for. One important factor to consider is the company culture. But what exactly is company culture?

Company culture is the shared values, goals, attitudes, and practices that make up the personality of an organization. It's the way people feel about their work, the values they believe in, and where they see the company going. As a young professional, you'll likely spend a third of your life at work, so it's important to find a company with a culture that aligns with your own beliefs and attitudes.

Before we dive into why company culture is important, let's clear up some common misunderstandings:

Company culture is not just your core values. While core values are a part of your culture, they're just words on paper until they're put into action. If they're not followed, they can actually harm your culture.

Company culture is not just your perks and benefits. A ping pong table or beer on tap is great, but it's not a substitute for a strong company culture.

Hiring for cultural fit is not the only metric. While it's important to hire people who align with your culture, too many companies rely on this as the only factor. Instead, consider hiring for a "cultural add", meaning someone who aligns with your culture but also brings their own unique traits to the table.

Company culture significantly impacts your business, from recruitment to retention to performance. But why is it more important than salary and benefits? Here are some statistics to show the importance of company culture:

66% of job seekers say that a company's culture and values are the most important factor when considering career opportunities.

Companies that actively manage their culture have 40% higher employee retention rates.

Only 28% of executives say they fully understand their organization's culture.

Companies with strong cultures have 72% higher employee engagement rates than those with weak cultures.

Teams with high engagement outperform their peers by 10% in customer ratings, 21% in productivity, and 22% in profitability.

Sadly, only 13% of employees identify as being engaged with their work.

As a young professional, it's important to understand the importance of company culture and consider it when making decisions about your career. By finding a company with a strong culture that aligns with your own values, you'll be setting yourself up for a more fulfilling and successful career.

Tomi Adeyemi

Company Culture: What You Need to Know

Mentorship/Sponsorship is very crucial for early career professionals who intend to accelerate their careers and break glass ceilings, especially in male-dominated industries. 

Mentorship and Sponsorship play a vital role in the personal and professional development of women especially young early-career professionals who are seeking to advance in their careers. It is a form of encouragement and support and has been found to be strategic in the development of women in the workplace. However, it is more challenging and limited for women to access mentorship and sponsorship than their male counterparts and this is evident in the under-representation of women in top-level positions, especially in male-dominated industries. We shall discuss why it is important for women to enjoy mentorship and sponsorship in the workplace, the challenges facing them and how they can get access to mentorship and sponsorship in the workplace.

Why is female mentorship and sponsorship important in the workplace?

Mentors play a meaningful role in serving as role models and providing personal, psychological and professional support to their mentees. Although similar, a sponsor is different from a mentor in that the former is more focused on actively seeking opportunities for the person and creating connections that help to advance their career. Mentors can be found outside of your organisation but sponsors usually work in the same organisation.

For early-career women in the workplace, mentorship and sponsorship are essential because having a mentor or a sponsor helps to accelerate one’s career. 

, once said that she was a product of great mentoring and coaching and that if not for the mentoring, she wouldn’t be where she is today. While a mentor talks with you and to you, a sponsor talks about you to others. Every early-career female needs to understand that having a mentor helps one to avoid costly mistakes that may be detrimental to one’s career from an early stage. Successful mentorship networks or relationships stimulate the most valuable personal and professional growth. As for sponsorship, it provides access to being included in influential networks and having someone speak for you actively, especially in places that seem difficult to access enhances one’s career greatly. This is why sponsorship and mentorship are important for women because it provides an inroad to enjoying the same opportunities as their male counterpart and experiencing significant growth in their careers.

, there is a need to talk more openly about mentorships and sponsorships. Women don't get the mentoring, and particularly the sponsors, they need to succeed as much as men. This is particularly true because while there has been significant growth in the representation of women in the workplace from ten years ago, there is still a huge disparity in the workplace especially in the top-level and senior management positions. For early career female professionals, the lack of access to mentorship and sponsorship stems from the fact that there are not enough opportunities for them and a lack of access to significant persons or networks. Some senior professionals are not willing to provide support for young women and at times, the latter do not ask for sponsors or mentors either because of ignorance or they do not feel the need to. Also, there is the issue of favouritism of male counterparts and the fear of facing harassment in the workplace which is likely to prevent women from seeking mentorship/sponsorship.

