The legitimacy of the leadership of any group or entity ends the day the leader’s words are not taken seriously until subjected to forensic analysis for the truth of it. It also ends when followers developed doubts as to the truth of the leader’s words and the justice in his actions. Leadership rests on trust, without which a leader is, as they say in Nigeria, on his own. This rule is of general application. It is often said that the world is looking for leaders; well, not just leaders but those that build their legitimacy on effective and honest communication. When ideas are presented in the best possible way that makes them easily understood by the recipient, then we say that the communication is effective. On the other hand, communication is honest when the message, whether verbal or nonverbal, expresses only the truth, without a deliberate attempt to mislead or deceive the recipient. The language of an effective wartime executive must be devoid of hypocrisy – a deadly virus that destroys trust.
Effective wartime CEOs are Authentic Leaders – their religion is equity and race is justice; they mean what they say and stand for all and not a few; focused on results but with a heart for the led. This category of leaders are however becoming a rarity, especially in the more backward parts of the world. Such leaders neither expropriate the labour of their workers nor detain the labourers’ wage. Instead they share the good and bad times with them. This need cuts across both the business and political spheres because people are hurting more than ever before. As the security, health and economic wars rage on. The world needs leaders that fill the pinch in the shoes of the led.
To be authentic, a leader must communicate to inspire, generate trust and believability. Authentic leaders care about public opinion and, in particular, how their actions are perceived in their ecosystem
This kind of leadership is at play in Pan Atlantic University, where management made it a point of duty to regularly brief the staff of every development in the institution, especially as regards health, revenue and cash flow prospects, as the pandemic rages on. Beyond these regular briefings, senior management voluntarily gave up part of their salaries and privileges, to ensure that junior staff did not suffer any reduction or delay in their monthly pay. This is a classic case of authentic leadership. Authentic leaders are aware of their ecosystem. They know they are being watched. They want to pass their messages and be properly understood. To be authentic, a leader must communicate to inspire, generate trust and believability. Authentic leaders care about public opinion and, in particular, how their actions are perceived in their ecosystem.
Things are very hard everywhere in the world right now; to put it mildly. Almost all countries are going through rough patches. Nigeria, for example, is out of the recession but still returns stagnant growth rates. For countries, whose economic boom is often a curse, rather than a blessing to their people, sluggish performances, as currently recorded by Nigeria, is like adding salt to injury. Developments in the corporate world mirror the happenings in the entire economy. Accordingly, most corporate organizations are now so deflated that they are more or less walking dead, if not dead. Drilling down further, we find the real victims, the poor masses, grappling with unimaginable challenges including, insecurity, inflation, lack of access to the farms by farmers and workers having to work without getting paid properly or on time.
We can see, even without being observant, that as national economies underperform, and companies contract physically and financially, citizens and the working class hurt seriously as cash flows dry up, supply chains are broken, debts accumulate, inflation rises and poverty worsens. Apparently the only thing that is certain now is that bandits (whoever they are), who are thrashing the country in every theatre of the war, are freely abducting and traumatizing innocent children at will. The people would like to know what is happening to their country and future. They want to know the future of their children and carriers, just as companies want reliable data from the relevant state agencies on the economy and its future. Citizens want to hear their leaders and be sure they are telling them the truth. Authentic leaders create new leaders everywhere and ensure that things get done even while they are not around. Those who know what the nation is up against would agree that the time has come for authenticity in leadership, public and corporate.
