This module is one of the most important aspects of the course. It is envisaged that it will take about 20 hours. The group exercises vary in length. All of them require some individual input, usually in the form of writing a few points on a sheet of paper or a card. This is followed either by group work or by a plenary discussion. More ambitious individual assignments can also be included. These assignment can build up to the project work to be undertaken by each participant.
Philip Sadler, Leadership, Kogan Paul, London, 2003, p. 2.
The Work of a Leader
What exactly is the work of a leader? Must a leader have a good grasp of what the followers are doing, or is this not necessary? To what extent is the leader responsible for the successes or the failures of the organization? This module is designed to explore some of these questions.
It is pertinent at this point to differentiate between the work of a manager as compared to the work of a leader. What are the differences between leadership and management?
Exercise 3.0
This is an individual written exercise. Participants should be allowed about 15 minutes to write down their ideas. The idea is to provoke each person to think about this topic. Then the course coordinator will ask for about 15 minutes of responses before continuing. Answers need not be comprehensive.
In your view what are the differences between a manager and a leader?
One major difference is that a manager usually works within a well established system, and the challenge is to ensure that this system works smoothly and efficiently. Managers are expected to be highly efficient. A good example is a financial manager who is responsible for making sure that the finances of an organization are carefully managed, so that careless and fraudulent uses of money are avoided. On the other hand a leader may have to create something that didn’t exist before. A leader is a systems builder. When the situation is relatively stable the need to arouse enthusiasm, to energize people, to persuade them to give up cherished ideas and working practices is less than when there is a strong requirement for change, particularly radical change. Management, it seems, is perfectly adequate when things are routine and predictable, but when the organization hits turbulence and uncertainty leadership is called for.
Leadership is also linked to emotional commitment, rather than only to efficiency. Whilst people feel comfortable and happy with an efficient manager, they generally do not feel any emotional attachment to him. However a leader arouses emotions – a leader can be regarded as the “father” or “mother” of the nation, that is almost as a member of the family. A hated leader is generally known as a “ totalitarian dictator”. These are strong emotions. They lead people to act according to their emotions, making enormous sacrifices for a leader they love, and even killing a leader they hate. A manager who is highly efficient and who may have “dictatorial” tendencies, can easily be accepted because the efficiency may lead to better product standards, better living conditions for the workers, higher pay, etc. A manager generally does not arouse strong emotions, and inefficient managers are constantly being replaced, without arousing strong feelings of love or hatred. But a leader who is called a “dictator” has probably lost the emotional support of his followers, however excellent his management skills.
This leads us to the symbolic significance of leadership. Leaders are not only managers, but they also symbolize certain principles and certain critical periods in a country or organization’s history. For example a leader may be seen as representing the poor and the suffering, whereas another leader may be seen as representing the wealthy and the imperialists. Such symbols are particularly potent during elections, where the logo may represent what the people are actually voting for. In a way the symbolism of leadership may be closer to poetry than to the scientific principles of management. The symbolic nature of leadership may be expressed by the following:
• Dress: a leader who is dressed in a three piece pin striped suit symbolizes something different from a leader who is dressed in an African style. A formal dress style symbolizes something different from a very informal dress style. In some situations a leader is despised if she does not dress according to the conventions of the organization, for example women in corporate companies in the West are expected to utilize “power dressing”, which means wearing a suit rather than a frivolous type of dress. Make up can be a part of dress: in some situations and countries a woman without make up is seen as careless of her appearance and probably suffering from depression. In other situations a serious woman would never put on make up, as this immediately down grades her from a professional to a non-professional status.
• The car is a potent symbol of power: some heads of state make a statement of their power through their car and retinue. Other heads of state make a different statement: for example the late President Nyerere of Tanzania always drove in a modest Peugeot, with his security officers following in another Peugeot.
• Life style is also carefully observed as a symbol of the leader’s principles. Some leaders choose to live in palaces, whereas others may choose to live in a simple style. Each one is making a statement.
• Most important of all, leaders are expected to live their values: a leader who claims to be a socialist will be judged by how she lives. A leader who is seen as a king must naturally live in a palace.
One of the problems besetting many organizations is that of “bureaucratism”. Power has many sources, and one source is the position you acquire through being part of a bureaucracy. For example a general acquires certain powers through his position, whereas the director of a research institute acquires very different powers through her position. Most large organizations have hierarchies, and members of the bureaucracy acquire what is known as “position power”, i.e. power that you gain through your position in the organization. Whilst position power is important, how you utilize that power is equally important. Position power can be used bureaucratically, creatively or negatively. “Bureaucratism” is the word we use for bad bureaucracy. Good bureaucracy also exists. It is useful to differentiate clearly between the two.
Bureaucracy is essential when you want to achieve large goals. It is not possible to run an army or a government without a bureaucracy. For example whilst it is possible for an individual to start one or a few schools, it is not possible for 10 000 schools to be set up in a country without some form of bureaucracy. In a school system of 10 000 schools there may be 100 000 teachers. The coordination of the work of these teachers requires a good bureaucracy. A country without a bureaucracy is really a country without a government. An example is Somalia which has not had a government for over a decade: less than 10% of its children are in a primary school. This can be compared to countries with governments in the same region where primary enrolment may have reached over 90% of the children.
A good bureaucracy is a great facilitator of development, setting up systems which allow local communities and companies to flourish. A bureaucracy establishes countrywide systems. A ministry of education could set up syllabuses, help develop textbooks, train teachers, set up standards, and enable parents and local communities to establish schools for all children. Grants can be accessed through the ministry both for recurrent and capital costs.
A bad bureaucracy can be a serious barrier against development. A bad bureaucracy is characterized by negative features such as stopping development, allowing the quality of education to run down, stopping parents and local communities from improving the education of their children, and overall providing education only to a minority. A bad bureaucracy may be characterized by corruption and inefficiencies where the welfare of the clientele is lost; negative power is demonstrated by such inefficiencies as the losing of files, delays in processing and decision making when officials become mere “post offices” which accept documents, send them away, and then return them later, without having any power to do anything.
