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Background and Brief History

Nigeria is a developing country rated as the 13th largest producer of oil and the 27th largest natural gas producer in the world (World Bank Group, 2015; KPMG, 2012). With a population of over 173 million people spread over 923,768 square kilometers (BBC News, 2013), Nigeria is endowed with many natural resources including agriculture and minerals, making the country a very important nerve center for business activities in West Africa. It stands out from many African countries due to its attempts at educating its citizens, as 61.3 % of its population can read and write. Nigeria exports to and imports from many countries including the USA, India, and China. The nation makes $95.68 billion on exports (Anika, 2014).

Although there is little research on leadership in Nigeria, the foregoing facts have created a platform on the need to investigate the culture and leadership situation in the country. A survey of political leadership in Nigeria, since independence in 1960, reflects not just corruption but that of leadership failure (Olupohunda, 2012). The recent Jonathan leadership (2010–2015) involved Nigerian leaders in the public sector who openly pursued their own financial interest, and the wealth of Nigeria withered with little to show in the living conditions of the citizens. In fact, it appeared that there were no leaders men of good character in the political leadership (Ogbeidi, 2012; Olupohunda, 2012; Okonkwo, 2007).

The upsurge of violence and corruption has left few Nigerians benefiting from the oil wealth. Furthermore, the gross domestic product (GDP) rose strongly between 2007 and 2011 because of growth in non-oil sectors and robust global crude oil prices (KPMG, 2012). As Nigeria seeks more foreign direct investment (FDI), corruption tends to thrive more and impedes the country’s ability to attract overseas capital. Corruption has also damaged economic development and reforms and, if adequate care is not taken, it can hinder the growth of democratic institutions (Ogbeidi, 2012).

The history of Nigeria was dominated by “struggle for freedom” between 1922 and 1959 with the intervention of notable leaders like Herbert Macaulay, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Ahmadu Bello, Anthony Enahoro (among others), which necessitated its independence from British Colonial rule on October 1, 1960. Nigeria’s attainment of the self-governing status was administered by a federal government centralized to rule the three regions of the nation (the east, the west and the northern parts of the country [Nigeria Embassy USA, 2015]).

The first military leadership intervention in Nigeria occurred in January 1966, when the civilian government was overthrown in a military coup. A series of constitutions after World War II granted Nigeria greater autonomy. In 1999, democratic governance was re-established after 13 years of military rule. Nigeria is considered a partly free democracy. The 2003, 2007, and 2011 general elections were plagued by significant irregularities and violence. Nigeria has been affected by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor economic management (KPMG, 2012). The year 2015 in Nigeria witnessed a huge cry for change of leadership which called for an election that brought Muhammadu Buhari to power as a civilian president in April 2015 (Ezeife, 2015).

Culture

The Nigeria state is an alignment of 22 subcultures. Prior to British conquest, these different nations Agnas, Biroms, Edos, Efiks, Fulanis, Gwaris, Hausas, Ibibios, Idomas, Igbos, Ijaws, Itsekiris, Jukars, Junkuns, Kanuris, Katafs, Nupes, Ogojas, Ogonis, Tivs, Urhobos, and Yorubas were independent nation-states and communities. The nations were divided among kingdoms: Oyo, Calabar, Benin and Sokoto Caliphate, which makes up the present day Nigeria (Omoruyi, 2012). English is widely spoken in Nigeria as the common language binding all the subcultures, with 514 distinct local languages (The Economist, 2012). Religions include Muslim 50%, Christianity 40%, and indigenous beliefs 10%. The constitution guarantees religious freedom.

Nigeria is being threatened by regional differences in development/traditions among the citizens because most of the dominant subcultures want to be in control of the country’s leadership (Ateku, 2015). Rotational democracy that seems to be the wisest option among the subcultures is also being jettisoned because existing leaderships find it hard to release the mantle of leadership at the expiration of tenure. In Nigeria, a president could be voted in, while a king is born. A royal family is always a royal family. Once your father is a king, you automatically become a prince or princess, waiting for the day of your own coronation.

