Over time, I have come to learn that human resources practice is one of the loneliest professions one can undertake.

As exciting and challenging as it is, at one point when it comes to decision making, you are most likely to remain alone while the rest of the group goes with what is most convenient to the company at the time, yet unlawful. But the law doesn’t really care about what’s comfortable to you as an employer or employee you know.

Every company has those ‘human resource experts’ whose job is to teach you how to do your job. They will interpret employment laws to you in their own way and then tell you that that’s how it’s done in other places. You see though, that everyone is doing the wrong thing doesn’t make it right.

Human Resources is a double edged sword, it cuts both sides and as the link between the management and the employees, one needs to find the balance. You can’t lean on one side too much. The principles that guide HR practise in my opinion are fairness and justice. In all the decisions you make at the end of the day, the above principles must be put into consideration. And the due process needs to be followed, no matter how long and boring it is.

The role of the human resources department in any company, among others, is advisory. You are required to advise the management on the best employment practises as well as ensure that the employment laws are implemented accordingly. And this is where the challenge is, on the implementation part. As a HRM, don’t just leave it at the advisory level, go the extra mile, push for implementation. There will be resistance, but in time, you will see changes.

Today we celebrate Mothers’ Day and so I celebrate my mother as well as several other great mothers out there.

My mother was a great woman and I can talk about her all day long. Graceful, strong, God fearing, a disciplinarian, don’t even begin to describe this woman. She lives forever in my heart.

Today though, I honor a different woman; my sister (may her soul rest in peace!). She was my second mother, a woman so strong, hardworking and admirable. This fine young woman defended my dignity as a young girl with honor. Her strong character to me was a sure sign that she was a true daughter of my mother. I think in this life, the only person she feared was God.

So when I received that call that morning that she had passed on, I was in shock. I blamed God, my faith was shaken. For a very long time I struggled with depression, I couldn’t sleep properly for months. I don’t think I’ve ever been so afraid like I was when this happened. Until now, I still think that God made a mistake by taking her, it wasn’t just time yet, according to my calculations. But I’m only human. I have learnt to forgive God for this ‘mistake’.

There are several women out there who have taken up the role of mothers by choice or have been forced into it by circumstances beyond their control. We celebrate you all today. There are no accolades that await you at the end of the day but you still go above and beyond to make your children’s lives better. May God bless you more.

And to all those men who are on double duty and have also taken up the roles of mothers to their children because of different reasons, the Angels are preparing a very special place in heaven for you with free high speed Wi-Fi and constant flow of wine. Bless your hearts too.

As for the rest of us who celebrate us mothers in absentia, we hold their memories very close to our hearts. We believe that one day we will be reunited and that wherever they are,they continuing to rest in eternal peace.

Happy Mothers’ Day!!!

Getting fired is one thing that people rarely admit. I think its because it is somehow associated with failure and shame or something am not sure…. but it is rare to hear people admitting that they got fired. They always say “i resigned, i left”. Even when interviewing we always find reasons to sugar coat such an incident in our answers. Admitting it to even your spouses is sometimes hard. A friend once told me that for 6 months her husband woke up and prepared for work every morning as usual only to learn he had been fired for that long. He would spend his days at Uhuru Gardens on Langata road and then go back home as if from work. He was spending their savings and eventually coming up with excuses about money.

I will admit, it is probably worse than a break up. I mean a real break up from someone who you have extreme feelings for, then from no where they decide its over and 1 day later you see them get married to someone else. It doesn’t matter whether  you saw it coming, or it was a surprise, like any loss, when they pull the trigger, you will hurt. You will ask yourself questions, and its important to accept the part you played. If you got fired because for some reason you came to work late everyday… well that is on you, and you need to address why you got that late in the first place. If you get fired for absenteeism or non performance, you need to find out what part you played and forgive yourself. Yes you need to extend the grace you give to others to yourself. That way you are in a position to move on. There are at times that companies also cannot afford to have you around, it is within their right and that is not on you.

However, just like any loss, allow yourself to mourn. Allow yourself to go through all the processes of grief and deal with it. At the same time though, you will need to pick up the pieces. Look at that CV and update it, reach out to people who might know away out, come up with business ideas that can be implemented with what you have i.e. savings etc. Do not sit back, pick yourself up and try to move on. Remember when one door closes another one opens. Try and learn from the loss and make sure your next employer or customer will have no reason to pull the trigger. Be a great employee such that employers look for you and not the other way round.

The above question has been a point of discussion in one of my professional networks and I’d like to just share my thoughts on the same.

During an interview, you may be asked, ‘why do you want to leave your current employer? Or why did you leave your previous employer?’. There are so many ways to answer this question.

