Leadership has never been more under the spotlight, and leaders have never felt as much pressure to lead effectively as they are currently. There is a leadership vacuum globally and Botswana is not an exception, said Pinnalead founder and Leadership Development Expert Lorato Mosetlhanyane.
According to Mosetlhanyane, the absence of true leadership at all levels in both the private and public sectors influences lasting consequences on productivity.
From her assessment, the operations of some of the organizations have been crippled because of poor leadership.
“Everything rises and falls on leadership, if the leadership is good in a company it excels, if the leadership is bad, everyone suffers,” Mosetlhanyane told The Telegraph:
Mosetlhanyane said that having worked in the corporate world for 17 years, she observed that a lot of leaders are more positional, always reminding subordinates that they are bosses.
“People who are led from a positional perspective bosses give the bare minimum to keep them in their jobs and this obviously has negative impacts on productivity and ultimately on the economy. It is for this reason that I partnered with John C Maxwell, the most Influential leadership personality, to bring the best leadership material to Botswana,” she said.
By definition leadership is the ability to inspire, motivate and guide others through the process of change, innovation, growth and continuous improvement, she said. In its daily usage, leadership involves the ability to communicate, persuade and encourage people to adopt meaningful and productive initiatives.
“Clearly we’re not seeing enough of this caliber of leadership in the public or private sector,” said Mosetlhanyane.
Mosetlhanyane is convinced that Botswana is ripe to change and copy the leadership style that has made the First World countries what they are.
“If we keep doing things the way we have always done them, we will always get what we have always gotten,” she said.
Botswana has been grappling with low global ranks on productivity for some time now. “Everything rises and falls on leadership, if the leadership is good, people will be at their best and productivity is bound to go up. If people are not influenced but bossed around, productivity will definitely suffer,” she said.
Meanwhile John C Maxwell the internationally acclaimed leadership expert launched his “360 degrees” online leadership assessment tool based on his book ‘The 5 Levels of Leadership’ which he brought to Botswana in March 2013. Maxwell says that the “360 degrees” online leadership assessment tool will not only show your leadership capability in terms of the 5 levels, but also help identify a program that can help you close your leadership gaps.
“I’ve been in a position in my career where I was told I didn’t make it to a certain position because I had gaps. No one knew what those gaps were and I don’t think this was unique to me. This is a tool that can help leader give direct and open feedback rather than being intuitive about it,” said Mosetlhanyane.
Mosetlhanyane believes because of Pinnalead’s association with John Maxwell, they are uniquely placed to bring the best material to this nation.
Pinnalead is an international company owned apart from Mosetlhanyane co-owned by Gaolathe Sechele, who are certified coaches with the John Maxwell Team.
