Theory A: Preliminary Perspectives on an African Model of Leadership

We must avail ourselves of the distinctive wisdom and enlightening perspectives that can be found in all societies. We should focus, in particular, on non-Western societies that share with Japanese society the sensitivity to collective productivity and the role to be played by leaders in identifying and supporting the dynamic energy that accompanies this collective productivity. Just as Ouchi built upon McGregor’s Theory Y, so might a new perspective be offered that explores leadership in other non-Western societies building on Ouchi’s Theory Z. I have prepared this very preliminary perspective on the models of leadership to be found in sub-Sahara Africa and will capture the essence of these models in a new “Theory A.”

While I personally am not the person to prepare a definitive exploration of Theory A—being an American of Northern European heritage—I can lean heavily on written work that has been presented by those from Africa, as well as relate to my own experience of doing work as a consultant in South Africa during its early post-apartheid years. I have already discovered in the initial reading I have done that several preliminary themes can be identified. These themes, in tum, point to the rich insights that are likely to emerge from a more in-depth study and analysis that should be conducted. Five preliminary themes have been identified: (I) leadership in a nomadic world, (2) leadership within a community context, (3) leadership in a communitarian society. (4) leadership in an oral/constructivist tradition, and (5) leadership as a sacred engagement deeply embedded in community.

The Sacred Communities of Africa

In setting the stage for the brief exploration of these five themes, I wish to set a broader cultural context that anticipates the fifth and final theme I will be exploring. In essence, it seems that with all the differences to be found in the many societal structures and cultural traditions of Africa, there is a deeply embedded religiosity in Africa. The important distinction made in Western societies between the sacred and the secular does not exist in most of South-Sahara Africa. Religion and culture are interwoven and provide the foundation for all aspects of life among Africans—including leadership. Jacob Olupona (2021, p. 23) states it this way:

African religion and cultures provide the language, the ethos, the knowledge, and the ontology that enable the proper formation of African personhood, communal identity, and values that constitute kernels of African ethnic assemblages.