The Nigerian marriage philosophy that a man must be the head of the family appears to rub off on the corporate workplace mentality, hence the dominance of men in top management in most organizations. Few women occupy senior positions in commercial organizations, which demonstrate patriarchy (Suleiman, 2010; Hassan, 2009).

Hofstede’s (2015) study measures power distance, indulgence, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance, long-term orientation, and individualism. A score rating of 80 recorded for Nigeria on power distance is very high, meaning that individuals in Nigeria are not equal. They accept a hierarchical order in which everybody has a place. An 84 score on indulgence implies that the Nigerian people have high impulses to enjoyment of life and fun. They place a higher degree of importance on leisure time, and spend money as they wish. Nigeria is rated 60 in masculinity, which shows that they have a fairly high drive toward competition, achievement, and success. Nigeria ranges between average and low ratings in other parameters with uncertainty avoidance (55) which does not show a clear preference, long-term orientation (13) meaning that the Nigerian culture is normative instead of pragmatic. In terms of individualism, Nigeria scored 30. This implies that Nigeria is a collectivistic society.

Current Events Related to Business, Investment, and Leadership

The Nigerian economy enjoyed a sustained annual economic growth rate of 7% for a decade (between 2005 and 2015) but this is presently being threatened by macroeconomic challenges, particularly exchange rate volatility and falling global oil prices, which impacts the public sector spending. There have been major rural‑urban and regional tensions in the country due to varying natural-resource endowments, unequal access to political power, insufficient federal services, and uneven shares of the national wealth (Barungi, Ogunleye, & Zamba, 2015).

The non-oil sector has been the main driver of growth, with services contributing 57%, and manufacturing and agriculture contributes 9% and 21%, respectively. The economy is becoming service-oriented particularly through retail and wholesale trade, real estate, information and communication. A large number of Nigerians have moved abroad in search of greener pastures. The diaspora is another important source of money, market, and skills for Nigeria. The Economist (2015) suggests that Nigerians abroad sent back $21 billion in remittance in 2013, which is a quarter of Nigeria’s earnings from oil exports.

The country offers investors abundant natural resources, a low-cost labor pool, and potentially largest market in Sub-Saharan Africa but is faced with impediments, such as inadequate power supply, lack of infrastructure, inconsistent legislative reforms, restrictive trade policies, arbitrary policy changes, pervasive corruption, and growing insecurity among others. KPMG (2012) identifies sovereignty risk on the Nigerian economy because of the fast-growing domestic debts, currency risk as a result of elevated inflation, banking sector risk due to private sector credit as a share of the GDP has fallen heavily, political risk as a result of Islamic extremists expanding their campaign of violence and economic structure risk. Furthermore, the UK Trade and Investment (2014) survey identify government bureaucracy as a factor when awarding or paying for contract, high unemployment, and poverty as challenges of doing business in Nigeria in addition to the aforementioned risks listed by KPMG (2012).

In spite of Nigeria’s ailing economic and business challenges which has caused an exodus of multinationals out of Nigeria (e.g. Michelin moved out of Nigeria to Ghana on grounds of poor power supply and infrastructure), the nation still hosts a significant number of well-known companies including Shell, Diageo, Virgin Atlantic, British Gas, HSBC, Barclays, PZ Cussons, Cadbury, and Unilever as well as many small- and medium-sized British companies (UK Trade and Investment, 2014).

Review of Leadership Literature

Nigeria has been faced with leadership problems due to its vast beliefs, cultures, cognitive styles, tribalism, and politics. Most research on the relationship between corruption and leadership in Nigeria has revealed that Nigeria leadership does not conform to any known theories of effective leadership (Ukeje, 1996). Nigerian leadership behavior does not seem to be directed toward the welfare of the people and progress of the nation but rather tend toward wealth acquisition and selfish ambition to succeed. In fact, leadership in government was singled out as the key element in promoting corruption in Nigeria.

