Leadership in the African Context
INDEX
I. Introduction Page 2
II. Introduction to the “chapter of the book” Page 3-5
III. Chapter one – Effective business leadership for South Africa in 2010 and beyond Page 6
IV. Is there effective leadership in South Africa today? Page 7
V. Challenges facing South African Leadership today Page 8
VI. A call for ethical leadership Page 9
VII. On the other hand: Business leadership Page 10
VIII. Could early leadership development of future leaders be the solution for effective Page 11
leadership in South Africa beyond 2011?
IX. Conclusion Page 12
X. References Page 13
OVERVIEW
Introduction to the “Chapter of the book”
What is leadership?
The study on leadership defines it as the process of influencing, motivating, supporting, facilitating, and encouraging employees in pursuit of organisational goals through the means put together by all members of the business. (Drouillard & Grobler, Kleiner, 1996, p. 31) To unpack the definition a bit further, leadership can be defined as a method of giving meaning to the activities people perform, support them and provide guidance and direction. It is a process of articulating an idea that entails the right values and attitudes. Some people view leadership as sequence of specific traits or characteristics. Others perceive it as comprised of certain skills and knowledge.
Research on leadership has evolved as theories have been developed and advanced by successive generations of researchers. Something constructive has been learned at each stage of development. See figure below the significant milestones in the evolution of leadership theories:
1990’s
Behavioural Styles theory
Transformational Theory
1970’s
1980’s
1960’s
1950’s
Situational Theory
Trait Theory
Figure 1: Evolution of leadership Theories
The original approaches to the study of leadership required to identify a
I. Introduction Page 2
II. Introduction to the “chapter of the book” Page 3-5
III. Chapter one – Effective business leadership for South Africa in 2010 and beyond Page 6
IV. Is there effective leadership in South Africa today? Page 7
V. Challenges facing South African Leadership today Page 8
VI. A call for ethical leadership Page 9
VII. On the other hand: Business leadership Page 10
VIII. Could early leadership development of future leaders be the solution for effective Page 11
leadership in South Africa beyond 2011?
IX. Conclusion Page 12
X. References Page 13
OVERVIEW
Introduction to the “Chapter of the book”
What is leadership?
The study on leadership defines it as the process of influencing, motivating, supporting, facilitating, and encouraging employees in pursuit of organisational goals through the means put together by all members of the business. (Drouillard & Grobler, Kleiner, 1996, p. 31) To unpack the definition a bit further, leadership can be defined as a method of giving meaning to the activities people perform, support them and provide guidance and direction. It is a process of articulating an idea that entails the right values and attitudes. Some people view leadership as sequence of specific traits or characteristics. Others perceive it as comprised of certain skills and knowledge.
Research on leadership has evolved as theories have been developed and advanced by successive generations of researchers. Something constructive has been learned at each stage of development. See figure below the significant milestones in the evolution of leadership theories:
1990’s
Behavioural Styles theory
Transformational Theory
1970’s
1980’s
1960’s
1950’s
Situational Theory
Trait Theory
Figure 1: Evolution of leadership Theories
The original approaches to the study of leadership required to identify a