0% found this document useful (0 votes)
10 views98 pages

Student Development Life Skills Overview

The Student Development and Life Skills Module is a compulsory online course aimed at enhancing holistic student development through various life skills essential for personal and professional growth. It covers topics such as employability, entrepreneurship, job searching, and leadership, while emphasizing the importance of ethics, accountability, and teamwork. The course utilizes diverse teaching methods, including group assignments and community service, to foster practical knowledge and skills among students.

Uploaded by

estherjoe56e
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0% found this document useful (0 votes)
10 views98 pages

Student Development Life Skills Overview

The Student Development and Life Skills Module is a compulsory online course aimed at enhancing holistic student development through various life skills essential for personal and professional growth. It covers topics such as employability, entrepreneurship, job searching, and leadership, while emphasizing the importance of ethics, accountability, and teamwork. The course utilizes diverse teaching methods, including group assignments and community service, to foster practical knowledge and skills among students.

Uploaded by

estherjoe56e
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

1

Student Development and Life Skills Module

(Course Overview, Synopsis and Assignments)

1
2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Course Overview 3

2. Character and Integrity as aspects of Employability 16

3. Entrepreneurship 25

4. Job Searching and Career Management 37

5. Interview Skills and Competences 47

6. Project Management Design 59

7. National Consciousness 73

8. Responsible Citizenship 80

9. Gender, Values, Rights, Culture and Sexuality 82

10. Leadership 86

2
3

Student Development and Life Skills Module

(Course Overview, Course Content Synopsis and Assignments)

1. Module Student Development and Life Skills

2. Course Moderator Dr Munyaradzi Madambi

3. Editor Mr Sebastian Mutambisi

4. Contact Details Office 7, Student Services Centre;


Phone +263 242 333 Ext 21000
studentaffairs@[Link]

5. Duration:
The Student Development and Life Skills Module is a compulsory online course
which is offered to all undergraduate students from Level 1 until they complete
their studies.

6. Course Overview:
The Student Development and Life Skills Module is designed to complement
academic departments in facilitating balanced and holistic student development.
The Module is premised on the philosophy that man is a social organism with
cognitive, moral, physical, spiritual and emotional dimensions with great potential
for growth through education. Several student development theories have been
selected to create a theoretical framework for students to understand
potentialities which exist in embryonic form within them from birth. These
potentialities have inherent propensities to develop into unique competences and

3
4

capabilities; which are herein referred to as life skills. Such skills are necessary for
personal efficiency and effectiveness in life.

For this Module, we have carefully selected student development theories which
are envisaged to enable students to explore various pathways that facilitate
the realization of cognitive, psychomotor and affective aims of education. The
Module is intentionally and strategically tailored to avert traditional biases
towards student cognitive development (Intelligent Quotient development) at the
expense of other critical areas, such as the SQ (social Quotient- ability to create
and sustain strategic social and professional relationships that are critical for
one’s optimum growth and progression in college and after graduation), EQ
(Emotional Quotient- ability to empathise, have compassion, honesty and
integrity ), AQ (Adversity Quotient- ability to deal with adverse of difficult
situations and to survive in any environment, i.e., devising innovative solutions to
life challenges) and MQ (Money Quotient- ability to use cognitive and
psychomotor skills to produce resources that foster self- reliance and
entrepreneurship).

The purpose of this Module is foster in students a broad range of life skills (social,
soft and technical skills) which are usually not taught in class. The ultimate goal of
the Module is to nurture confident, efficacious and dexterous students, with a
deep appreciation of who they are. Personal effectiveness, productive and
maximized living are at the core of the Module. Key competences targeted in this
Module include self-awareness, self-confidence, self-esteem, self-efficacy, self-
actualization, critical thinking, problem-solving skills, organizational skills,
creativity, innovation, inventiveness, negotiation skills, interpersonal skills,
4
5

communication skills, leadership skills, dealing with peer pressure and adversity,
listening and learning skills, entrepreneurship, community consciousness, etc.

5
6

7. Teaching and Learning Methods:


This Module is delivered online, allowing students to take charge of their learning
through active interaction with learning materials and the immediate and wide
environment in which they operate. As Albert Einstein would say, “I never teach
my

pupils. I can only attempt to provide the conditions in which they learn.” The
University holds that, a deep student-centered approach to teaching and learning
ought to prepare ‘prepare graduates for the road, instead of creating the road for
graduates’. Methods used in this Module will ensure that students have full
ownership and control of their learning processes.

The following methods will be employed from time to time, as directed by the
course Unit facilitators:

 Introductory lectures (upon request and where necessary),


 Individual practical assignments,
 Group assignments and presentations,
 Edutainment,
 Mentorship and Coaching,
 Field work and community outreach,
 Symposia, conferences and seminars,
 Online sessions, and
 Motivational sessions

6.1 Student Development Cohorts:


Students shall be required to arrange themselves into Student Development
Cohorts of 10 individuals per group. Running under the mantra, ‘Learning
Together, Growing Together’, students will do most tasks in these Cohorts.
This method of teams is designed to cultivate team spirit, group dynamics and
promote collaboration.
6
7

6.2 Accountability Partnerships:


In the context of Student Development Cohorts, group members are expected
select an individual they wish to learn and share with their insights throughout
a given academic year. Accountability Partnerships are designed to promote
team work, shared learning, self-esteem and confidence.

6.3 Plagiarism:
This refers to stealing and passing off the ideas or words of another as one's
own; i.e., to use another's production or intellectual property without crediting
the source. Plagiarism is strictly prohibited, and will lead to disqualification
and/or serious disciplinary measures taken against the perpetrator. Students
can work in Accountability Partnerships and Student Development Cohorts but
their individual efforts must be standout. These collaborations should not be
sources of overdependence on others.

6.4 Cheating and Misrepresentation:


In contemporary settings, students have developed the habit of recycling old
assignments from their predecessors. Student also tend to generate
assessment reports on their community services and fieldwork. Such habits are
strictly prohibited. Perpetrators of such malpractices will be prosecuted and
their products of cheating or misrepresentation nullified.

8. Course Evaluation:
This is a very practical Module which requires that students acquire practical
knowledge of life skills than mere theory. Coursework and community
outreach will contribute 60% of the total score at the end of the academic year
and the examination at the end of the academic year shall contribute 40%.
Students shall be required to submit written assignments and one Community
Service report at least one month before every end of semester examinations.

7
8

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS AND SUBMISSION DEADLINES.

Please note that assignment submission deadlines cannot be negotiated. All late assignments
will not be marked.

8.1 Community Service Reports and Assessment


Students shall be required to seek placement and conduct Community Service
at any Government institution of their choice. Each host institution shall be
required to assess students using the evaluation instrument provided by the
University. The student shall also be required to submit a written report (of
not more than 500 words) highlighting life skills enhanced by embarking in
Community Services during the period under review. Submitting false reports
will lead to automatic disqualification of the entire year’s Student
Development and Life Skills coursework and examination results. Honesty and
integrity are some of the key soft skills students must learn and uphold during
the course of their studies.

9. Submission of Assignments
Assignments shall be submitted in a manner prescribed by Module
Facilitators. No assignments or Community Service report should be sent to
the Module Moderator. Students are expected to stay in constant contact
with their Faculty- specific Student Development Officers for updates on the
implementation of this course.

8
9

UNIT ONE

ETHICS IN THE WORK PLACE

AUTHORED BY MRS FUNGAI PARADZA

1. INTRODUCTION

Organisational growth becomes a myth if not strategically managed. Ethical considerations in corporates
have become mandatory and the driving force towards success. This unit looks into organisational set-
ups, cultures and roles as they impact on general ethics of organisations

2. AREAS OF GROWTH

This unit serves to give students an understanding of work ethics in preparing them for the future world of
employment and entrepreneurship. Students will be exposed to tasks and activities which stimulate their
perceptions on the following ethical issues:

 Responsibility
 Equality
 Accountability
 Loyalty
 Dedication
 Discipline
 Professionalism

3. OBJECTIVES

By the end of this unit students should be able to:

 Explain the importance of establishing an organisational structure.


 Interpret organisational structures.
 Define work ethics
 Explain the importance of ethics in an organisational set up
 Describe the relationship between organisational structure/ culture and ethics

4. LEARNING OUTCOMES

 Improved work ethics.


9
 Improved loyalty and dedication 1
 Adherence to stipulated times 0

 Ability to meet deadlines


 Showing high level of collaboration, empathy and team work.
 Ability to make informed decisions

5. DEFINITION OF TERMS

5.1 Ethics

Bhasin (2021) defines organisational ethics as a form of applied or professional standards that scrutinise
ethical morals, values and principles that arise in a workplace. It applies to every aspect of the
organisational conduct and is considered relevant to both employee’s and management’s behaviour.
Therefore, ethics become a mandatory inspection and review tool to all stakeholders’ performance
through outcomes and outputs in organisations.

5.2 Organisation

According to Aldrich (2007) an organization can be conceptualized as a collection of individuals


deliberately structured within identifiable boundaries to achieve predetermined goals. Therefore, there is
need to put structures in place that direct all stakeholders on organisational expectations.

6. Why Create an Organisation

Organisations help in optimum utilisation of financial and human resources. It. not only aids in the proper
assignment of jobs to suitable employees. but also keeps track that there is no waste of resources and
efforts due to duplication of work.

Without a formal organizational structure, employees may find it difficult to know who they officially
report to in different situations, and it may become unclear exactly who has the final responsibility for
what. Organizational structure improves operational efficiency by providing clarity to employees at all
levels of a company. By paying mind to the organizational structure, departments can work more like
well-oiled machines, focusing time and energy on productive tasks.

6.1 Organisational Culture


According to Yafang (2011), Organisational culture influences success and employee satisfaction. Culture
refers to beliefs, values, attitudes, principles and interactive process in organisations. It is the personality
of a company. It defines and creates a unique environment to work in. Culture unites employees and
facilitates open communication. Other issues like, organisation’s expectations, vision, philosophy, image
and employee behaviours also define what the organisation is all about. The organisation’s productivity
and results are directly related to the culture. It is an informal control mechanism which generates
commitment and reduces conflict of interest. This is where organisations differentiate each other.
Authorities have come up with different organisational culture charts, below is one of them by Cameroon
and Quinn (1999):

Figure 1 Competing Values Culture Model

10
1
1

The diagram above highlights the four well known cultures which range from internal to external,
flexibility and discretion. These are; the Clan, Adhocracy, Hierarchy, and Market. Each culture has its
beliefs as indicated below:

6.1.1 Clan (Doing things together)


It focuses on mentorship and teamwork, which creates a family set up. It is characterised by a high
employee engagement and believes that happy employees result in high productivity and high turnover
market growth. The main values are teamwork, communication, consensus and team work.

6.1.2 Adhocracy (Doing thing first)


This is hinged on risk taking and [Link] of employees is dynamic and creative. Organisation
is in new things. It promotes freedom and initiative in employees. Values are change, agility,
transformation and innovative outputs.

6.1.3 Hierarchy
The primary focus is Structure and Stability. The values are consistency, stability, uniformity,
bureaucracy and timelines.

6.1.4 Market
Result oriented, get the job done and team work becomes the major influence. Goals are related to sales,
profits, market penetration and stock value and should reflect the performance of the company.

11
6.2 Characteristics of an Organisation 1
2
 Organisations have a structure.
 Organizations exist in a relatively permanent basis
 Organisations have identifiable boundaries
 The organisational mission describes its intentions and impact to clients.
 Ethical guiding documents such as the Code of Conduct should be instituted.
 The company values should be cascaded well to stakeholders so as to get competitive
advantage in the market place.
 Clientele needs someone with organisational knowledge and the right skills so as to realise
customer collaboration and loyalty.
 All formal organizations use specific knowledge (or technology) to perform work-related
activities.

Without establishment of proper relevant documents to guide operational activities, companies will fall
prey to irrelevancy and stagnancy in growth. As such, hire of qualified and relevant skilled staff becomes
significant.

6.3 Organisational Structure


Organizational structure provides guidance to all employees by laying out the official reporting
relationships that govern the workflow of the company. A formal outline of a company's structure makes
it easier to add new positions in the company, as well, providing a flexible and ready means for growth.

Without a formal organizational structure, employees find it difficult to know who they officially report
to in different situations, and it may become unclear exactly who has the final responsibility for what.
Organizational structure improves operational efficiency by providing clarity to employees at all levels of
a company. By paying mind to the organizational structure, departments can work more like well-oiled
machines, focusing time and energy on productive tasks

Figure 1 Example on an Organisational Structure

12
1
3

Source: [Link]

6.1 Reporting Structures/Relationships


These are organisational chains of command indicating the interrelationships between various authorities
and spelling out the hierarchy of responsibility.

6.1.1 Why reporting structures?


 Lead to employee job specialisation and talent acquisition.
 Lead to reduction in conflict among employees.
 Chain of control is easy to manage.
 Employees understand their roles and whom they report to.
 Decision making and analysis of trends is easier done in one office.

Task 1

In your cohorts draw the organogram showing the structure of any organisation you are familiar with.

7. The Place of Ethics in Organisations

Ethics is a broad term that incorporates character traits and behaviours in life. On the other hand
workplace ethics refer to a specific set of moral and legal guidelines that organisations may follow in
operations. These shape employees’ and customers’ interactions with the organisation. In most cases,
organisations employ workplace ethical codes that govern and improve productivity of stakeholders and
the public’s perception of their operations.

7.1 Examples of Ethics expected in Organisation

 Responsibility
 Equality
 Accountability
13
 Trust 1
 Loyalty 4

 Fairness
 Dedication
 Discipline
 Professionalism
 Sustainability.
 Politeness

7.2 Why Ethics in Organisations?


Success in organisations is determined partly by the prevailing code of ethics which guide operations.
Work place ethics are an incredible important part of forming a successful organisation with satisfied and
loyal team members.

 Ethics is one of the contributing factors in organisational operations. An employee with the right
attitude becomes an asset in an organisation. Professionalism in conduct becomes significant in
operations. Employees should be knowledgeable of the expectations of the organisation.
 High ethical standards aid stakeholders’ spirit of ownership and belonging to the organization.
Employees and other stakeholders will typically follow suit and maintain the organization’s best
interests through acting ethically in their operations. For example, if employees are treated fairly
and respectfully, they tend to reduce on negative encounters which will expose the organisation.
 The initiative helps organisations and employees enjoy particular advancements, like heightening
productivity and increasing employee satisfaction.
 Employees become more devoted in their roles and express pride in being part of such
organisations.
 Well laid rules governing operations lead to the organisational effectiveness and efficiency.
Stakeholders will voluntarily pledge themselves to act positively, constructively and with growth
in mind.

7.3 How Organisations Encourage Ethical Behaviours

Organisational success is embedded in stakeholders’ attitudes and influences. Organisations should:

 Generate a statement of organisational values that define a framework of behaviour expectations


and principles to specify why the company exists, its values and beliefs.
 Come up with robust strategic plans and goals that align with basic ethical standards.
 Set standard operating procedures and performance metrics discouraging unethical behaviour and
treat all stakeholders with integrity.
 Consistently enforce rules to ensure compliance with standards.

14
Task 2 1
5
o Identify ethical principles that you think are a cause of concern in most organisations
and suggest strategies that organisations can employ to ensure compliance.
7.4 Organisational Roles.

Anonymous (2013) defines a role as a set of connected behaviours, rights, obligations, beliefs and norms
as conceptualised by actors in a social situation. In organisations, tasks are distributed among various
positions as roles. Each member in an organisation occupies a specific position which is directly or
indirectly associated to other positions in the hierarchy of organisational chart. The organisational tree
sets the role of the employee whilst including superiors and subordinates. Prasad (2000) denotes that each
person is expected to behave in a particular manner while performing a specific role. Observation of
ethics in organisation is crucial in organisational operations.