How can early career women navigate the lack of mentorship and sponsorship in the workplace?

It is essential for there to be a more diverse and inclusive workplace that encourages women to advance in their careers and reach top positions where they can influence change. Also, female early career professionals especially undergraduates should be open to networking and reaching out to experienced or senior professionals that can guide and support them. An example is through LinkedIn or at corporate events and seminars. Also, experienced professionals, both men and women, should be open to mentoring and sponsoring young women so they can avoid making costly mistakes and make sensible career decisions that will positively influence their personal and professional lives. Organisations can also create structured mentorship and sponsorship programs for young women that will provide a support system and network, and early career professionals can also join or apply for mentorship programs.

Mentorship/Sponsorship is very crucial for early career professionals who intend to accelerate their careers and break glass ceilings, especially in male-dominated industries. When women have access to mentors, it is easier for them to climb the corporate ladder and succeed. While mentors take their time to guide and direct you, sponsors play a unique role by actively seeking opportunities and providing an avenue for growth within the workplace.

Oluwatomisin Ilesanmi

Managing The Mentorship And Sponsorship Gap For Women In The Workplace

To be situated in the working environment, you must have extensive knowledge gained from school, pieces of training, volunteer programmes, and many more.

“What have you learned outside of the classroom?”

“What other abilities do you possess?”

“What organisations do you belong to?”

These could be interview questions from friends, family, or anyone else in a suitable position you meet. Several programmes commonly attended during the schooling duration address these concerns.

Following the period of realisation, there is a need to map out a plan on how to be absorbed into the workforce. A graduate training programme can help bridge the gap. Graduate training programmes ease candidates into the workforce and teach them the skills needed to work on a larger team. They typically last one or two years. Some will allow students to gain experience in various areas before deciding on a final career path within the company.

Some provide direct access to mentorship programmes, workplace etiquette, professional qualification attainment, and many other benefits.

Graduate training programmes today assist in launching a career by introducing you to the workplace, gaining access to various departments, and gaining experience in their function. This provides the advantage of working on a valuable programme tailored specifically for you in a company.

Depending on the school, organisation or situations arising, there are several ways one can get into these programs.

In every schooling system, it is expected that there is a period for these programmes. Attaining the organisation may be left in the “hands of the student.”

Below are some ways of getting into these programmes:

1. Applying to the companies of your choice.

This is what is done by the majority. Many apply to companies based on their success rate and popularity. It is also good to research companies with similar interests and build them up.

2. Attending career fairs — held by universities during graduate recruitment season for students.

During this period, representatives from various companies and industries discuss graduate positions and applications. This way, one can find which one is most suitable.

3. Recommendation from your school, company, or people with a considerable amount of expertise in the field.

This can help you realise the programmes you need and, if possible, help you attain them.

Now, the benefits of these programmes include:

Supported transition in the world of work

Having prior work experience, either from part-time jobs or work placements as part of your degree programme doesn’t make the transition from full-time student to full-time employee any less challenging. A good graduate training programme is designed and structured for university graduates to get valuable support and skills required to build your confidence in the workplace.

Support mechanisms are usually in place to help transition fully into the workforce. This could come as a worker who experienced the same or as a mentor to guide you.

Graduate training programmes usually offer opportunities to study for further qualifications and experience through on-the-job training. Therefore, you not only get to put the skills you have learnt through your degree into practice, but you can also develop them.

Many graduates are usually unsure about what career path they want to take. Because so many of the skills learned at university can be transferred, many graduate training programmes do not specify the type of degree required. Looking at graduate training jobs and the career development opportunities they provide can help to narrow down your areas of interest significantly.

Soft skills are essential in improving your ability to work with others. Improving them early in your career will help you grow personally and professionally.

Graduate training programs help gain necessary work experience. The experience gathered here mostly makes the foundation of your career and prepares you for long-term employment. Also, this can be used to update one’s Curriculum Vitae (CV).

Ultimately, the effect of this program is to bridge the gap between recent graduates and the workforce. It is a great step in advancing into the working force as it helps prepare employees for the world of work and the responsibilities that come with it.

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