Transformative Political Leadership
Making a Difference in the Developing World
216 pages
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6 x 9
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© 2012
Accomplished political leaders have a clear strategy for turning political visions into reality. Through well-honed analytical, political, and emotional intelligence, leaders chart paths to promising futures that include economic growth, material prosperity, and human well-being. Alas, such leaders are rare in the developing world, where often institutions are weak and greed and corruption strong—and where responsible leadership therefore has the potential to effect the greatest change.
In Transformative Political Leadership, Robert I. Rotberg focuses on the role of leadership in politics and argues that accomplished leaders demonstrate a particular set of skills. Through illustrative case studies of leaders who have performed ably in the developing world—among them Nelson Mandela in South Africa, Seretse Khama in Botswana, Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore, and Kemal Ataturk in Turkey—Rotberg examines how these leaders transformed their respective countries. The importance of capable leadership is woefully understudied in political science, and this book will be an important tool in exploring how leaders lead and how nations and institutions are built.
Warren Bennis, Distinguished Professor of Management, University of Southern California, author of Still Surprised: A Memoir of a Life in Leadership
“Robert I. Rotberg’s imaginative focus—political leadership of developing countries—throws a unique and brilliant light on the complexities of leading during crisis and change. The eloquently written case studies of leaders, from Ataturk to Mandela, illuminate the tricky navigation of political transition, so urgently needed in today’s roiling world.”
William Ascher, Claremont McKenna College
“Compelling, straightforward, and accessible, Transformative Political Leadership brings the insights of leadership studies to bear on the challenges of nation builders in the developing world. The result is a very thought-provoking addition to the field of development that is sure to stimulate healthy controversy.”
Public Choice
Refreshingly different, compelling, and confident. That institutions matter for good governance and economic success is widely believed among political scientists and economists, but how to transition from bad to good institutions is the trillion dollar question. It is here that Rotberg gives hope to the hopeless: when institutions are weak and incentives are sufficiently fluid, the right kind of political leader can usher in the institutions that sustain long-run success.
Choice
"Drawing on firsthand experience in the Global South, Robert I. Rotberg makes a strong case for compelling, enlightened political leadership in developing countries, where transformative rule has mostly been lacking since independence. Such effective leaders must possess high degrees of analytical, political, and, in particular, emotional intelligence, which involves the ability to empathize. . . . Recommended."
Contents
Introduction
1. Political Leadership, Governance, Political Culture, and Political Institutions
Political Leadership
Governance
Political Culture and Political Institutions
Political Leadership
Governance
Political Culture and Political Institutions
2. Compelling Political Leadership: The Critical Competencies
The Differences Leaders Make
Emotional Intelligence
The Core Competencies
The Vision Thing
The Mobilization Momentum
Being Legitimate
Gaining Trust
The Enlarged Enterprise
Tapping into Authentic Needs
The Contribution of Charisma
The Cases
Emotional Intelligence
The Core Competencies
The Vision Thing
The Mobilization Momentum
Being Legitimate
Gaining Trust
The Enlarged Enterprise
Tapping into Authentic Needs
The Contribution of Charisma
The Cases
3. Nelson Mandela: Consummate Inclusionist
A Manifest Destiny
A Mass Leader Arrived
Maturing as an Activist
“An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die”
“I Will Return”
Donning the Green Jersey
A Mass Leader Arrived
Maturing as an Activist
“An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die”
“I Will Return”
Donning the Green Jersey
4. Seretse Khama: Resolute Democrat
A Traditional Heritage
“A Very Disreputable Transaction”
“Slow and Steady”
Noblesse Oblige
Dirt-Poor and Principled
“Democracy Must Be Nursed and Nurtured”
Prudence, Morality, and Competence
To Build a New Nation
“A Very Disreputable Transaction”
“Slow and Steady”
Noblesse Oblige
Dirt-Poor and Principled
“Democracy Must Be Nursed and Nurtured”
Prudence, Morality, and Competence
To Build a New Nation
5. Lee Kuan Yew: Systematic Nation-Builder
Born to Lead
The Singapore Express
“Lee . . . Is the Only Man”
Getting Singapore to Work
A First World Oasis
Paying a Heavy Price
The Coming of Institutions
The New Confucianism
The Singapore Express
“Lee . . . Is the Only Man”
Getting Singapore to Work
A First World Oasis
Paying a Heavy Price
The Coming of Institutions
The New Confucianism
6. Kemal Ataturk: Uncompromising Modernizer
“Victory Is Mine”
Only a Single Leader Would Do
The Forced March to Modernity
Off with the Fez
The Commanding Vision
Becoming Ataturk
The New Turkey
Only a Single Leader Would Do
The Forced March to Modernity
Off with the Fez
The Commanding Vision
Becoming Ataturk
The New Turkey
7. The Crisis of Contemporary Political Leadership
The Founders and Their Successors
The Crisis
Despots and Tyrants
Transactional Leadership
Leaders Making a Difference
Strengthening Leadership in the Developing World
Acknowledgments
The Crisis
Despots and Tyrants
Transactional Leadership
Leaders Making a Difference
Strengthening Leadership in the Developing World
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
For more information, or to order this book, please visit http://www.press.uchicago.edu
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Economics and Business: Economics--Development, Growth, Planning
Political Science: Comparative Politics | Diplomacy, Foreign Policy, and International Relations
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