7.5 Role Expectations/Performance

Kendall (2011) defines role expectations as the way a role ought to be performed as determined by a
group or society. Clear and well defined roles lead to high performance in employees. Understanding of
key responsibilities leads to job efficiency and effectiveness. Well explained roles will keep employees
focused ensuring productivity.

7.5.1 Meeting Deadlines and Team work

Meeting deadlines is where employees manage their tasks within the expected time-lines of the
organisations. Team work in an organisation relates to collaboration and grouping towards achievement
of set objectives.

A responsible employee is always time conscious. Some organisations recognise or incentivise target
oriented employees which generate intrinsic motivation in them. The organisation will, in turn, realise
high profits since the employees will be happy. Setting deadlines makes employees meet the targets in
their operations since it creates a sense of urgency. The organisation realises a steady flow of work and
planned work is completed within expectations. It also creates credibility and encourages customer
loyalty. It increases productivity.

7.5.2 How to Set and Meet deadlines

Employees should plan work, diarise, use desk calendars or set a phone alarm as reminders. Tasks need
realistic deadlines. Visit the pending tasks file each morning before engaging in the job in case one
forgets. Employees should stay focused, be proactive, prioritise tasks, set reminders or engage others as
reminders.

7.6 Social skills

15
Good interpersonal and social skills are mandatory in 1organisations. Clients are assured of a good service
through presentation of exceptional skills. Skills such6as communication, teamwork, liaison/networking,
listening are key in any organisational set up.

7.6.1 Importance of Social Skills


These are also called soft skills and are acquired during interaction with others. All jobs need social skills.
These skills encourage team spirit; develop listening skills, empathy and communication among others.
To demonstrate the essentiality of social skills, all employers look for job candidates with these
competencies. It is encouraged that job seekers should demonstrate that they have strong social skills in
their resume, cover letters or interviews.

There is need for employees to show empathy when dealing with clients’ problems and questions. There
is need to show genuine concern and provide solutions to the situation. Employers value social skills
because it cultivates collaboration and strong workplace relationships; cooperation and partnership. When
employees pull efforts together, they tend to achieve higher. Employees get clear instructions from the
employer and understand clients’ concerns.

Activity 4

1. Identify at least 5 interpersonal and social skills needed in a work place

2. Suggest ways of developing or strengthening these skills in individuals.

3. Justify the need for good interpersonal and social skills in an organisation.

8. Summary

The unit dwelt on the importance of ethics in organisations. It looked at different operational cultures and
how organisations should operate so as to realise sustainable development. It has examined the
importance of ethics, cultures, role expectations, importance of deadlines, good interpersonal skills and
ways of combating monotony in workplaces.

16
REFERENCES 1
7
Anonymous 2013a [Link]/wiki/Role. Accessed on 18/9/13

Anonymous 2013b archive. [Link]/../432_Human_Resource_ Development


Accessed on 18/9/13

Kaur, P. (2002). Constraints faced by Agricultural Development Officers in transfer of technology to


the farmers of Punjab. Ind J Soc Res49: 395-400

Kaur, M. (1986) Role analysis of Mukhya Sevikas in Punjab. Ph.D. dissertation. Punjab Agricultural
University, Ludhiana, India

Kendall, D. (2011) Sociology in Our Times. 8th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Komblum, W. (2008) Sociology in a Changing World. 8th ed. Belmong, CA:Wadsworth.

Oxford University Press. (N.d.) Oxford Dictionaries. ([Link]


Quinn R. E. and Cameron, K. S. (2019) Competing Values Cultures Model. University of Cameron.
Internet : Bing Pictures on Organisational Structures July 2022.
100 Motivational Office Quotes To Encourage You at Work | [Link]
Yafang, T, (2011). Relationship between Organisation and Culture retrieved from
[Link]

17
UNIT1 2
8
CHARACTER AND INTEGRITY AS ASPECTS OF EMPLOYABILITY

AUTHORED BY DR GRACIOUS MUPUPUNI

1. INTRODUCTION

The debate on lack of employability has been in the lime light for over two decades. This Unit is designed
to address some of the employability qualities that are required in an increasing global market (Martin, et
al., 2008). This unit targets preparing university students to go beyond having career-specific knowledge
acquired in academic subjects to grasping other equally significant soft skills such as handling
information, communication, problem solving, and planning, to enhance their employability (Fallows &
Steven, 2000).

2. AREAS OF GROWTH

This Unit will focus on the following soft skills as facets of employability:

 Trustworthiness
 Allegiance
 Exertion
 Compassion
 Punctuality
 Communication and interpersonal skills
 Team working
 Organisational skills
 Working under pressure
 Organizational citizenship behaviours

3. OBJECTIVES

By the end of the Unit, students should be able to;

 Identify characteristics that make students employable.


 Discuss the importance of maintaining a good character in the workplace.
 Analyse the value of loyalty and commitment to an organization.
 Evaluate the contribution of organizational citizenship behaviours to the employment space.

4. DEFINITION OF TERMS

4.1 Character: The Britannica Dictionary (2012) defines character as the way one thinks,
feels, and behaves. Ideally, character is one’s personality with a special focus on

18
how reliable and honest someone is. 1
9
4.2 Integrity: Integrity can be defined as demonstrating strong principles and values, through
your conduct in the work environment. A common integrity definition states that people with
integrity do the right thing even when nobody is watching. They are dependable and have
solid moral principles (Orner, 2009). A person with integrity behaves ethically, even when no
one is watching them
4.3 Employability: According to (Rao 2010), employability skills are skills required for
gaining employment and enhancing progress within a particular business enterprise.

5. The Concept of Employability

The notion of employability in broad terms can be defined as the ability of a graduate to get a job (Lees,
2002). On another level, employability is defined as: “a set of achievements, skills, understandings and
personal attributes that make graduates more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen
occupations, which benefits themselves, the workforce, the community and the economy” (Yorke, 2004).
The two authors emphasise graduates’ ability to gain and maintain employment based on the skills gained
during academic education. Implicitly, students should be able to apply this set of skills if they are to
work effectively. Effectiveness in the work place is a combination of successfully completing the course
and skills application.

Prospective employees should therefore take effective action towards attaining the jobs they seek, become
good team players, and be willing to learn from experience (Mansour and Dean, 2016).

5. Importance OF Character and Integrity

According Holland (1997), most employers prefer employing people with a good character. Employees with
a good character tend to get along well with colleagues, clients and work productively with others. In a
nutshell, getting hired depends on one’s desire to do well in a new job, flexibility, adaptability, and the
capacity to change. Employees thrive in environments that are aligned with their personality types. Apart
from a good character, employers take up jobs that ultimately lead to career success. Apart from a good
character, there are additional employability skills that employers look out for. These are detailed in the
following segment of this unit.

Benefits of Workplace Integrity

5.1 Examples of Employability Skills


Besides the technical skills required in job performance, there are invaluable soft skills which form the
skills-set necessary for employability. These, among others, include the following:

19
5.1.1 Communication skills: Employees are 2rated highly if they can communicate with clarity
0
and conciseness both orally and in writing. Listening to what others have to say and reacting
appropriately to the information is also relevant to this aspect. Communication within organisation
is multi-directional, it can be top-down, bottom-up or lateral. A realization of the dynamics
involved in each of these types of communication is essential if one is to be effective in the
context of an organisation. These important skills enable employees to gain full potential in the
workplace.

5.1.2 Problem Solving: Trought (2011) defines as the ability to understand challenges by
breaking them down into smaller parts. Dissecting a problem into smaller pieces enhances one’s
ability to identify key issues, their implications and find solutions.

5.1.3 Being Proactive is also highly ranked by captains of industry. The aspect entails originating
pragmatic ideas that can be transformed to reality.

5.1.4 Being Dependable: Good employees do not wait for orders in order for them to be
productive. They are self-driven to complete a certain task. Self-driven employees possess the
ability to monitor their progress of work to ensure they are on track of meeting the required
objectives.

5.1.5 Meet Deadlines and work under pressure. Employers value workers who can handle
stress that comes with work deadlines that must be met. On the contrary, inept individuals will
break down once the pressure of work mounts on them. Employees who meet deadlines and
targets are essential for the success of any organization.

5.1.6 Team Spirit: Success of organisations is dependent on individuals’ ability to work


efficiently with other people. Employees usually come from different backgrounds and
disciplines, so being accommodative of diverse personalities is paramount in an organisation.
Working in partnership is vital for any organization (Orner, 2009). Proficient employees are
considerate of other people’s feelings before expressing their own requirements. They are content
to take on a win-win outcome.

5.1.7 Good Negotiating Skills: Efficient employees have good negotiation skills. They are
content to take on a win-win outcome.

5.1.8 Trustworthiness/ Honesty: Employers want people they can trust with important
organisational information and roles. While technical skills can make you get a job, soft skills will
enable you to keep it and see you up the corporate ladder
5.1.9 Commitment: Employment makes you part and parcel of the organisation and the
relationship can be buttressed if one demonstrates unquestionable loyalty to the organisation even
at time when its facing turbulent times.
20
5.1.10. Self-Confidence: No employer would2want an employee who doubts his abilities and is
1 which does not amount to arrogance is a virtue
susceptible to undue influence. Self-confidence
which makes one employable.

A report by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry noted that more than 10% of skills gap
between industry requirements and available personnel (Wright, et al., 2010). (Check the findings of the
latest skills audit conducted in Zimbabwe)

It is imperative that graduates get well versed with the expectations of industry. According to Archer &
Davidson, (2008), while technical skills seem to be obvious pre-requisites for employment, soft skills
which constitute one’s character, are equally significant self-confidence

The above-mentioned attributes are invaluable in improving functionality and proficiency in the
workplace. Additionally, successful leaders should manifest integrity as one of the key skills.

5.2. The Five Principles of Character/Integrity

 Make promises sparingly and fulfil them all.


 Stick to commitment that you make to yourself and others.
 Only make promises that align with values which you have thought through objectively.
 Always evaluate your choices objectively and seek the counsel of trusted friends.

A close look at the soft skills required by employers shows that they are woven into the fabric of one’s
character and requires a relatively long time to acquire. Anyone who demonstrates those soft skills is an
asset which any organisation would not want to lose as it takes time and exposure to develop them.

Task

On a scale of 1-5, rate yourself on these attributes giving sound justification

ATTRIBUTE RATING (1-5) JUSTIFICATION

HONESTY

SELF-DRIVE

HARD WORK

COOPERATION/TEAMWORK

DEPENDABILITY

21
PUNCTUALITY 2
2
COMMITMENT

Discuss the following with your accountability partner:

 The importance of being prompt...


 Track how long you take to complete tasks
 The importance of being ruthless with one’s to do list
 Giving yourself a time frame
 Patience as a virtue
6. Key Elements of Character/Integrity
6.1 Hard Work: This refers to working constantly, diligently, regularly, being engaged in earnest and
energetic work and going above and beyond your usual effort to achieve a higher level of success
(McGuineness and Rabey 2007). The literal meaning of hard work is to do work daily, consistently, and
with a lot of energy. This work can be physical, mental, or in some cases, emotional. Hard work involves
exerting your physical, emotional and mental abilities to duty. Hardworking people are focused,
consistent and stay motivated to producing outstanding results.
6.1.1 Characteristics of a hard worker

Hard work is the only key to achieving set goals (Trought, 2011). Self-exertion teaches discipline,
dedication and determination. A hard-working employee is someone who exerts themselves and is willing
to learn looks for new ways to grow within the company. Meticulous people do not settle for mediocrity.
Hard-work enhances work experience and makes employees innovative. Hard working people work smart
to solve critical problems and achieve success. They realise that there is no shortcut to success. Hard
working people acknowledge that success is a combination of hard-work, gifts and talents. Below, are
some of the advantages of hard-work:

6.1.2 Organisational Benefits of Hard Work

 High productivity and Increased revenue


 Improvement in the living conditions of the individual
 National development
 Decrease in social vices
 Enhanced potential to choose from different types of jobs.
 Proficient performance in job settings
 Instills a positive attitude towards work

Task

With your accountability partner, rank any five employability skills in order of importance giving
justification for each choice.

22
6.2 Loyalty and Commitment to the Organisation 2
3
Loyalty can be defined as commitment to an organization. One way to enhance loyalty in the work place
is through proper orientation activities; time for the company CEO or another top leader to spend an hour
personally talking with new employees about company values and ethics, using real examples from their
career. Employees can also be proactive when they do not understand certain operations in the
organization. Both employer and employee should be accountable for their actions if the business is to
thrive. That way, employees will be happy and succeed professionally when they do the following:

 Generating trust.

 Pride.

 Responsibility.

 Keeping promises.

 Helping others.

6.3 Organisational Citizenship Behaviours


There are a number of citizenship behaviours that make an organization tick. For instance, even when
policies have been set, when push comes to shove, be respectful. If you promote one thing but do another,
employees will get the message that what’s in writing does not matter.

Look out for the best in others. Instead of dismissing what someone else says, thinks or wants to do, first
acknowledge the merits his or her approach has and, if possible, thank them for the insights or
participation then point out the pros and cons. Afterwards, you can explain why you disagree and offer a
solution. Always work in a two-way communication mode. Spell out expectations clearly through memos
and meetings and other methods. Be transparent
6.4 Positive Attitude
What Attitude is:

“An attitude is our assessment of ourselves, other people, ideas, and objects in our world” (Petty et al.,
1997)

“It is a favorable or unfavorable evaluative reaction toward something or someone, exhibited in ones
beliefs, feelings, or intended behavior” (Myers). It is a social orientation - an underlying inclination to
respond to something either favorably or unfavorably.

 Attitude are predispositions


 Attitude are different from values
 Attitude are evaluative statement

23
 Attitude influence human behaviour 2
 Attitude have intensity 4

 Attitude are learnt

6.4.1 Benefits of a Positive Attitude (Adapted from John Maxwell 2012)

 Better heart health. Our positive or negative thoughts and attitudes can impact our hearts.
 An active, curious mind.
 Increased productivity at work.
 Overcoming obstacles becomes easier.
 Better relationships and social life.
 Better recovery process.
 Managing your stress.
 Recognize negative feelings and thoughts.
 Changing what is possible.
 Practice gratitude and acceptance.
 Set affirmations.
6.4.2 Maintaining the Right Attitude

 Rid yourself of resentment. ...


 Associate with positive people. ...
 Compliment at least one person every day. ...
 Be enthusiastic.
 Refuse rejection
 Face failure as temporary
 See errors as isolated incidents
 Keep the prospects realistic
 Focus on strengths
 Vary the behaviors according to the enterprise; and
 Return to the starting point.

Task

1. SELF ASSESSMENT
I have gone through employability skills development and the following are areas I need to
continue get information on:
i..............................................................................................................................................ii............
.................................................................................................................................iii.........................
...................................................................................................................iv........................................
24
....................................................................................................v........................................................
2
5
......................................................................................
Knowledge /Skills I may have to continue to acquire experientially about work environment
through sources other than academic studies are:

i..............................................................................................................................................

ii.............................................................................................................................................

iii............................................................................................................................................

iv............................................................................................................................................

References

El Mansour, B. and Dean, J.C. (2016) Employability Skills as Perceived by Employers and University
Faculty in the Fields of Human Resource Development (HRD) for Entry Level Graduate Jobs. Journal of
Human Resource and Sustainability Studies, 4, 39-49. [Link]

Griesel, H., & Parker, B. (2009). Graduate attributes: A baseline study on South African graduates from the
perspective of employers. Pretoria: Higher Education South Africa & The South African Qualifications

McGuiness, C. & Rabey L., (2007) Beauty Beyond the ashes: Choosing Hope After Crisis. Howard
Books

Maxwell, J.C., (2012) The 15 invaluable laws of growth: Live them and reach your potential. Center
street.

Orner, M., (2009) Employability Skill Acquisition of Career and Technical Education Students. Java:
Duquesne University.

Rao, M., (2010) Soft skills: enhancing employability: connecting campus with corporate. New Delhi:
I.K. Publishing.

Trought, F., (2011) Brilliant employability skills. Harlow: Prentice Hall.