The leaders within a bureaucracy play an important role in making the difference between a “good” bureaucracy and a “bad” bureaucracy. A good leader keeps in mind the clientele to be served, and can inspire and organize the bureaucracy in such a way that the objectives of the organization are achieved, whereas under a bad leader, the bureaucracy becomes self-serving and the clientele’s needs are forgotten. “Self-serving” means that the bureaucrats work only for pay and for their own benefits, without any regard for the clientele’s needs.
It is often during periods of crisis that great leaders come forward. In general a great leader can respond to the crisis of the moment, and uses the difficulties as an opportunity to take the people to a higher stage of development. People are prepared to follow such a leader because they see a direction out of the crisis, and they are prepared to work and sacrifice in order to reach their goals.
Some of the aspects of the leader’s work are as follows:
1. The leader as visionary
One of the key roles of the leader is as a visionary. This is particularly important in organizations which are changing or which are moving into unknown territory. The leader then is a key figure who embodies the vision of where the organization is going.
In order to perform this role effectively the leader needs to be a good listener, as the vision will come from the desires, aspirations and needs of her would-be followers. If the leader can embody what the people want, she will be accepted as a leader. Thus the formation of the vision is linked to a dialogue with the people, with the leader playing the role of finding ways and means by which the people can attain what they want. The vision entails making a dream into a reality.
However a vision is not just a pipe dream. The leader must have a track record of successful attainment in the past. People are wary of following leaders who may lead them astray, even when the vision is very attractive. Thus the vision is only part of the work of leader: the vision must be supported by other aspects of leadership. A leader must therefore develop the knowledge, skills and experience that will enable her to take a vision from dream to reality.
Exercise 3.1
This is an individual written exercise. Participants should be allowed about 15 minutes to write down their ideas. These ideas can then be utilized for the strategic plan and for the group exercises.
What is the vision of your organization? How was this vision formed? How practical is this vision?
2. The leader as strategist
People depend very heavily on leaders to develop strategies which can lead them to achieve the goals they have in mind. Strategies can be divided into short term strategies, usually known as “tactics” and long term strategies. Tactics can lead to immediate gains, but there is a well known adage that “you can win the battle and lose the war”. Strategies are aimed at more long term gains.
A leader needs to develop skills as a strategist, finding ways and means to achieve the objectives of the organization and its members. The formation of strategies is a complex process, involving sound and detailed knowledge of the area of operation; study of the strategies which have worked in the past as well as those which have failed; knowledge and analysis of the situation and the times as challenges offer new opportunities; knowledge of the people and the resources which can be harnessed to achieve the objectives; and most important of all the processes through which the organization should move in order to attain its objectives.
Perhaps the clearest example is military strategy. If the strategist is bad, her army can be decimated. If the strategist is good, her army may win even when it is smaller and less equipped than the enemy’s army. An industrial or commercial company will also have its own strategies which are specific to its domain. An educational institution will necessarily have different strategies from a military institution.
One of the important skills as a strategist is to link short term tactics to long term strategies. Short term tactics are very important as no one is prepared to follow you if you have nothing to show for it almost immediately. You need to work out what can be achieved relatively easily within a short space of time, usually with very little money. There are always some aspects of development which can be achieved relatively quickly and painlessly. Choose the easier challenges first, and the harder ones later. Choosing challenges which are very difficult to achieve before you have experienced any success may be a sure recipe for failure. This is usually what happens with students and with inexperienced leaders, who have never tasted either success or failure: they usually overestimate the possibilities of success and underestimate the difficulties. Or alternatively, they may think that what is easy is difficult, and what is difficult is easy. It is only through reality testing that it is possible to find out what you as a leader, and your organization, are really capable of. It is essential to build up substantial support through a history of success.
A strategy takes into account a number of factors. Some of these are:
• What are the resources at your disposal in terms of people, physical and financial resources? Of these the most important must be people resources, whether this is in terms of volunteers and supporters, or in terms of staff.
• How dedicated are the personnel? Can they really fully participate in the implementation of the programme? Do you need volunteers or full time staff?
• What type of people, with what type of skills and experiences, are needed as volunteers? As full time staff?
• What is the time frame? Is it possible to have some immediate success, as of course success brings about more success. It may be possible to identify some immediate and short term gains that can be achieved without too much money for example, because many organizations begin with very little money. Moreover people are not prepared to give money to an organization which doesn’t have a proven track record, so it is important to make some immediate gains. However it is also important to work out the medium and longer term gains, and to chart the path through which these achievements will be made. It is important to identify some of the benchmarks or milestones that will enable you to measure what you have achieved at each stage. Unless long term goals and plans are kept in mind it is possible for an organization to follow ad hoc short term goals which in the end do not contribute to the long term vision. A successful strategy should therefore link up short term goals to long term goals in a series of steps.
• How would you make your objectives and your achievements known, as this information may be critically important for gaining more support.
Exercise 3.2
As an immediate 10 minute individual exercise, write down what immediate short term tactics you can utilize to achieve your vision.
For homework, participants will 2 – 3 hours to do a rough strategy. This can be scheduled into the workshop. Having identified your vision and mission, work out (a) a short term strategy for realizing your vision; and (b) a long term strategy. How do the different strategies fit into each other? How long is the short term strategy? How long is the long term strategy?
The coordinator can utilize a matrix to guide the participants. See Appendix for an example of a matrix done by Rose Mercer of the Women’s University in Africa (WUA) in Zimbabwe.
3. The leader as systems builder
In certain situations the system is already in place, and the leader’s task is to ensure that the system works well. However, in some situations, particularly in a period of change, it may be necessary to create and build new systems.
A system consists firstly of the culture, values, norms and objectives of the organization, probably supported by laws and regulations. The leader’s first task is to ensure that everyone shares certain agreed upon values and goals. Once this is assured then the task is to build a system which will enable these values and goals to be achieved. The system you build will vary according to the nature of the task. A military system will differ from a religious system. An accounting system is different from an economic growth system. Each area has some well known models. These models can be adapted to fit specific local and national conditions. Moreover new systems are also created from time to time. Systems building is based on knowledge combined with practical experience.
