CULTIVATING A NEW LEADERSHIP MINDSET AND CAPABILITIES AMONG CITIZENS WILL RAISE THE STANDARD OF LEADERSHIP IN SOCIETY. SPEECH BY DAVID MAKHURA AT THE FACULTY OF BEST ADVISORY (FBA). 28 FEBRUARY 2026. WITS UNIVERSITY.

Greetings to the leadership and membership of the Faculty of Best Advisory.

I am very grateful to you for this opportunity to share some thoughts and insights on the vexed question of leadership development, a subject to which I have decided to dedicate my energy over the next decade.

As I will indicate later, strengthening leadership development programmes among progressive forces is important for the success of the transformation project in our country and continent, especially given the complex shifts taking place globally.

We live in one of the most turbulent times in human history:

The climate crisis is giving rise to more frequent climate-induced extreme weather conditions and pandemics.
Rapid technological change and the AI revolution are causing major disruptions across industries and institutions in society.
Rising geopolitical conflicts are disrupting global supply chains.
Unprecedented levels of global wealth concentrated in a few hands exist side by side with accelerating inequality between nations and within nations.
The dual crisis of youth unemployment and mental health problems has reached global proportions.
Our country is also facing multiple social, economic and governance challenges that make our nation restless as it continues to grapple with both advances and setbacks in its democratic evolution and social transformation.

All these global and national challenges cannot be overcome without paying attention to the question of leadership.

In other words, everything revolves around leadership.

However, there are different conceptions, approaches and expectations regarding the leadership question.

When humanity faces moments of crisis, we tend to look for a single hero or strongman who can save us all from the dangers of total destruction or extinction.

In other words, we lose confidence in our collective ability to find sustainable solutions to our problems.

Yet moments of crisis often reveal the extraordinary strength of resilient institutions and teams, exposing the profound weaknesses of personality-driven leadership models and paradigms.

The primary proposition I am putting forward to the FBA members and leaders is simple:

The world needs to shift from a preoccupation with “the leader” or the governing elite and instead focus on leadership development for citizens across the different sectors of society, including cultivating new leadership skills through the basic and higher education systems.

This represents a shift from performative and populist politics towards the substance of transformative governance, effective delivery and sustainable institution-building.

Countries that have driven successful structural transformation and reforms have built strong systems and institutions that guarantee continuity and sustainability.

By contrast, institutions, societies or civilisations that relied primarily on the charisma of leaders or the cult of personality of strongmen have often failed to endure.

The age of heightened uncertainty, permanent disruption and multiple crises at both global and national levels calls for a paradigm shift.

We must move away from treating leadership as a quest to find heroes or strongmen who will get the job done while the rest of us sit back and applaud.

Our assurance of a better future does not lie in searching for heroes, messiahs, strongmen or larger-than-life personalities.

We need to return to citizen agency and embrace a distributed conception of leadership.

Every citizen has the responsibility and potential to exercise leadership and agency in every sphere of influence they occupy.

1. What Is Leadership and Why Does It Matter?

Leadership is one of the most misunderstood concepts.

It is mistakenly seen as the exclusive domain of elites or the responsibility of only those elected or appointed to positions of authority.

You do not need a title or position to be a leader.

Anyone can and should exercise leadership every day within their own zone of influence, wherever they are and whatever responsibilities they hold.

Among citizens, community members and employees in public or private organisations, people exercise leadership every day without necessarily recognising it.

This includes raising children, influencing and inspiring others, helping people face daily struggles, organising communities and supporting students dealing with challenges on campuses.

From the way we raise and educate our children, to how we live with our neighbours, run our communities and manage relationships with colleagues in the workplace, the moral idea that we are all capable of playing a leadership role is evident.

Leadership is the ability to influence, organise and inspire people to use their energies, time and talents to solve problems in communities and institutions in pursuit of aspirational goals.

True leadership is about service and sacrifice.

It requires moral clarity and courage, humility and a willingness to learn from and work with others.