25
2
6

UNIT 3

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

AUTHORED BY MS VIOLA MUSNESI


1. AREAS OF GROWTH

This Unit aims to give students an appreciation of the ever-changing socio-economic and technological
dynamics and how they impact on their active participation in national and global economic participation.
The unit will further expose students to situations and activities which stimulate

 Analysis and interpretation of the evolving socio-economic and technological environment


 Problem solving capacities
 Identification of business opportunities along different value chains.
 Leveraging on acquired knowledge, skills and talent to facilitate active economic participation

2. OBJECTIVES

By the end of this Unit students should be able to:

 Describe the changing trends in economic activity nationally and globally

 Give a critical analysis of the impact of technology on economic development

 Identify business opportunities provided by changing economic trends

 Come up with business models which are compatible with the new economic order

 Identify ways of utilising their knowledge, skills and talents in active economic participation.

3. LEARNING OUTCOMES

 Appreciation of the changing socio-economic dynamics


 Acquisition of knowledge and skills that enable one to participate actively in economic activity
 Reduced dependence on the dwindling employment opportunities in the formal job market
 Monetisation of skills and talents for economic survival.
26
4. DEFINITION OF TERMS 2
7
 The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (“GEM”) defines entrepreneurship to include “… any
attempt at new business or new venture creation, such as self-employment, a new business
organization, or the expansion of an existing business, by an individual, teams of individuals, or
established businesses”.

 Burch has referred to entrepreneurship as the “initiation of change” and the “process of giving
birth to a new business.”

 Stokes et al. divides the various definitions of entrepreneurship into three categories
encompassing; purposes, behaviors and outcomes
The first category includes definitions that focused the activities and processes of
entrepreneurship such as:
 creating something new,
 pursuing opportunities,
 discovering, creating and exploiting opportunity for future goods and services

The second category of definitions focused provides insights into the specific behaviors
of individuals who engage in entrepreneurial activities such as “competitive and drive
market process” and “creative and innovative”.

The third category focused on “what entrepreneurs produced”, such as creating new
organizations.

5. Theoretical Framework

Scholars have come up with various theories of entrepreneurship, among which are the following:

 Innovation Entrepreneurship theory


 Economic Entrepreneurship theory
 Sociological Entrepreneurship theory
 Psychological Entrepreneurship theory
 Opportunity based Entrepreneurship theory
 Resource-based Entrepreneurship theory
 Anthropological Entrepreneurship theory

While this Unit is based on only three of the theories, you are encouraged to read on the other theories to
have a wider theoretical appreciation of the field of entrepreneurship.

5.1 Innovation Entrepreneurship Theory

This theory has been deliberately selected because it is in line with one of the five pillars of Education 5.0
which focuses on production of goods and services.

According to Schumpeter, entrepreneurs, take an otherwise static economy to a new level of development
by coming up with innovations and creativity. He posits that entrepreneurs bring innovation in two ways:

 By reducing the cost of production


 By increasing the demand for certain products

5.2 Economic Entrepreneurship Theory

27
The main proponent of this theory is Richard Cantillon,
2 in whose view the economy was one of the fields
affected by entrepreneurship. 8

 According to Cantillon (1931), an entrepreneur acts as both ‘producers’ and ‘exchangers’.


 An entrepreneur’s action greatly affects the supply chain of raw products being collected, to
become an end product for consumers.

5.3 Opportunity based entrepreneurship Theory

Drucker (1985) the entrepreneur always searches for change; responds to it and exploits it as an
opportunity. Drucker and Stevenson (2015) focused on a wide-ranging conceptual framework of
entrepreneurship and hence contradicted Schumpeter’s theory which stated entrepreneurship as change.

5.4 Anthropological Entrepreneurship Theory Anthropologists study the human aspects within the
past and present. According to this theory, entrepreneurs find possibilities that present themselves as
difficulties because of the social aspects of business activities. This pushes them to come up with new
ways to solve difficulties, or at the very least contribute to their solutions.

Task: Identify recent entrepreneurial initiative which can best be explained by;

 The economic entrepreneurship theory


 The innovation theory
 The opportunity based theory
6. Leveraging ICT for Entrepreneurship

People may fail to realise that entrepreneurial opportunities arise from significant changes in population,
society, and advancements in technology. For businesses to survive in the industry in which they operate,
they must keep track of the current trends and follow them.

The following are some of the recent trends in entrepreneurship in developing economies.

6.1 Rise in Digital nomadism


The trend of working from home, digital nomadism, (Mutuku 2021) though not a new
phenomenon is on the rise.
 Some businesses, such as consultancy and other professional services, created an enabling
environment for their employees to work remotely.
 Instead, its relevance increased during the Covid-19 pandemic.
 Digital nomadism is possible because of the ease of accessing internet services. Thus,
entrepreneurs should think of working remotely to save on overhead costs.
 Digital nomadism also allows for flexibility in the daily management of businesses.
6.2 Globalism expanding customers base

One of the most significant current entrepreneurship trends is globalism. Globalism is an ideology
based on the belief that people, information, and goods should be able to cross national borders
unrestricted,

 Since working from home has become a norm, entrepreneurs should start working with
international teams to support, build, and expand their businesses
 Small entrepreneurs should take advantage of technology to go international and expand
their customer reach. They should also build connections with global audiences to
understand their target markets better.
 Some companies that should consider globalism are those working in professional and
media spaces.
28
6.3 Small businesses moving towards mobile commerce
2
9
People are using their mobile phones than ever. Many are checking their devices constantly.

 As mobile phones become cheaper with more processing powers, consumers will choose
to shop online using their phones.
 Thus, entrepreneurs should create an efficient mobile commerce process. Also, the use of
mobile money means small businesses should expect more options for mobile transactions
and payments.
 During the Covid-19 pandemic, many businesses closed shop. But this also saw an
increase in online ordering goods and services online through their mobile phones.
 Entrepreneurs should now understand that businesses with an online presence have an
advantage over those with a traditional distribution avenue.
6.4 Social media commerce supporting businesses

Mobile phones and internet connectivity in Kenya have enabled e-commerce companies to set shop.
But social media platforms have also increased in popularity in recent times.

 Today, the fastest-growing entrepreneurial businesses are now using social media to sell
their items directly to customers.
 Social commerce is where e-commerce and social media meet. Entrepreneurs can use this
new trend to give and receive feedback from their customers, offer their goods or services,
or recreate an in-person digital platform.
 A business that uses social media will reach more customers and improve its social selling.
6.5 Africa now embracing the Gig Economy

A gig economy is whereby many people work part-time or in temporary positions or as independent
contractors.

 Businesses are now moving towards the gig economy because it is cheaper and efficient.
 Examples of companies in this category range from food delivery services, online writing,
web design, and software and app programming.
 Also, universities are now employing part-time and adjunct professors to teach part-time
students. As one of the emerging trends in entrepreneurship in Kenya,
 The gig economy will allow small business owners who cannot afford to hire full-time
employees to look for part-time or temporary employees to handle specific projects.
6.6 Rise in Customisation options and niche markets

Clients are looking for uniqueness when buying specific products, whether online or locally. People
want particular and customisable items.

 The trend has spread everywhere, from food to fashion, beauty, and technology industries.
 Small business owners should focus on being customer-centric since it helps cater to new
consumer preferences.
 It creates a new supply chain and demand in specific populations.
6.7 Rise in Subscription-based business models

A subscription-based business model is when customers pay recurring fees at regular intervals to
access a product or service.

 The subscription-based model in business is gaining momentum. Companies like DSTV,


require their customers to pay a monthly fee to access their services.

29
 Recently, many players are adopting 3and adapting the same concept, for example the
tourism industry. 0
 Small businesses like gyms, online magazines, lawn care, and personal care are trending
entrepreneurial ideas based on the subscription model.
6.8 Internet media now promoting content creation

Many service providers now resort to creating content for the internet consumer.

 More young people are using the internet to consume specific content. Small businesses
can take advantage of this by displaying ads on streaming platforms. Also, they can create
internet media to engage more people to use their products or services
 Comedians, entertainers, artists, educationists, and many others use social networks to
develop and monetise their content.
 The entry of video-hosting websites like Youtube and Tik-tok, HubSpot Dailymotion,
Wistia, SproutVideo, Hippo Video, Vidyard, among others, has allowed young content
producers to make money without starting physical establishments.
6.9 Adopting mobile businesses

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people lost their jobs as businesses closed because of reduced revenues.
Some could not even pay their rent. Other, however, became innovative and used cars, motor-cycles,
wheelbarrows, bicycles, and push-carts to sell their produce.

 Today, there is abundant opportunity for entrepreneurs to venture into the mobile business.
 They can consider offering cleaning, beauty services and delivery of food, groceries,
toiletries, equipment, and other items requiring transportation within shorter distances.
6.10 The influence consumer education

Consumer education helps business owners raise awareness, thereby enabling consumers to become
more proactive. Furthermore, it can be a catalyst for changing consumer behaviour and how
customers relate to a brand, business, product, or service.

 The business landscape is changing rapidly because of evolving consumer demands, new
technologies, societal and economic factors.
 Small entrepreneurs should watch out for the recent trends in entrepreneurship to remain
relevant, improve their business offerings, reach out to more customers, and generate more
revenues.
 The rate of unemployment is high as more and more graduates enter the job market with
little opportunities available in the formal sector. The youth are advised not to seek jobs
but to create jobs for others.

Adapted from [Link]

7. Embracing Digital Entrepreneurship

Having an online business is an incredible opportunity and anyone can join in this promising adventure.
But, before achieving success, you need to have a winning mindset.

 Being a Digital Entrepreneur is not a Guarantee of Success.


According to Bloomberg, 8 out of 10 entrepreneurs who start businesses fail within the first 18
months.
 Get Moving

30
Do not wait for the perfect opportunity to start.3Go and do it. If it’s wrong, you can fix it. Done is
better than perfect. 1

 You will fail.

If you don’t fail, maybe you were not aiming high enough, and you didn’t risk enough. Make sure
you make mistakes as fast as possible, in order to learn as fast as possible.

 The More you Work, the More Luck you will have.

Luck, in the context of entrepreneurship, is not a product of chance but a function of hard work
and dedication. When you work hard, new people, new businesses and opportunities will naturally
appear all around you.

 Big decisions are yet to come.

In business, decisions have to be guided more by rationality than by emotions, so consider as


many variables as possible before making a decision.

 Working late at night and weekends is necessary.

Technology has made the whole notion of “normal business hours” a myth. While one sleeps, the
competition keeps on working so be prepared to work odd hours; working late and on week-ends.
Time and physical space is no longer a barrier.

 You will have to learn to sell.

Selling is no longer limited to physical goods; sell ideas, sell service and sell products.

o Selling is not limited to physical space: sell on air, online


o Learn persuasion techniques
o Acquire negotiation skills
o Have an online presence.
 Studying is essential.
o In this fast changing world of industry and commerce; you cannot afford to be static.
o Read, study and keep up with the latest news about the world, especially in your market
niche.
o Use technology in your favor, your Smartphone/notebook/tablet is always within reach.
o Buy e-books, subscribe to interesting feeds and use your free time learn the latest news
and trends in your market niche.
 You will want to give up.
Giving up will cross your mind at the difficult moments. There will be moments in which it will
seem that everything is going in the wrong direction.
o But what if you give up when the next curve can be the last one before the finishing line?
o Every entrepreneur, even a digital entrepreneur, has bad days.
o Taking a break and calm your mind to recharge But Don’t Quit.
 Don’t be distracted

The grass may be greener on the other side, but do you know how huge he water-bills are? Don’t
let other people’s results influence you too much.

8. Monetizing Talent and Skills


31
When one acquires a skill or possesses a talent, there 3is a tendency to take the skill or talent for granted,
forgetting how many other people out there wish they 2had the talent or skill one has. Among those people
who wish they were you are potential clients; why then not build business ideas around them and
monetize those rare abilities that make you unique. The advantage is that you earn a living out of what
you really enjoy doing, a departure from the traditional job market enclosure.

8.1 How to find out what your Talents are?

Talent is everything you have a natural ease to learn and do. More often than not, we have talents that are
so much part of our nature that we don’t even realize that they are skills. It could be anything.

 Taking care of plants,


 Being able to socialize easily,
 Being excellent at sports or drawing.
 Public speaking
 Having a rare sense of humour

Task

To find out what some of your talents are, you can answer some questions, being as honest as possible. If
you can, write them down to go back to them whenever you need.

1. What are your main activities outside of work?


2. Which activities have you always enjoyed doing, but had to stop because you didn’t have free
time?
3. When was the last time you lost track of time doing an activity? Which activity was this?
4. Which activities you don’t need any help to do?
5. What do you like talking about the most?
6. What do you read about most, either online or in hard copy form?
7. What do your friend/peers ask you to teach them?

The responses to the questions above constitute an inventory of latent capabilities. In it, you can identify
your talents; a great basis to start making money from what you really love.

Are you ready to find out how to transform your talent into a source of income?

 Compile a list of the steps you should take


 With the inventory you wrote of your skills, it is possible to discover the areas you have more
aptitude with. And then, you can think of a strategy to make money from your talents.
 This list should include the actions you take into consideration to help other people or solve a
problem.
 It is important to imagine who your potential consumers of the products of your skill or talent,
both physical and virtual.

8.2 Possible Ways of Leveraging on you Talent or Skills

There are infinite ways in which one can utilize one’s talents/skills to one’s economic benefit. Below are
a few examples:
32
[Link] Teach lessons 3
3
Every single day, people seek more knowledge. So, why not think of a way in which you can you help
them somehow? You are a University graduate, don’t take that for granted.

 Remember the list of things you read and are knowledgeable about, and that people come
to you to learn more about?
 These are excellent topics for you to teach, even if you don’t see yourself as a
teacher (yet).
 Then offer lessons and teach as many people as you can in private group classes.
 Don’t confine yourself only to teaching academic or school subjects. You can offer lessons
around your talent, sewing, music, or any other topic you master.
 Once you are able to earn the confidence of some students, proceed to estimate how much
you will be able to make with your lessons.

8.2.2 Offer consulting services

Think of an area you have confidence in and you can offer consulting services and help people to improve
their style. You can leverage on the knowledge, skill or exposure you gained at university.

 Events planning or organising


 Career guidance
 Financial literacy
 Travel and Leisure
 Relationships
 Youth Counselling Services
 Life Coaching

There are infinite possibilities in consulting services

Besides, some companies hire professionals that have deep technical knowledge of specific subjects to
provide consulting services and improve the performance of a determined area. If you acquire a good
reputation and have proven to achieve good results with your work, you can develop a good customer
base.

8.2.3Become a Freelancer

People who know how to write really well, or how to edit videos, for example, can sell their talents
working as freelancers for individuals and companies in their free time. Freelancing is a very sought-out
niche especially by those who don’t want to quit their conventional jobs, but still want to find a way to
make some extra money in their free time.

There are websites that connect freelancers to companies that need occasional work done, such
as “Workana” and “Freelancer”.

As you carry out more projects, you earn more reputation and get more jobs offers you are offered.

8.2.4 Sell your Artistic Work

Do you have a keen eye for photography? People may become interested in your work if you know where
to make it available. Websites that buy professional photos

 Shutter Stock
 [Link]

33
 Dreamstime buy professional photos for3 their image database and
 Alternatively, you can find physical retailers
4 and show them your work, be it
photography, drawing or painting, and then offer them for an exhibit, in exchange for a
commission.
 You may become one of their suppliers.

8.2.5 Start a blog

Do you like writing?

 So you can start your own blog to make money from your talents in writing.
 Start a nice blog and maintain consistency in your posts. This way, your blog will have
many visits and, consequently, create a following.
 Think of what your target audience may be interested in and create content that may help
people to solve everyday problems or acquire “do-it-yourself” skills in your area of
expertise.
 You can monetize your blog with Google Adsense. With this tool, you attract
advertisements on your blog and earn for every click.

