"STRATEGIC AFRICAN LEADERSHIP", THE OXYMORON THAT AFRICA MUST DEBUNK......

Financial leadership is the ability to capture human imagination and direct it towards a desirable coordinated economic outcome.In human organisational structures, Financial leadership is always subordinated and often corrupted by political leadership. The decisions of a financially illiterate political elite often ruins whole nations, causing misery and despair. What makes human beings the most dominant animal on earth? According to Professor Yuval Noah Harari , its not our intelligence. Its the fact that humans are able to co-operate flexibly in large numbers. Bees and ants can cooperate in large numbers, but not flexibly. And the biggest tool that humans use to enhance co-operation is the story. Human beings tell stories in order to enhance co-operation. Every society survives on the basis of the credibility of the stories that it tells itself. And one of the most successful stories ever told by mankind is the story of money. America's high priests of money, have so far been able to tell the most successful story of money and that is why everybody believes in their financial system.. The high priests of money in Africa are much less capable when compared to the rest of the world. Africa's story of money is the least convincing. that is why it is the poorest continent in the world.

The story of multi-dimensional leadership....

Once upon a time,the baboon, the lion, the squirrel and the elephant could talk and have nice conversations like human beings do. They came together to discuss how to survive. I suggest we split up and each one to himself, the squirrel said. We are all very different after all. The baboon said "I don‘t agree with that. We should stay and work together. This way we have a much better chance of survival and one of us must be the leader because otherwise we will fall out with each other very soon". Well said the Lion, I obviously must be the leader, I am strong, fierce, scary and deadly. He roared loudly to enhance his point. The elephant shook his head. A good leader is not all about being that. The baboon decided on the matter. Tell you what, let’s take turns. Every one of us can be the leader for a week. After four weeks we can then clearly see who is the best and there won‘t be any arguments. They all thought this was a good idea and then drew straws to decide who was their first leader.

The Squirrel Leader

The squirrel was first. She was brilliant in building shelters, collecting food and storing the food in safe places that she would always remember. She was very good in organising and had eye for the detail. The other animals thought ?Wauw“ that’s a surprise for us! She is much smaller than us but is busy, busy, busy and gets the work done. The experiment was going well and thanks to the leadership of the squirrel none of the animals would go hungry that week and everyone knew what to do.

The Baboon Leader

The next up was the Baboon. And to their surprise all the animals really enjoyed their week with the Baboon as their leader. He was full of fun, energetic and made sure everybody had a good time and a laugh while they were doing their tasks. Every time if spirits got low he would notice and he would point out the bright side and would take them out swimming in the ocean or he came up to play a fun game. After the end of the week the other animals were surprised as well how much fun they had and how the Baboon always managed to keep their spirits up and have a laugh.

The Lion Leader

Next turn was for the Lion. The Lion was leading the animals as you can expect from a Lion. Pretty fierce. If anyone got out of line he roared at them and sometimes he gave them a good slap with his paw. The other animals were pretty frightened the whole time but also knew that they were safe and well looked after. After the week the other animals thought, Pffff…., that was pretty scary, but at least we all knew where we stood and we are safe when he is running the show.

The Elephant Leader

Wow the Elephant had her turn. She was well liked by everyone and trusted. She would put her long trunk gently around the animals who needed support. She gave all the animals the feeling that she really cared about them and even the Lion often sought some comforting advise with her. She could listen well, had always a wise word and she had a calming effect on the animals if they were in trouble. After the four weeks said the squirrel; ? well, I don‘t know, we need all these things to be able to lead“. We need the safety, power and clarity of the lion, the organisation and eye for detail of the squirrel, the optimism, playfulness and positive energy of the Baboon and the trusting, comforting, calming and caring of the Elephant.

Africa needs leadership.....

The fore-going was meant to introduce the concept of different dimensions of leadership and how they must work together to produce a desirable outcome. The difference between Africa and the rest of the world is a difference of leadership. And the brand of leadership that has suffered the most is financial leadership. We have to start from this simple premise, otherwise we will be tying ourselves in little knots of confusion which are incapable of resolution. Many have started from much further back than where Africa is today and achieved much more. In fact, in the case of some Asian countries, the contrast between them and Africa is so stark, it is embarrassing. The simple truth is that Africa has failed to develop competent leadership and this had seen it slide deeper and deeper into quagmires of poverty and desperation. What do I mean by a lack of leadership and why is leadership so important? I will classify leadership into seven different types and cite some leaders who fall into each category, describing how they have fared. This description of leadership is based on the work of Susanne Cooke-Greauter and attempts to

The Impulsive leader (thug)

I was forced to revise this article to accommodate a type of leader that has manifested in Africa, over and over again. And that kind of leader is the thug, the impulsive leader who is driven by his current emotional state. A typical example of such a leader is Uganda's Idi Amin. Whereas with most leaders, there is a sense that you are following a consistent narrative, the thug has no such pretensions. His most important tool is violence and he will not hesitate to use it on anyone that contradicts him. Unlike the opportunist who follows a path that maximises short term returns to himself, the impulsive leader can in a moment of agitation make an economically suicidal decision.