Systems tend to be very long lived, and one of the problems we face is when we try to do new things using old systems, literally putting new wine into old bottles and causing the bottles to burst! An example is the colonial system: even after Independence we may find that many aspects of the inherited colonial system still survive. The colonial economy, for example, based on the production of primary products in the colonies, has survived several decades after Independence. Few African countries have managed to move from primary production to industrial manufacturing or to the knowledge economy. The feudal system is also very robust in many countries: it may be difficult to build an industrial economy based on a feudal social, political and economic system for example.
Because the old systems are tried and tested, it is important to know them well, so that you can judge which aspects of these systems can still be utilized. Even a totally new system may have some aspects and frameworks which are already familiar to people. Also by knowing the old system well you can see whether it is possible to adjust aspects of the old system, or whether it is possible to devise a completely new system. Most leaders work within old systems, but are able to introduce adjustments and changes which are recognized as important.
It is not easy to have a completely new system: people tend to cling to old and familiar systems. However, in times of crisis, when it is clear that the old systems don’t work, people may be prepared to change. Therefore crises are an opportunity for change. An example of a crisis is the Second World War, which propelled women from the home into the factories. The total destruction of Germany and Japan during this war enabled these two countries to come out with totally new systems of government, land ownership, industrialization, education, human relations, etc.
Does your system allow for good career prospects within your organization? What are the sister organizations with whom you can work? Are their roles complementary? Do you link up with sister organizations which can work together with you to advance the career prospects of individual members of staff? Do you have a training programme to help your staff to advance themselves?
Exercise 3.3
This begins as an individual exercise, where each person spends about 15 minutes writing down her ideas. This is then followed by group work for 1 hour, the groups being divided according to discipline, e.g. church, education, police, civil service, etc. Each group will then make a brief 5 minute report to the plenary. The plenary should last about 30 minutes.
Analyze a system that you know well, e.g. your church system, your educational system, or your place of work. The following framework may help:
- Underlying culture and values
- Situation analysis – what is needed, and what do people want? Are people’s aspirations realistic or feasible? Are they too narrow and limited? Can these aspirations be achieved through the existing system or not?
- Vision, aims and objectives
- Planning and decision-making systems – how do you make a needs assessment? Who plans and how? Who makes decisions and how?
- Groups and meetings: how are relationships built up?
- Rewards and punishment
- Daily, weekly and monthly routines
- Monitoring and evaluation system
4. Having the right knowledge
Leaders generally need a lot of knowledge. Whilst technical competence and knowledge are not in themselves sufficient to make a person a leader, it is important that you have sufficient know how to understand and control what is happening in an organization. For example if you are a leader in an engineering project, you must know enough to be able to manage the engineers and technicians working on the project. Leadership of an engineering concern will be different from leadership of a hotel or a hospital or school.
However great leaders are not necessarily the people with the highest level of knowledge and skills in their discipline. Many great leaders were not great academically. Academics are often reputed to know all the theory, but may be unable to put this theory into practice. In fact many brilliant experts may not be able to perform as outstanding leaders because their area of interest may be too narrowly focused on their specialist fields. Nevertheless competent leaders must know their area well enough to manage people who may have greater expertise and experience than themselves. A competent leader must also know the potential as well as the limitations of the specialization. A leader must therefore have the relevant knowledge of technologies, markets and people for the job.
Leadership requires practical implementation as well as theory. Thus it is important for a leader to constantly try and put knowledge into practice.
Exercise 3.4
This begins as an individual exercise, with each participant taking the area of her work, and listing on a piece of paper or card 3 areas of knowledge that are essential for a leader in this area to have. This should take about 10 minutes. Some of the areas could include:
a) police leader
b) army leader
c) education leader
d) medical leader
e) hotel and tourism leader
f) religious leader
This is followed by a plenary session where the course coordinator places the points under different headings such as:
• types of knowledge and skills common to all leaders irrespective of their area of specialization
• types of knowledge and skills required for specific disciplines
The plenary session could take about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
5. Respecting culture, processes and professional autonomy
Leadership depends on the type of people and the type of groups you are trying to lead. Leading peasant farmers may require different knowledge, skills and experiences from leading university professors. Leading a political party may require different knowledge, skills and experiences from leading a business enterprise. Moreover people do not start as blank slates: they bring with them their expectations, their aspirations, their culture and their experiences. What they expect of leadership may, to some extent, already be well developed. A new leader must either conform to the people’s expectations, or must be able to break through to persuade them to follow new forms of leadership.
A good example is when a society is transforming from a traditional, village based economy to a modern, industrialized, city based economy. This has proved to be a painful transition for almost all societies, with stories of luddites destroying factories and machinery and former peasants being subjected to inhuman treatment in the newly established factories. The industrial revolution in Britain brought with it many new leaders, whether these were technological leaders or social leaders devoted to the welfare of the new factory workers. Whilst the old leaders survived in terms of the aristocracy, their roles became more limited, with the new leaders taking control of the economy to a large extent. The key to change has often been a cataclysmic event such as the Second World War which forced all British men to become soldiers, whilst British women had to start working in factories. The liberation struggle for Zimbabwe saw some women assuming leadership roles out of necessity, and for some of them this translated into new possibilities after Independence. Similar patterns can be traced in other countries which have industrialized, such as Japan, South Korea, and South Africa.
Cultures are dynamic, with vibrant cultures being able to respond to new challenges and new value systems. A study of most cultures shows many forms of adaptation. At the same time some aspects of culture may be “sticky”, i.e. survive through many centuries, and remain of critical importance to the people. What is “sticky” and what changes differ from society to society. For example many East Asian countries were able to adopt modern technologies, but managed to retain their religious and cultural heritages intact. Japan is a good example of this. In contrast many African countries have adopted Western culture such as religion, music and dress, but were not able to adopt Western technologies.