An empirical study on Nigerian leadership by Anazodo, Okoye, and Ezenwile (2012) found that leadership corruption seriously affects development and service delivery in the country. Leadership corruption may be related to Nigeria’s predicament of having one of the worst socioeconomic indicators in the world and the overall picture has not improved since the end of the military rule (Human Rights Watch, 2007, 2008). Research has shown that the prevalence of corrupt leaders in Nigeria has a tremendous adverse effect on the quality of life, living standard, and national psyche. Corruption by Nigerian leaders is a social malaise which has accounted for lack of vision and mission by government officials (Keeper, 2012; Dike, 2006).

The causes of leadership corruption in Nigeria are numerous and they have both political and cultural aspects including social diversity, ethnic fractionalization, and religious differences (Anazodo et al., 2012).

Few studies have been conducted on Nigerian business leadership. These few studies reveal positive significant relationships among leadership, employee motivation, and organizational performance (Ogundele, Hassan, & Doyin-Hassan, 2012; Obiwuru, Okwu, Akpa & Nwankere, 2011; Ejionueme, Hassan, & Doyin-Hassan, 2009; Hassan, 2009). For example, Ejionueme et al. (2009) suggest that a combination of motivation and the personality of superiors and subordinates impact on the productivity of the organization. Obiwuru et al. (2011) state that understanding the effects of leadership on performance is very important because leadership is viewed as one of the key driving forces for improving a firm’s performance. This can be inferred from one of their findings that leadership style has a positive effect on organizational performance.

Oyewunmi, Oyewunmi, Ojo, and Oludayo’s (2015) study explored the impact of leaders’ emotional intelligence on employees’ performance within Nigeria’s public health care sector, and discovered that the task of leadership, coupled with multiple challenges within the country’s health care sector requires a reasonable measure of emotional intelligence in order to facilitate employees’ performance. This explains a significant relationship between a leader’s degree of emotional intelligence already embedded in his or her leadership personality and the performance of his or her subordinates/employees. In a nutshell, a leader’s understanding of the psychology of his or her subordinates will help to enhance a good work relationship, which leads to greater performance.

Another research study investigated the extent to which a leader’s style affects that of the employees in the organization. It was revealed that every action taken by a leader stimulates a reaction from the employees. Leaders who recognize workers’ needs employ appropriate motivational tools such as promotion of staff based on merit and relevant skills, good and conducive working environment among others will experience good performance from the employees (Mohammed et al., 2014). In other words, the extent of employees’ commitment and performance is a function of the degree of a leader’s disposition to their needs.

The GLOBE study can provide us with a greater understanding of the prevalent leadership styles in Nigeria. The GLOBE study (2014) report, rated Nigerian leadership effectiveness by mean scores on six leadership styles: charismatic (5.77), team-oriented (5.65), self-protective (3.90), participative (5.19), humane-oriented (5.48), and autonomous (3.62). These mean scores are at no significant variance with the earlier GLOBE study of 2011 (see Wanasika, Howell, Littrell, & Dorfman, 2011) where mean scores attached to the same set of leadership styles were charismatic (5.79), team-oriented (5.65), self-protective (3.89), participative (5.18), humane-oriented (5.49), and autonomous (3.62).Wanasika, Howell, Littrell, & Dorfman (2011) is cited in text but reference has not been provided. Please provide the reference in the reference list.Done

The result is an indication that Nigerian leadership hinges more on charisma, team orientation, humane orientation, and participation (in descending order of importance) for outstanding leadership.

Nigerian political leadership scene is dominated by instrumental leaders, rather than societal leaders. Instrumental leaders use power and influence in the pursuit of private goals. The leader is concerned about how he can use his office to achieve personal objectives rather than for the communal good. Societal leaders are public servants. Societal leaders are concerned about broader community objectives rather than their selfish goals. Also, there is a limited number of team leaders who play pivotal roles in shaping collective norms, helping teams cope with their environments, and coordinating collective action (Dike, 2006).

