Prof. Kobby Mensah: A practice-oriented academic with expertise in varied fields including political and corporate marketing, branding, communication, and tourism marketing.

The political market is complex and continues to evolve. As a result, voters have become demanding and punitive in elections and continue to shift their support for political parties and governments. That is why political management studies emphasise political human resources as a key factor in ensuring voter satisfaction and political brand success. Due to the shifting support and the penal behaviour of voters, selecting people with the right aptitude to do the job [political HR] has long been a prominent matter of interest within political management research.

Recent election outcomes in the UK, USA, and Ghana provide empirical evidence supporting the view that stakes are incredibly high, and citizens thoroughly analyze every political ‘move’ to see the extent to which the government is fulfilling its brand promise.

The evidence shows that the political market’s relationship with governments and political parties is primarily based on the government’s commitment to address their latent and expressed needs through the rapid implementation of high-profile policy initiatives. Simply put, in modern-day politics, ‘time of delivery’ is relevant in building durable connections with the populace.

As explained by asymmetric discounting economic theory, people’s initial expectations influence their preferences, making them impatient with delays. These dynamics underscore prominent political management studies’ long-held view that political brand health and success hinge on ‘political delivery’ within the expected timeframe.

Enhanced consciousness of the political market is defining the practice of politics. Hence, governing with a sense of purpose and demonstrating a commitment to ensure delivery happens as promised is vital in shaping consumers' perceptions and fostering political brand loyalty. Given the stakes of these crucial periods, the government can guarantee political brand success by ‘keeping’ its brand promise. Therefore, the president needs to be strategic about his appointments.

He needs to go beyond appointing only party stalwarts to hire other competent citizens who are more adept at making strategic decisions to produce desired results. This is why the appointment of Prof. Kobby Mensah, a highly motivated, cross-disciplinary, and renowned academic with a profound interest in tourism marketing, is an excellent decision by President John Dramani Mahama. The president’s appointment symbolizes his government’s direction and attitude towards delivery. Appointments overtly set the tone, establish priorities, and build momentum. It clarifies the president’s commitment to delivery. So, I applaud H.E. John Mahama for appointing Prof. Kobby Mensah as the Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Tourism Development Company. As a political marketing scholar, I see this appointment as a strategic ‘move’ to ensure delivery happens as promised.

Prof. Mensah is a renowned marketing and branding expert with expertise in varied areas, including tourism marketing and strategic communication. As a tourism marketing lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School, he started the ‘Destination Legon tourism program’—where tourism marketing students deliver a capstone project as part of their course to build their skills and competencies in tourism marketing. This program teaches students how to market tourism products and services effectively. Thus, it directly responds to the gap between academia and industry.

Over the years, Prof. Mensah has helped UGBS train industry-ready students in varied fields, including tourism marketing, and produced high-quality studies whose recommendations have significantly impacted the tourism sector. So, Prof. Mensah’s contribution to the tourism industry in Ghana is invaluable. With his expertise and experience in the tourism sector, Prof. Mensah has the right mindset to start and ensure change in an effective and timely manner. Drawing on first-hand knowledge and insights from his high-quality research, he will navigate complex situations, align competing priorities, and ensure the delivery of tangible results in a system that can vehemently resist change.

As a political marketer, I have seen how ‘deficit-in-value delivery’ [a situation where delivery fails to meet expectations] has negatively impacted the electoral fortunes of political parties. So, appointing Prof. Mensah, someone with the aptitude and ‘persona’ to ensure that the decision-making calculus underpinning the tourism industry offers more excellent value for the citizenry and yields desired results for the government, is valuable in political management.

To conclude, delivery authenticates political credibility, galvanizes trust, and induces positive brand associations. Any government that fails to live up to the expectations of the political market or doesn’t deliver on the pre-poll promises is bound to face punitive actions. Therefore, appointing a renowned expert with practical experience and the right instincts to implement necessary reforms that set the tone for performance consistent with the government’s agenda to reset Ghana and make citizens experience the change they voted for is valuable and much appreciated in political management.

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The author, Dr Joyce Manyo, holds a PhD in Political Marketing from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. She is a lecturer at the Dept. of Communication Studies, University of Media, Arts and Communication (UniMAC)

Email: jmanyo@unimac.edu.gh