Dr Kwame Nkrumah was an inspirational leader who united Ghanaians under his influence towards a single goal, shattering sectionalism and tribalism while also building national solidarity and inspiring patriotism.
Nkrumah believed industrialization could be achieved rapidly. He suggested an ambitious plan to exploit Ghana’s abundant bauxite reserves by creating an aluminum smelter, dam and power plant which would produce cheap electricity to quickly jump-start Ghanaian industry.
1. Visionary Leadership
Visionary leaders possess the ability to conjure an inspirational mental picture that motivates and engages their team, translating ideas into strategies and tactics which ensure business success. Furthermore, visionaries possess a high degree of self-awareness which allows them to stay focused on goals even after experiencing setbacks.
Nkrumah was an effective communicator who successfully engaged the masses to embrace his ideas of independence and self-reliance. His policies included suppressing sectionalism and tribalism to foster an atmosphere of unity among his constituents; using metaphors such as calling colonialism “evil” and imperialism an “hydra-headed monster,” to instil moral values into people and make them realize freedom was their only path forward.
He spearheaded local manufacturing to strengthen national pride and decrease import dependence, encouraged women’s participation in politics, fought for minorities’ rights, and earned himself the moniker “Africa’s Man of Destiny.”
Nkrumah became increasingly authoritarian during his presidency and, in 1958, introduced the Preventive Detention Act, allowing detaining suspects without trial by government authorities. Unfortunately, this act as well as his cult of personality and mean-spirited ways caused many followers to turn against him, eventually disillusioning many of his supporters and leading to his ousting from office.
Mr. Charles Taleog Ndanbon of Yenyeya Small Scaling Mining Company Limited in Bolgatanga believes Ghanaians should follow in Kwame Nkrumah’s footsteps and emulate his visionary tactics to help their nation flourish. Additionally, Ndanbon encouraged all to come together for regional development. In turn, CEO of Yenyeya Mining Company of Upper East Region Mr. Charles Taleog Ndanbon reiterated this sentiment by promising that their company would strive to set an exemplary corporate citizenship role model.
2. Pan-Africanism
Pan-Africanism is founded upon the notion that Africans share a culture, and numerous intellectuals both in Africa and its diaspora advocated for Pan-Africanism as a way to unite Africans against colonial exploitation and slavery – such as C. L. R. James, George Padmore and Jomo Kenyatta among many others – who all provided critical foundational work that ultimately lead to political liberation for African peoples.
Ghana’s first Prime Minister and President Kwame Nkrumah heavily promoted Pan-Africanism during his struggle for independence from Britain in 1957. He became one of the founding members of OAU (later to be known as African Union). Additionally, he wrote many books on this topic such as Pan-Africanism: History and Theory.
Nkrumah advocated in his same book for an African Federal State to serve as both a symbol of unity and as an antidote against neocolonial tendencies that destroy societies to satisfy capitalist productive apparatus demands. Unfortunately, his dream proved challenging due to multiple obstacles: political opposition from within his own nation of Ghana; disagreement among African heads of state concerning leadership positions; as well as some liberal Black political alliances’ resistance to accepting his anti-colonial, marxist approach to politics that Nkrumah advocated.
Though these obstacles remain formidable, Nkrumah’s Pan-Africanist philosophy remains vitally important for Africans and the African Diaspora alike today. As such, it remains an effective means for building stronger economies and furthering development across Africa – this being one of the reasons his work remains celebrated by current African leaders, activists and scholars striving to promote its ideals.
3. Negotiation
Negotiation is a soft skill that involves understanding, crafting and communicating desired outcomes in disputes or business partnerships. Successful negotiation requires careful planning as well as listening attentively to both parties without becoming dismissive or argumentative. There are two styles of negotiation – competitive and collaborative. Both styles may prove useful depending on the circumstances; collaborative negotiations tend to focus more on creating working relationships rather than adversarial ones. During negotiations it is important to keep in mind there is no guarantee of success and any party can withdraw at any time from negotiations.