The Opportunists

The opportunist is a basic type of leader, he is out there to get things for himself. His leadership style is characterised by mistrust, ego centrism, and manipulation. They have a tendency to focus on personal wins and see the world and other people as opportunities to be exploited. They treat other people as objects or as competitors who are also out for themselves and regard their own bad behaviour as legitimate in the cut and thrust of an eye-for-an-eye world. They reject feedback, externalise blame, and retaliate harshly. Their constant firefighting, their style of self-aggrandisement, and their frequent rule breaking is the antithesis of the kind of leader people want to work with for the long term. Opportunists often survive longer than they should because they provide an environment in which younger people can take risks.

Most African leadership falls in this category, an extreme example being the the late Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire. Mobutu is regarded by many as the Prince of corruption, a man who treated Zaire as his own personal farm and the national treasury like his back pocket. Mobutu took over a country that worked and manipulated the cold war to enrich himself at the expense of his country. He totally failed to take his country forward by any definition of economic advancement. Because of his opportunism and selfishness, the country he took over retrogressed into anarchy, lawlessness and confusion despite being one of Africa's most endowed country in terms of minerals.

The Diplomat

The Diplomat seeks to please higher-status colleagues while avoiding conflict. This action logic is focused on gaining control of one’s own behaviour—more than on gaining control of external events or other people. This type of person thinks the leader gains more enduring acceptance and influence by cooperating with group norms and by performing his daily roles well. In a support role or a team context, this type of executive has much to offer. Diplomats provide social glue to their colleagues and ensure that attention is paid to the needs of others. Diplomats are much more problematic in top leadership roles because they try to ignore conflict. They tend to be overly polite and friendly and find it virtually impossible to give challenging feedback to others. Initiating change, with its inevitable conflicts, represents a grave threat to the Diplomat, and he will avoid it if at all possible, even to the point of self-destruction. Initiating change, with its inevitable conflicts, represents a grave threat to the Diplomat, and he will avoid it if at all possible, even to the point of self-destruction.

A good example of an African Leader who was a diplomat is the late Houphouet Boigny of the ivory coast. His country was so peaceful during his tenure and nothing seemed to matter to Boigny more than respect and the approval of the former colonial power France.When he died, his country started experiencing all sorts of problems arising from the fact that Boigny had done nothing to advance the country economically. All he had done throughout his rule was to secure the support of a big brother to cement his rule.

The Expert

Experts try to exercise control by perfecting their knowledge, both in their professional and personal lives. Exercising watertight thinking is extremely important to Experts. Secure in their expertise, they present hard data and logic in their efforts to gain consensus and buy-in for their proposals. Experts are great individual contributors because of their pursuit of continuous improvement, efficiency, and perfection. But as managers, they can be problematic because they are so completely sure they are right and they tend to view collaboration as a waste of time and they will frequently treat the opinion of people less expert than themselves with contempt. Emotional intelligence is neither desired nor appreciated.

For expert African leadership look no further than Thabo Mbeki of South Africa. He is logical, forward looking, driven by facts and yet his own party the ANC had to recall him, to be replaced by Jacob Zuma who has now turned out to be more of an opportunistic leader. Mbeki's undoing was that he could not carry his followers with him in his effort to wrestle his country into a brave new world.

The Achiever

Achievers have a more complex and integrated understanding of the world . They’re open to feedback and realise that many of the ambiguities and conflicts of everyday life are due to differences in interpretation and ways of relating. They know that creatively transforming or resolving clashes requires sensitivity to relationships and the ability to influence others in positive ways. Achievers can also reliably lead a team to implement new strategies over a one- to three-year period, balancing immediate and long-term objectives.While these leaders create a positive work environment and focus their efforts on deliverables, the downside is that their style often inhibits thinking outside the box. Achievers often find themselves clashing with Experts. The Expert subordinate, in particular, finds the Achiever leader hard to take because he cannot deny the reality of the Achiever’s success even though he feels superior.

Martin Luther King is a good example of an African Achiever. Here is a man who understood very well that violence and confrontation would get him nowhere in a society like America, so he chose the non- violent path of Mahatma Gandhi. Martin Luther King's speeches could move mountains, he was eloquent, factual and he emotionally resona This conscious choice propelled him into the sphere of great world leaders.

