Developing the Mauritius Leadership Brand : Phase 1: Assessment of Leadership Development Needs in the Mauritius Public Service

Simpson, Barbara (2018) Developing the Mauritius Leadership Brand : Phase 1: Assessment of Leadership Development Needs in the Mauritius Public Service. University of Strathclyde, Glasgow.

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Abstract

This report presents the results of an exploratory collaborative project involving Strathclyde Business School (SBS), the National Productivity and Competitiveness Council of Mauritius (NPCC), and the Civil Service College Mauritius (CSCM). The project follows on from work commissioned by NPCC in 2015 to define a unique Mauritius Leadership Brand that can direct the future development of leadership capital in support of Mauritian ambitions for economic growth, inclusivity and prosperity. The value of this Mauritius Leadership Brand (MLB) is now recognized in the Government’s three year strategic plan, which aspires “to build a culture of trust, innovation, hard work and excellence” through better leadership (MFED, 2017, p. 28). The idea of a leadership brand originates from the work of Dave Ulrich and Norm Smallwood (Ulrich & Smallwood, 2007). They observe firstly, that developing leadership is not the same as developing individual leaders (see also Day, 2001). Whereas leaders come and go in organisations, leadership is what endures over time, independent of any individual leader identities. Leaders are not always skilled at investing in and developing future leaders, whereas good leadership creates an organisational ecology within which leadership can flourish. Secondly, Ulrich and Smallwood observe that much of the current discussion about leadership development is focused inwardly on the person and/or the organisation, missing the point that without a complementary outward focus leadership remains blind to stakeholder expectations. Accordingly, they define leadership brands in terms of the leadership processes that encompass the whole organisation, bridging between internal and external behaviours and expectations.