On the other hand, the leadership style adopted by most Nigerian business leaders is predominantly characterized by its task-oriented nature geared toward a high job performance, which has resulted in low job satisfaction among subordinates (Ogbeidi, 2012).

Many Nigerians have a wrong perception of the concept of leadership. Specifically, many people working in Nigerian organizations think that leadership refers only to the leader. As a result, the workers may prematurely conclude that the leaders should be blamed for the inability of the organization to achieve its corporate objectives (Chukwu & Eluka, 2013). In the same way, some leaders of business organizations equally blame the workers.

Hassan (2009) suggests that the leadership style adopted by a manager will affect his or her sense of judgment, which in turn, will influence the career advancement of subordinates they work with. Workers within the organization feel very much at home with superiors who combine work orientation and employee orientation, and are discouraged by leaders who insist on the job to be done without putting their (employees’) feelings or circumstances into consideration. Leadership, irrespective of what style, is significantly related to employee performance in the organization (Obiwuru et al., 2011). Akpala (1998) identified attitude to work, leadership style, and motivation as factors that exert negative effect on organizational performance in the country. Ashibogwu (2008) suggested that inappropriate leadership style could be one of the reasons for high failure of small enterprises in Nigeria.

Nigeria is a patriarchal society where men dominate all spheres of women’s lives (Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, 2007). The access of women to leadership positions is constrained by gender roles (Olojede, 2004; Olowe, 2001). Barriers to the career advancement of women were identified by Hassan (2009) to include family issues (challenges in the home front), low levels of aspiration among women, little or lack of mentoring, leadership behavior, organizational discriminations, and lack of training and development opportunities.

In Nigeria, it is commonly stated that women and leadership are incompatible. Women occupy 42.44% of the Nigerian workforce as at 2013 (Trading Economics, 2015). They are also limited in leadership positions (Ogundele et al., 2012; Hassan, 2009). In fact, “women in leadership” is a fiercely debated topic in Nigerian business, with many local and governmental initiatives in place aimed at increasing the number of women leaders (Conference Board, 2015).

Ogundele et al. (2012) examined the differences that existed between male and female managers occupying leadership positions in Nigerian business organizations, and discovered that women leaders were different from their male counterparts in terms of aspiration and leadership styles which affect organizational performance, while demographics of age, work experience, and academic achievements were significantly related to the leadership style adopted by a manager. A significant number of women managers who were part of the study sample did not aspire to reach the apex of the management cadre because of the patriarchy in place in the Nigerian society and the stereotypical assumptions that women were the weaker sex and were meant to be in supportive roles. Hassan, Ogundele and Fagbemi (2011), in an earlier study on inhibitive factors that affect women managers, also suggest that women possess lower levels of aspiration when compared to men. Perhaps if their aspirations were higher, the glass-ceiling syndrome barring women from getting to the top management positions may be broken.

Furthermore, Nosike and Oguzor (2011) investigated the quality of valuation among male and female school principals on their choice of leadership, and their findings reveal that female principals were more democratic than men and involved their staff in decision making than their male counterparts. However, the male principals who adopted the democratic and the autocratic styles of leadership were quicker at the management of crises than the female principals.

An examination of the gender-role differentiation and its effect on the trend and pattern of social mobility in women in Nigeria depicts that male roles are highly valued and rewarded than that of the females. Women appear to be underprivileged in terms of power, prestige, and wealth. However, changing institutional arrangements tend to alter social mobility in favor of women in the contemporary Nigerian society (Omadjohwoefe, 2011).

LEAD Research Project

The aforementioned review illustrated the lack of research on leadership in Nigeria. The LEAD (Leadership Effectiveness in Africa and the Diaspora) project included qualitative and quantitative research on leadership in Nigeria. In this section, we summarize the findings from Nigeria (more details can be found in Senaji et al., 2014). The qualitative research consisted of two rounds of the Delphi research technique and two focus groups drawn from Abuja and Lagos, Nigeria. The participants of the LEAD study were asked to give a description of their ethnic/cultural background, identify people who they believed were effective leaders and describe why each leader was considered effective. They were also asked to describe what motivates an effective leader and the personal characteristics of leaders.