The Individualist

The Individualist recognises that leadership is not “natural”; it is a construction and positioning of oneself in the world. This seemingly abstract idea enables Individualist leaders to contribute unique practical value to their ountries; they put personalities and ways of relating into perspective and communicate well with people . What sets Individualists apart from Achievers is their awareness of a possible conflict between their principles and their actions, or between the organisation's values and its implementation of those values. This conflict becomes the source of tension, creativity, and a growing desire for further. development.

An example if this kind of leader is Seewoosagur Ramgoolam of Mauritius.The transformation of Mauritius from one of the poorest countries on the continent to the richest is thanks to this man.

The Strategists

What sets them apart from Individualists is their focus on organisational constraints and perceptions, which they treat as discussable and transformable. Whereas the Individualist masters communication with colleagues who have different action logics, the Strategist masters the second-order organisational impact of actions and agreements. The Strategist is also adept at creating shared visions across different action logics—visions that encourage both personal and organisational transformations. According to the Strategist’s action logic, organisational and social change is an iterative developmental process that requires awareness and close leadership attention. Strategists deal with conflict more comfortably than do those with other action logics, and they’re better at handling people’s instinctive resistance to change. As a result, Strategists are highly effective change agents. Strategists are fascinated with three distinct levels of social interplay: personal relationships, organizational relations, and national and international developments. The Strategist works to create ethical principles and practices beyond the interests of herself or her organisation.

An example of this kind of leader would Kofi Annan. Here is an African leader who has risen above his continent to become a major influence on the world stage. He has done more to put Africa on the world map than any other man and yet he somehow is able to still identify as an African while playing on the world stage.

The Alchemist

What sets them apart from strategists is their ability to renew or even reinvent themselves and their organisations in historically significant ways. Whereas the Strategist will move from one engagement to another, the Alchemist has an extraordinary capacity to deal simultaneously with many situations at multiple levels. The Alchemist can talk with both kings and commoners. He can deal with immediate priorities yet never lose sight of long-term goals. Alchemists are typically charismatic and extremely aware individuals who live by high moral standards. They focus intensely on the truth. Perhaps most important, they’re able to catch unique moments in the history of their organisations, creating symbols and metaphors that speak to people’s hearts and minds.

An example of this kind of leader would be Nelson Mandela of South Africa. What sets Mandela apart is he was able to diffuse the anger on both sides of the apartheid equation and re-position it as an agenda for the economic reconstruction and growth, link South Africa back into the community of nations and set up the structures that allow South Africa to be one of the most functional democratic states on the continent.

The Unitive

Unitive are not limited or shaped by language, with its inclination to differentiate one aspect of reality from another. Instead, Unitives see themselves as well as others as an “ongoing humanity,” in a highly evolutionary and creative journey. Unitives take a universal perspective and experience themselves and humanity as part of nature, part of the cosmic dance. Therefore they are able to experience multiple perspectives and many states of awareness. This viewpoint enables the Unitive to at once feel both deep connection with others and deep uniqueness and separateness. They are able to experience the humanness of individuals at all stages of awareness and becoming, humbly recognizing the human essence that they have in common, thus allowing the Unitive to be welcoming and accepting of others as they are, without judgment, agenda, or a need to control.Unitives are oriented toward all that exists—toward being—and toward being present in the context of an eternal time frame. This orientation is not a conceptual orientation but truly an experienced state of being beyond language. This experience is imminent, that is, something held and known within. The self identity of Unitives indeed is this inner knowing, the higher self nitives generally have rich, focused, energized relationships with individuals of all arieties of humans and of all demographics. Because of their immense cherishing of all humans (as a part of themselves), their interactions with others result in feelings of peace, worthiness, and well being.

Would the biblical Joseph, the man whose concept led o the formulation of the nation state be Africa's only unitive? Or does this honour belong to Septimus Severus, the African born Emperor of Rome?

Conclusion

Africa is a continent afflicted by a lack of Financial leadership and vision. This lack of financial leadership has not been helped by the fact that the little financial leadership talent that is there is often subordinated to opportunistic political leadership.It has retrogressed economically regressed since independence in the sixties because of the failure by its leaders to enunciate a vision that will untangle the shackles of poverty and dependence. It is by articulating better financial leadership models on the African continent that we can hope to see better results in future. Africa must talk to its own risks and opportunities, strategically design and implement programs that will see it wean itself of poverty and dependence.

Tapiwa Maswera equips Financial leaders with the the Risk Control Cycle (and the actuarial control cycle) as a tool to help them define and refine their action logic.. He can be contacted on [email protected]