Isn’t the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana Awards taking a detour?

« Prev

Comments (0)

The Institute of Marketing (CIM) can boast of being the world’s leading professional marketing organization with more than Fifty thousand (50,000) members’ world wide. CIMG which has the world’s largest association for marketing professionals aims at providing marketers with the best practices which will enable these professionals to deliver world-class marketing. This is done by providing training courses a recognized qualification and the ability for one to tap into a worldwide network of marketers.

This noble institution was formed by 12 sales managers who met on the 16th of May, 1911 at the Inns of Court Hotel in London and formed the Sales Managers Association with the mission of improving sales techniques and setting their eyes on a more professional footing. However, this mission statement has been broaden in recent times and this is precisely, “to be the pre-eminent body on the marketing practice standards and associated knowledge on an international basis and for this to be acknowledged by governments, marketers, business, education and others”.

The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) has branches in a lot of countries worldwide and they include Australia, Hong Kong, Kenya, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Ghana just to mention a few.

Like all other branches around the world, the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG) has among its aims, the idea to promote and develop the science of marketing, to encourage advancement, to disseminate knowledge, education, practical training and research and to exchange information and opinions on all questions affecting the science. Key among he aims of the CIMG is to provide a professional organization for marketing and by means of examination and others methods of assessment to test the skill and knowledge of persons desiring to enter the profession.

In line with the aims and objectives of this noble institution, it will be fair to say that the CIMG has distinguished itself creditably to its members and the nation as a whole. It was in recognition of this fact that in 2002, the guest of honor for the CIMG awards, Mrs. Emma Mitchell who was also a member of the council of state, stated categorically that, “I expect your consultancy unit, endowed with professionals with varied skills and expertise, to draw from its armory and make proposals and recommendations to both the government and the private sector on how best marketing skills could be applied to unravel the present economic difficulties”. Also, the President of the CIMG at that time challenged present and past winners of the CIMG award to be strategic, refocus their business and become a nucleus around which investments can be attracted to Ghana.

I am of the opinion that Mr. Abutiate (Prez. of CIMG, 2002) in challenging the winners of the awards wanted these winners in their various business categories to strategize and refocus to make their local business blossom so as to attract investments in or abroad to grow the economy of Ghana. Precisely, he wanted the whole world to know how well our economy was doing so as to encourage other private business and investors since there were living testimonies to attest to these facts. It was therefore not surprising that the ultimate winner of the CIMG award was Mr. Kwabena Agyei, founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Kasapreko Company Limited.

The CIMG awards ceremony which is an annual affair that acknowledges Companies and individuals for their out-standing achievements in the area of marketing honored is promise in the 2003 awards by conferring the CIMG man of year award to another outstanding personality, Mr. Kofi Nsiah Poku founder and managing director of Kinapharma Company, a Ghanaian Company.

The 2004 awards of the marketing man of the year also saw the founder and managing director of Tropical Cable and Conductor Limited (TCCL), a Company which manufactures electric and telecommunication cables, Mr. Oteng Gyasi winning the covetous price for 2004. In his speech, the Vice President, Aliu Mahama, reiterated clearly that marketers were to endeavor to facilitate the unprecedented global demand for Ghanaian produce and tune themselves to the needs of their customers who were becoming discerning and unpredictable. This speech was to emphasize the fact that local goods were in a high demand and therefore marketing men were to use their expertise to produce these local goods to feed both local and foreign consumers.

In all of this, it is quite clear that the CIMG men of the year are not only just mere achievers but both “movers and shakers”. This simply means that the current crop of marketing men of the year went the extra mile of visualizing a business, creating a mission statement; they set up aims and objectives and moved these “theories” to a more practical level. They brave all odds in these current economic conditions to create job opportunities to help the President realize his vision of “a Golden age of business”. They identified prospects in the country and used their experiences to set up companies to provide goods and services to boost previous GDP records. It is amazing that in the midst of all these foreign imports and competition, they have been able to steer their companies to success to make good profits.

It is basically due to the good work of the CIMG that such achievers, “movers and shakers” are made award winners to inspire every Ghanaian individual to take up the mantle whatever the situation and come up with laudable business ideas and plans to create entrepreneurial spirit in the country.

I would therefore be amazed if the CIMG gives the award of “Marketing Man of the year” to someone who works for a company other than his. In other words, it will just not be fair for example, to give the “Marketing Man of the year” to someone who implements business plans given to him by some superior authority. Simply put, why should CIMG give this prestigious award of “Marketing man of the year” to a marketing man who “markets” the wares of somebody’s company? Will it not be a detour from the norm?

I have not got my ears on the ground yet because I was out of the country but may I ask, “Who is going to take over from Mr. Oteng Gyasi?” Is he an achiever or a “mover and shaker”? Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana, what products can he call his trade mark brand?