One of the key changes over the last two or three decades in almost all societies has been the position of women. Whereas women almost everywhere were expected to stay at home and look after the children a century ago, today most modern women are able to follow a career. Not so long ago, women could not open a bank account or own property on her own account. Whilst this is still so in some societies, it has changed in most societies.
Not only must a leader be aware of cultural factors in order to adhere to them or to change them, but she must also be aware of the processes through which leadership and change can take place. In some societies democratic study, discussion, and decision-making are essential, such as through the study circles in Sweden. In other societies, winning the support of key figures within the society is sufficient: for example in many traditional societies the religious leaders have retained a large following, and people go to such leaders when they have personal problems as well as when they want political advice. In such societies, getting the religious leaders to support your innovation can be the key to success. In Guinea the key to expanding girls’ education was when the Muslim religious leaders, the mullahs, preached in the mosques that it was the essential religious duty of every father to educate his daughters. In Senegal the low rate of HIV/AIDS infection is credited, in some part, to the powers of the mullahs, who apply social sanctions against men who bring sexually transmitted diseases into their families. Men are therefore very careful that they do not lose their social status, which happens if their wives report them to the mullah. It is therefore essential to understand what factors will influence opinion making within a society.
Dealing with professionals may differ from dealing with religious devotees. Professionals usually demand professional autonomy, which means they need to participate in the decisions which affect their professional work. This is a very important factor for a leader of a professional body of any sort. Selznik (1957), quoted in Sadler (2003) has drawn attention to important differences between leadership at lower levels, which he refers to as interpersonal leadership, and the kind which takes place in the higher echelons of large organizations, which he terms institutional leadership. Whereas the task of the former is primarily to achieve routine tasks and to facilitate person involvement and group working, the role of the latter lies mainly in the field of developing and maintaining systems of beliefs and values. The institution’s leader deals with issues in terms of their long-range implications for the organization. His or her major functions are to define policy, to build the kind of social structure which will put that policy into effect, and to maintain the values which will ensure its continuity. At this level of functioning the true contribution of the leader may be made in the course of two or three critical decisions in a year.
Exercise 3.5
This begins as an individual written exercise that should take about 15 minutes. Each participant writes on a piece of paper or card 3 points for each of the following headings.
Define some of the cultural features of your organization, including
• Values and behavioural norms
• Procedures for decision making
• Degree of professional autonomy required versus the degree of structure in place
How much do you conform to these and how far would you vary from them? Is the question of professional autonomy relevant or not?
The course coordinator then organizes the points under the headings.
6. Problem solving, delegation of authority and empowerment of participants
A leader is seen as the main problem solver in an organization. However it is important not to allow leadership to become a constant fire-fighting exercise. Instead most problems can be foreseen, and plans can be made beforehand about how to handle these problems. Decision making can then be delegated lower down in the organization. The top leadership, such as the director or the executive board, should only need to make 2 or 3 major decisions in a year.
Delegation of authority is one of the most important tasks of a leader. Generally the decision should be delegated to the lowest level where such a decision can be handled efficiently and comfortably. When decisions are neglected, delayed, or made at the wrong level, the organization becomes more inefficient and can become ineffective and bureaucratic. When minor and routine decisions come to the top, the top leader or leaders will have no time to deal with really serious decisions. On the other hand, giving critically important decisions to lower level personnel may spell disaster for an organization. For example if a clerk is given the power to make budget cuts for an organization, he may paralyze the organization, as he may make cuts in ways that make the organization inoperable. He may be loathe to cut staff, or may even increase the number of staff, as he will be concerned with creating more jobs. And he may cut all operations, with the result that you will have lots of staff, but they do not have any funds to do any work. Having a lot of staff who cannot do any work is a recipe for disaster, yet this is quite a common phenomenon in many countries and organizations. Similarly if decisions on the selection of professional staff are given to non-professionals you may very well find that the person employed to do the engineering job knows little or nothing about engineering.
Routine decisions should be delegated to the different levels of the organization, with the level above and below being responsible for checking up. The top leadership should concentrate on decisions which deal with new challenges and which may have wide ranging and profound effects on the organization. The top leadership may only need to make two or three decisions in a year, whereas middle and lower level leaders may be making many decisions on a daily basis.
One of the challenges of leadership is how to empower participants, by increasing their professional abilities and by giving them decision making powers. However the types of decisions must be clearly defined, otherwise there is danger that the organization will descend into chaos, with different parts of the organization making different and contradictory decisions.
An example of how decision making can be decentralized is the decentralization of the budget. An institution that has a budget of say $10 million dollars could divide this into budget lines, with different decision making processes for different budget lines. Generally about half the budget may go to salaries, and this may be disbursed directly into the bank accounts of the staff. The fewer people handling the money the safer it will be. About 10% is usually retained for administration, such as travel, electricity, water, stationery, telephones, etc. The rest is allocated to operational and programme implementation areas, with each department having some autonomy. Imagine that the institution has 10 departments, and these have varying operations, some requiring more money than others. A decision would be made at the planning stage as to how much each department will have. Financial control for the budget lines needs to be decided beforehand in order to ensure that although the decision-making is decentralized, it is difficult if not impossible to defraud the organization or abuse the utilization of funds. A good system would enable the organization to know within 30 days if funds have been misused. An example of a good control system is as follows:
a) The amount of funds allocated for the project is agreed upon, and the amounts for each activity is also agreed upon
b) An officer in the department requests disbursement of funds according to the financial plan and according to the agreed procedure. For example two officers in the department certify that they have checked the pro-formas and agreed on the purchase from a particular company. Or if the disbursement is to a project, then two officers will visit the project, attach the report on the visit, and sign that they agreed to the disbursement. Usually there’s a form to be filled in and sent to the head of department.
c) This form is signed by her head of department, and the accounts department then pays for the purchase.
The whole procedure involves 3 or 4 people, and does not need to go to the director of the institution. However new and large disbursements may need to get authority not only from the director, but perhaps also from the executive board of the organization.
