Mentors are one thing we need in today’s society. Day in day out we see the youth going down the wrong path with no one to guide them. They need someone who will help shape their future from a young age and guide them to achieve their goals in the right way. This is something that the Rhino Cement Foundation has noted and has undertaken steps to achieve.
The foundation has a mentorship program in place that was started back in 2011. This was after the first formal high school selection process was done. Each student who was selected under the foundation to receive the scholarship was assigned a mentor who would be his/her link to the foundation for the four years of study.
“The scholarship program is strategic to the business, inasmuch as it is a social investment. Through this program we seek to create a pool of skilled employees by integrating the academic programs with actual work experiences. The students who are selected from various disciplines that are aligned to the hr requirement of the company are also given priority in the company internship program. The internship program seeks to afford the students a holistic experience of the business, while at the same time responding to specific requirements of the programs they are pursuing at their respective colleges†says Stephen Kamau – Group HR Manager ARM Cement.
The company recently held the first of many mentorship day events. In total, 21 students got a chance to tour the ARM cement manufacturing plant and interact with their mentors.
The mentorship is done on a volunteer basis and the employees choose to take a student under their wing.
Mentorship entails , from the mentor:
• Follow up on student performance through receiving and scrutinizing report forms
• Having sit downs with the students to discuss areas where performance is lower than expected
• Spending time away from school with the student to create rapport
• Taking time to shop with students for books, uniform etc
• Giving career and life advise to students
• In case of health issues, to accompany student to hospital and follow up to ensure all is well
The mentorship program also gives students an avenue to career choices, by being able to interact with employees in different fields who share their journeys to present fields. It then gives the students an opportunity to grow into the careers and futures with guidance and some form of clarity.
With the close eye RCF is keeping on the students through this program, they are in a position to produce well rounded individuals from their scholarship program.