Political Science & Public Administration

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Browsing Political Science & Public Administration by Author "Jili, N. N."

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    Influences of female leaders’ transformational leadership style on employee performance and organisational culture development in municipal governments of Amajuba and uGu District.
    (University of Zululand, 2023) Makhanya, Monument Thulani Bongani; Jili, N. N.
    Women's political participation continues to be hampered by societal norms and expectations, gender biases, work-life balance, and flexibility, despite evidence showing how important it is for them to hold positions of power in the society, home, Church as well as in politics. While various studies have made strides in giving transformational leadership a prominent place in the leadership philosophy, no studies on the effects of female's transformational leadership on employee performance, and on organisational culture development, in the institutions located in the rural and semi-urban areas of Amajuba and Ugu District Municipalities have been done. Furthermore, transformational leadership practices have not been fully embraced because of resistance to change, lack of awareness and understanding of the concept, institutional and cultural barriers, lack of training and development as well as fear of backlash. This study explored female leadership, by critically analysing the influence of their transformational leadership style on employee performance and organisational culture development in two District Municipalities. The study used transformational leadership theory and interpretivism as a lens to examine the perceptions of employees from the two district municipalities. A qualitative research method was utilised to collect data from a purposively selected sample of four (4) General Managers, four (4) Senior Managers, six (6) Managers and eight (8) general employees who worked in the two district municipalities. The data was compared using inductive thematic analysis and the measurements on the coding processes proposed by Braun and Clarke. This study revealed that females as transformational leaders enhanced employee performance and organisational culture development in the organisations because they were empathetic and strategic, and they led with conscience. Furthermore, female transformational leaders established trust between leaders and followers by being role models. In addition, they were able to motivate employees by demonstrating the qualities of a leader willing to sacrifice their own interests. They had individual concern for each employee and were able to motivate employees to growth. The findings of this study can serve as a basis for future studies on gender-specific leadership in District Municipalities, as well as on how to handle such leadership. Furthermore, it can provide a chance to put theory into practice, as well as to assist researchers to understand how to obtain information on women’s transformational leadership and its effect on employee performance and organisational culture in the Amajuba and Ugu District Municipalities, as well as ways to evaluate and present it in the process of making strategic and advanced judgments based on the theory and the possibility of gaining practical knowledge. The results can help South African policymakers, to make meaningful and desired modifications to reform initiatives when it comes to female empowerment. Policymakers can undoubtedly profit from some of the ideas and conclusions of this research project, which include numerous concepts used by international governments to promote women in all sectors. The research findings can further help government organisations and their management to determine how efficiently and effectively they can implement a policy or advanced strategy to intrinsically motivate their employees to improve work performance and achieve the desired organisational culture development.
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    Risk management as a strategic tool for sustainable service delivery in King Cetshwayo District Municipalities
    (University of Zululand, 2024) Zulu, Khulekani Calalabo; Jili, N. N.
    After nearly 30 years of democracy, South Africa grapples with the persistent challenge of ensuring the sustainable provision of basic services to its citizens. In light of this challenge, the study aimed to explore the application and effectiveness of risk management as a tool for sustainable service delivery in the Mthonjaneni, uMlalazi, uMfolozi, uMhlathuze and Nkandla local municipalities under the King Cetshwayo District Municipality. The study used a case study designed with a qualitative research approach. A sample of 22 participants was selected from among a population of local government political leadership and senior local government practitioners who are responsible for risk management, internal audit services and service delivery. Purposive sampling was used to draw this sample and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from them. Data were analysed using thematic analysis on ATLAS.ti. The findings indicated a failure among municipalities to effectively apply strategic risk management as a tool to support sustainable service delivery. The mere existence of risk management systems and practices in the municipalities did not translate into efficient and effective strategic risk management due to existing challenges and dynamics. Notably, risk management and sustainable service delivery were found to be misaligned, attributed to poor politician-administrator interactions, the absence of risk management policies, and fragmented planning. Municipalities encountered numerous challenges in implementing risk management strategies, including a lack of adequate funding, skills deficits, low leadership commitment, and poor strategic capabilities. The study identified fiscal risks as a common challenge significantly impacting municipalities' abilities to provide sustainable services. In conditions marked by poor revenue generation and high-cost demands, fiscal risk management emerged as a critical activity capable of reducing budgetary gaps. However, the research highlighted hindrances to fiscal risk management, including skills shortages and leadership factors. In view of these findings, the study recommended several measures, including internal audit teams playing consultative roles in strategic risk management, enhancing risk training and awareness among service delivery stakeholders, increasing funding support to oversight departments, attracting and retaining audit and risk management skills, and fostering a risk management culture, among other initiatives.
University of Zululand