8.2.6 Think scalability

Scalability means thinking about ways of selling your knowledge to as many people as possible.

 The simplest method of reaching many people and spreading your knowledge to a global
audience/ clientele is to leverage on the possibilities the internet provides.
 To complement your physical lessons, why not recording video lessons and making them
available in an online course?

The internet is here for everybody who wants to teach something. You just need to figure out the best
format to distribute your knowledge. You surely cannot have been to university and have nothing useful
to teach.

Task: Compile information in your area of expertise into a package which, if made available to
potential learners, makes them functional in an aspect of life.

 Who are the potential consumers for this product?


 Think of the most exciting way of presenting this information online for this target group
(notes, pictures, video, audios etc)
 Consider the utility value of this product and consider the monetary value you can attach to it.

Assignment:

In your discussion cohort, come up with a bankable business proposal using the template below:

 Title page.
 Table of contents.
 Executive Summary
o Explain your an intervention is needed
o Describe a problem, need or goal
o Describe the desired outcome.
o Describe your proposed solution.
34
o Explain how you'll overcome risks. 3
o Ask for the decision you want made. 5
 State the Problem or Need.
o Outline what the ideal situation would be if there wasn't a problem that needed your
attention.
o Identify the goals and the scope of the project. This section needs to
o give a clear understanding of what the ideal scenario will be once the issue is resolved and
o Explain what your business can do to solve the issue.
o Describe what the current reality is for your business.
o Identify who the problem is affecting. Moreover
o Describe when and where the problem was identified.
 Consequences
o Identify the consequences of the problem.
o Outline how people are being impacted
o Quantify how much the problem is impacting them; for example loss of time, money,
resources, competitive advantage, productivity, and efficiency.
 Propose a solution.
Include a few possible solutions to the problem.

 Pricing options.
o Set a budget. ...
o Add facts and statistics. ...
o Provide billing options.
o Set a completion date.
 Conclusion.
Summarise the business plan's strengths designed to convince the reader of the company's
success.
 Share your Qualifications.
o Your academic qualification
o Proven skills

35
3
Recommended Reading 6
Entrepreneurship during the times of COVID-19 Pandemic: Challenges and Consequences. Guest
Editors: Ondřej Dvouletý, Juan Carlos Fernandez de Arroyabe, Michael Mustafa

Martin Croteau, Kenneth A. Grant, Claudio Rojas, Hadeer Abdelhamid The lost generation of
Entrepreneurs? The impact of COVID-19 on the Availability of Risk Capital in Canada

Tarisai Kudakwashe Manyati, Morgen Mutsau Leveraging Green Skills in Response to the COVID-19
crisis: A Case study of Small and Medium Enterprises in Harare, Zimbabwe Journal of
Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies

Muhammad Talha Salam, Hamza Imtiaz, Muhammad Burhan The Perceptions of SME retailers towards
the usage of social media marketing amid COVID-19 Crisis Journal of Entrepreneurship in
Emerging Economies (2021)

David Prah, Hagan Sibiri The Resilience of African Migrant Entrepreneurs in China under COVID-19
Journal of Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies Article publication date: 12
November 2020

Tinashe Munyuki, Coretta Maame Panyin Jonah The Nexus Between Financial Literacy and
Entrepreneurial Success among Young Entrepreneurs from a Low-Income Community in Cape Town: M
mixed-method analysis Journal of Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies Article publication date: 6
April 2021

Chenai Muhwati, Roger H. Salisbury A Framework for Closed-Loop Supply Chain Adoption by Small,
Medium and Micro Enterprise Fashion Retailers in South Africa
|Published: 17 August 2022

Mohammed Nooruddin, U. (2021). An Analysis of Attitude towards Online Shopping in Pakistan Using
the Technology Acceptance Model Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management, and Innovation, 3(1), 27 -
56. [Link]

36
3
7

UNIT 4
JOB SEARCHING AND CAREER MANAGEMENT

AUTHORED BY MR BENNY MACHANJA

1. INTRODUCTION

There is a gap that is experienced by many college students between graduation and finding their first job.
Graduates will be excited about going out in the world to start their professional career. The transition
from collegiate life to working professional is a challenging one. Graduates are bound to discover new
challenges in the transition to the working world that they did not anticipate while they were college
students. So it is vital that students are prepared by their colleges to face the real world. Job searching is a
processes of looking for employment, whether it’s one is unemployed or dissatisfied with the current role,
or any other reason (Doyle ,2021)

2. AREAS OF GROWTH

This unit encapsulates the following aspects of the student growth and development

 CV writing skills
 Career Awareness
37
 Career Pathways Development 3
8
 Continuous learning

 Goal setting skills

 Use of ICT it for networking

3. OBJECTIVES

 To identify career opportunities in organizations


 To use ICT platforms for networking and searching for employment
 To write succinct but comprehensive and professional CVs

4. LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Students with the ability to network and market themselves to secure jobs in the corporate world
using various methods.
• Students with the knowledge to use ICT platforms for networking and searching for employment
• Students with the ability to write comprehensive and professional CVs.
• Students who can demonstrate the competence for securing the job

5. Theoretical Framework
Finding your ideal career and your career path is a critical life decision. Doyle (2021) states that on
average we spend a substantial portion of our lives working. It is therefore fundamental that we choose a
career which fulfills our desires and bring happiness. Effective strategies are critical for your job search,
whether you are unemployed and looking for a job or considering making a career move. Mastering the
process of searching and applying for jobs can help you find, and ultimately acquire, the best job
opportunities. Evaluating different kinds of job searching strategies can help you evaluate which strategy
will work best for your situation (Indeed 2021)

6. Job- search Platforms

Job searching can be an extremely difficult task so it is important that you must attempt to identify job
opportunities and vacancies that are available. There are several ways of looking for relevant positions on
the market (Indeed, 2021).

6.1 Career fairs

A Career fair can be defined as an event that is generally held for the public that allows employers to gain
information from prospective job candidates. It aims at getting companies and potential employees
together to network and share information. These events are patronized by huge companies and
institutions that are looking forward to recruiting large numbers of employees as well as fresh graduates
38
for training programs. Job fairs are a great opportunity3 to network and expose you to potential employer.
9 application or instruct them on how to apply for
The employers may be able to provide people with paper
job vacancies online. Individuals attending a career fair should also dress professionally because an on-
site interview may be a possibility (Indeed, 2021).

6.2 Career fairs in Zimbabwe

Career fairs events listed below are held every year in Zimbabwe.

 National Career Week


 Harare Career Fair
 Government Career Day

6.3 TASK 1:

CAREER FAIR

Attend a Career Fair and do the following:

 Identify potential employers from the exhibitors


 Identify employment opportuinities within the identified organisations
 Talk to at least 5 exhibitors from the different companies for more career guidance
information.

6.3 Employment Agency

An employment agent is an agency that exists for the sole purpose of making money by trying to match
job applicants to jobs which may be best suited for them. The employment agencies are valuable because
not only do they inform people about vacant jobs but they are also hired by organizations to find qualified
job prospects for them. Some agencies are industry specific and others deal with many different
industries. You may need to provide a resume and copies of your certificates and qualifications. Some
agencies may deal with short term and temporary contracts at first and if the employers are impressed
with your work it could lead to a permanent job.

6.4 On-line Job searching Platforms


If you want to apply for a large number of jobs quickly and efficiently use job search platforms. Most on-
line job search engines will allow you to search job location and key words. Job search platforms allow
you to filter out job results that do not apply to you and allow you to set up custom job search alert to alert
you when a job is posted that meets your criteria. (Doyle,2021)
39
6.6 Network referrals 4
0
 Ask your network for referrals and find mutual carrier controls networks.
 Build closer relationships with people you network with.
 Network with influential people.
 Attend networking events for example conferences expositions and continuing education forums.
 Contact the career or alumni network and see what events they have for graduates
 Subscribe to online professional network, for example LinkedIn, Meetup, Xing,Bark. Opportunity,
Jobcase, Lunchmeet, Community Forums, Twitter Threads.

6.8 Leverage social media


There are many social media platforms you can use to search for jobs. Search for company face book and
Instagram pages and follow them no matter where they are in the world. Being up to date with company
social media pages you can gain valuable insights into their tone and working style. You can hear their
job openings through these channels. If using social media for professional purposes it is important to
make your own profile suitable so that they convey a good image of you. Use your real name and only
publish appropriate pictures and posts. Content you posted on your profile should be suitable for a
potential employer to see. Ask yourself if your social media profile shows you and your life style
appropriately and professionally. (Doyle ,2021)

6.9 Responding to companies directly

 Target websites directly.


 You will be able to apply directly for available positions listed through their website.
 If company does not have any relevant jobs posted on their website reach out to them via email or
phone.
 Make a list of companies you are interested in and note their current job vacancies on your list.
 Consider writing a formal cover letter to convey that you are familiar with them and explain why
you would be an ideal employee.
6.10 Responding to job advertisements

When responding to a job advertisement, slow down, read the job advertisement thoroughly and take the
time to actually respond to the employer’s needs.

 You want an employer to be able to assess your job application against the criteria in the job
advertisement and tick all the boxes.
 Remember, the employer has put substantial effort into determining precisely what they are
looking for and your cover letter should echo the same sentiments.
 You need to submit an effective cover letter that systematically answers all the job advertisement
requirements.
 Take time to follow these tips to prepare an effective resume and cover letter but making sure to
meet the submission deadlines.

40
4
1

6.11 Some tips to help you:

 Print or save the job advertisement and re-read it several times. Make notes; highlight the criteria
and think about ways you meet them.
 Always use words and phrases from the job advertisement in your cover letter and resume.
 Incorporate every point from their criteria including skills and experience in your job application
 Include well thought-out and relevant examples to back up your claims about your skills and
contributions in your job application.
 When you are addressing personal qualities and traits always use examples to authenticate.
 Customize your cover letter for each and every job application. Your response needs to be
designed to meet their needs, not your own.
 Clearly show the employer how you meet their needs.

7. CV writing

7.1 What is a CV?


CV, which stands for Curriculum Vitae, is a document used when applying for jobs. It allows you to
summarise your education skills and experience enabling you to successfully sell your abilities. A CV
should be a marketing document that should promote your skills and experience. In a 20 second scan, the
recruiter should be able to see evidence of your ability to do the job (Kizer, 2021).

7.2 Steps to a Great CV

 Start with the job specification


 Always start with skills and the experiences the recruiter is seeking. Clearly show evidence each of
these requirement on your CV using examples to convince the reader of your ability to do the job
 If there is no job description you must search for similar rates to find out the relevant transferable
skills
 Use action words in your CV and covering letter to convey achievement and impact Start sentences
with verbs.
 Match your skills to the job you are applying for to create a CV that clearly demonstrate you possess
the skills they requires
 Triple check all spelling and grammar and ask someone else to proofread the final draft:
One spelling or grammar error can be all it takes for a CV to be rejected as many employers regard
it as an indication of carelessness and poor motivation for job

7.3 Guidelines to CV Writing

 Always follow the recruiter’s length instructions


41
 Use an easy to read font size 4
 Use black font colour 2
 Use short sentences and break up blocks of text
 Use bullet points to list information
 Keep the tone formal; avoid abbreviations, slang or jargon
 Keep your CV to two pages

7.4 Include additional Sections

 CVs are usually longer than resumes so you can detail all the achievements relevant to the
potential role.
 Add sections as needed to list all of your accomplishments, including publications, presentations
and lectures, community service, grants, fellowships or scholarships, awards and honors,
professional memberships, consultancy work, fieldwork ,Study abroad experience and
conferences.
TASK 2:

In groups of 10, respond to the following advertisement and submit hard copies and on email. Email
addresses to be supplied.

42
4
3

Adopted
from THE VOICE: 13 JULY 2018

8. Networking

43
Knowing how to network strengthens your business 4connections and might even lead to a job referral.
4 place and while you are searching for your job.
Building relationships is crucial to succeed in the working
Networking for a job requires strategic thinking and developing skills that help you connect with others.

8.1 Tips to consider when networking for a job

 Get face to face: Networking in person can provide a more personal interaction so instead of
phoning or emailing a friend who works at a company you want to work for, you would rather
schedule a time to have lunch with them and discuss.
 Offer help: You can improve your relationship with your contacts and chances of getting
employment by volunteering to help your connections. This can illustrate your motivation and
your dedication and may also allow you to display your skills.
 Be patient and make time: Cultivating strong relationships can take time as can networking to
find the right position. You will likely need to be patient as you meet with connections and make
new one.
 Focus on the relationship not your resume: Even though you might want to focus on selling
yourself and sharing your resume with everyone, focusing on relationships may make a more
powerful impression. Present yourself as a likable person before showing your professional worth.
 Use social networks online resources: Sometimes meeting face to face with employees of your
target company may not be possible, but the internet can close the distance. On line contacts are a
simple way to make initial connections.
 Follow up: Following up is an essential step. The follow up can involve thanking your
connections for meeting with you asking further questions or sending along an article relevant to
your conversation. These continued interactions strengthen the relationship and perhaps cause
them to think of you when there is an open position.
8.2 ICT for Networking

Technological advances have impacted every segment of society, including the process of looking for
employment. ICT includes all of the tools and resources used to create, store, process and exchange
information. These include but are not limited to: mobile phones and tablets, telephony services, video
conferencing, storage devices, broadcasting technologies, websites and blogs, email computer hardware,
interactive digital whiteboards, e-readers, social networks, instant messaging and intranet (Meghe 2000)

Job seekers are now able to use social media and job sites to, not only look for jobs, but also narrow their
searches down to specific industries or even companies (Meghe 2000). Information and communication
technology has a broader scope and it focuses primarily on wireless networks, internet access and other
communication channels.

8.4 Using ICT for job search

44
 Technology has made searching for jobs more4 convenient than ever. With an internet connection
and a phone, job seekers are able to look for 5jobs anywhere in the world, from anywhere in the
world. It’s not only also easier to look, but also apply for jobs at the click of a button.
 Interview Anywhere - If the job you are interviewing for is thousands of miles away, traditionally
this would require a cross-country road or air trip and a phone interview. Technological advances
such as video calls have made it easier to conduct face-to-face interviews with people on opposite
sides of the world.

 Not only are one-on-one video calls possible, but panel interviews - through video conferencing
technology – interviews are able to be conducted between multiple people spread across different
parts of the world. The advent of video technology has also cut down on the time it takes for
companies to find and hire potential employees.

8.5 Advantages of using ICT for job searching

 Improves communication

 Cut costs

 Encourages Strategic Thinking

 Protects Information

 Cuts through Cultural Barriers

8.6 Disadvantages of using ICT for job searching

 Scams

 Reduction in available job opportunities for humans

 Advancement in technology has made employees anti-social

 Excessive dependence on technological devices

 Costs of implementation and regulatory compliance

 More and more data regulations

8.7 The top 10 most popular job search engines in the world

 Google

 Microsoft Bing

 Yahoo

 [Link]

 Indeed

 CareerBuilder
45
 LinkedIn 4
6
 Facebook Job Search

 Zip Recruiter

8.9 TASK 3

 Research and read more on the job search engines

 Browse the websites of the above listed job search engines

 Practically learn to use all the job search engines to search for jobs

9. Career Development

9.1 What Is Career Development?

Career development is the process of choosing a career, improving your skills, and advancing along a
career path. It's a lifelong process of learning and decision-making that brings you closer to your ideal
job, skillset, and lifestyle (Dawn Rosenberg Mckay 2020). Career development is linked to an
individual’s growth and satisfaction and hence should be managed by the individual and not left to the
employer. Career development helps an individual grow not only professionally but also personally.
Learning new skills like leadership, time management, good governance, communication management,
team management etc. also help an employee develop and shape their career (mba skool team 2022).

9.2 Five Steps of Career Development

 Self-Assessment -The individual has to assess oneself on the kind of career and growth one wants
and what kind of skills and interests are there.

 Career Awareness -an individual explores various career paths which align with the self-
assessment done in the first step and how a person can explore various domains and types of
jobs/work available.