Negotiations is often about finding solutions tailored specifically to one party’s motives and objectives, rather than reaching an ideal agreement for both. Therefore, creating value through negotiations is critical; one way of doing this is identifying your ZOPA (Zone of Possible Agreement) and working within it; furthermore it’s useful identifying your BATNA (Best Alternative To Negotiated Agreement), so that should a deal not be possible at the negotiation table you can have an alternative plan ready should things not work out that way.
Nkrumah’s advocacy of Pan-Africanism resonated well among African leaders and activists fighting for independence and self-determination, while his emphasis on local manufacturing promoted national pride while decreasing dependence on foreign imports. Even though Ghana had limited industrial capacity at first, Nkrumah boldly proposed industrializing Ghana with his confidence and timeliness inspiring his colleagues’ belief he could achieve his goal. As his years passed by he advocated that other African states follow Ghana’s example and adopt policies of manufacturing to become self-sufficient themselves by adopting policies of self-reliance through manufacturing policies like Ghana had done so successfully.
4. Social Responsibility
Social responsibility is the practice of being mindful of the impact of one’s actions both locally and globally. It encompasses acts such as philanthropy, volunteering and adopting sustainable business practices into operations. Socially responsible leaders strive to meet all the needs of their stakeholders – employees, customers, communities and the environment alike.
Nkrumah was a visionary leader who understood that his decisions would have far-reaching ramifications on society as a whole. To maintain social responsibility and promote sustainability throughout Ghana, he encouraged his government to implement policies which improved lives while simultaneously improving sustainability across Ghana. Furthermore, he fostered democracy by decentralizing authority and increasing transparency within government institutions.
Nkrumah’s visionary leadership included forging unity between Africa and its diaspora communities. He encouraged diaspora intellectuals to settle in Ghana, supporting their endeavours while inviting high-profile intellectuals such as WEB duBois and Shirley Graham to assist him with realizing his dream of an Encyclopedia of Africa.
Additionally, he fostered unity and pride among Ghanaians by encouraging them to embrace their cultural identity with pride. Furthermore, he promoted patriotism by stressing how crucial each person was in contributing towards the overall well-being of the nation.
Businesses which exhibit a strong level of social responsibility tend to receive support from both customers and employees alike. A study by PDI Technologies showed that 74% of customers would pay more for products that have been environmentally sustainable while 91% of Gen Zers want to buy from companies who prioritize social responsibility – Pachamama Alliance promotes such practices by working alongside Indigenous Ecuadorian tribes to safeguard their land from oil drilling operations.
5. Effective Communication
Effective communication refers to the ability of communicating ideas, thoughts, knowledge, data, information or opinions from one sender to receiver in such a manner that they can be understood with clarity. It requires cooperation between sender and receiver throughout this process.
An organization must have a clearly communicated vision that can inspire its employees towards working towards one common goal, as well as help prevent or resolve internal team member disputes. Effective communication skills can benefit teams in many ways; including increasing productivity, decreasing workplace stress levels and improving morale.
The Seven Cs of Communicating Effectively are an effective framework for developing good communication skills. This framework includes being clear, concise, correct, courteous, complete and consistent; listening actively without interrupting; especially important when working with coworkers or managers as miscommunication and misunderstanding can arise quickly.
Effective communication skills are crucial in any setting – be it face to face or through online channels – with all types of people, such as employees, managers and customers. Aiming for friendly dialogue when giving news is crucial as well as staying on topic when conversing. Finally, being able to write clearly and succinctly when using email or instant message communication platforms are equally vital.
Effective communication is one of the most desired soft skills, as its value to business success cannot be understated. A study from MIT demonstrated this fact with their finding that when employees feel heard at work they become more engaged and productive – thus justifying any efforts you put into developing it as they can only help advance your career further.
