SABA—A ceremony was held at the Government Administration Building on Tuesday, September 15 during which the certificates of the management development program PEP and the emergency response team BHV course were handed out to a large group of civil servants of the Public Entity Saba. During a short ceremony, Island Governor Jonathan Johnson and Island Secretary Tim Muller handed out the certificates to the participants of the BHV and Management Development.
As an employer, the Public Entity Saba has a responsibility to provide a safe and healthy workplace. On Tuesday, some 25 civil servants from all levels within the organization received their First Responder (BHV) certification. During the BVH course, participants learned how to identify and resolve safety issues within buildings and at the job site, and how to act during emergency situations. For example, how to deal with a medical emergency at the workplace, how to extinguish a fire and how to carry out a building evacuation.
Last year managers and department heads participated in the extensive Management Development (PEP) trajectory that lasted almost a year. Participants learned, among other things, to develop insight into leadership qualities, develop skills for effective communication, gain insight into how leaders inspire others, and how to achieve management goals. Due to some seasonal issues and COVID-19, the certificate ceremony was postponed until Tuesday.
The third part of Tuesday’s ceremony consisted of the handing over of the ‘Managers Toolkit’ to the department heads within government. Human Resource (HR) Manager Miguela Gumbs, who compiled the comprehensive manual, will be departing the island shortly, and wanted to leave the managers with something tangible that they can use in the daily managing of personnel. “The Managers Toolkit contains everything that you need to know as a manager when you work for the Public Entity Saba. This toolkit, which is the first of its kind, will contribute to a transparent and efficient work practice concerning personnel management. It is a practical ‘go to manual’ that will assist managers in leadership and managing their department more effectively,” said Gumbs. The Managers Toolkit includes information on, among other things, HR policies such as sick leave management, onboarding and offboarding (from hire to retire), as well as documentation of the various trainings such as project management, time management, leadership and integrity, effective communication, etc. The Manager Toolkit is also available in digital form.
