Dubbed: "The HR Mentoring programme", it also has goal of bringing together a pool of top notch HR practitioners towards nurturing the next generation of HR leaders.  A collaborative initiative between Tullow Ghana Limited and the Institute of Human Resource Management Practitioners (IHRMP), the one-year pilot programme would imbibe experimental knowledge, skills and competencies into mentees for their expected modern day businesses.

Speaking at the launch, on Monday, Madam Irene Asare, the HR and Business Services Director of Tullow Ghana Limited, said the initiative, the first of its kind in the country, would address the increasing demands from businesses for HR professionals to be real enablers of business growth.

She said: "For example, the key trends that all HR practitioners need to be concerned with now is a superior employee experience, continuous learning millennial, work life balance to take momentum, culture over compensation and relooking at performance management.

"Hence, the need for a programme like this," she said.

Madam Asare said 38 candidates applied for the programme, however, the mentees went through a selection process where they presented why they would like to be part of the HR Mentoring Programme.

"We managed to recruit 25, and each will be assigned to a senior HR professional as a mentor," she explained.  Madam Asare explained that the mentees would have one-on-one quarterly mentoring sessions from the assigned mentors in addition to the monthly capacity building sessions.

She said Tullow initiated the programme because it formed part of their shared prosperity agenda.  She, therefore, urged the IHRMP to continue to be the backbone to the project as they started from the initial stage.  She also called on the mentors to care about what they knew and care about the persons they would be sharing their experiences and knowledge with.

"To the mentees, this is a rare opportunity as you already know that. I need not to say, make the best of it,” she said. "Maximise this rare privilege to build your career and network to achieve your career and goals in life," she advised.  Mr Edward Kwarpong, the President of IHRMP, expressing his happiness about the Programme, called on members of IHRMP, to join Tullow to set standards and major milestones that would provide mentors, mentees, assess impact of the programme that would sustain their efforts.

"Silver and gold, we may not have, but we will have the men and women with experience and calibre to serve as mentors and consultants," he assured.  On his part, Mr Charles Darku, the Managing Director of Tullow Ghana Limited, encouraged HR practitioners not to be intimidated in any environment they found themselves but rather, be adaptive to drive change in their institutions, themselves and through innovations.

They must also be strategic thinkers deeply knowledgeable about their external business environment, he said. Besides, HR practitioners must be champions of change and be able to create sustainable value that feeds into making the business productive. Out the 25 selected mentees, 18 were females with the rest being men.

Some mentees who spoke to the Ghana News Agency promised to take the opportunity seriously to make hay while the sun shone.  They lauded IHRMP and Tullow Ghana Limited for the efforts that would help position HR in the country on a higher pedestal.

Among the prospective organisations of the mentors are IHRMP,  Tullow Ghana Limited, Airtel Tigo, Ghana Water Company Limited, Guinness Ghana Limited, Gamey and Gamey Consult, Multimedia Group, Origin 8, O and A Consult, and Plan International.