The opinion of all the respondents in the Delphi technique and focus groups have a significant degree of convergence in virtually all the enquiries made in the course of this LEAD research. The cultural beliefs of ancestors and community landmarks on moralistic behavior are being held in high esteem in the Nigerian culture. In other words, they inspire the cultural/ethnical orientation of the participants. An effective leader in Nigeria is rated on how well educated, knowledgeable, honest, trustworthy, fair in all manners, persevering, and sociable in nature among others. The findings further reveal that leaders who care for the needs and well-being of the people in the face of challenges and life-threatening circumstances are classified as heroes and should be celebrated. Furthermore, Nigerian leaders are motivated to work hard if they are being treated fairly without fear or favor, well remunerated for the work done, and exposed to a conducive work environment. A sense of pride, a sense of belonging, recognition on the job, extrinsic rewards (such as extra bonuses aside the basic agreed remuneration) and power are factors that motivate individuals to work hard in the Nigerian work environment whether they are in leadership positions or not.

Insiders’ and Outsiders’ Perspectives (Names Disguised)

Nigerians in leadership positions in Nigerian organizations were interviewed on their views about Nigerian leadership (insiders) while foreign executives in leadership positions in Nigerian organizations (outsiders) also were interviewed on the same subject.

Insiders’ Perspectives

Mrs. Bisi Chanine, Manager, Multinational Company, Lagos. Mrs. Chanine, 50, has worked with the organization for 25 years, with 100 employees under her supervision. She describes Nigerian leadership as power-driven and sentimental in the areas of selection and recruitment, with little regard for skills and merit. She expresses further that this careless manner of recruitment has ruined the management patterns adopted in most business organizations in Nigeria, where half-baked persons assume sensitive positions.

She enumerates that the major difference between Nigerian managers and the foreign visiting managers is that the latter ones are often more result-oriented and attach so much value to capacity building and productivity in the right direction. She sees the participative leadership style as the most effective in Nigerian business. Her advice to foreigners coming into Nigeria is that a mix of transformational and participative leadership style should be adopted in order to achieve a reasonable level of organizational success. Her recommendation to emerging leaders in the Nigerian organizations is that of having in-depth knowledge of the culture of the people, organizations, and the environment.

Mrs. Abeni Miller is a 51-year-old broadcast journalist with over 10 years of directorial leadership, with the most dynamic state television based in Lagos, Nigeria. She joined the service over 25 years ago as a reporter. She describes Nigerian leadership style as “self-serving” (selfish) in nature as politicians only seek offices to enrich their pockets.

This respondent’s opinion on the similarities and differences between local (Nigerian) and foreign managers is a pointer to the fact that a huge world of differences exist. In developed countries like the UK and the USA, managers/leaders are held accountable for their actions as most acts of corruption are exposed and the perpetrators brought to justice. Mrs. Miller identifies participatory democracy as the most effective leadership style in Nigeria. She implores emerging leaders in Nigeria to borrow a leaf from the late American President John F. Kennedy and asks not what their country can do for them but what they can do for their country. They should seek to contribute to the growth of the nation, ensuring that the average Nigerian lives a better life.

Mr. James Buhari, Lagos. This 57-year-old respondent is excited that he would be out of service in another three years (as at the time of this survey on Nigerian leadership) due to the irritable style of leadership adopted in the Nigerian government over the last 30 years of his service involvements. His description of the leadership style prevalent in the country is a blend of democratic and autocratic style, which permeates virtually all the sectors of the Nigerian economy.

