Abstract
Kenya has a diverse culture with various nationalities. Despite efforts to create a nation state, its political leadership thrives on tribal/ethnic groupings rather than nationhood. This chapter examines the historical context, culture, and leadership in Kenya within the wider context of Leadership Effectiveness in Africa and the Diaspora (LEAD) project. The results of qualitative studies on leadership effectiveness and motivation in Kenya are presented. Overall, the findings suggest that effective leaders are described as visionary, team leaders, results-oriented, influencers, and change agents. Results also suggest that servant leadership and the need to serve are considered important drivers for leaders’ motivations in Kenya; while more generally people are primarily motivated to achieve dreams and attain self-actualization. Finally, the perspectives from both insiders and outsiders reveal that more effort should be placed on the role of leadership effectiveness and motivation in organizations. Our findings can be used to create leadership and followership development training and education that can improve the socioeconomic development of the country.
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Senaji, T.A., Galperin, B.L. (2017). Leadership in Kenya. In: LEAD: Leadership Effectiveness in Africa and the African Diaspora. Palgrave Studies in African Leadership. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59121-0_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59121-0_8
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