It requires building the confidence of others to ensure succession and continuity beyond your tenure or even your lifetime.

The real test of leadership is not command and control, but the ability to inspire people to take action that benefits more than themselves.

Leadership is a science that can be studied and mastered.

Leadership skills, qualities and capabilities can be taught and learned.

Leadership development should be a deliberate and conscious process rather than an accident.

However, the best way to learn leadership is through practice and active involvement in solving real problems in households, communities and society.

In some cultures, there is a tendency to think of leadership as the exclusive domain of the “strongman”, rooted in an emphasis on the personality, character and charisma of individual leaders.

Other traditions focus on the strength and resilience of institutions—their ability to survive leadership transitions and succession.

There is no doubt that character and charisma are vital to the success of organisations, but these qualities alone are not sufficient for long-term sustainability.

The shift to institution-building requires a mindset change that sees every employee or member as a leader who can thrive, provided there is investment in developing leadership capabilities across the organisation.

During his first presidential visit to Sub-Saharan Africa in 2009, former President Barack Obama made a profoundly important call to African leaders:

“Africa does not need strongmen, it needs strong institutions.”

Little did he know that he was advising Africans to return to the Ubuntu leadership principle, which shifts the focus from the individual to the community; from personalities to governance processes; from pomp and ceremony to substance and impact; and from the reigning king to the resilience of the kingdom.

Ironically, however, the United States itself is now grappling with the challenge of strongman politics.

Strongman politics often emerge in times of crisis, when the public seeks certainty and security.

Historic figures who caused immense harm to their own people—such as Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Idi Amin, and more recently a range of populist leaders around the world—rose to power by positioning themselves as saviours of their nations or organisations.

Yet the strongman model carries profound risks and fatal weaknesses for the long-term success and sustainability of nations and civilisations.

It concentrates power in individuals, shifts responsibility away from citizens, weakens institutional checks and balances, and undermines good governance.

The success or failure of nations and organisations becomes dependent on the character, blind spots, will or whims of a single individual.

When such leaders depart through defeat, death or downfall, the institutions they dominated are often left hollow and unable to sustain continuity or uphold the principles they once served.

There is no intergenerational success and therefore no sustainability.

The paradigm shift from strongmen to strong institutions requires us to rethink leadership as a process rather than focusing solely on a person.

Leadership, in this view, is a collective enterprise and relational practice.

It involves setting an example through behaviours and culture, building talented teams, and assigning responsibilities according to skills and capabilities.

It entails mobilising and inspiring people to contribute their time and talents towards a common cause and shared vision.

Leadership is a team sport.

The leader is both captain and team member.

They are expected to work hard, lead by example, and inspire others.

Instead of dominating people and pretending to know everything, the leader becomes the host, organiser and coordinator of talent.

The task of leadership is to mobilise and inspire everyone to play to their strengths in pursuit of shared goals while maintaining accountability—including self-accountability.

Transformational leadership is about building a high-performing culture and a team driven by ethical sensibilities and moral ideals focused on the wellbeing of others rather than power and profit.

This approach emphasises both individual and institutional integrity, distributed leadership, continuity and ethical foundations.

Countries where constitutional design, independent judiciaries and robust civil service systems ensure leadership continuity demonstrate that institutional strength—not charismatic leadership—is what builds national resilience.

2. Building Strong and Resilient Institutions: Lessons from Our Own Experience

The endurance and resilience of institutions during periods of political and socioeconomic upheaval reveal the power of institutional strength and team excellence.

South Africa is still reeling from the destructive impact of state capture on public institutions.

Some institutions are still struggling to recover, while others have survived or successfully rebuilt themselves.

For instance, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) was among those institutions targeted for destruction, yet it has since recovered.

The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) survived the years of state capture and remains one of the best-governed and highest-performing development finance institutions in Africa.

Eskom experienced severe challenges linked to criminal and illegal activities associated with state capture and is now showing signs of recovery.