This respondent pointed out some differences between local managers and the visiting foreign managers in the areas of training, competence, and ethics, saying that the foreign expatriates were better trained in their home countries, possess a very high pedigree, and are more ethical than the local managers. Some Nigerian managers are well-trained, of high pedigree and ethical, but they are few when compared with their foreign counterparts. However, some very few Nigerians have been able to prove their leadership worth because of their active involvement in the world economies as the Europe, USA, and other developed nations. The foreign expatriates appear to be more goal-driven than the Nigerians. Mr. Buhari identifies a blend of democratic participation and autocracy as the most effective leadership styles prevalent in Nigeria. Mr. Buhari implores all emerging leaders in Nigeria to embrace noble causes and make discoveries that will better the lot of the nation.

Outsiders’ Perspectives

Mr. Martin Arendale, Managing Director, Nigeria. Mr. Martin Arendale is a 60-year-old British citizen who has been in Nigeria for over 30 years as at the time of survey, with approximately 200 staff under his supervision. He lived and worked for a few years in the Philippines before his relocation to Nigeria.

Mr. Arendale’s response with respect to the similarities that exist between Nigeria and the UK is that both leadership situations lack good communication, but good leaders at both ends show honesty and integrity. In terms of leadership difference, there is a strong dearth of necessary and suitable leadership skills in Nigeria when compared to the UK. The respondent rates Nigeria as possessing lesser integrity in terms of managerial and public leadership, as well as inadequate attention to the basic rights of the employees, which ordinarily would not be allowed in the UK.

Mr. Arendale’s advice to other foreigners coming to Nigeria focuses on having a good understanding of Nigeria, Nigerians, and the uniqueness of the Nigerian business environment. Leaders are implored to employ qualified people with the most appropriate attitude to work, and not fill vacancies with only relations or loved ones who cannot perform the basic tasks before them. Moreover, good leaders must be willing to teach their subordinates and also apply some quantum of patience in working along with them.

Jordan Bellamy, Multinational Company, Lagos. Jordan Bellamy is a 47-year-old American male with over three years of leadership experience in an American multinational company in Lagos. Bellamy’s job warrants being at different locations in the course of his assignments. He supervises at least over 50 staff of the company at every point in time. According to Mr. Bellamy, lack of adequate communication between the managers and their subordinates is one major similarity between American leadership and that of Nigeria. He is of the opinion that America has a set of more qualified and competent persons in positions of leadership than Nigeria.

The leadership style observed in Nigeria by Mr. Bellamy is a blend of the work-oriented and employee-oriented type. Disappointments, betrayals, and lack of focus characterize the image of a sizeable number of Nigerian public servants. Tribalism is a killer that has be-deviled the Nigerian public organizations, especially at the federal level where quota representations exist in the appointment of workers.

Mr. Bellamy suggests that foreign leaders landing in Nigeria must take note of the cultural factors and be knowledgeable enough about them in order to effectively supervise the Nigerians under his supervision. The Nigerian work environment is another “kettle of fish” when compared to the developed nations. Workplace politics must be well understood before one can effectively perform his or her administrative duties in any workplace. The Nigeria case is not an exception.

Chris Kotze, Nigeria. Chris is a 45-year-old South African male who has been in leadership position in Nigeria for over six years. He presently has over 100 employees under his supervision and was a manager in the conglomerate headquarter branch of the mall in Johannesburg, South Africa, for over five years. He is of the opinion that corruption is prevalent in both Nigeria and South Africa, but the former is exceptional. Nigerian leadership does not take basic employee rights seriously, a thing that he believes would not be allowed in South Africa. He describes most effective leadership style in Nigeria as democratic/participative in nature.

Chris suggests that foreigners coming into Nigeria to should make their subordinates “unlearn” some things about work culture. Timely implementation of tasks, focus/direction, purpose, hard work, uprightness, and team spirit must be imbibed in the subordinates and other colleagues.

To summarize, the opinions of the interviewed selected Nigerian leaders and that of their foreign counterparts on leadership appointment on the Nigerian soil appear significantly coherent with existing literature on Nigerian leadership.

