The annual staff retreat for Assemblies of God headquarters staff ended on 20th November 2020 at the Crystal Palm Hotel at Tesano. This year’s program was very unique and went on successfully as planned despite the covid-19 challenges faced by the office. Part of the event took place at the head office building within August and September. The month of August also served as a period to review the performances of staff and tasks. Various topics were discussed during the staff seminar by our EP officers and other astute resource persons. Some of the topics discussed were loyalty and commitment, work culture, retirement and financial management.
The General Superintendent, Rev. Prof. Paul Frimpong-Manso indicated that the emergence of covid-19 has also created opportunities for organizations to digitize their processes and certain tasks, hence, AGGhana will strengthen its adoption of digitizing processes and tasks as we have already seen in the new payment system and online credentials. In his presentation of loyalty and commitment, the General Superintendent indicated that loyalty is rare so if anyone finds it, he/she must keep it. He encouraged staff to give their whole self to the organization since commitment is the act of giving one’s whole self to something or someone. He further emphasized that loyalty is a continued and regular patronage of activity in the face of alternative competitive activities and urged the staff to remain loyal to good activities within the organization and churn out activities that will not help the organization to grow.
The General Secretary, Rev. Dr. Kwame Bansah in his presentation on work culture, quoted 1 Corinthians 4:1&2 to support the claim that work culture refers to a Godly perspective in a broken corporate culture. He explained that workers at the AG headquarters and every person employed must know that we are servants and also stewards. He stressed that we must be stewards of divine mysteries by being faith, which he supported with scriptures from Ephesians 6:8; Colossians 3:22-25; and 1 Peter 2:18-19. In concluding the presentation, Rev. Dr. Bansah posed the following questions to the staff at the seminar: Do I see my work as a service to God; Do I pray before making decisions; Do I treat people the way Jesus will have to treat them; Am I a slave for Christ or the clock; and Am I following a broken culture or God’s culture at work. He advised the staff that “everything you do, do as unto the LORD.
Still on work culture, the General Treasurer, Rev. Dr. Sam Ato Bentil posited that work culture begins with organizational culture and defined work culture is the collection of values, expectations, and practices that guide and inform the actions of the staff. He expressed that two things govern work culture such as values including care, appreciation, etc, and philosophy which has to do with confidentiality and indicated that confidentiality is very important in every organization. He further advised the staff to support each other and prompt anyone when he/she goes wrong.
On managing our finances, Rev. Dr. Abraham Obeng Amoako who happens to be the immediate past head of operations, suggested 5 keys to obtain financial freedom, which include taking a decision to be financially independent; planning your finances; paying yourself every month before spending; developing a long-term financial plan and beware of debt. In expanding these points, he indicated that poverty and riches are based on our own decisions and stressed that we don’t reap when we fail to sow, referencing from 2 Corinthians 9:6. He encouraged the staff to plan their retirement, plan a house, plan their children’s education, and also plan a decent life. Rev. Obeng-Amoako advised the staff again to cultivate the habit of savings and make it their priority, and stop borrowing for unnecessary things or ventures. On Retirement, Rev. Peter P. Bandim outlined the basic guidelines for a comfortable retirement life. He elaborated that we must give our lives to Jesus Christ if we want to enjoy a comfortable retirement life with a scripture reference from Psalm 137:1-2. He further asserted that the choice of partner will also determine the kind of retirement one would have and urged the single to marry God-fearing partners. Investment also has an impact on retirement and encouraged the staff to set some percentage of their salary for investment. He concluded that healthy living has an impact on retirement and advised the staff to eat healthy foods and also exercise regularly to keep the body fit during retirement.
At the climax of the program, the head of operations reviewed the various activities undertaken within the financial year and projected what staff should expect in the coming year. The staff was allowed to raise their concerns and challenges linked to their task execution. The EP officers also commended the staff for their contributions to the organization over the period. The seminar couldn’t have ended without awarding some staff for their long service and contributions to the organization. Mrs. Grace Abaidoo, Mrs. Mary Amponsah Ababio and Mr. Akoto Dankwa were awarded the overall best worker & long service (15years), best worker (Admin. category) and long service (5 years) & best worker (Tactical category) respectively.
