Lagos ICSAN Restates Commitment to Ascend Higher

Mary Ekah

In her inaugural speech as the newly elected Chairman, Lagos State Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN) a couple of months back, Mrs. Abiola Laseinde, said categorically that the focus of her administration was to deploy resources in moving the chapter forward. This she noted would focus on four crucial strategic points: the institute’s growth, visibility, relevance and integration with the goals and objectives of ICSAN national.

It was therefore a thing of joy for her when the institute held it first Business Meeting in 2016.

Reiterating her pledge and commitment to serve the institute, Laseinde recalled that she promised that majority of ICSAN’s activities will be more ‘member-centric’ in approach.

This stance informed the choice of the theme of the recent meeting tagged, ‘Harnessing your Values as a Chartered Secretary and Administrator’, a topic which was given full expository by the keynote speaker and discussants during the meeting in Lagos.

Delivering her welcome speech at the Quarterly Business meeting held recently in Lagos, she said, “Our Business Meeting is a veritable platform for members to interact, network and create great relationships and opportunities as part of our own family time. Assuring that exciting times are ahead, Laseinde revealed further that as part of the institute’s strategies to drive members’ engagement and participation, for the first time in the history of the chapter, we have expanded its EXCO units for members to join in service, a platform she believes will enable members, as ISCAN most important stakeholders, to add value to the activities of the Chapter. She noted also that as a way of focusing on members’ continuous professional development, ICSAN would be conducting a free training session for members this year.

She however enjoined members that only their cooperation and greater engagement with the chapter and of course their constructive feedback, will help the institute to strive to deliver on its promises. While enjoining members to listen with rapt attention during each of the presentations and offer meaningful contributions at the appropriate time, she stressed that it will be appreciated if members made the forum as interactive as possible.

While presenting his paper, one of the discussants at the meeting, Mr. Bayo Adaralegbe, a partner in the law firm of Babalakin & Co, noted that when it comes to possession of proficiency, flexibility and competencies across diverse fields in business spheres, Chartered Secretaries were the ones calling the shots. This, he said was so because their comprehensive training, spanning many fields such as accounting, law, management, administration, information system and corporate secretarial practice, make them the professionals with the broadest set of skills and competencies.

Speaking on the theme “Harnessing the Value of a Chartered Secretary”, Adaralegbe, who was the guest speaker at the occasion, claimed that the misconception by which people believed Chartered Secretaries are only good to be company secretaries should be debunked.

He said in addition to operating as company secretaries, the training Chartered Secretaries received had equipped them with the requisite skills to effectively practice a broad range of professions, including functioning as Human Resources Manager, Facilities Manager, Compliance Manager, Administrator, Accountant as well as Executive and Non-executive directors of companies.