 Goal Setting - This is the most important step in career development, as this is where one defines
clear short term and long term goals to meet the career one aspires.

 Skill Training - Once the career and goals are set, one needs to acquire the right skills to achieve
the growth through self-training or joining a structured training program online or offline.

 Performing - With all the right knowledge and skills, the important part is to perform the tasks
and jobs in the career successfully to grow in the career path.

9.3 Lifelong Learning

46
Lifelong learning is a purposeful learning activity undertaken
4 throughout life with the aim of improving
7
knowledge, skills, and social and or employment related perspective (Power and Maclean). Kayabas
(2021) also defines lifelong learning as a learning process that continues throughout one’s life in order to
reach the rapidly developing, changing and renewed information that will help the individual succeed in
social and professional life, cope with problems, provide solutions when needed and develop his
competences. Kayabas (2021) further points out that lifelong learning applies to learning that takes place
by adults in the work place or to the learning that adults may wish to undertake to enrich their own lives
after completion of higher education. 9.3.1 Importance of Lifelong Learning

Banks (2008) outlines the following benefits of lifelong learning:

 It leads to better employment prospects and higher income.


 Employees continue to acquire skills leading to improved human capital and labour productivity
 Employees become more creative, problem solvers and innovative as they will be constantly
updating their knowledge and skills. They improve their proficiency and become better at their jobs;
 Workers tend to get promoted faster than peers not engaged in lifelong learning. Promotion leads
to vertical mobility in the work place. This is movement from one social level to a higher one
(upward mobility)

Task 4

1. Research and find out the different ways in which organisations and individual employees
improve themselves through programmed Career Development.

2. Find out how organisations incentivise workers who put some effort in personal imrpovement
through career development

REFERENCES

Doyle, A. (2022). How to prepare for a job interview. Retrieved from


[Link]

Clark, D. (2013). Reinventing you: Define your brand, imagine your future. Harvard: .Harvard Business
Review Press.

McKay D R 2022 The everything get a job book retrieved from [Link]

MBA skool team (2022) retrieved from ; [Link]

Kizer Kristine (2015), What is a job offer? retrieved from


[Link]

Meghe(2020)Critical Understanding of ICT retrieved from [Link]


47
Indeed Editorium Team ( 2021) Career Advice 4
8
[Link]

UNIT 5
INTERVIEW SKILLS AND COMPETENCES

AUTHORED BY MS CLARA KUNAKAHAKUDYIWE

INTRODUCTION

The journey to securing a job is not an easy one. One needs to be skilled and to have certain competencies

ranging from the application process to the securing and execution of the job. This unit presents important

guidelines on preparing for job interviews and what to do after the job interview.

1. AREAS OF GROWTH

This unit aims to equip students with interview skills that will help them secure jobs. Students will be

exposed to situations that will develop and strengthen their:

 Confidence

 Judgment
48
 Decision making 4
9
 Self esteem

2. OBJECTIVES

By the end of the unit you should be able to:

 Prepare for an interview.

 Outline guidelines on preparing for interviews

 Follow interview preparation guidelines when invited for an interview

 Discuss the importance of lifelong learning

 Analyse job descriptions

3. Preparing for the Interview

The road to employment involves going through an interview. This is the time when a prospective

employee has to prove his or her worth so as to be considered the best and chosen amongst others. For

one to be successful, it means a lot of preparation has to take place well before the interviews. Before we

discuss the preparations, we would like you to pause a little and think about the importance of preparing

for an interview.

5.1 Why prepare for an interview

A famous quote by Arthur Ashe says “An important key to success is self-confidence”. This means that

you need to build confidence. When someone is confident they feel in control. By preparing you will feel

in control. By preparing for the interview you will have anticipated what will be asked and you will have

knowledge about the job requirements and about the organisation. This knowledge will definitely boost

your confidence reducing nervousness. One thing you do not want is to feel nervous in an interview.

4.2 Steps to take in preparing for the interview

Activity 1

With your partner discuss how you can prepare for an interview

49
4.2.1 Research about the Company 5
0
The first step involves researching about the company or organisation.

You need to research the employer and if possible the interviewee. According to Doyle (2022) find out as

much as you can about the company. The more you know about them the better position will you be to

answer interview questions linked to the company history. By showing that you have taken time to

research about the company or organisation is a good way to impress interviewees.

. Your research can be guided by the following questions:

 When was the company/organisation established?

 What is their mission statement?

 What is their vision?

 What are their values?

 What is their logo and the significance of their corporate colours?

 What is the company/ organisation doing?

 What can they do better?

 How can you help?

It is important that you look at the company’s or organisation’s website for most of this information.

4.2.2 Research about the job.

In most cases adverts outline the expectations with regards to the job description. Doyle (2002) outlines

how you can research about the job.

 Analyse the job. Take time to study the job posting;

 Review the job description.

 Consider what the company is seeking in a candidate. Make a list of the skills, knowledge and

professional and personal qualities that are required by the employer and critical for success in the

job; and

50
 Make a list of your assets and match them to the job
5 requirements. Create a list of your strengths that
1
match the job requirements. This list should include skills, qualities, certifications, experiences,

professional qualifications, abilities, computer skills amongst many others.

Note that it is necessary that you research on developments of the industry as well.

4.2.3 Prepare a set of questions.

At the end of the interview, most interviewers give the interviewee an opportunity to ask questions. Have

questions prepared. You may choose not to ask but having a few questions to ask is an indication that

you have greater interest in the job and want to learn more about the company/organisation. Below are

examples of questions that you may ask

4.3 Questions to ask the interviewer can be broken down into a few categories: (CFI Team 2020)

4.3.1 The company related questions

 What are the major challenges one can face at this company?
 Can you please describe the company culture in more detail?

4.3.2 The job-related questions

 How does this role interact with other departments in the company?

4.3.4 Personal questions

 What has your personal career path at this company been like?
 What makes you want to keep working here?

4.3.5 Questions to ask the interviewer about competitors

 Who are your biggest competitors (and list the ones you know)?
 What are the company’s strategic objectives?

4.3.6 Questions to ask the interviewer about current events

 How are recent political decisions impacting the company?


 How is regulation impacting your business?

4.4 Practice

51
“Practice makes perfect. After a long time of practicing,
5 our work will become natural, skillful, swift, and
2
steady.” This quote by Bruce Lee relays the need for practice. You need to conduct mock interviews with

a friend or group of friends or family member(s). Compile questions that are likely to be asked and use

these in your mock interviews. This will to prevent you from being caught off guard in the interview. It is

critical that you find someone you trust or with interviewing experience. Practice should be done ahead of

time. It is important to conduct the mock interview in the same format as the real interview. For example,

if you are going to have a telephone interview then the mock interview should be through telephone.

With this in mind, it therefore means that in your first stages of preparation you must establish the type of

interview to be taken. Interviews can be face to face or trough telephone. Telephone interviews could be a

way of screening applicants. They can be face-to-face or virtual.

Activity 2

1. With your group members look for a job advert.

2. Analyse the job posting

3. Draft interview questions.

4 Conduct a mock interview

4.5 Plan your Journey

As a way of preparation you must ensure that you acquaint yourself with the location of the company or

organisation. Take note of the following:

 Know how to get there;

 Find out the transport you are going to use; and

 Establish how long it takes to get there.

The last thing you would want is to get held in congestion and be late for the interview. Aim to get there

not less than 5 minutes earlier. This will help you relax and get settled before the interview.

52
4.6 Plan What to Wear. ` 5
3

It is important not to leave preparations up to the last minute especially on what to wear to the interview.

You need to dress to impress. In most interviews formal clothing is recommended. Generally wear

professional or business attire. For females, a blouse and dress pants or a statement dress is appropriate.

For men a suit jacket and slacks with a shirt and tie or a sweater and button down

Doyle (2022) proposes the following fundamental building blocks of what women and
men should wear to a professional interview

Dressing for women Dressing for males


Suit in a solid color such as navy, black, or Suit in a solid color such as navy, black, or
dark gray dark gray

Suit skirt just below or above the knee Long-sleeved shirt that is white or color
coordinated with the suit
Coordinated blouse
Leather belt
.Conservative shoes
Dark socks and conservative leather shoes
Limited jewelry
Little or no jewelry
No very large dangling earrings or arms full of
bracelets Neat, professional hairstyle

No jewelry is better than cheap jewelry Limited amount of aftershave

Professional hairstyle Neatly trimmed nails

Neutral-colored pantyhose Portfolio or briefcase

Light makeup and a limited amount of perfume

Clean, neatly manicured nails

Portfolio or briefcase

Activity 3
1. With your group members discuss the type of clothes you would wear for a job interview.
53
2. Justify your choice. 5
4
3. Compile a list of what you think would be inappropriate dressing

.
According to Devoreaux Walton What females should not wear flip flops, wedge sandals, ripped
jeans or shorts, tank tops, halter tops, sandals, strapless tops and dresses, and athletic attire like yoga pants
and sneakers
4.7 Other Preparations

You might have sent your resume together with the application; however, it is recommended that you

print out copies of your resume to present to the panel

Finally before the interview you need to prepare yourself by ensuring that you get adequate sleep. This is

important so that you remain awake and alert during the interview.

5. The Interview

With all preparations done you should feel confident

The following guidelines will help you go through an interview with success

5.1 Introduction

Be confident Begin introduction with a firm but not overpowering hand shake.

5.2 Listen and respond accordingly

Listen and answer accordingly while using examples from your experiences to back it up. Answer questions in a

clear and direct manner. Do not run circles around the questions. Answer just what is asked.

5.3 Sell your strengths and expertise

Communicate your strengths in a concise, factual and sincere manner. Communicate only those strengths

relevant to your to the job.

5.4 Don’t speak poorly about your present or former employers

Talking bad about former employers will make the interviewers question your professionalism. They will

assume you will do the same to them when you leave..

54
5.5 Do Not Falsify Information 5
5
Always be honest and answer questions truthfully and to the point. If asked about an area that is not

strength be honest and let the interviewer know that you are willing to work on improving in that area.

5.6 Do not speak over the interviewer.

“One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another

has to say

Bryant H. McGill”

It is important to be a good listener. It shows you are respectful. It is also an indication that you have

strong interpersonal skills. If you are being interviewed over a video platform there will be a slight delay.

Avoid rushing to answer in case the interviewer has not finished speaking.

Throughout the interview make sure you are engaging; make eye contact all the time and always careful

when answering questions. Think before you speak. It is important to be outgoing

When the interview comes an end smile and look at all interviewers in the eye. Say thank you. It is

recommended that you use gestures for example, nodding to show that you liked the experience. When

leaving the room make sure you collect your certificates ad close the door behind you. Make sure you do

not bang the door.

6. After the Interview

With the interview done comes the waiting period where the interviewee waits to hear whether they have

been offered the job or not. The period may take a few days or weeks. For guidance on when to make a

follow up, after the interview enquire about the next step and contact information. The following can be

done after the interview:

55
 Send a thank you note. It is recommended that this
5 be done after 24 hours. In the note show your
6
gratitude. Restate your interest in the job and thank them for their time. The thank you note should be

brief and conversational.

 Assess your interview performance. In the process write anything you want to remember about the

interview.

 Send any supporting documents if they are required

 Contact your references if you submitted references to your potential employer. This is to let them

know someone might contact them

 Get comfortable with waiting. There is need to remain calm and only call or email to the

organisation/company if they specified that you do so.

6.1 Accepting the job offer

According to Anderson (2021) there are two important steps to accepting a job offer. These are

evaluation of the job offer and sending a job offer letter or email.

6.2 Evaluating the job offer

When evaluating the job offer you must consider whether the official offer aligns with your expectations.

Take note if the benefits and salary discussed during the interview are the same as what you are being

offered. To properly evaluate a job offer the following steps should be taken.

 Get the job offer in writing so that you cable to review all the terms and conditions.

 Ask for time to think over the offer to avoid making a rushed decision.

 Be ready to negotiate. Negotiation points should be realistic.

6.3 Writing and sending the job letter or Email

Once a decision has been made you must write a letter of acceptance. It is best to accept the job offer in

writing. The acceptance letter should be well structured and formal. It should have no errors which mean

there is need for thorough proof reading before sending it.

6.3.1 How to write the acceptance letter

56
 Start by thanking the employer for the job offer.5 The position and the company name should be
7
mentioned.

 Accept the job offer mentioning that you are looking forward to getting started;

 Clarify any remaining points in the offer, if you have already received all the details about agreed

salary, benefits and you can officially agree with the terms

 State you’re starting date. This might be just confirming the date.

 Conclude on a positive note.

With the acceptance letter sent you are ready to start work. First impressions have a lasting effect hence

one needs to make an impressive show.

6.3.2 First impression at the new place

According to Clark (2013) first impressions are important and making a good impression does not mean

pretending to be someone else. It means showing your very best. The key part is making other people feel

good and at ease in your presence. The better you make the other person feel, the more they will be

inclined to have a positive impression of you (Clark, 2013).

ACTIVITY 3

With your group members:

1. Discuss the importance of first impression.

2. Suggest ways of making a lasting impression.

3. Come up with a list of dos and don’ts.

To complement your discussion below is a list of tools that can maximize your first impression. Compare

the tools to what you raised in the discussion.

57
6.3.3 Tools to maximize your First Impact 5
8

 Positive attitude

Start on a positive attitude. Anderson (2021) maintains that projecting a positive attitude focusing on

the other person and them your full attention will go a long way towards creating a warm and

trustworthy impression. He further states that relaxing facial muscles, smiling and making eye contact

add to positive attitude. A genuine smile can create a positive atmosphere.

Eye contact must be maintained at all time. Avoiding eye contact can be construed as a sign of shyness or

lack of confidence. Some may even view you as someone not sure of self. Cunic (2021) identifies one of

the benefits of maintaining eye contact as that you will p be perceived as more confident and intelligent

 Personal Presentation.
Personal presentation has great influence on the impression someone can have of you. You must wear
appropriate clothes. It is best to dress formally. You must choose colours that suit you and accessories
should be carefully chosen Attention should be placed teeth, hair, hands and finger nails.

 Body language
Facial expressions, hand gestures and posture can send strong messages and determine the impression one
can have about you. It is important that fidgeting movements be minimised.

 Punctuality
Being punctual on the first day is of great importance. It shows respect and courtesy for other people. A
positive impression is created. Being late can leave you disoriented and this creates a bad image of you.

Right from the beginning you need to be organised and set goals. It is also important to stay true to who
you are and to keep an open mind so that the first impression established by your employer is maintained.

7. Summary

In this unit we found that preparing for interviews is a critical component to securing a job. We looked at

what a prospective employee needs to take cognisance of before going for an interview. Among the

important issues is the need for research. Armed with research knowledge about the job, the company or

organisation and the interviewees a candidate can go through the interview with ease. We also stressed on

the importance of creating appositive first impression. Finally the issue of improving your skills through

58
lifelong learning was addressed. Lifelong learning was5 said to lead to creative employees who are able to
9
solve problems thereby improving the economy.

References

Anderson, A.(2021). Life skills, business etiquette, social etiquette. Retrieved from

http:/[Link]/business-etiquette/7-steps-to-making-a-great-first-

impression/ (Accessed 14/08/22)

59
Clark, D. (2013). Reinventing you: Define your brand,6imagine your future. Harvard: .Harvard Business
0
Review Press.

Cuncic, A. (2021). How to overcome eye contact anxiety retrieved from

[Link]

Doyle, A. (2022). How to prepare for a job interview. Retrieved from

[Link] (Accessed14/08/22)

UNIT 6

PROJECT MANAGEMENT DESIGNS

AUTHORED BY MR GOREJENA STANELY

60
1. AREAS OF GROWTH 6
 Initiation of Projects 1

 Planning of Projects
 Execution of Project
 Evaluation of Project Success

2. OBJECTIVES
 Explain the principles and practices required to succeed in project management.
 Efficiently and effectively scope a project, allocate resources, work towards a deadline, and
budget throughout the various stages of the project.
 Confidently identify potential risks and conflicts requiring resolution when managing a team
to successfully deliver projects.
 Demonstrate the understanding and implementation of new techniques to approach new
projects.
 Effectively communicate, motivate and influence others to reach a desirable outcome
3. Learning Outcomes
 Systematic planning and execution of planned project
 Improved success rate of project both at micro and macro level
 Optimum utilisation of resources mobilised for project implementation
 Improved project impact on the intended beneficiaries

4. Introduction to Project Management

4.1 What is a Project?

A project is an idea or goal that is carried out over a period of time. A project can be starting a new
product or service to an entire business plan. Stages of a project include planning, implementation, and
evaluation. These stages are not inclined to a specific service or type of product. Generally, a group /team
of people with various skills carry out a project, In this case the skills may include marketing,
merchandising, finance management, or design.