The insiders (Nigerians in leadership positions who were respondents to the structured interview on Nigerian leadership effectiveness) believe that Nigerian leadership is power-driven and sentimental in the areas of selection and recruitment, with little regard for skills and merit. Most leaders are involved in looting public funds and have selfish tendencies other than the welfare of those they are meant to govern. The insiders subscribe to the fact that foreign leaders often outperform the locally trained leaders because of the former’s education and training in the art of leadership, but still need to adequately understand the Nigerian environment in terms of culture in order to fit into their jobs properly. Foreigners in leadership positions in Nigeria (mostly from the developed societies) tend to be more focused and result-oriented than the local leaders. A male insider pointed out some differences between local managers and the visiting foreign managers in the areas of training, competence, and ethics, saying that the foreign expatriates were better trained in their home countries, possess a very high pedigree, and are more ethical than the local managers in Nigeria. Some Nigerian managers are well-trained, of high pedigree, and are ethical, but they are few when compared with their foreign counterparts. The insiders were of the opinion that Nigerian leadership style is participatory/democratic in nature with some notable elements of autocracy (dictatorship). The autocratic style is prevalent mostly in the private business environment. It is suggested that the foreign hands should imbibe the kind of leadership excellence existing in their home countries to better the lot of Nigeria.

The outsiders (three foreigners from Britain, America, and South Africa in leadership positions in Nigeria who were respondents in the structured interview on Nigerian leadership effectiveness) believe that little or no communication exists between the leaders and followers in Nigeria, which is very much at variance with what happens in their home countries. There is an indication of poor social relations in the workplace which has a negative impact on the concept of team spirit. They have a set of more qualified, competent, and ethical persons in leadership when compared to Nigeria. They suggest that corruption exist in both settings but that of Nigeria is incredibly exceptional. Autocratic and democratic leadership styles exist in both Nigeria and the developed world but autocracy is a bit relaxed in the Nigerian public service. The outsiders believe that corruption and fraudulent activities are dividends of bad leadership in the Nigerian public sector. Disappointments, betrayals, and lack of focus characterize the image of a sizable number of Nigerian public servants. The respondents realize the fact that foreigners coming to occupy leadership positions in Nigeria must be knowledgeable about the Nigerian culture for effective supervision of Nigerian subordinates. Foreign leaders are expected to make their subordinates “unlearn” some things about work culture in order to achieve business objectives. Focus, purpose, uprightness, and team spirit can re-position the leadership situation of Nigeria in the right direction.

Summary

Effective leadership can be seen to hinge upon knowledge (reasonable standard of education), understanding, interpersonal relationship with subordinates, honesty/trustworthiness, fairness and just behavior, commitment/dedication to duty, perseverance, and sense of humor on the part of the leader being assessed. Second, money/wealth, justice, and the type of surrounding (environment) that a leader finds himself are considered to be major motivators that will encourage such leaders to work hard, which accounts for the effectiveness of such leader.

Many Nigerians have negative perceptions of the concept of leadership both in government and in business organizations. Poor, unethical leadership styles affect organizational effectiveness and leads to employees seeking jobs elsewhere. Many of the ethical issues facing Nigeria result in part because of inconsistency in or lack of focus and commitment to policy implementation by leaders of such organizations. Moreover, unethical leadership behavior as opined by the insiders/outsiders interviewed has robbed the Nigerian work environment of its climatic conduciveness for effective leadership and business success. However, the response of the participants in the Delphi technique and focus group studies regarding a description of their culture on the platform of positivity toward honesty and hard work does not seem to conform with the insider/outsiders’ opinion that suggest that corruption and fraudulent activities are dividends of bad leadership and monitoring in the Nigerian public sector, coupled with the disappointments, betrayals, and lack of focus that characterize a sizable number of public servants. This points to an attribution problem where people blame their own shortcomings on other people and avoid personal recrimination. For example, the investigated respondents in this Delphi and focus group studies on leadership effectiveness think morally well of themselves to be honest and hardworking, while the outsiders’ view of them is otherwise. The average Nigerian employee will want to exonerate himself or herself and attribute his or her shortcomings to the problem of bad leadership, when the employee himself or herself actually needs to work on his or her conduct in the workplace.