South African Airways (SAA) and Transnet experienced similar challenges.

The Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has successfully recovered from the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic when airports across the country were forced to close.

We can learn much from both successful institutions and those that are failing.

The public institutions that survived state capture and continue to deliver on their developmental mandates share certain characteristics.

They have embedded cultures of sound governance and strong leadership teams rather than reliance on a single leader.

The art of long-term success requires a focus on institution-building.

Leaders come and go, but institutions remain.

It is easy to disrupt the vision, strategy or plans of an individual if those ideas are not shared and owned by the entire organisation.

Strong institutions require a strong culture of governance and strong leadership teams at board, management and staff levels.

Effective succession planning becomes possible when organisations focus on building teams and leadership collectives rather than depending on strongmen and heroes.

Similarly, the post-World War II reconstruction of Europe and Japan demonstrates how societies can rebuild governance architectures grounded in strong institutions.

Conversely, the collapse of many post-colonial states illustrates that without institutionalised transformational leadership capabilities, developmental gains are often temporary and short-lived.

3. Reframing Leadership Education and Talent Development

To shift comprehensively from the leader to the leadership question requires us to rethink education systems and the way society is governed.

When people elect or appoint leaders, they are not surrendering their own responsibility or capability to lead.

They are merely entrusting others with an opportunity to serve.

Those in positions of authority should never assume they are the only smart people in the room.

They must be willing to build great teams, listen to others and accept accountability and criticism.

The age of uncertainty, volatility, ambiguity and constant disruption has major implications for how we develop and supply leadership talent across all sectors of society.

We can no longer rely on linear planning systems or assumptions of long-term certainty.

New leadership capabilities have become mission-critical.

These include agility, foresight, adaptability, ethical grounding, emotional intelligence and the ability to mobilise and inspire people even when there are no clear answers.

Leadership development models have too often privileged charisma, authority and vision at the expense of systems thinking, emotional intelligence, team-building, collaboration, governance ethics and institutional strength.

Modern leadership education should teach institutional literacy, promote collective leadership, develop ethical practitioners and embed accountability and transparency.

Our universities, public administration schools and leadership academies must cultivate leaders as custodians of systems rather than owners of power.

It is therefore proposed that both basic education schools and higher education institutions integrate leadership competencies into their core curricula.

The Eight Leadership Domains

I would like to propose eight domains or areas of action around which we must cultivate and build a new leadership mindset, competencies and capabilities.

Domain 1: Clarity of Vision, Moral Courage and Ethical Decision-Making Remain Core Competencies for Purpose-Driven Leadership

Among all schools of leadership thought and cultures—from more individual-centric to collective-centric conceptions of leadership—there is consensus that vision, values and the courage to work for what one believes in remain defining leadership attributes.

The context and culture within which these capabilities are deployed will continue to evolve as the world becomes more volatile, unstable and uncertain.

In an unstable world, ethical dilemmas multiply.

Artificial intelligence can create great efficiencies and unlimited opportunities for growth.

However, it can also deepen inequality and leave behind those who are not included in its benefits.

Emerging generative AI technologies will fundamentally alter leadership and management requirements.

The leaders of tomorrow must grapple with questions that are not merely technical but profoundly moral.

What should be the limits of surveillance in the name of security?

How do we balance national interests with global responsibilities?

Education must therefore teach not only what we do and how we do it, but also why we do it.

We must cultivate ethical reasoning, empathy and a deep sense of interconnectedness between individual purpose and community wellbeing.

Leaders should see themselves not only as citizens of a nation, but also as moral stewards of humanity and the planet.

The moral failure of developed nations hoarding vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic stands as a reminder of how fragile global solidarity can be.

Moral courage remains a timeless leadership quality.

Leaders must be willing to take difficult and unpopular decisions when those decisions are in the best interests of their organisation, community or nation.

At the same time, they must possess the ability to persuade, mobilise and inspire others to face uncertainty and crisis with confidence.