4.2 Characteristics of a project:

 The client or the team members define the scope of work;


 Has an end goal;
 It is time framed;
 It has budget;
 A plan for achieving milestones and the final goal is used;
 Has some delegated tasks; and
 The team may be diverse or specialised
61
4.3 What is Project Management? 6
2
Project management is a process that helps in planning, organizing, executing and controlling projects. It
includes allocating resources and managing progress. It is a systematic approach that makes it possible to
complete a project using the given budget and time.

It is the duty of project managers to manage resources and to oversee progress of every aspect of the
project. This will involve workflow and major tasks organisation and allocation of resources to all parties
involved for successful execution of their duties (Jawahar, Gary & McLaughlin, 2001)

With good project management in place there is greater control over resources and this prevents wastage
of time and money.

Project managers view all aspects of their projects like, finances, timelines, and risks and they also
coordinate different teams working on different parts of the same project.

Project management styles combine different business models, personal preference and industry trends
and these are engaged depending on the discipline. Agile and Waterfall are the most popular project
management styles in use.

a) Agile Project Management

Agile project management depends on iterative and incremental development. Successful Agile teams use
short iteration cycles for success, and each phase has a fixed duration. To meet milestones members work
at their own pace and they review their progress and adapt to what they have learned so far on a daily
base.

b) Waterfall Project Management

Waterfall project management’s sequential steps focus on detailed plans that outline the business process
before completion of each step. It defines specific tasks at the beginning of any work. Every task is well
executed before going on to the next step.

The long iterative cycles, make the end product unknown at the beginning of each phase. In between the
phases are weekly or monthly reviews to ensure progress and that each phase lasts for months or years.

Agile style has problems with meeting deadlines since teams work in a flexible environment and may
require frequent changes in plans and at the same time. On the other hand, waterfall project styles have
fewr changes with each iteration and are more formal.

4.4 What is a Project Life Cycle?

Project managers are guided by 4-step framework for their project’s success. A project life cycle creates
an easy to follow framework to guide projects activities.

Project Life Cycle

62
6
3

Figure 1: Project Life Cycle: [Link]


b974-2c6dfd040c32

4.4.1 Importance of a Project Management Life Cycle

 Project stakeholders and teams have ease of communication


 Project goals are achieved with the available resources
 Ensure risk mitigation to keep projects on track
 Assisting in management, organization, and planning for project to avoid hitches.
4.2 Project Management Steps

4.2.1 Project Initiation

The initiation phase encompasses all the steps you must take before a project is approved and any
planning begins. The project initiator should be able to answer two questions:
 Why are you doing this project?
 What is the business value you expect to deliver?
This promotes feasibility of the project. A lot of research, discovery, and discussion, but very little
detailed planning in this phase takes place.

63
The project initiator identifies project needs and creates
6 an initial plan. This starts with project vision
4 creating an outline to establish goals, milestones,
establishment and defining of its objectives. It includes
and deliverables for team members as well as timeline set up for the entire process.

4.2.2 Project Planning

A project team is assembled, resources are allocated, tasks identified resources are allocated to tasks.
Planning for any possible risks or contingency is done at this stage.

A Gantt chart, created by the manager, is used to show how long it will take to complete the project. This
chart is used to visually show a task's progress over time. It shows the start date, duration, and end date
for each task on the horizontal axis with bars that represent individual activities or sub-tasks on the
vertical axis. The Gantt chart was created by Henry Gantt in 1917.

4.2.3 Execution

This is where planning, organizing, and controlling of the project are done. All necessary information and
materials are gathered, stakeholder meetings are prepared, previous step data is analysed, risks identified,
and decisions about how to proceed are made. This phase of the execution process ends by completing
and delivering the final product to the client.

4.2.4 Monitoring and controlling

At this stage managers and teams jointly keep track of what has been done and what is to be done. They
project time, money, and effort spent and what resources are left to complete the project. This enables the
project manager to ensure that the project is on track and that all tasks are being completed successfully.

4.3 Key steps for project management at the initiation stage


 Identification of project objectives and deliverables
 Project risks, dependencies, priorities and constraints outlining
 Establishment of project scope considering deadlines and available resources
 Submission of a project proposal for approval.

4.3.1 The Project Initiation Phase

 Create a Project Charter

Once the initiation phase is underway, green light has been given , there is need to create a requirements
of the project. project charter, or project initiation document (PID) that provides the purpose.

o Business needs,
o key participants and stakeholders,
o scope,
o objectives, and

64
o overall goals are the details to be outlined
6 in the charter. The project charter builds a
5 and helps to ensure the decisions are in line with
foundation for defining project decisions
company goals

The project charter should have:

o Title
o Brief Description
o Background
o Goals/Deliverables
o Scope
o Impact on Other Business Systems and Units
o Stakeholders
o Roles and Responsibilities
o Milestones
o Budget
o Constraints, Assumptions, Dependencies, and Risks
o Success Measurements
o Project Approval
 Determine Scope

There is need to identify the project’s goals, deliverables, budget, and schedule of the project. It is
important to define scope early on to set expectations with all stakeholders though it can change over
time,

Note that a successful project is measured by its ability to complete the stated requirements on time and
on budget, so the requirements must be clearly defined at the onset.

According to the Project Management Institute (PMI) the following are six phases of defining scope:

o Plan Scope: Decide to define, monitor, and control the scope.


o Control Scope: Manage stakeholder expectations continuously.
o Collect Requirements: Define requirements for the project.
o Define Scope: Define scope of what is in and also what is out of scope.

 Create Work Breakdown Structures (WBS): Provide hierarchy of tasks for all team members.
o Validate Scope: Get internal and external stakeholders formally sign off on the proposed
project scope and deliverables.

65
o Identify Project Objectives: to help avoid
6 risks and steer a course to project success. An
objective is specific and measurable and6 time framed attainable and realistic. One way to
create concise objectives is using the S.M.A.R.T. method:

Figure 2: Characteristics of good project objectives

o Specific: Objectives should be clearly defined and in detail, leaving no room for
interpretation.
o Measurable: Identify key performance indicators to determine if objectives have been
achieved.
o Attainable: Avoid being over ambitious for the team to successfully complete the set
objectives
o Realistic: Set objectives that the project team believes can be achieved.
o Time-Bound: Set a date or specific duration for completion of the project.

The set objectives should be C.L.E.A.R. The acronym C.L.E.A.R. stands for

Figure 3 Characteristics of project objectives

‘C.L.E.A.R’ goals help to cater for a modern workplace that is dynamic in nature. Today’s fast-
paced businesses must be flexible and produce immediate results.

 Invite the Right Stakeholders

66
Early involvement of the right stakeholders help
6 to produce a successful project, thus it is essential
to consider everyone that may be impacted by 7or has interest in the project plan, deliverables, and
outcome.

To maintain transparency throughout, stakeholders can be internal or external. Ensure the availability of
the right tools and processes in place to communicate effectively with all stakeholders.

For maximum involvement and communication of each stakeholder consider the following five factors:

1. The stakeholders with the most influence


2. The stakeholders to be mostly affected by the project
3. Handling of important non-stakeholders
4. Resources controllers
5. Determine the top motivations and interests of the stakeholders

 Set Expectations

One key to the success of a project is setting clear expectations of its objectives and goals, deliverable,
timelines, resources required, and budgets

Factors to consider when setting expectations:

 A complete and well-thought-out charter.


 Risks and potential hiccups plan.
 Estimation of realistic timelines and budgets, allowing for some padding.
 Sharing of project plans with all internal and external stakeholders.
 Setting milestones throughout the project timeline to show incremental progress.
 Providing regular updates and real-time status reports.
 Being honest even if things go wrong.

4.4 Project Planning: scoping to estimating

4.4.1 What is Project Planning?

The planning process starts with an estimation of a proposal. A great proposal plan is a sure way to
provide the executing team with the best shot for project success. A proposal estimate consists of a scope,
a schedule, and a cost. The first step is to understand the scope. Utilizing a statement of work (SOW) or
any document from your customer with the work required will establish the scope to be bid. Missing
aspects may lead to delays of schedule and cost overruns. Scope comprehension is difficult when
timelines to submit proposals are short. The when and who make up the schedule and the cost portion of
the estimate.
67
6
8
4.4.2 Steps for completing the project proposal estimate:

1. Scope understanding and comprehension is important to accurate estimating


2. Utilize the project template to clone or populate the project information, the past estimates,
and the timelines for the tasks
3. Work breakdown structure (WBS) establishment
4. Estimation of the resources needed to complete the tasks
5. Understand the timing of needed resources
6. Availability of all materials, services, and travel required
7. Time phase estimates
8. Availability of the right skill set when needed
9. Use To Be Determined (TBDs) if the name of the resource is not available on time
10. Gain buy-in from the proposal team and the functional departments before submission to the
customer.
11. Once the proposal is sent to the customer and negotiated, the project is worn. The project
manager is given the proposal for execution.

4.4.3 Work Breakdown Structures (WBS)


A WBS is a hierarchy of the tasks to be accomplished on a project. It is typically results or product based
and should make the management of scope, schedule, and cost much easier.
The advantages of using a WBS are:

 Work is broken apart, into workable tasks that can be allocated or spread out among the project
team
 Gives a conspicuous representation of the project
 Enables scheduling, costing, and reporting on the project
 Gives a repeatable backbone for future projects
 Helps with scope management—comprehension in initiation phase and minimizes scope creep in
the execution

4.4.4 Scope, Schedule, and Budget


Scope understanding is one of the toughest activities that both a proposal team and a project team must
tackle. Scope goes with the resources needed to execute and their availability. Scope is tracked in a
document called a statement of work (SOW). The SOW gives the teams the spine of the project and it has
a reference number with each requirement. The reference number is used to make it easy to track
activities. The SOW reference number can be attached to a task, sub-task, or work package so that with a
simple report, you can cross reference to ensure all scope is covered.

68
Updating management policies and procedures and team 6 role-based training to make them understand
their part in the process makes a project successful. 9

A proposal and a project schedule must be available. The task need-by dates establish the schedule that
provides the basis of the cost. In a professional services company, the budget and resultant cost are driven
by PEOPLE so our next section is on planning your resources.

4.5 Resource Management Basic Information


Proper resource management comes with the factors below:

1. Utilization needed to be profitable


2. Utilization aimed at avoiding burnout
3. Actual billable and non-billable utilization
4. Up-to-date Project probability so that people forecast on the most likely billable revenue and
utilization?

4.5.1 Resource Planning


Where people are the primary drivers of revenue, and the primary contributors to cost in professional
services firms there should be the “Right People, Right Time, Right Task.”
At any given company, people are the most important asset yet so many companies struggle to truly
manage this resource. Resource planning should not be done too late. Even if proposal and project
managers want to plan their resources, the reality is that most resource planning is done ad-hoc with Excel
files at the project level. Planners do not consider skills or what other projects need, and there is no clue
what new work will require from a resource perspective.

Some simple tips to help increase the efficiency of managing resources across the enterprise are given
below:

1. Use of a centralized repository for all resource plans which is accessible to all stakeholders
2. A skills catalogue will help to access the right resources- when (and where) they are needed.
3. Forecast resources throughout the project life cycle.
4. The company should have a single pool or resources, not on one project or portfolio.
5. Planning to be at the project level and roll-up to the enterprise—no forecast by department only.
6. Provide stakeholders real-time resource demand and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) reports as
well as role-based dashboards.
7. Avoid planning your most important resources on disparate Excel spread sheets.

69
4.6 Project Controls 7
4.6.1 What are Project Controls? 0

Project Controls are professional functions which in their own right are not widely taken as a set of
specialised skills. Their importance is to assist to achieve successful programme outcomes and project.
This involves delivering required benefits to cost, time and performance.

Project Controls are the data gathering, management and analytical processes used to forecast, understand
and constructively influence the time and cost outcomes of a project or programme: through the
communication of information in formats that assist effective management and decision making." “Source
– Pat Weaver’s White Paper”

The above definition embraces all the stages of a project life cycle which are
initiating planning execution closure

Figure 1: Stages of Project Cycle

Where does Project Controls sit?

Project Control professionals are part of the Project Team who work for and report to the Project
Manager. They are the central part of the Project Team. Project Management deals with informed and
accountable decisions making whilst Project Controls are concerned with informing, monitoring and
analysing of the activities to do with the control [Link] Control professionals do the generation
and maintenance of the information which brings awareness to the Project Manager and Senior Managers
and enables control exercise.

4.6.1 Project Controls Component Elements


Project Controls enable initial baseline performance metrics estimation, current status of the project
determination, estimation of project future, variances and their recovery. Time and cost aspects of Project
Controls are to do with measuring, monitoring and controlling.

Key attributes of Project Controls


70
 Planning and Scheduling 7
 1
Risk Management (includes identification & assessment)
 Cost estimating and management
 Scope and Change Management
 Earned Value Management
 Document Control
 Supplier Performance
 Maintaining the project baseline
 Reporting
 BIM and Information Management

These encompass the key important attributes of Project Controls hence are not an exhaustive list.
5. Project Structure from a Project Controls Perspective.

A project that successfully delivers a required benefit has an agreed project schedule that follows a few
basic rules in its development that also benefit from a robust and complete Project Management Plan at its
core. Description of the project scope, the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and the Organisational
Breakdown Structure (OBS) are also important elements. The WBS ties together the scope, schedule and
costs of the project. It is output orientated and breaks down the project scope into deliverable items. The
OBS defines the Organisational structure and the roles required within the project team to enable
successful delivery. OBS helps to identify specific accountability and responsibilities for delivery within
the team.

5.1 Importance of Project Controls:


The execution of a project is based on a robust project plan and can only be achieved through an effective
schedule control methodology.
 If dedicated Project Controls’ systems are in place Project performance can be improved
 Project Control can improve cost effectiveness
 Good project control practices result in good cost and schedule outcomes.

RECOMMENDED READING

A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), (2004)


Project Management Institute, Newtown Square, PA.

Baum, Joel, A.C. and Christine Oliver (1991), “Institutional linkages and organizational
mortality,” Administrative Science Quarterly, 36, 187-218.

71
Bourne, Lynda (2006), “Project Relationships and the 7Stakeholder Circle TM”
2
Proceedings, Project Management Institute Research Conference, July, Montreal.
Bourne, Lynda & Walker, D.H.T. (2006), ‘Visualizing stakeholder influence – Two
Australian examples’, Project Management Journal, 37(1), 5-21.

Brass, Daniel, J. and Marlene E. Burckhardt (1993), “Potential Power and Power Use: An
Investigation of Structure and Behavior,” Academy of Management Journal, 36(3), 441-
470.

Brass, Daniel, J., Joseph Galaskiewicz, Henrich R. Greve and Wenpin Tsai (2004),
“Taking Stock of Networks and Organizations: A Multilevel Perspective,” Academy of
Management Journal, 47 (6), 795-817.

Chen, Wei Tong and Tung-Tsan Chen (2007), “Critical Success Factors for Construction
Partnering in Taiwan,” International Journal of Project Management, 25(5): 475-484.

Cummings, J. H. & Cross, R. (2003), ‘Structural properties of work groups and their
consequences for performances’, Social Networks, 25; 197-210.

