Bad Habits Die Hard..

Bad Habits Die Hard..

Let’s change the way we manage, and unleash “the volunteer prince and princess in our staff”.

During the colonial days, the people sent by the colonial governments, were essentially what we call “petty administrators”, who relied on “command and control style of management”, where they barked instructions at their subordinates, whom they saw as beneath them.

This style of management spilled over into the private sector. Employees, in such enterprises were not expected to be innovative and they did not try. After independence, in many African countries this management style was maintained, often inadvertently, as it was the only known method of management. It was particularly strong in countries where the military, had spells of governance: soldiers love “command and control”.

Unfortunately successive generations of African managers have taken this approach to management, as “best practice”. In this environment it is difficult to nurture the “volunteer prince”, as employees struggle to be motivated, when they are managed like children.

Staff are often subjected to threats and shouting, from bosses hiding behind closed doors!
… This is not management.

If we are to unleash the full potential of Africa, we need to critically review the way we manage our public administration and enterprise sector. It will not only lead to higher levels of productivity but it will lead to increased innovation and therefore competitiveness, on the global stage. We cannot take the baton from China, if we cannot match them, in productivity and innovativeness.