In any company you work at, you will be unhappy about something; maybe your Supervisor is wicked to you, or you feel micromanaged, you are so fizzled and no one really cares about your opinion anymore, among other reasons. We sometimes leave an employer when we are up-to our necks in frustration. But how do you tell your potential employer all these truthfully but still remain professional?

The thing is, badmouthing your employer does not increase your chances of getting the job. I would personally not hire you simply because you told me how badly your former employer mistreated you. Some candidates however choose to go on and on and on about how bad their employer was to them, how much they hated their boss etc.

I personally believe that all those details are not necessary at an interview. We all have very bad experiences at work, some horrible. But at an interview, just say what’s important. Be precise, don’t say too much. Instead, use that opportunity to sell yourself. Demonizing your former employer will not make your potential one a saint, neither does it make you. Every company has its own issues.

An interview is an opportunity for you to tell sell yourself, the things you can do and convince your potential employer why they should hire you. Focus on yourself, not your former/current employer. The rest of how horrible your experience was can be discussed later during lunch break after you get employed. So use an interview opportunity wisely.

You may have heard or been told that for you to get employment in Kenya, you need to know somebody who knows another somebody who’s very influential.

To deny that these allegations are not true to some extent is to bury one’s head in the sand. Finding a job sometimes proves difficult even when you know you have what it takes, but to believe that you always need to have connections to be employed is a lie. Or that as a woman or man, you need to have sexual relations with an influential person to be employed is just a belief, without any basis to justify it.

Success is not sexually transmitted. I have seen women who have started from the bottom up through hard work, sweat, tears and determination. I have also seen women accused of sleeping with their bosses to get a promotion or rise up the carer ladder, when in real sense, they have worked hard for everything they have achieved. There are also those who have chosen to achieve what they have by compromising their morals.

The problem with trying to use shortcuts to get to the top is that it catches up with you. Bosses change all the time and you can’t sleep with all of them, all the time to gain an added advantage. And by accepting all the sexual offers in order to move to the next step, you have succeeded in proving to the world that you not only wasted the education you got but you are also incapable of doing anything without a ‘god father’.

You do not need to sleep with someone influential or your boss to achieve success at work or anywhere else and anyone offering a job or promotion in exchange for sex is a disgrace to the society. Trust in your own abilities, give time some time, keep sending out those applications, keep working hard, trust in the grace of God, because you will achieve that success you desire so much, you will get that job you yearn for so badly. And you do not need a ‘god father’ or ‘god mother’.

Show me your friends and I’ll tell you the kind of person you are!

Your friends are a reflection of who you really are, mostly! The people you hang out with greatly influence your behaviors. I have learnt that in this life, your friends can be more family to you than your birth family. Some of them will support you when you are in need way more than even your own blood relatives.

One of the rules of thumb in any true friendship is honesty, loyalty and respect. It is your moral obligation to tell your friend the truth especially when you realize their decisions are going to land them in trouble. Whether they choose to heed to your advise or not is up to them.

You need to hang out with people who build you up and not tear you down. People who will stand with you and defend your honor courageously. People who are bold enough to tell you that the relationship you are in is not healthy and you need to walk away. Those who will tell you that what you are wearing doesn’t suit your body type or is not appropriate for the occasion and you will not take it personally. Those who will tell you to your face that you don’t need a long list of lovers to prove your masculinity or feminity. But when your friends agree with everything you say and do all the time, know that those are not friends, they are actually your fans.

You don’t always have to behave like your friends though. You can be best friends but still totally two different people. And you don’t need to have the whole world as your friends, keep your circle small and tight. Be in a position to differentiate between true friends and acquaintances.

Building a good friendship requires hard work and patience with one another. So if you find that one person who is ready to stand with you through thick and thin, treasure them as you build each other up.

1st May is one of the most important day in the lives of employees especially in Kenya since this is the day they all wait with bated breath for the new Wages Order.

If you have worked with unionized employees, then you must understand the importance of Bro. Atwoli’s speech on this day. The most unfortunate part is that the Wages Order declaration has been politicised in recent times. It is now been used to gain political mileage instead of actually aiming at benefiting the life of an employee.

After the government, the private security industry is the second largest employer in Kenya. However, they are some of the most lowly paid employees inspite of the great risks they take. You may argue that they are not very highly educated, but in the end, their contribution to our lives cannot be taken for granted and I believe they deserve better.

It is pretentious for the government to claim that private security guards should be paid above the minimum wage when in actual sense, when you get a tender with them to supply this service, their rate is way below the amount that would get a guard to even collect the minimum wage. Look at any government office and evaluate for yourself, they would rather go for the cheapest provider but with the poorest services.

The Kenya National Private Security Workers Union (KNPSWU), with all its shortcomings, I must say, has been very strong on the ground to fight for the rights of its members. On the other hand, I still believe that providing private security guards in Kenya with fire arms as proposed is a wrong move. Having first hand experience with our security guards, I believe that there needs to be a lot of ground work done before this can be implemented. A firearm is not a toy or a button that one plays around with.

