Nelson Mandela

Life of a historical leader: Nelson Mandela
Introduction
Efficient leadership constitutes the main force resulting in ethical culture formation and bolstered ethicality in making decisions (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2015). The term leadership denotes intrinsic capability of commanding and leading other people towards any specified goal. The process of leadership entails formulation of a vision and ideas, adopting and sticking to values which support the aforementioned visions, engaging in tricky decision-making whenever needed, and utilizing one's innate charisma for inspiring followers to also stick to those values. Sound leadership aids companies with vision creation that serves as the basis for corporate values. Ethical decisions form an important component of efficient leaders, in addition to their capability of driving others towards goal attainment.
The term ethics, or moral philosophy as it is otherwise referred to, entails systematization, defense and recommendation of the concepts of correct and incorrect conduct (Fisher & Lovell, 2006). Every professional must necessarily follow ethics codes. Ethical leadership results in the development of an ethically sound corporate culture which functions as the basis for ethical decisions. In this paper, moral and ethical leadership will be analyzed, taking the example of South African president and Nobel laureate, Nelson Mandela.
Nelson Mandela as an ethical and moral leader
Anti-apartheid spearhead, Nelson Mandela, forms an excellent example of an ethical/moral leader, since his actions are grounded in moralistic values which helped him gain the trust of White and Black South Africans alike. Mandela's efforts were grounded in an explicit, though simple, vision of a world without apartheid. His unwavering determination despite a 27-year imprisonment brought freedom to his people (Masbagusdanta, 2013). He worked for the marginalized Black South African population's sake, to bring them peace, happiness, and justice. Upon leaving prison, this moral leader took up the daunting task of creating a peaceful multiracial society in the South African nation - a task he succeeded at and that led to the end of the apartheid era and White and Black South Africans understanding and respecting one another. His sense of ethics was superior as well, and he effectively convinced his community (i.e., South African Blacks) that their issues could be solved. He was known to be a great negotiator. For instance, he was a part of the Palestine-Israel negotiations where he proposed things to do in order to resolve the matter.
Even at prison, Nelson Mandela also stood out in the crowd of prisoners and prison guards as being a principled, dignified individual who was ready to give up his freedom and life in order to support what he believed in. In spite of enduring the hardships of life at prison, he was energetic enough to challenge the prison keepers. He did not willingly accept the way things stood and his stay at Robben Island (where he and other political prisoners were imprisoned) ensured apartheid leaders could see their actual selves. Via his words, signs, and actions, Mandela challenged the national system which denied him his freedom. In the end, F.W. de Klerk, Botha’s successor, ordered a democratic election in the nation; thus it was that in the year 1994, Nelson Mandela was elected as South African President in a rarely seen, well-ordered, peaceful transition of rule from the white minority community to the black majority community. De Klerk and Mandela were both awarded Nobel Peace Prizes in the year 1993 as a recognition of their efforts for peaceful apartheid termination and founding a novel, democratic South African nation.
In the year 1993, a White South African assassinated South African Communist Party leader, Chris Hani, leading to nationwide protests against de Klerk's rule. Nelson Mandela, who had just been released from prison, called for peace in an atmosphere where everyone was bent on taking revenge. Further, Mandela made a brave moral and ethical decision, using sports as the means to heal. His belief was that sports unites diverse individuals in a manner that barely any other event does. Hence, when South Africa was allowed to take part in the Olympics in the year 1992, he initially opposed, though later decided upon supporting the nation's largely White athletes. Mandela claims he was certain that he was making the right decision. All but eight out of the total 95-athlete delegation of South Africa were from the White community. Lastly, he asserted that despite having wished that the delegation would adequately reflect South Africa's population, he knew he had to start somewhere (Schoemaker & Krupp, 2014).
Mandela is popular across the globe as one among the greatest moral/ethical and political leaders. A brave and strong man, he was truthful and trustworthy and stood up to the authorities to fight for the entire Black community of South Africa, and not only for himself. His devotion to putting a stop to racial oppression against the Blacks in the nation resulted in his being elected President of South Africa and becoming a Nobel Peace Prize winner. He has garnered the respect of millions of individuals around the world and he has influenced countless individuals. The actions and efforts under his leadership garnered widespread public support and acknowledgement. Mandela demonstrated his valor and moral and ethical values time and again by fighting for African American people's rights and acquired a huge crowd of followers.
