Benjamin Omoike
IKEJA, Lagos, Nigeria – Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, asserted on Tuesday that if civil servants acted as leaders on their duty posts, it would be easier to ensure good governance and provide dividends of democracy.
Speaking at the opening of a two-day training on ‘Essential Qualities of Leadership’, Ambode, represented by the Commissioner for Establishment, Training and Pensions, Dr. Akintola Benson Oke, said organisations will make huge leaps of progress when their officers are first and foremost, leaders in their own right, whether those officers be low level officers or in the highest echelon of management.
“We can all agree that organisations will make rapid progress and experience exponential growth when its units and teams and departments are headed by persons who understand what leadership means and who have imbibed the essential attributes of leadership.”
He added that good leadership also fosters effective planning which is important when it comes to meeting organisational goals. According to him, quality leadership is important during times of crisis and when dealing with relationship between coworkers.
He noted that in the absence of strong leadership, an organisation may record slow growth or stall completely and eventually lose its competitiveness and direction. Speaking on the content of the training, he said, “You will learn how to efficiently and effectively recognise behaviours in others as well as to look inward to recognise your own behaviour type.
“You will also be taken through strategies for confidence building and understand how to best give and receive feedback as well as asking difficult questions.”