Englund, Randall L. and Bucero, Alfonso, (2006), Project Sponsorship: Achieving


Management Commitment for Project Success, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.

Flannes, Steven W. and Ginger Levin (2001), People Skills for Project Managers,
Management Concepts, Vienna, VA.

Freeman, R. Edwards (1984). Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach. Boston:


Pitman.
Jawahar, I.M. and Gary L. McLaughlin (2001), “Towards a Descriptive Stakeholder
Theory: An Organizational Life Cycle Approach,” Academy of Management Review, 26
(3), 397-414.

Kloppenborg, Timothy J. (2009). Contemporary Project Management, South-western


CENGAGE Learning, Mason, OH.17

Kloppenborg, Timothy J., Tesch, Deborah, Manolis, Chris, and Heitkamp, Mark. (2006)
An Empirical Investigation of the Sponsor’s Role in Project Initiation, Project
Management Journal, August 2006, 16-25

72
Krackhardt, David (1990), “Assessing the political landscape
7 – Structure, Cognition, and
3
Power in Organizations”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 35, 342-369.

McManus, John (2004), “A Stakeholder Perspective in Software Project Management”,


Management Services, May 2004, 8-12.

Milosevic, Dragan Z. (2003), Project Management Toolbox: Tools and Techniques for
the Practicing Project Manager, John Wiley & Sons, Inc, Hoboken, NJ.

Mintzberg, H. & Waters, J. A. (1986), ‘Of strategies, deliberate and emergent’, Strategic
Management Journal, 6 (3), 257 – 272.

Mitchell, Ronald, K., Bradley, R. Agle and Donna J. Wood (1997), “Toward a Theory of
Stakeholder Identification and Salience: Defining the Principle of Who and What Really
Counts,” Academy of Management Review, 22 (4), 853-886.

Neville, Benjamin, A. and Bulent Menguc (2006), “Stakeholder Multiplicity: Toward an


Understanding of the Interactions between Stakeholders,” Journal of Business Ethics, 66,
377-391.

Pinto, J. K. (2004). “The Elements of Project Success.” Chapter in Field Guide to Project
Management. Ed. D. I. Cleland. Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons, Inc. pp. 14-27.

Roberts, Karlene, H. and Charles A. O’Reilly III (1979), “Some correlates of


communication roles in organizations,” Academy of Management Journal, 22, 42-57.

Shenhar, Aaron J and Dvir, Dov. (2007). Reinventing Project Management. Harvard
Business School Press, Boston.

Tsai, Wenpin (2001), “Knowledge Transfer in Intraorganizational Networks: Effects of


Network Position and Absorptive Capacity on Business Unit Innovation and
Performance,” Academy of Management Journal, 44, 996-1004.

Tsai, Wenpin and Sumantra Ghoshal (1998), “Social Capital and Value Creation: The
Role of Intrafirm Networks,” Academy of Management Journal, 41, 464-476.

Sutterfield, J. S., Friday-Stroud, S. S. & Blackwell, S. L. Shivers (2006), ‘A case study of


project and stakeholder management failures: Lessons learned’, Project Management
73
Journal, 37(5),
7 26-35.
4

74
7
5

UNIT 7
NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS

AUTHORED BY MR MACHANJA BENNY

1. AREAS OF STUDENT GROWTH


This unit aims to awaken the spirit of national consciousness in students as one which plays an
important role in socio-economic and political developments of any nation. Focus will be
especially on nationhood identity development grappling with metaphysical existential
questions such as, “Who is a Zimbabwean? How did the Zimbabwean nation come into being?
Why was the Zimbabwean nation created?” The students will be able to acquaint themselves
with national consciousness variables that promote:

 national unity;
 sustainable development;
 peace;
 respect for diversity;
 patriotism;

The development of “soft skills” or person–to –person relational competences takes center stage in
this unit being guided by a heightened self – awareness programme. The tasks and assignments of
this unit serve to stimulate students’ thinking capacities as they:

 Join and actively participate in various student groupings, clubs and community
service engagements in order to boost their competences;
 Consult peers and staff on matters of national interests and patriotism, and
 Craft resolutions to guide autonomous behaviour cognisance of the existence of other
nationalities being guided by the Zimbabwean philosophy of Ubuntu/Unhuism.
2. OBJECTIVES:
This unit is designed to ensure that students are able to:
 Discover who they are as Zimbabweans or any other nationality, and to have deeper
self-knowledge which leads to self-profiling, which in-turn is expected to bolster self-
esteem, self-confidence, self-efficacy and personal effectiveness;
 Grow beyond information capitulation and over dependence on other nations ‘views,
thoughts, opinions, cultures and tradition (i.e., engender critical thinking skills,
objectivity, independent thinking, autonomy and
integrity);

75
 Understand themselves in the context
7 of national interests, choices and needs of others;
and be able to master interpersonal6 skills, problem-solving and conflict management
skills which promote personal growth, peace and progress in society; and
 Understand the role of individual nations in a global village settings and the
importance of cooperation between and amongst nations.

3. LEARNING OUTCOMES
Having an awakened spirit of national consciousness students should develop:
 A patriotic consciousness of their role as agents of social transformation and drivers of
social justice and positive social traditions;
 Integrity, objectivity, independent thought, critical thinking skills and leadership
competences across nationalities
 A deep appreciation and tolerance of cultural diversity, inclusivity and pluralism;
cognizant of the existence of a global village and
 The ability to work in teams across nationalities.

Task 1: Respond to this fact finding table as honestly as you can so that it gives you a clear picture of the
demographics of Zimbabwe as a nation by answering accompanying questions:

Nationality Zimbabwean

Official Chibarwe, English, Kalanga, Koisan, Nambya, Ndau, Ndebele,


Languages Shangani, Shona, sign language, Sotho, Tonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa.

Questions

a. Rank the following languages of Zimbabwe in order of the proportion of the population’s
ethnic group that constitute each one.
b. Of the above languages how many are you able to use to communicate?
c. Using each of the above languages write down words two people would say to greet each
other in the morning.

4. A Conceptual Framework of National Consciousness and its Underpinnings


4.1 What is consciousness of the nation?
A national consciousness is a shared sense of national identity and a shared
understanding that a people group have a common ethnic/linguistic/cultural background.
Historically, a rise in national consciousness has been the first step towards the creation of
a nation and nationhood thereby giving rise to a national identity such as being
Zimbabwean. In literature various definitions of terms have been proffered as referred to
below:

76
7 aggregate of persons, so closely associated with
The term “nation” is used to refer to “an
7
each other by common descent, language or history, as to form a distinct race or people,
usually organized as a separate political state and occupying a definite territory” (Fenton
2010: 13), while “nationalism” refers to devotion and loyalty to one's own nation. In
addition, the term “national identity” is used loosely to refer to what Smith (1991: 14) has
defined as the self-perception of a named human population sharing an historic territory,
common myths and historical memories, a mass, public culture, a common economy and
common legal rights and duties for all members.

As used here, therefore, the term nations assumes the presence of various common
attributes, such as

 the “belief in a common culture, history, kinship, language, religion, territory,


founding moment and destiny” (Smith 1991: 14), along with other markers of a shared
heritage.

Individual Task 2: In a linear chronological order of events outline the founding of the nation of
Zimbabwe from pre-colonial to post – colonial modern times.(Tabulate periods)

4.2 National Identity: The Model of Shulman (2004)

The awakening of a spirit of national consciousness usually expressed through group struggles
gives rise to the finding of nations and their attendant national identities. To grasp a clearer
picture of what constitutes national identity, we start our approach from the model developed
by the American political scientist Stephen Shulman who identified three key elements in the
national identity (civic identity, cultural identity and ethnicity) and a couple of constituting
components for each of the three as shown in Table 2:

Table 2: Shulman’s Elements and components of national identity

As shown in Table 2 above, Shulman’s three main elements (civic identity, cultural identity,
and ethnicity) and their underlying components are the building blocks of a national identity,

77
but their relative importance of weight is7not defined in advance. It is an open model that
8
leaves space for a contextual and diverse understanding of national identity.

Within the concept of national consciousness, awareness, bonding, identity, and patriotism
have been identified as key elements. A nation should possess an identity that wields a
collective spirit towards commonality. National consciousness creates a common identity,
which in turn drives the spirit of the nation to national prominence (Cobbold, and
Oppong(2010).

Consciousness binds people to the metaphysical and physical life of the nation and urges them
to identify with the nation in all its struggles. A national consciousness is developed through
grounded citizenry knowledge of the country, and pride and respect for the environment,
aspirations, and traditions of the country. While promoting national unity, patriotism and
national pride, civic education should also encourage respect for, and acceptance of, those
belonging to other cultures and ethnicities. The feeling of overall oneness of the nation leads
to fostering national integration (Ogot, 1996).

National consciousness also provides a sense of national identity. Tate (1996) observes that a
society that is not passionate about its history is in danger of losing its identity. This validates
Low-Beer’s (2003) claim that creating and sustaining national identity have always been
important reasons for the inclusion of civic education in the schools. National identity reflects
in citizens’ actions, thoughts, aspirations and behaviours (Ozumba, 2014). The identity
awakens patriotic sensitivities, and these sensitivities, in turn, strengthen the consciousness of
the citizens. Crookall (1975), further observes that the purposeful teaching of civic education
inspires students with a sense of patriotism to their motherland.

GroupTask 1:

Create a round table discussion group and identify university students’ activities and clubs that foster
the love of one’s motherland and point out some shortfalls of patriotism.

5. The Zimbabwean Context of Sulman’s Model of National Identity.

The case of the Zimbabwean national consciousness fostering Zimbabwean nationality is


considered in the coming pages taking cognisant of Sulman’s open model that leaves space for
a contextual and diverse understanding of national identity. In grappling with the
consciousness of nation issues pertaining to Zimbabwe’s metaphysical and existential
metaphors pertinent questions to address include the following:
 What are the factors that led to the rise of the Great Zimbabwe?
 When did Zimbabwe become a nation?
 Who owns Zimbabwe?
 What are Zimbabwean values?

78
 What makes Zimbabwe unique? 7
 9
At what stage of economic development is Zimbabwe?

Group Task 2:

Create a round table group and discuss each of the above questions pointing out factors which can
contribute to making Zimbabwe a fragile state.

5.1 The Foundations of Modern Zimbabwe

According to public history of the modern day Zimbabwe, Ranger (2010: 505–510) lays on a
foundation of a people who lived harmoniously as one nation before the disruption of British
colonialism. This view takes off from the then former president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe's
statement in 1977, where he said that a future, independent Zimbabwe will be a nation” whose roots
lay in pre-colonial polities and that

…the distinguishing features of our nation, cultural homogeneity, our biological and
genetic identity, our social system, our geography, [and] our history, which together
characterize our national identity, also combined in producing out of our people a
national, vigorous and positive spirit which manifests itself in the consistently singular
direction of its own preservation (Bhebe and Ranger 2001: xxvi).

The reality check of the modern day nation of Zimbabwe is cross examined by a Zimbabwean scholar
Sabelo Ndlovu-Gatsheni (2009a) who asked, ‘Do Zimbabweans exist? Did they, in fact, ever exist? Or
is present-day Zimbabwe merely a colonial and nationalist construct which is yet to become a
nation?’ In Ndlovu-Gatsheni's words,

…like all historically and socially constructed phenomena, [Zimbabwe] is exceedingly difficult to
define. It is a complex mosaic of contending histories and memories, making it as much a reality as
it is an idea – a construction not only moulded out of pre-colonial, colonial and nationalist pasts,
but also out of [sic] global values of sovereignty, self-determination and territorial integrity. It is
an idea born out of continuing synthesis of multilayered, overlapping and cross-pollinating
historical genealogies, and contending nationalisms, (Ndlovu2009a: 46).

In debunking and trying to search for answers to the above questions amidst conflicting
worldviews, an assessment of the elements making up the contentious modern day Zimbabwean
national identity is a necessity.

5.2 Dimensions and Characteristics of the Zimbabwean Identity

Individual Task 3:

In Table 3 below indicate with a tick or an X in the appropriate box the presence or absence of
dimensions and characteristics denoting the existence or non-existence of a typical Zimbabwean
identity:

DIMENSION CHARACTERISTICS PRESENT ABSENT NEUTRAL

79
National Flag 8
0
National Dress

National Bird.

Identity Symbols National Flower

National Tree.

National Anthem.

State Emblem.

National Calendar

Respect to elders

obedience to parents and figures


of authority
Values self-control and patience

Observing cultural customs and


the social structures in place.

strong emphasis on communal


values, warmth, prudence

considerate behavior

Promoting Inculcating right values, morals


National and discipline in the citizens.
Consciousness
Inculcating sound moral and
religious beliefs.

Encouraging justice and fairness


among citizens.

Encouraging national unity and


understanding through healthy
competitions, politics, sports, and
festivals, etc.

Ways of Tolerance for each other,


Promoting irrespective of religious and
National Unity ethnic affiliations.
Showing hospitality especially to
the strangers.
Living a life devoid of
discrimination against other
tribes.
Encouraging inter-tribal marriages

Freedom of movement.

80
Observing the rule of law. 8
1

Group Task 3:

Create a round table group and discuss Zimbabwe’s strengths and weakness as a nation from the data
you collected in Table 3 above.

 Identify national efforts in place to strengthen nationhood and address some


weaknesses identifies
 Suggest other ways of addressing the identified weaknesses.

Unit Individual Summative Assignment


A university has retained you as a Youth Officer, in 1000 words, come up with an argument justifying the
inclusion of National Consciousness in university studies of your country.

REFERENCES

Bhebe, Ngwabi , and Ranger, Terence O. (eds.), (2001), Pre-Colonial and Colonial Legacies, The
Historical Dimensions of Democracy and Human Rights in Zimbabwe, vol. 1, Harare: University of
Zimbabwe Publications.
Cobbold, C., and Oppong, A. C. (2010).Assessing instructional resource and methods of teaching history
in senior high schools in the Central Region of [Link] Journal of Educational Leadership
3(3).Crookall, R. E. (1975). Handbook for history teachers in Africa. London:

Fenton, Steve (2010), Ethnicity, 2nd Edition, Cambridge UK: Polity Press.

81
Mlambo A.S. (2013) Becoming Zimbabwe or Becoming 8 Zimbabwean: Identity, Nationalism and State-
building,History in the Department of Historical and Heritage
2 Studies of the University of Pretoria, South
Africa

Ogot, B. A. (1996). Ethnicity, nationalism and democracy in [Link] University: Institute of


Research and Post Graduates Studies.

Ozumba, G. O. (2014). National consciousness, value reorientations and identity: An integrative humanist
approach. Journal of Integrative Humanism, 46, 340-350.

Ranger, Terence (2010), Constructions of Zimbabwe, in: Journal of Southern African Studies, 36, 2, 505–
510.

Sabelo, Ndlovu-Gatsheni (2009b), The Ndebele Nation: Hegemony, Memory,


Historiography, Amsterdam: Rozenberg/Pretoria: UNISA.

Smith, Anthony D. (1991), National Identity, London: Penguin Books.

UNIT 8
Responsible citizenship
Highlight the basic rights, responsibilities,
TOPIC and duties of a Zimbabwean citizen;

1. Rights, responsibilities, and Identify students’ specific rights,


duties of a citizen duties, and responsibilities within
2. Hunhu/ubuntu, patriotism and their institutions
loyalty, and respecting the rights
and views of others Identify any rights which are not being
3. Ethics and sexuality met and develop a plan for meeting
such rights.
4. Being a role model
2. Hunhuism/ubuntu, patriotism and loyalty,
and respecting the rights and views of
1. Rights, responsibilities, and duties of a others
citizen
Learning objectives
Learning objectives
Key idea: All citizens of a country have rights,
Key idea: A model patriotic and loyal citizen is
responsibilities, and duties which must be realized seen as someone who lives their life consistent
and adhered to. with the country’s or community’s expectations
in terms of responsibilities, duties, and rights, and
At the end of this session, students will be able respects the rights and views of others.
to:

82
At the end of this session, students will be able 8emulated by others; behaviour which sets a
to: 3standard in all facets of life.
List those attributes that define a student
At the end of this session, students will be able
with unhu/ ubuntu in the area of personal to:
social relationships and sexual relationships
Appreciate being a role model on
and behaviour at the institute, and in campus, in their families, and in their
Zimbabwe, respectively communities;

Identify an area that needs personal growth to Identify areas to work on in order to be
attain acceptable unhu/ubuntu as a citizen of a model student;
the institute and Zimbabwe, respectively, and
make a commitment for a positive change; Initiate the behaviour change process
Acknowledge the views of others; towards becoming a model student
and citizen
Initiate a behaviour change aimed at being
a model citizen.

