By Ediri Ejoh

The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria, ICSAN, has charged Nigerians on the need to continuously pursue excellence in their workplace, even as it frowns at mediocrity that has remained the problem among workers.

File photo: Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria

This call was made during the ICSAN business meeting, tagged: ‘Harnessing the Business Values of the Chartered Secretary and Administrator’.

The guest speaker,  Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of International Packaging Industry and former Treasurer of the institute, Mrs. Ifeyinwa Essien-Akpan,  who made this assertion, said Nigerians employees are not mere workers that engage on the duties ascribed them, but are supposed to add value in their workplace.

According to her, “value added chartered secretaries are supposed to love their work, pursue the higher meaning of their job, build a library of heroic books, networking and write a legacy statement. This and more are the bedrock to harness the potential of a chartered secretaries and administrators.

“Also, it is expedient for employee to be adventurous personnel and volunteer to see opportunities regardless of the challenges.”
Essien- Akpan, however argued that the knowledge acquired from exposures birth expertise whenever opportunities presents itself.

She further stated that  there are three kinds of individuals in every organisation: entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs and grunts.

While entrepreneur is one who organises, manages and assumes the risks of a business, intrapreneur is one who behaves like an entrepreneur, while working within a large organisation,” she explained.

Excessive complaint

She said that grunts are people who excessively complain of the adverse work conditions in their workplace so much that they do not see the opportunities that exist in such organisation.

“Organisations value people who act as entrepreneurs, while working in large corporations,” Essien-Akpan said.

Also speaking, the discussant, Mrs. Benedicta Shadare, said that chartered secretaries should imbibe the change agenda, stating that exceptional chartered secretaries are innovators.

She said; “Chartered secretaries are expected to have a share value for themselves, refusing to compromise ethics that would dent their image and limit the chance of maximizing opportunities in the nearest future.