Contemporary sub-Saharan African managerial leadership research: Some recent empirical studies

ABSTRACT

Recent studies of businesspeople in Sub-Saharan Africa by the Global Leadership & Organisational Behaviour Effectiveness project and the Preferred Leadership Across Cultures project are reviewed, consolidated, and discussed. The results indicate that evidence of a pan-Sub-Saharan African convergence of managerial leadership practices and preferences around the ubuntu movement is not evident. The movement may be an inspirational goal promulgated by elites to encourage a more humane, community-oriented set of values for Sub-Saharan Africans. Results also indicate the managerial leadership behaviour preferences of Black and White South Africans is very similar, with evidence of general acceptance of what are termed “Western” attitudes toward business leadership.