So even as we wait for the new Wages Order to be announced, we also urge the government to provide the employers with competative payment for services provided, irrespective of the industry.

Happy Labour Day to all Workers!!!

As a HR Practitioner, you definitely have found yourself in a position where you have had to terminate or summarily dismiss an employee or probably declare their positions redundant.

Contrary to the popular belief that HRPs are heartless people, the process of relieving an employee from their duties is actually very tasking. It takes courage and heart. Sometimes it weighs so heavily on your soul that you literally have to go down on your knees to ask God for grace.

Over the years of my practice, I have relieved very many people from work. Some have been very easy while others not quite. One, because I know these guys are good people who just made a terrible mistake and secondly because I’m only human. The process of starting over for an employee who has been let go is never easy and most especially when they have a family to take care of.

In my own opinion, it is always very important to remain as truthful and factual as possible with an employee. Be very specific about your reasons; don’t say too much that could be used against you or too little that leaves the employee wondering what they did wrong. The ‘you are fired, pack your things and leave’ is quite unfair and unprofessional. Most importantly, ensure that the due process has been followed.

Regardless of how we are separating, we must do so respectfully because at the end of the day, you are dealing with a human being and loosing your source of income isn’t usually easy to accept. Sometimes it’s never black and white though, it can be dramatic. There was actually one instance where after dismissing a staff, she stripped down and started walking out of my office almost naked. My horrified office mate rushed to close the door while I just sat there thinking to myself like, ‘really?’.

I however always believe that every relationship has an ending, the only question is, will it end quietly or publicly. Which ever the case, every HRP must always be prepared.

Recently, I heard one popular radio presenter ask his listeners the question, ‘why take the stairs when you can use the elevator and get there faster?’

This gentleman was discussing a very different subject matter altogether though. One of the things I have noted and mostly in the young people looking for jobs is that most of them want to start at the top, or other, get there immediately. Some look at you and quote a six figure salary in their first attempt at looking for a job, and that’s because they say they have a Bachelor’s Degree in that area.

The thing is, unless you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, you will have to start from the bottom. Some of the most successful and rich men and women around the world will tell you their story and you will be surprised by how far they have come. But then again, we live in a world of instant gratification, we want everything NOW! Remember that the fact that you have two degrees does not guarantee you a Managerial job, neither does it make you more competent than a Diploma holder.

You need to understand that starting from the bottom has its perks. It builds resilience, patience and character in you. You get to learn the basics as you prepare for greater responsibilities, otherwise, you will crumble too fast under pressure. I can tell you freely that it is very lonely at the top sometimes. You need all these people you met along the way to help you ‘stay sane’ there at times.

At the Dojo as a Karateka, the Sensei insists that at the beginning of every class, we all start with the basics of karate before any student can move to the more advanced techniques. Whether you are a 3rd Dan or a 10th Kyu, we all start from the same level. It is mandatory.

It is important that you are patient in life, take your time, learn, perfect your skill and keep climbing the stairs until you get to the top. If you ever lost everything while at the top, you will be in a better shape to start over again if you rose there steadily, as apposed to someone who got there instantly.

So whether you take the elevator or the stairs, you will probably get to the top. However, taking the stairs, though a bit slower, will get you there STRONGER and more resilient. I choose the stairs!

If you have ever resigned from a job or been fired, the exit process has sometimes not been smooth especially when the employer makes it their priority to make the separation process as painful to you as possible.

My question is, why should it be like this? Everything that has a beginning has an end, only God lasts forever, I believe. So if we all die at one point in our existence, why should an employer make your exit seem like the end of the world?

When an employee chooses to leave an employer by resigning, or is forced out by means of summary dismissal or termination, it is always important to make this process as quiet and painless as possible. You however find Managers who treat you very badly. They will delay your handing over process, the clearing process and even the payment of the final dues. You find out in the end that you spend so much time doing follow ups when it really shouldn’t be that. This has actually resulted into so many cases ending up in the Industrial Court when they could be avoided.

You see, when you leave an employer, through whatever means, it is your duty as an employee to ensure that you surrender all company property in your possession. It is on the other hand the duty of your employer to pay you everything that they owe you, less any loans, advances or surcharges if any, in good time. You should further be issued with a Certificate of Service for as long as you have worked permanently for a period of more than four weeks. All the above are not favors an employer is doing for you. A recommendation letter is however issued at the discretion of the Management, you can never demand for it.

There are companies that assume that when an employee is dismissed from the services of the company summarily, they loose the right to their final dues. That assumption is incorrect. Even a thief still has employment rights.

Therefore, as an employee, the next time you are exiting, make it easy on your employer. And for the Managers, it is not the end of the world. Treat them with respect. You never know, they could be your next boss.