Rome Business School (RBS) and Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to deepen human capital and resource development, and to further the course of Human Resources (HR) practice in Nigeria.
The agreement will streamline the degree qualification of RBS and CIPM certification into one, a move seen at bridging the knowledge gap in HR practice in Nigeria.
Akanazu Humphrey, the country manager, RBS in Nigeria, says the MoU is strategic and significant in the growth of RBS in Nigeria, based on both organisations mandate to build capacity.
Humphrey says RBS’s Masters in International Human Resources Management (IHRM) and its MBA need certification, saying it is best to partner the CIPM as a regulatory body for HR practice in Nigeria.
RBS currently runs a modular MBA, which allows student to specialise in one of the modules; for instance, there is a specialisation in Human Resources Management (HRM). With these, those doing MBA specialise in HRM while those doing Masters will specialise in IHRM. “With the collaboration, RBS issues a degree while CIPM on the other hand will issue its certification; so they are coming out as rounded professionals,” Humphrey says.
According to Humphrey, the human resources space in Nigeria is still developing, hence the need for the partnership. “We are not just bringing the international aspect of human resources; we are bringing local content into it through CIPM. We understand the culture of employees and benchmark best practices with our international curriculum and the local content,” he states.
Ajibola Ponnle, registrar/CEO, CIPM, says RBS is recognised based on its aspiration, quality learning it provide coupled with its international ranking in business schools.
According to Ponnle, it is important for CIPM to ensure that it partners with the right institution that will promote its curriculum.
“CIPM partnering with higher institution is to ensure it closes the gap between educational curriculum and what is actually done in practice. However, to integrate the curriculum in ensuring that what students are learning is aligned with what obtains in the industry, the institute identified key higher institutions for partnership,” she says.
CIPM regulates human resource management in Nigeria and one of its key mandate is to promote the acquisition and application of human resource management; the knowledge, skills and competence required and to ensure that HR as a profession is practiced in line with international best practices.