According to Daft, moral leadership improves and gives people life. Nelson Mandela always stood by proper, fair, conduct, goodness and honesty when it came to accomplishing goals (Daft, 2010). He continues to be an ideal for innumerable leaders worldwide, was sincere and faithful, and forever ready to confess his political failings. He is rightfully the father of the nation and his values still shape the modern South African nation. Mandela persisted despite enduring severe tribulations and trials. Many believe he was born a leader, and began putting his talents to use from a very early age. Societal pressures were placed on him from a young age, as he began taking care of his household and ensuring all went right for them, owing to the societal injustice of that period.
Mandela was a team person, though also comfortable enough alone in his individual capability of differentiating between wrong and right. He could take criticism, and was also ready to ask for forgiveness where he believed it was necessary. He demonstrated ethical and moral courage, both in the course of and following his presidency, doing things and expressing views which didn’t always agree with the African National Congress's (ANC) official policy. Consider, for instance, the publication of the TRC's (Truth and Reconciliation Commission) findings, of which a few were fiercely disputed by the ANC, which was publicly accepted by Mandela (Tutu, 2013). A second example is the institution of the first rural HIV/AIDS treatment site in the nation, by Mandela's foundation, in a period when the nation's government was indecisive and confusing people when responding to the AIDS pandemic. Even following retirement, Mandela actively fought for AIDS/HIV impacted individuals, when the succeeding government seemed to be faltering when faced with the epidemic. Mandela continued raising funds for projects, including children-centered projects — all of this for the people of his nation, not himself.
Nelson Mandela took the risky decision of deviating from a number of more radical ANC factions who continued to enjoy considerable authority in the Party. In economic terms, his shift in policy from a demand for industrial nationalization to encouraging foreign investment, in addition to his attempts at moderating the “irresponsible" radical stand of South Africa's labor unions, led to disagreements with the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South African Communist Party (SAC) (Glad & Blanton, 1997). In political terms, Mandela's eventual compromises (like temporary "power-sharing") with the National Party were doubted by the ANC's more radical personalities and factions, which included Winnie, his estranged wife. Taking into account the wide array of ANC-represented interests, continuing to be a moderating figure in a revolutionary age was a risky and challenging task for him.
Conclusion
A glimpse at Mandela’s efforts towards attaining peace in the nation and his goal of serving humanity in order to free the world from racial marginalization by applying a moral approach to leadership reveals that for being an ethical/moral leader, one must have a definite role model like Mandela to achieve success. In this way, one can fall back on the actions of the chosen role model for inspiration and cultivate moral leadership values. They need not wait for a second apartheid-like case akin to the 1948-1994 one to reoccur, to bring out their inner moral leader. There are innumerable cases worldwide which must be dealt with, and they may begin with that. Once again, though it is easy to say that every leader can be an ethical/moral one, now is the time to start acting. Mandela was a personification of how strategic leaders adjust their plan and its implementation in the midst of complex economic, legal, social, and political forces whilst not compromising on their deep-seated values. Leadership doesn’t constitute mere motivation of individuals and garnering of political support to back a strategy; it also encompasses maintenance of overall support via successive plan adjustments.
References
Daft, R. L. (2010). Organization theory and design, 10th Edition. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Ferrell, O. C., & Fraedrich, J. (2015). Business ethics: Ethical decision making & cases. Nelson Education.
Fisher, C., & Lovell, A. (2006). Business Ethics and Values: Individual, Corporate and International Perspectives. FT Prentice Hall.
Glad, B., & Blanton, R. (1997). FW de Klerk and Nelson Mandela: A study in cooperative transformational leadership. Presidential Studies Quarterly, 27(3), 565-590.
Masbagusdanta, K. (2013). Everyone Can Be a Moral Leader. Global ethics network. Retrieved from https://www.globalethicsnetwork.org/profiles/blogs/everyone-can-be-a-moral-leader
Schoemaker, P.J.H. & Krupp, S. (2014). 6 principles that made Nelson Mandela a renowned leader. Fortune. Retrieved from https://fortune.com/2014/12/05/6-principles-that-made-nelson-mandela-a-renowned-leader/
Tutu, D. (2013). Nelson Mandela: A colossus of unimpeachable moral character. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/nelson-mandela-a-colossus-of-unimpeachable-moral-character/2013/12/06/0a2cd28a-5ec9-11e3-be07-006c776266ed_story.html