Page 17 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 14

Leadership

that there was a time when the call- talent and inspire results. Why the Concept of Ubuntu
ing of the manager and that of the in Leadership and Manage-
leader could be separated. Peter Drucker, the management ment?
guru, was one of the first to rec- In understanding the responsibilities
The manager’s job is to plan, orga- ognize this truth. He identified the that come with our interconnected-
nize and coordinate. The leader’s job emergence of the “knowledge ness, the realization is that we must
is to inspire and motivate. worker,” and the profound differ- rely on each other to lift our world
ences that would cause in the way from where it is now to where we
In his “On Becoming a Leader,” business was organized (Adapted want it to be in our lifetime, while
(1989) Warren Bennis composed a from “The Wall Street Journal casting aside our worn out precon-
list of the differences: Guide to Management” by Alan ceptions, and our outdated modes
• The manager administers; the Murray, published by Harper Busi- of statecraft. This is the place where
leader innovates. ness. we all belong as partners, where we
• The manager is a copy; the lead- all participate as stakeholders, and
er is an original. Ubuntu Concept where we all succeed together, not
• The manager maintains; the Ubuntu is seen as an important incrementally but exponentially.
leader develops. value of African culture that can
• The manager focuses on sys- form the basis of a management Ubuntu needs to apply to personal,
tems and structure; the leader truly congruent with the peoples of professional, organizational, and
focuses on people. Africa. Furthermore, proponents governmental leadership. It offers
• The manager relies on control; argue that Ubuntu can be parlayed an understanding of leadership in
the leader inspires trust. into the practice of management for relation with the world. It exudes
• The manager has a short-range competitive advantage not just for principles of caring for each other’s
view; the leader has a long-range Africa but universally (Mbigi, 1997 well-being and a spirit of mutual
perspective. & Mbigi 2005) asserts that: support. It moves away from the “us
• The manager asks how and Incorporating Ubuntu principles in and them” mentality so prevalent in
when; the leader asks what and management hold the promise of politics, corporations, and tradi-
why. superior approaches to managing tionally led organizations. It focuses
• The manager has his or her eye organizations. Organizations infused on a way of being, perceiving, and
always on the bottom line; the with humaneness, a pervasive spirit acting in the world. It fosters col-
leader’s eye is on the horizon. of caring and community, harmony laboration in economic, social and
• The manager imitates; the leader and hospitality, respect and respon- environmental situations. It seeks to
originates. siveness will enjoy more sustainable facilitate emergence of life-affirm-
• The manager accepts the status competitive advantage. ing, future oriented and opportunity
quo; the leader challenges it. Accordingly, Ubuntu implies a increasing possibilities.
• The manager is the classic good management approach emphasizing
soldier; the leader is his or her teamwork, attention to relationships, We are living in a world that no lon-
own person. mutual respect and empathy be- ger makes sense. Blame is being cast
• The manager does things right; tween leader and followers, and par- about with fervor and yet we are not
the leader does the right thing. ticipative decision-making. However, any closer to truly understanding
and importantly, we caution against the underlying dynamics that have
But in the new economy, where wholesale acceptance of all African landed us in this situation. Without
value comes increasingly from the customs and practices. African man- that basic understanding, we will
knowledge of people, and where agement philosophy relies heavily continue to perpetuate variations of
workers are no longer undifferenti- on the past which points to the situations that do not make sense.
ated cogs in an industrial machine, difficulty of articulating a distinctive We need to shift our thinking and
management and leadership are not conceptualization of contemporary our actions from what is good for
easily separated. People look to their indigenous African culture. us individually to what is good
managers, not just to assign them a for us all collectively. Individuality
task, but to define for them a pur- Ubuntu embodies beliefs, values and is connected with Eurocentricity
pose. And managers must organize behaviors of a large majority of the while collectivity is connected with
workers, not just to maximize effi- South African population. Afrocentricity. Society needs to take
ciency, but to nurture skills, develop a giant leap forward and we need a

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