3. Being a role model


Learning objectives
Key idea: In every community, there are
individuals who model behaviour that is

83
UNIT8 9
4
Gender, values, rights, culture, and sexuality

2. Gender norms, values, and


stereotypes

Topics Learning objectives

1. The social construction of Key idea: Gender norms, values, and stereotypes
gender and gender norms tend to be biased largely against women in
2. Gender norms, values, and patriarchal societies such as Zimbabwe.
stereotypes
At the end of this session, students will be able
3. Overcoming gender bias to:

over time related to gender-related


1. The social construction of gender and norms and values;
gender norms
Critically assess and question certain
Learning objectives values, norms, and responsibilities;

Suggest the changes needed to enhance


Key idea: Society constructs norms, values, every person’s rights, male and female
roles, and responsibilities which they attach alike.
to males and females; these vary across
societies and may change over time.

At the end of this session, students will be able


to:

Articulate the norms, values, roles, and


responsibilities attached to Zimbabwean
men and women in general that guide
various aspects of life;

Articulate the norms, values, roles, and


responsibilities attached to male and female
students, at the respective institutions that
guide various aspects of life;

Compare and contrast norms, values, roles,


and responsibilities across ethnic groups,
while appreciating the existence of diversity;

Critically analyse and identify the positive


and negative changes that have occurred

84
8
5 Articulate the conflict between certain norms
Identify gender norms and values that guide
various facets of life for men and women, and values related to sex and sexuality and
how this affects fulfilment of SRH rights;
respectively, including in relation to related to
sex and sexuality; Recognize gender norms that create
stereotypes and bias and choose to rebuff
them, while adopting new norms and
Articulate how these gender norms can
values that create positive forms of
create stereotypes and inequality;
masculinity and femininity;

Analyse how gender stereotypes and inequality


Advocate for gender equality.
stifle progress in different aspects of life, such as
education, health, sex, and sexuality, and how they
can disadvantage both men and women

85
8
6

3. Overcoming gender bias


Learning objectives
Key idea: There are many gender biases that
impact SRH in Zimbabwean society, but also
ways of overcoming them.

At the end of this session, students will be able to:

Identify gender biases that negatively


impact the seeking and receipt of SRH
services;

Critically analyse their risks to gender biases;

Identify the barriers to overcoming such biases;

Identify supportive conditions for


overcoming gender biases;

Appreciate the need to play a role in


addressing the negative effects of gender
bias and stereotypes;

Develop and demonstrate actions they


can take to mitigate against gender bi

86
8
7

UNIT 8

LEADERSHIP

AUTHORED BY MR DAVID M SITHOLE

1. AREAS OF GROWTH

The unit aims to develop in students a better understanding of the concept of leadership and its
various dynamics. It exposes students to various leadership and management styles. Students are
expected to grow in the following areas:

 Decision making
 Effective communication
 Interpersonal skills
 Networking skills

2. OBJECTIVES

By the end of this unit, students should be able to:

 Demonstrate prowess of their understanding of the concepts of leadership and


management
 Identify situations and discuss best leadership models which can be used to give the best
results in different contexts
 Interrogate leadership qualities for best results

3. LEARNING OUTCOMES

 Personal growth and effectiveness across different social and economic spheres
 Personal confidence and self-efficacy in different academic and social situations
 Conducive working environment that creates best results

4. Theoretical Framework of Leadership

Leadership remains a very important source of influence in any organization. Due to its
importance many researchers conducted extensive studies in order to understand its complexity

8
87
7
8
8

and dynamisms. Stogdill (1974) sees leadership as a process directed at influencing a specific
group of people to meet a stated objective. Kouzes and Posner (1998) believe that ‘leadership is
the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle for the shared aspirations. Maxwell (1992) states
that leadership is simply influence. Stogdill (1974) sums up by saying that there is no one
definition or particular leadership approach that is considered universal.

5. Leadership Theories

“Nothing is more terrible than activity without insight.”

Thomas Carlyle: 1995

There are many leadership theories in existence. Some of the theories are discussed below:

5.1 Great Man (Trait Theory)

The Great Man Theory also known as the Trait Theory was propounded by a Scottish man
called Thomas Carlyle (4 December 1795 – 5 February 1881). The theory espouses that some
people are born with the necessary attributes that set them apart from others and that these traits
are responsible for them assuming positions of power and authority. This suggests that some men
and women come to this world possessing a combination of rare traits not common in other
people.

Trait assumes that:

 Leaders are born and not made.


 Leaders are heroes and heroines who despite odds can accomplish goals.
 Some people are born to lead.
 Leaders cannot be made because some leadership qualities such as charisma, intelligence,
political skills and wisdom are innate.

5.1.1 Characteristics of leaders using the Trait Theory


Great leaders have a rare combination of inherent traits making them able to excel in leadership.
Common are the following:
 A high sense of humor
 Passion about their job. They have a calling
 High levels of enthusiasm, energy and confidence
8
88
8
8
9

 Effective communication, persuasion and good negotiating skills


 Positive influence
 Vision and great sense for unity of purpose
 Obsession with quality
 Customer focus
 Good teamwork
 Self confidence
 Courage

5.2 Situational Theory (Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard)

Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard are said to be the founders of this theory (Verdhan: 2021).
The situational theory of leadership stresses that leaders who adapt to the situation and
development level are ideal. They apply their intelligence, expertise, and years of experience to
balance the whole organization.

Autocratic, democratic, coaching, affiliate, pacesetting, authoritative, and other leadership styles
become one when a true leader applies situational theory.

In management, people call it Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Theory. Situational


theories hold a view that a leader faces different situations that demand varied approaches to
problem solving. The theory requires flexibility to problem solving. Leaders choose the best
course of action based upon situational variables. Different styles of leadership may be more
appropriate for certain types of decision-making. An effective leader should be able to select the
best leadership style to solve a particular problem.

5.3 Behavioral Theories

Rutledge (2003) believes that Elton Mayo was the founder of the Behavioral theory. This theory
is grounded on the assumption that leaders are made not born. It argues that the success of a
leader is based on their behavior rather than their natural attributes. It involves observing and
evaluating a leader's actions and behaviors when responding to a specific situation. Proponents of
this theory suggest that anyone can become an effective leader if they can learn and implement
certain behaviors.
8
89
9
9
0

Leaders using the behavioral approach may be classified into different categories such as:

 People-oriented leaders
 Task-oriented leaders
 Participative leaders
 Status-quo leaders
 Indifferent leaders
 Dictatorial leaders
 Sound leaders
 Opportunistic leaders
 Paternalistic leaders

5.4 Participative theory

Kurt Lewin is believed to be the founding father of the participative theory. Rensis Liket played
a significant role in popularizing the theory. Participative leadership theories suggest that the
ideal leadership style is one that takes the input of others into account. These leaders encourage
participation and contributions from group members and help group members feel more relevant
and committed to the decision-making process. In participative theories, however, the leader
retains the right to allow the input of others.

(Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality)

Ralph Lauren: 1939

6. Century Leadership Strategies

Leaders of successful organizations use different leadership styles to elevate their competitive
advantages. The success of an organization depends on the vibrancy of the strategies on the
ground. Some of the strategies which can be used to bring success to an organization include:

 Ability to formulate a clear vision.


 Using effective communication skills.
 The ability to harness relationships for organizational development

9
90
0
9
1

 Using research findings to improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness with the
aim to improve quality and customer satisfaction.
 Harnessing professionalism as a tool for excellence.
 Using teams as apparatus for success.
 Learning to manage information.
 Using emotional, social and financial intelligence to improve organizational performance.

Task 1

Suggest leadership style you would advise student leaders to use in

 Dealing with conflict among students


 Engaging university administrations on contentious issues
 Dealing with institutional policy issues
 Dealing with national policy issues

7. Application of Themes to Student Development and Life Skills

7.1 Leadership Skills

Leadership skills are the tools, behaviours and capabilities that leaders should have in promoting
well-being of the employees and leading to up-gradation of the organizations (Leadership Skills,
2010). Leadership skills do not come by accident, they are learned. Some of the leadership skills
include:

 Ability to make a sound decision


 Effective communication
 Ability to motivate others
 Creativity and innovativeness
 Networking
9
91
1
9
2

 Interpersonal skills
 Trustworthiness
 Adaptability
 Delegation
 Decision making

7.2 Components of leadership

7.2.1 Authority

Authority is the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience. Authority
gives the management legitimate power to enforce obedience. It is the power to give orders and
make sure that these orders are obeyed. It causes people to act on orders.

7.2.2 Influence

Influence refers to the power to cause changes without directly forcing them to happen.

7.2 Attributes of a Dynamic Leader

 Awareness.
 Decisiveness. All leaders must occasionally make difficult decisions, like terminating
employees for poor performance, or reducing the size of the workforce
 Empathy
 Accountability
 Confidence
 Optimism
 Honesty
 Focus

 Vision
 Inspiration
 Strategic and critical thinking
 Interpersonal communication

9
92
2
9
3

 Authenticity and self-awareness


 Open-mindedness and creativity
 Flexibility
 Responsibility and dependability

8. Leadership Roles
Leadership comes with a lot of roles and responsibilities among which are the following
8. Change Management

(The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence: it is to act with yesterday’s
logic)

Peter Drucker: 1990

Leaders have great responsibilities to introduce and manage change in organizations. Change is
a transition from one state to another. Change management is a systematic and structured process
of developing and implementing strategies and interventions for organizations transitioning from
current state to a desired state. (Beer and Nohria: 2000) It often associated with changes in
policies and procedures, individual needs, task and skill requirements. Change management
involves realigning organizational core values such as vision, mission, culture, people believes,
attitudes and values towards achieving organizational goals.

8.1.1 Driving Change


The society in which we live today is dynamic requiring for people with dynamic leadership
skills to take charge. Some of the factors which make change inevitable are:
 Introduction of new technology into the society
 The influence of globalization cannot be ignored
 Economic downturn
 Intensity of competition
 Regulatory changes
 Socio-cultural changes
 Change of leadership
 Overcoming declining performance
 Value creation for stakeholder constituency

9
93
3
9
4

8.1.2 Dealing Resistance to Change


Resistance to change occurs when an individual or individuals refuse to adapt or co-operate to
new proposed circumstances. It is inherent in people not to accept changes easily for fear of the
unknown. The following are some of the reasons why people resist to new changes:
 Fear of the unknown
 Disturbance to status quo
 Fear of job security
 New changes may be a threat to comfort.
 lack of trust
 fear of failure
 poor communication

Task 2

In groups of ten students, prepare a presentation in which you are introducing a change to
your organization

(a) Identify the change


(b) Give a justification for the change?
(c) Outline benefits of the desired change?
(d) How do you deal with resistance to change?
(e) Which management approaches would you use to ensure compliance to change?

8.2 Management

(Management is nothing more than motivating other people)

Lee Jacocca: 1945

9
94
4
9
5

Organizations are purposive institutions designed to achieve specific goals. In order to achieve
these goals, activities should be executed in a coordinated manner. It is the function of
management to ensure that goals of an organization are achieved. In this view, Follett (1973)
defines management as the art of getting things done through people. Managers influence
members in the organization to mobilize and harness resources together towards the goals of the
organization. In order to fulfill this role, the manager plays specific managerial functions.

8.2.1 Managerial Functions

(Katz:1955) views management responsibilities as administrative and supervisory. Kappa (1991)


goes further to say that management aims to provide services to the community in an efficient
and sustainable manner. Kotter (2001) sums up managerial functions as planning, organizing,
budgeting, coordinating, and monitoring activities. It is the view of Stogdill (1974) that the
ultimate goal of management is to achieve organizational goals. This is supported by Yukl
(2002) who list managerial functions as follows:

 Planning
 Ordering
 Organizing
 Directing
 Leading
 Controlling
 Implementing
 Delegating
 Supervising
 Monitoring
 Evaluating

8.2.2 Managerial Skills required for Successful Leaders

 People skills
 Willingness
 Ability to delegate
 Effective communication skills
9
95
5
9
6

 Motivational skills
 Judgment
 Adaptability
 Emotional maturity
 Initiative
 Organization and delegation.
 Forward planning and strategic thinking skills
 Problem solving and decision-making skills
 Mentoring skills
 On the job skills
 Self-confidence
 Decisiveness
 integrity

8.2.3 Management Styles

A management style is a strategy adopted by a manager to work through other people in the
organization to achieve set goals. Some of the management styles are:

[Link] Management by Objectives (MBO)

It is a controlling measure where performance is measured against individual objectives (Eyre:


1986). The manager and the subordinate agree on the objectives to be achieved. Resources are
marshalled towards the project. Evaluation comes at the end of the execution of the project to
determine the extent to which set objectives were achieved

[Link] Management by Wondering About (MBWA)

(A desk is a dangerous place from which to view the world).

John le Carré: 1963

Managing by walking around (MBWA) was popularized by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman in
the early 1980s because it was felt that managers were becoming isolated from their subordinates
(Packard: 1995). Management by wondering about refers to a strategy where a manager goes
9
96
6
9
7

down to the shop floor interacting with employees, listening to the views of the people and
getting an appreciation of how the work is being done. Packard (1995) sees managing by
wandering around as the basis of leadership and excellence and called it the technology of the
obvious. He lists benefits of management by walking about as follows:

 Builds trust and relationships


 Motivates staff by suggesting that management takes an active interest in people
 Encourages staff to achieve individual and collective goals.
 Strengthens ability to drive cultural change for higher organizational performance
 Refreshes organizational values
 Makes work less formal
 Creates a healthy organization
 Brings about better communication between management and employees
 It encourages people to work as a team

Task 3

(a) In your own words define management by wondering about


(b) Identify three situations that might require the use of this management style
(c) Discuss weaknesses of this model

References
Beer, M. & Nohria, N. (2000). (Ed.), Breaking the code of Change. Boston, Massachusetts:
Harvard Business School Press.

Eyre. E .C (1986). Mastering Basic Management. Mamillan Education LTD

Knotter, J. P., (2001), “What Leaders really do?” Harvard Business Review, Vol.79 Issue 11,
p.85-96

Katz, R. L., (1955). Skills of an effective administrator. Harvard Business Review, 33(1), 33-42

9
97
7
9
8

Kottenman, J., (2006), “Leadership vs. Management: What is the difference?” Journal for
Quality and Participation, Vol. 29 Issue 2 p.13-17

Yukl, G. (2002). Leadership in Organizations. Fifth Edition, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:
Prentice Hall International, Inc

Stogdill, R. M. (1974), The Handbook of Leadership. New York: The Free Press, New York.

Leadership Skills. (2010), Retrieved September 02, 2020 from Promeng, eu

Follett, M. P, Urwick, L. F., & Metcalf, H. C. (1973). Dynamic administration: the collected
papers of Mary Parker Follett (pp. 117-131). New York: Pitman.

Packard, D. (1995). The HP way: How Bill Hewlett and I built our company. HarperCollins
Publishers

Raj Verdhan. 4 October 2021. Situational Theory of Leadership – A Summarized Approach

George Elton Mayo: The Human Problems of an Industrial Civilization, Routledge, reprint
edition 2003.

9
98
8

You might also like