One reason for the decentralization of power is the fact that sound decision making depends on specialized knowledge and experience, and it is not possible for a centralized authority to have the hands-on knowledge and experience to make the correct decisions for every situation. Today there is far too much knowledge for it to be grasped by any one person. Moreover that knowledge needs to be applied to different local situations, such that it is impossible for any one person to know the real situation and needs of different localities.
Exercise 3.6
This begins as an individual exercise and should take about 15 minutes. This is followed by a plenary discussion where the points are organized under different headings by the coordinator. The plenary discussion should last about 45 minutes.
What are the routine problems faced in your work? Can decision making in these routine areas be decentralized, and to whom at what level? How do you check up on how these decisions have worked?
What are the new challenges facing your organization, and what new types of decision are required? How is decision making decentralized in your organization?
Organizational framework:
• Routine decisions and levels of delegation
• Major decisions which may affect the whole organization and how they are made
7. Fairness and justice
In order to win and retain trust the leader must be known to be fair and just, never showing favouritism on the one hand or persecuting an individual unjustly on the other hand. This means the rules of the game must be clear, so that every member of the organization understands what is required for the organization to succeed, and what is harmful to the organization.
The leader’s judgement is of critical importance. The leader’s judgement includes what is needed to move the organization forward, whilst at the same time promoting the welfare of the individuals within the organization.
The leader also controls incentives and disincentives, i.e. the carrot and stick. Incentives include not only pay, but also job satisfaction, collegial support, and professional improvement. Disincentives include low pay, poor human relations, low job satisfaction, enmity and hostility within the organization, and lack of professional satisfaction. Generally incentives are better than punishment, although of course every organization has its forms of punishment whether this consists of censure or dismissal.
The leader must strike a good balance between friendliness to employees, and being able to keep a distance from them. Lack of friendliness leads to an unpleasant work place atmosphere. On the other hand over-friendliness can be seen as compromising, as it may be difficult to judge the performance of your friends objectively, particularly if you have built up a dependency on them.
Exercise 3.7
This begins as an individual exercise where each individual writes down 3 points. This should take about 10 minutes.
Is your organization a good employer? What are the characteristics of a good employer? How would you ensure that your organization treats its workers fairly and justly? How do you ensure that you treat your employees fairly and justly? How do you balance the needs of the clientele versus the needs of the workers?
After this has been done there is a plenary discussion, and the different points are organized under headings such as:
• Employment policies
• Codes of conduct for employer and employees
• Institutions which support and protect the workers
• Institutions which support and protect the clientele
8. Conflict resolution
Conflict is common and natural in any organization, and it is essential to work out ways in which such conflicts can be peacefully resolved. Serious conflicts can lead not only to low morale and disruption of the work, but even to the destruction of an organization. It is therefore essential that conflict resolution systems are in place in every organization, and that leaders develop conflict resolution skills.
Conflict can also be seen as an opportunity for change and growth. For example teenagers often rebel against their parents, but this conflict is generally the way in which a teenager works out how far she will agree with her parents, and how far she will differ from them: it is a way of charting her own independence, and this is part of growing up from a child to an adult. This is also true in organizations. As an organization grows and changes, conflict is inevitable. How this conflict is managed is crucial.
One foundation for conflict resolution is to find some common ground on which all parties agree. The vision of an organization can provide such a common ground. The tenets of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (1948) can also form a common ground for disparate political groups for example. It is always possible to find some common areas of agreement, such as national interests for political parties that are in conflict, or the interests of the children in the case of a divorcing couple. Conflict resolution requires the finding or the creation of some common ground.
Having found some common ground for agreement, the two parties must be led to minimize or even ignore the areas of disagreement. For example if the agreement is that the area should have a clean water supply, then all other differences (such as ethnic rivalries, class conflict, business rivalries, etc.) could be put aside in order to implement the clean water supply programme. Thus all parties can be persuaded to work together to achieve a specific and narrow goal. Once success is achieved in this narrow area, it is possible that the different groups can find other common projects to work on.
It is also important to remember that individual negotiators don’t just represent themselves, but may be representing a constituency. For example trade union leaders don’t just represent themselves, but all the workers under them. Similarly a manager doesn’t just represent herself, but the whole company of shareholders as well as clients. The interests of these two negotiating teams are naturally conflictual, as workers may want to maximize salaries and benefits, whereas managers may want to maximize profits and client satisfaction. Moreover a trade union leader who is too friendly with the employers and the management will be seen as a “sell-out” by her constituency: it is part of her job not to be too much under the control of the employer and manager. However if she is too conflictual, she will damage the organization as a whole, and destroy the interests of the workers as they lose market competitiveness and lose their jobs.
It is important to establish both formal and informal ways to bring the two sides together. Formal conflict resolution routes include regular negotiations within certain agreed upon parameters. Informal conflict resolution mechanisms may include sharing social gatherings, such as a cafeteria or tea room, where the conflicting groups can meet on a regular basis. Sporting activities and social clubs can also provide such an outlet. A firm can build up team loyalty despite in-built conflicts through social gatherings.
Exercise 3.8
Each individual to write down what conflicts have arisen in her work in the last month and how they were resolved. This should take 10 minutes. This is followed by group work where each individual describes how her conflict ended, either in successful resolution or in further conflict. The group will then make a list of 5 important tactics for conflict resolution derived from the examples given by their members. This exercise should take 1 hour. Each group will then report their findings to the plenary, taking a further 30 minutes.
9. Negotiating skills
Because leaders work with people all the time, whether these people are from within their own organization or come from different organizations, it is essential for them to learn how to negotiate. Negotiating skills involve being able to arrange matters to the satisfaction of everyone. They involve overcoming whatever difficulties there may be hindering agreement. They involve building up agreement and consensus.
Negotiation requires a clear picture of what you want to gain from the other party, whilst at the same time keeping in mind what you are prepared to give up in return. The ideal situation is the “win-win” situation where all groups win by working together. Of course the opposite is the “lose-lose” situation where everybody loses. Negotiation should lead to a situation where everyone feels that he or she has gained something substantial, although he or she may have had to give up something that they consider less important in return.
