The Human Factor in Effective Leadership
by Senyo Adjibolosoo

"This book serves as a textbook for leadership training and management. It is an exhaustive study of the elements of defining leaders, their habits, their strengths, and their goals. Unique perspective on leadership from the cradle to the grave is discussed."

From the beginning of time humans have looked for ways to make life better. Various individuals have tried to make a difference in their own lives and in the lives of others. It was people who made the difference by creating the social institutions and their associated organizations, business activities, and leadership in the society. Similarly, the qualities acquired by people play a significant role in their effectiveness in all areas of life. The relevance of the human quality to personal effectiveness and human-centered development cannot be easily dismissed.

In light of this knowledge the question about appropriate leadership has occupied the attention of humanity throughout the centuries (Bass, 1990). Human beings have discovered that for any tasks to be accomplished successfully, it is important to have "qualified" people available to take charge and direct others to pursue the objectives. Drawing a series of conclusions from his extensive survey of the leadership literature, Starratt (1993, p. 14) emphasizes that:

Leadership is essential for modern democratic institutions and societies. Without a broad base of people who think for themselves, engage in public debate about policies, and exercise responsibility for the quality of the life around them, institutions and societies lay themselves open to demagoguery and totalitarian rule. A healthy society will be populated by people exercising leadership at every level and in a broad spectrum of institutions.....

• Leadership includes substantive as well as instrumental rationality.
• Leadership is involved with management by meaning and by values as well as management by short-term objectives.
• Leadership calls forth extraordinary talent and effort of the members of an organization.

Thus, if citizens wish ot perform at their best, they need the type of leadership that is ready to make a difference in their lives of the people they lead and the organizations they run. It is this type of leadership that will ensure that those who manage organizations develop plans and policies that can optimize their effectiveness. Scholars of leadership theory contintue to channel--

F inancial resources,
E ffort,
E nergy, and
T ime

or, (FEET) into developing models and principles to discover what makes a person a leader.

About the author:

Senyo Adjubolosoo has a doctorate degree in economics from Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. He also holds a postgraduate Education Specialist Degree from Point Loma Nazarene University.

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