Theory A: Preliminary Perspectives on an African Model of Leadership

We see in these examples offered by Olupona and Somé that a context-based model of leadership requires something more than the physical presence and actions taken by leader at a specific time and place. It also requires the presence of heritage, values and deeply embedded commitments if the actions being taken are to be supported by other members of the community (or organization) and can, as a result, be successful. The ancestors are “present” to ensure that all members of the community are being treated in a caring and equitable manner. I return to Somé (1999, p. 89):

In Africa people’s welfare and rights are safeguarded by the ancestors. It is the ancestors who ultimately punish wrongdoing, by sending trouble or illness, even death, to the transgressor. When trouble comes, the diviners inquire as to the reason and are able to determine which of the ancestral laws has been broken. In this way abuses are corrected and people are given an opportunity to make amends and turn their lives around.

Homo Celebratus

Is it not possible that ceremony and ritual-based processes are also sustained in contemporary Western communities and organizations? Are thought and action also coupled in the West when commitment is being renewed—and perhaps even when conflicts and disagreements are to be addressed? Are not the parades and fireworks associated with national holidays in many Western (and Asian) countries exemplifying Theory A? Ceremonial enactments request that we honor the past and ensure the continuing commitment to justice and sacrifice on behalf of the community and nation. Are not the holiday celebrations and 25th Anniversary celebrations of an employee’s tenure in a 21st Century organization similarly hinting of the power that ceremonies and rituals possess in bringing people together (Bergquist, 1993)? There are also marriage ceremonies, funerals and christenings.