The University of Cape Coast School of Business has organized its maiden CEOs’ engagement with faculty and students on Tuesday 5th April 2022 with more than thousands of students in attendance. The heads of the department and lecturers were all present at the engagement.
The CEO of Weave Ghana Limited, Mr. Roni Chako was the Guest Speaker on the topic of the life journey of an entrepreneur. He explained the strategies being used by the company to remain a leader in the hair products market in Ghana.
The CEO explained how acquisition strategy and strong brand proposition have helped the company to be doing well at all levels as a market leader in this industry. He told both students and lecturers that it is important to continue to build technical skills for the students, but must create avenues for students to participate in internships to build leadership, and confidence and develop the right attitude needed in the industry.
He said without the right attitude and confidence, even the most brilliant student cannot succeed. Mr. Chako explained that about 85% of the workforce are females. When he was asked the greatest challenge of operating in Ghana? He replied controlling cost because of depreciation as major raw materials and facilities such as warehouses are quoted in dollars which is a key cost element.
The Dean of the School, Prof. John Gatsi told the gathering that the programs being delivered reflect the requirements of key skills required in the Business Schools curriculum. He said the leadership of the School are conscious of the need for 21st-century skills development for students to close the skills gap.
Prof. John Gatsi who quoted John Reed who asked Business School academics at an awards ceremony in 1999 “do you teach these students the skills that will serve them well in their careers?”, said this question remains critical as the school is doing its best to answer it with innovation and providing the environment to promote skills development for the students.
Prof Gatsi explained that most of the faculty members are fellows, chartered and associate members of various professional bodies and are guided by the core values of the School such as reliability, integrity, good governance, honesty and teamwork.
Prof. Gatsi said, “we have made an internship at the School compulsory at levels 200 and 300 because we want them to have enough experience with industry before they leave so that the technical skills we are building for them will be augmented with some of the critical skills they need at the industry level and be ready to take up global responsibilities.”
He said this engagement helps both faculty and students to adapt to what is required to fit for industry responsibilities. Weave Ghana Limited producers of darling hair products signed a memorandum of understanding with the University of Cape Coast to accept 100 students on an internship during the long vacation.
The Provost of the College of Humanities and Legal Studies, Prof. Francis Eric Amanquandoh who also represented the Pro Vice-Chancellor., Prof(Mrs) Rosemond Boohene, asked students to take advantage of the internship opportunities. He advised students that becoming an industry leader calls for a number of sacrifices, humility and a good attitude.
He expressed his gratitude to Weave Ghana for the opportunity. He was particularly happy about the positive feedback from the management of the company about three young graduates working with the company.
