As organisations across East Africa settle into the new year, the people and culture function is carrying an increasingly broad brief. Felix Ochieng, general manager of people and culture at Liberty Kenya, Eva Ng'ang'a, manager of people and culture at Amadeus, Rachel Kanyolo, people and culture manager at the Kenya Association of Manufacturers and Rose Karugu, HR and IT director at Ishara Towers Rwanda, share what is at the top of their agendas in 2026.
Felix Ochieng, general manager of people and culture at Liberty Kenya, is thinking beyond his current remit. Having spent years at the helm of HR functions across multiple organisations, he is now setting his sights on general management and preparing accordingly.
"I feel I should be preparing myself to lead a business before my retirement, and to do that I decided to do my own certifications in insurance, out of the normal norm which is HR," he says.
Preparing for broader leadership
In the immediate term, Felix remains focused on helping Liberty Kenya reach its growth targets. The organisation has set an ambitious goal of becoming one of the top three insurers in the country, and he sees the people function as central to getting there.
"We've learned that addressing the softer issues is key to retaining talent. It’s about connecting with employees on a deeper level, which is essential for us to become one of the top three insurers in Kenya," he explains.
Eva Ng'ang'a, manager of people and culture at Amadeus, has a different priority for 2026, though it points in the same direction. Her focus is on closing the gap between what managers know they should do and what they actually do when people issues arise.
"My goal is to continue empowering my leaders and coaching them so that they handle people issues with urgency. Most leaders are more interested in the numbers and what they get at the end of the year," she says.
Eva is candid about why this conversation remains difficult. She argues that well-being and team support are still treated as secondary concerns in many organisations, despite their direct effect on performance.
"People feel that well-being issues or supporting a colleague is a by-the-way issue or an HR issue, while it is actually directly impacting the overall performance of the department or the team. It is a really difficult conversation to continue having with leaders," she notes.
Using AI for onboarding
Rachel Kanyolo, people and culture manager at the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, is approaching 2026 with a specific project already in motion. After helping develop a new performance management system that won a bronze medal last year, she is now focusing on enhancing the onboarding process.
"I want to work on an AI chatbot for onboarding. When you are new, even in the first two days, you can interact with the chatbot and it tells you everything you need to know about the organisation, the structures we have internally, the departments and how they run, what you need to know from HR," she says.
Rose Karugu, HR and IT director at Ishara Towers Rwanda, is leading a company that has established institutional knowledge while actively redefining its operations. She sees her role as sitting squarely at the centre of that transition.
"We are in the middle of a new company, but also a company with some years of experience. I see it as an opportunity for me, Rose, to make a change and to be an instrument of building a new culture," she says.
Alongside her organisational priorities, Rose is also investing in her own professional development. She was recently certified as an executive leadership coach and is working out how to apply that credential.
"I want to grow my coaching. I want to use my skills internally or externally, and to be able to do that I need to put myself out there. I am still figuring out how to do it, but that is what I have in my plan for 2026," she explains.