Negotiations need to take place in a situation of friendship and trust. It is for this reason that negotiations nearly always require the two negotiating parties to meet together socially, for example at cocktails or dinners. Through this social interaction people get to know each other better, and feel more comfortable with each other. Eating together is a way of building up camaraderie. Friendship and trust also require time to build up. This means that a leader must take time to build up linkages with potential negotiating partners. Agreement is easy between people who know and trust each other.
It is also essential to know the organization with which you are negotiating well, so that you have a good picture of what it is really able to deliver. This entails knowing the culture, technologies, management and decision making systems of the organization, as well as its track record. Knowing such details means a lot of homework must be done. Failure to do this homework can lead to disastrous mistakes, for example being taken in by smooth talking confidence tricksters.
Negotiating also requires strategy. For example if you know that your opponent has a deadline to meet, you can use this knowledge to delay agreement till the last minute, so ensuring that you get the best deal. If you know who are the decision makers in the your opponent’s team, you can lobby them individually before the formal negotiations, usually by inviting them to lunch or dinner, and by asking their advice. If you build up a good relationship with the individual decision maker and his or her constituency, you can use this to build up consensus in support of what you want.
Exercise 3.9
This is an exercise on negotiation, with each team consisting of 2 participants, with each member of the team representing an opposed interest group. The team members will keep individual notes of their tactics and arguments. The group exercise should last one hour, followed by a 30 minute plenary.
(a) Negotiations between an employer and a trade union leader on pay and conditions of service
(b) Negotiations between mother and daughter on late night clubbing habits of the daughter
(c) Negotiations between university authorities and students over a student strike against any issue that students choose to protest against
Each team will make a 5 minute report to the plenary session.
10. Forming different groups for different purposes – team building
One of the most important work of leaders is the formation of groups. These groups can be called committees, councils, associations, clubs, forums, etc. Groups are formed for different purposes, very often as effective ways of carrying out the mission of the organization. Since a leader is primarily a leader of people, she will need to understand how to form groups, and how different groups can serve different purposes more effectively. In other words one of the most important leadership tasks is that of team building.
One important consideration is group size, as size can affect function. Generally a small group of say five to a dozen people is best for real decision making, as it is possible for such a group to participate fully in the decision making processes.
However such a small group will not be representative of the full range of opinions, skills and experiences required in an organization, so when it is necessary to gather information, share information, or deal with tasks which require many different types of skills and experiences, it is necessary to have a larger group. A group of twenty to thirty people may be better for such a purpose. An even larger group, say hundreds of people, may serve different purposes, for example to rally public opinion or to create unity of purpose. A church congregation may consist of hundreds or even thousands of people: they generally do not make decisions, but participate in a ritual which unites them together. Large groups may be a good way of disseminating information or gaining support for decisions that have already been made: in this case the more the better. Large groups may also be ways of testing public opinion. Thus in forming a group you need to decide first what is the purpose of that group before deciding how to go about it.
One danger is bureaucratization through groups, resulting in the organization having endless meetings, but without achieving much. Having too many committees, with overlapping terms of reference can slow down decision making as well as create unnecessary rivalries and conflict. The meetings can become an end in themselves. Moreover certain group formations can be counterproductive, for example trying to do decision making with a very large and inchoate group. Such inappropriate group formations can then lead to more conflict rather than to effective decision making.
One function of groups is to protect the organization from over-individualized use and abuse of power and from autocratic decision making. For example most organizations have boards or councils to provide policy direction and to protect the organization from giving too much power to the chief executive. The board or council is more broadly representative, and usually has the power to appoint and sack the senior staff. They thus also carry out a monitoring and evaluation function.
Since one of the main tasks of a leader is team building, it is essential to learn the skills of team building. Sports teams are the most obvious examples of team work, where different members of the team have different but complementary functions. By working together the team wins. Team building includes some of the following actions:
• Building up a shared set of values and norms – everyone should agree on why they belong to this team. This depends on the vision and mission of the institution. If the institutional aim is to make a profit, this will be very different from an institution which is aimed at providing a service. For example cleaning a city may be a service rather than a profit making enterprise.
• Specifiying the task. In this regard it is useful to narrow down the areas of function to specifics for each group or team. For example the building committee would concentrate on matters related to buildings, of course within the context of the vision and mission of the organization as a whole. The mathematics panel will concentrate on how to ensure that school children are taught good mathematics, and its team members will be mathematics specialists, practitioners, teacher educators, etc.
• Enabling the team to get to know each other. It is virtually impossible for people to work as a team if they don’t know each other. Many institutions organize a “retreat” where members of the team go to an isolated location and live and work together on specific tasks for a week. Such a retreat enables the team to get to know each other socially as well as professionally. Other ways of team building may include regular professional meetings, say weekly, monthly or quarterly, as required. Social gatherings are also held on a regular basis. It is a good idea to organize a common place for lunch for example, enabling members of the team to chat together on an informal basis. Staff picnics and outings also serve the function of team building.
• Working out team tasks, with benchmarks and recognition of achievements. Individuals within the team contribute according to their specialized skills. Different teams within the organization can compete with each other in terms of achievements, speed and quality.
Exercise 3.10
This is a group discussion exercise with each group concentrating on a different aspect of group and team formation. Each group will come up with the 5 most important points of their discussion to present to the plenary. The group work will take 1 hour and the plenary discussion 30 minutes.
(a) What type of group formations exist in your organization? How often do they meet? What are the purposes of these groups, and how effective are they at achieving their purposes?
(b) Work out the strategies for team building of a football team.
(c) Work out the strategies for establishing a board of directors for an NGO working on HIV/AIDS education. In addition work out the profile of the team that such an NGO should employ and how to build this team up.
(d) Work out the strategies for team building in your specific organization.
11. Knowing the right people – creating leadership networks
A leader is primarily a leader of people. Whether a leader is an ideas person or an organizer, her main work is with people. One of the most important attributes of a leader is her ability to create and participate in leadership networks. Such networks can greatly facilitate the work of an organization. By linking up with similar or complementary organizations, a leader can facilitate the exchanges of resources and experiences more effectively. Networks can also help to minimize problems, and to share both successful and unsuccessful experiences.
