of State-Owned Enterprises in Zimbabwe
FEATURED PAPER
By Dr. Graham Anesu Mhlakaza
and
Prof. Dawid de Villiers
Cranefield College
Pretoria, South Africa
Abstract
State-owned enterprises have featured prominently in the socio-economic and socio-political development of all developing sub-Saharan African countries, including Zimbabwe. Various research findings show that these enterprises’ operational and strategic performance of these enterprises was exceptionally well prior to the independence of these countries, but declined substantially thereafter. Various research findings indicate that this underperformance was due to inter alia leadership style and politically related extraneous factors. This investigation sought to determine whether the prevailing leadership styles relied on at any given point in time played a constructive role in the operational performance of the said enterprises in Zimbabwe and whether a situational leadership style will have a more positive impact on their operational performance. It was concluded that there is no direct, causal relationship between the operational performance of the state-owned enterprises and leadership style alone. A rebuttable conclusion was that the leadership style used prior to independence which entrenched some positive extraneous factors, underpinned the sound operational performance prior to independence and that the change in prevailing leadership after independence plus the negative extraneous factors which it permitted, was the underlying cause of the decline of this operational performance and their apparent, imminent demise.
Key words: leadership; operational performance; state-owned enterprise; situational leadership; transformational leadership
Introduction
State-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe have been faced with serious performance challenges in recent decades, ostensibly as a consequence of the quality of the leadership of these organisations. Various research findings and official reports testify to the inadequate organisational performance of all the state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe. The reliance on treasury for bailouts, high indebtedness, consistent loss-making and low contributions to the gross domestic product by state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe, are all indicators of their poor operational performance, ostensibly attributable to inadequate leadership and poor management systems, according to Chavunduka and Sikwila (2015:652), Chiguvi and Magwada (2016:2), Muzapu, Havadi, Mandizvidza and Xiongyi (2016:97), and Mutanda (2014:5). It is trite to comment that effective leadership is the differentiator between successful and unsuccessful business organisations and that there is a direct and positive correlation between effective leadership and organisational performance.It is against this background that the envisaged investigation aimed at evaluating the role and impact of leadership on the operational performance of the state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe, to augment the body of scientific knowledge which, according to Mwenje and Mwenje (2017:29) and Chinguruve (2019:14), is currently quite limited.
Research Problem
The research problem on which the envisaged investigation is predicated comprises the question whether the prevailing leadership styles relied on at any given point in time did play a constructive role in the operational performance of state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe and whether a situational leadership style will play a more constructive role in and have a more positive impact on, the operational performance of state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe. The research question is based on the null hypothesis that ‘the prevailing leadership styles relied on at any given time did not have a positive impact on the operational performance of state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe’. Concomitantly, it is also necessary to investigate whether leadership can obviate the effect of factors such as unethical practices that include nepotism and political influence on the operational performance of state-owned enterprises in Zimbabwe. It is trite that the relationship between leadership and organisational performance in Zimbabwe has not been subjected to proper empirical investigation as corroborated by Mwenje and Mwenje (Ibid., p.29), and Chinguruve (Ibid., p.14).
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How to cite this paper: Mhlakaza, G.A., de Villiers, D. (2022). The Role of Leadership on the Operational Performance of State-Owned Enterprises in Zimbabwe; PM World Journal, Vol. XI, Issue II, February. Available online at https://pmworldlibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/pmwj114-Feb2022-Mhlakaza-Villiers-the-role-of-leadership-on-operational-performance.pdf
About the Authors
Dr. Graham Anesu Mhlakaza
Harare, Zimbabwe
Dr Graham Anesu Mhlakaza is a dynamic corporate strategist with extensive leadership experience in non-profit and commercial roles spanning over 16 years, with a demonstrated track record of delivering productive change and transformation. Dr. Mhlakaza is currently Head, Human Capital of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO), Harare, Zimbabwe, and a Board Member of VLAM Trust, a charitable organization. He is former Senior Group Human Resources Officer for Amtec Motors (Private) Limited. He is married to Charity, and they are blessed with 3 children – Ian, Ethan and Kaitlyn.
A Chartered Human Resources Practitioner, Dr. Mhlakaza is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (FCIPD), the Australian Human Resources Institute (FCPHR), the Institute of People Management of Zimbabwe (FIPMZ), and the International Institute of Directors and Managers (FIIDM). He completed his PhD in Commerce & Administration at Cranefield College, Pretoria, South Africa and holds an Executive MBA Degree from Midlands State University, Zimbabwe. He can be contacted via email at grahammhlakaza@gmail.com or LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/graham-mhlakaza.
Prof. Dawid de Villiers, PhD
Cranefield College
South Africa
Prof Dawid de Villiers holds a B.A. from Rhodes University (1965), B.A. (Hons) Psychology from the University of South Africa (1966), M.A. Clinical Psychology from Rhodes University (1969), M.A. Industrial Psychology from the University of South Africa (1969), D. Litt et PHIL from the University of South Africa (1978), Advanced Labour Law Diploma from the University of South Africa (1982) and PhD from the University of Pretoria (2000). He holds Primary Teachers Certificates from Graaff Reinet Teachers College and Rhodes University. Over the years he completed various executive and management training programs including a Management Development Programme at Polytechnic, London, UK (1976); Labour Relations Management Programme at the MDOR Institute at the University of California Santa Monica, USA (1980); Advanced Management Program, University of California Los Angeles, USA (1983); and Strategic Negotiations Program at the Institute for Personnel Management, Nieremburg, Germany (1986). He has been an advisor to many institutions and organizations, an academic advisor for universities across South Africa, and a supervisor of graduate students.