Leadership networks exist in every society. Networks can be formal or informal. Formal networks take the form of associations, societies, clubs, churches, etc., whereas informal networks take the form of sports clubs, bars, and other places of relaxation. People belong to such clubs in order to meet people with whom they can form friendships and associations. Social ties can help to cement professional linkages as well. A formal network, such as a church, could become an informal network, say of business people who belong to the same church. Belonging to the same church may provide the basis of trust on which the business relationship is built. Most leaders belong to certain well known institutions, such as churches, associations and clubs, which enable them to meet regularly to discuss issues often in an informal way. These informal meetings help to build up mutual understanding and trust. People get to know each other’s characters, and form friendships which in turn strengthen their organizations.
Informal lunches and dinners are opportunities to strengthen such networks.
Exercise 3.11
This begins as an individual exercise, which is then followed by a plenary discussion where individual points are organized by the coordinator under different headings. The individual exercise should take about 10 minutes and the plenary about 30 minutes.
(a) Give examples of networks that you belong to
(b) How can you strengthen your networks
(c) How do you start a new network?
12. Walk the talk
“Walk the talk” refers to the habit of good leaders to know every part of their institution, not only on paper, but physically, and to know the members of their organization individually. For example a hospital manager will know every part of the hospital because she will make it her business to visit every part on a regular basis. She will know what work is being done, by whom, what problems are being faced, and how these challenges are being overcome. She will get to know members of her team on an individual basis. She will be seen by her people. People will know that she is interested in what they are doing, in their problems and their achievements. It is important to allocate some time for this on a regular basis. Some leaders do it for one hour every day. Others allocate one day a week, whereas others may devote a few days a month to the task.
For large organizations this can only be done on a sampling basis. For example if your organization employs 100 000 people and has 25 departments, you will have to be judicious about how you physically visit them.
Moreover, when people know that the leader will visit them regularly, they are more likely to ensure that they perform well, as she may visit them at any time.
Exercise 3.12
Take about 10 minutes for this individual written exercise. This followed by a brief plenary discussion of about 45 minutes. It is an opportunity for sharing of experiences.
How often do you physically visit every department of the organization? What do you do on such visits? What do you aim to achieve through such visits?
13. Creating unity of mind, unity of purpose, unity of strategy
People generally have different ideas and opinions on almost any subject. One of the most important tasks of a leader is to build up unity of mind, unity of purpose and unity of strategy out of this disunity. This is one of the most challenging tasks of the leader. The powers of persuasion of the leader are important.
However it is not only the individual leader’s eloquence that matters. Very often a leader represents a constituency, and she becomes a spokesperson for that constituency. Her strength is not only an inner and personal strength, but comes from the people she represents. Thus the unity of mind and of purpose may already be there within the constituency, and it is the leader’s task to voice this unity. For example in some countries feudal laws still pertain which forbid any property ownership by women. It may be that the majority of women already oppose these feudal laws, and a leader who arises for this group already has a well developed unity of mind and unity of purpose which she can build upon. When such unity already exists, the leader’s job may be to strategize, rather than only to voice their views.
Most leaders have to devote a lot of their time to building up unity. This requires a great deal of skill. Some of the work could depend on communications skills: the ability to build up opinions through the use of speech, actions, mass media, drama, etc. It is for this reason that the media can become a battle ground for political power or for purchasing power through advertisements.
History is another important way of creating unity, particularly for those seeking political power. History is used as a foundation for uniting, for example in wars of resistance against foreign domination or imperialism, where the history of oppression and resistance becomes a critically important way of justifying a liberation struggle.
A leader can build up unity by spending time with people, listening to them, discussing possibilities with them, and respecting their views. For example having a weekly or fortnightly meeting with a group just for an hour can be sufficient to build up a good level of understanding and trust, keeping in mind that trust is all important in leadership.
Shared experiences can also be a foundation for unity. People who have participated in some experiences or who have worked together are more likely to be united than people who don’t know each other. Leaders can actually utilize this by providing opportunities for shared experiences, for example by organizing some voluntary projects, such as a street clean up project, or developing a play group for the local children.
Religion has been used as a uniting force, where certain shared beliefs and values join people together. The shared values and norms common in a religion form the basis for people working together. Sometimes ideology and philosophy play a similar role to religion in terms of providing a common basis of values and norms for unity. Political parties are based on certain shared values and objectives. Professional associations and trade unions are also based on shared interests and objectives.
One way of building up unity is to be task focused. For example if the task is to ensure that everyone gets a clean water supply, a leader can build up community support for such a programme. If the leader achieves some degree of success in this community project, she is likely to win the confidence of the community. By being focused on a narrow area on which it is fairly easy to build up consensus, it is possible to build up unity of mind, of purpose and of strategy. By limiting the area on which agreement is required a leader can slowly build up greater unity.
Finally people will be interested in their own future and that of their children. This is what they expect from their leaders: direction as to what they can do to improve their future. People need hope. A leader must be able to show there is a light at the end of the tunnel. It is important to remember that a leader is not only an intellectual and conceptual leader, but also an emotional leader. Bringing hope is an example of emotional leadership, although this hope will need to be supported by technical and practical supports if it is to be realized.
Exercise 3.13
Each participant writes down 3 points on unity and disunity. This takes about 10 minutes. This is followed by a plenary where coordinator asks participants to give their ideas, and organizes them into two columns: unity and disunity.
What unites people in your organization? How can you increase this unity?
What disunites people in your organization? How can you decrease this disunity?
14. Nurturing individual growth and empowering others
A leader is a builder of people. The team will expect the leader to help them build up not only the team as a whole, but also their individual skills and experiences. They see the team leader as someone who can help them hone their professional skills, and so advance their career prospects. This is particularly true of younger members of the team. Older and more experienced members of the team will expect the organization to recognize and utilize their knowledge, skills and experiences, and to allow them to contribute to the advancement of the work.
This entails the leader taking the trouble to get to know her team, their existing abilities and experiences, and their potential for growth. Once this is done, it is possible to devise ways in which that individual can grow within the organization. Growth can be in the form of formal and informal training. However most of the time it is through the work challenges that individuals are able to grow.
In large organizations it is quite impossible for the top leader to know everyone. Nevertheless she can put into place systems which will allow professional growth within the whole system and for all individuals. Study leave systems, recognition and reward for specific achievements, and opportunities for staff to show initiative and creativity can be factored into an organization.
Exercise 3.14
Each participant to write down 3 points. This takes about 10 minutes. This is followed by a plenary discussion where participants provide their points to the coordinator. The points can be organized in some form of order.
What do you do to build up individuals in your organization? How can this be enhanced?
15. Morale building
One of the characteristics of a successful organization is the high morale of its staff. High morale means however difficult the task, the people enjoy the challenge. They enjoy working together, and belonging to the team. One of the most important tasks a leader faces is that of building high morale within the institution. The issue of morale brings into focus the role of the leader in emotional terms. The good leader is able to engage her followers emotionally so that everyone feels energized and inspired to work hard despite the difficulties they face everyday. An example is how freedom fighters continue to struggle against all odds, going through endless hardships and receiving no pay, and yet continuing to remain committed to the principles of the liberation struggle. They do not see themselves as mercenaries fighting for money, but as freedom fighters fighting for the liberation of their countries.
Morale has more to do with emotional strength and equilibrium than with technical skills. A leader must therefore become skilled in gauging and strengthening the emotional intelligence (EI) of the staff as a whole.
How do you build good morale? Here are some suggestions:
• Take a personal and real interest in the welfare and needs of the staff. You need to share both good times and problems together. You should treat your staff with consideration. Some organizations build up emotional commitment by placing emphasis on the vision and mission, and ensuring that everyone in the organization works towards the fulfilment of the vision and mission. For example the drivers in a vaccination campaign can participate fully in the programme, and see that their work of driving contributes to the saving of lives. They are not just drivers, but play a critically important role in enabling the organization to fulfil its mission of vaccinating all children and so preventing polio for example.
• Establish good relations with the staff through both formal and informal means. Formally means through meetings about work. Informally means by chatting, eating and drinking with them in the cafeteria, or playing in a sports team with them. Does the leader really know the problems being faced by the workers at home, such as the living conditions of the workers, whether they have enough food, whether medical facilities are adequate, what tragedies and triumphs individual workers have faced, etc. When the leader participates in an important social event of the workers, for example weddings in Japan or funerals in Africa, it demonstrates to the society how much the leader cares about the workers.
• Build up a good corps d’esprit. Workers should feel proud of being a member of the organization. Everybody should feel she has an important part to play in the organization.
• Some physical symbols can help to build morale. Some organizations do this by having uniforms which its members are proud to wear. Other organizations may provide some recognition of good work done, in terms of special medals or parties held to honour certain workers.
• Workers may appreciate benefits such as a nursery school for young children, the payment of school fees, car and housing grants or loans, etc.
• Organize some office outings which bring the staff and their families together to enjoy themselves from time to time.
• Leaders must develop some skills in sharing emotions with their followers. Some leaders learn to make jokes, which enable the group to laugh together. A joke may be a way of dissipating tensions, and enabling the group to go forward even after a difficult time. Joking can be regarded as an important skill. Being able to sing together may be another way of strengthening emotional unity. This is commonly seen in churches, football matches and political rallies, all of which have the intention of uniting people emotionally.
• Keep in mind the symbolic nature of leadership. When your people are suffering you should not be seen enjoying yourself: instead you should be seen as sharing in their suffering. On the other hand when people are celebrating, for example your country’s team has won an international football match, you should also be seen as celebrating.
Exercise 3.15
Each participant to write down a few points. This is followed by a plenary discussion which allows everyone to share their experiences.
How good is morale in your organization? Could it be improved and how would you go about it?
16. Checking on achievements and overcoming weaknesses
One of the most important tasks of the leader is to constantly check on the achievements as well as the weaknesses and mistakes of the organization, because it is only in this way that the leader and her organization can improve. Self-criticism is much better than waiting for criticism to come from outside. Self-criticism is also a very important antidote against complacency, corruption and back-sliding. By scheduling specific periods for self-criticism within every organization, a leader can check on how the organization is progressing, and can then take remedial actions if this is necessary, or undertake more challenging tasks if the organization has already achieved its earlier goals. In this way the leader will always be in touch with the people she is leading.
How do you check on achievements and weaknesses? Here are some suggestions:
• Leave yourself some time to evaluate your own performance by yourself. Be brutally honest in enumerating your strengths and your weaknesses, your achievements and your failures. Look at how you can improve your strengths and overcome your weaknesses. You should do this regularly.
• Hold a retreat with your key decision makers where you can dissect the strengths and weaknesses of your organization and its work. This should be critical but friendly. Nothing is to be gained by angry recriminations. Instead all should be united in finding feasible solutions.
• Hold meetings with all your staff if you are a small organization or with larger numbers from time to time, say once every quarter, in order to share your views with them and also to hear their views. Such meetings can be very enlightening, and are a good way of keeping in touch with the grassroots.
• Have scheduled monitoring and evaluation programmes, either through simple questionnaires or suggestion boxes, or from time to time in a more ambitious way. A full professional audit may be useful every year or every second year.
Exercise 3.16
This is an opportunity for participants to share their experiences. First of all everyone writes down a few points. These points are then shared in a plenary session.
How often do you hold self-examination and self-critical meetings in your organization? What format does self-criticism take? What have you learnt from these self-criticism sessions?
Conclusion
The work of a leader is complex. No one leader possesses all the skills in equal quantity or quality. Nor is it necessary. Much depends on the situation, especially on the challenges at a particular time. The right leader is the one who fits the situation and can solve the problems of that particular time.
However it is clear that each of these skills can be developed, and that leadership can be studied and improved upon. It is possible to gain more knowledge about leadership. It is also possible to develop each of these skills to a higher degree, and it is possible to improve and increase one’s experience.