Domain 2: The Ability to Learn, Unlearn and Relearn Is Becoming a Highly Valued Leadership Attribute

The best leaders are permanent students of leadership.

In a rapidly changing world, leadership responsibilities place enormous demands on those who lead.

Professor Tshilidzi Marwala, an artificial intelligence thought leader, argues:

“It became apparent to me that, due to the complexity of problems that face humanity today, those who do not know should not lead… those who do not read, should not lead.”

Alvin Toffler, author of Future Shock, famously stated:

“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”

He further argued that:

“To survive and avert what we have termed future shock, the individual must become infinitely more adaptable and capable than ever before.”

Lifelong learning is no longer optional.

It is the only way to remain relevant.

Given the reality that artificial intelligence is fundamentally disrupting and transforming careers, meta-learning has become a survival skill.

Meta-learning is the ability to teach oneself, adapt knowledge across disciplines and remain humble enough to continuously learn new things.

The focus of learning is shifting from:

“What is the right answer?”

to

“How do I find, evaluate and apply knowledge to the changing nature of the problems humanity is facing?”

Herbert Gerjuoy argued that:

“The new education must teach the individual how to classify and reclassify information, how to evaluate its veracity, how to change categories when necessary, how to move from the concrete to the abstract and back again, how to look at problems from a new direction—how to teach himself or herself.”

This is precisely what it means to learn, unlearn and relearn.

What we know—or thought we knew—is no longer enough to face the uncertain future.

Domain 3: Resilience and Agility Are Highly Sought-After Leadership Capabilities

Radical uncertainty not only tests knowledge.

It also tests the human spirit.

Young people today face rising levels of anxiety, burnout and mental health challenges.

These are not side issues.

They are central leadership concerns.

Personal resilience is something we must include in school curricula.

We need to teach and train young people to become resilient.

Resilience is not about being tough or unbreakable.

It is the ability to bounce back after setbacks.

People need to understand that there is no success without failure.

The ability to find meaning in adversity and learn from mistakes is essential.

Nelson Mandela captured this beautifully when he said:

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

And:

“Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”

Good leaders must learn to let go of excessive control and embrace collaborative leadership.

We need to cultivate emotional intelligence and intellectual agility.

These include the ability to manage fear, ambiguity and loss, while maintaining cognitive flexibility.

Such qualities are becoming as important as coding, mathematics, business strategy or relationship-building.

What if schools taught not only algebra, but also mindfulness, reflection and stress management?

What if universities equipped students not only with professional skills but also with the inner toolkit required to navigate crises?

Domain 4: Collaboration Across Differences, Embracing Diversity and Building Bridges

Geopolitical instability thrives on polarisation, nationalism and division.

Future leaders must learn how to collaborate across differences in culture, religion and worldview.

They must become bridge-builders rather than division-builders.

Political parties must learn how to work across ideological divides in the interests of the nation and its communities.

Managing coalition governments in ways that advance development goals is a leadership skill all leaders need.

Consensus-building and the ability to rise above political differences are becoming essential capabilities.

In our households, communities, schools and universities, this means creating opportunities for young people to engage with perspectives outside their comfort zones.

It means valuing dialogue over debate.

It means listening as deeply as we speak.

It means solving problems through collective brilliance rather than individual heroism.

The best leaders will not succeed because they are the smartest person in the room.

They will succeed because they inspire and organise everyone in the room to contribute their best talents and efforts towards solving problems greater than their own.

This represents a redefinition of leadership.

The leader is no longer someone who has all the answers.

The leader is someone with emotional intelligence and a wide range of people-management skills who can unlock the collective potential of others.

Domain 5: Embrace Futures Thinking, Scenario Planning and the Art of the Long View

The discipline of futures thinking is the ability to anticipate multiple scenarios, imagine alternatives and prepare for the unknown.

This requires us to reverse the trend of short-term thinking that has become common in business and public life.

We need to relearn the art of long-term thinking and what Simon Sinek calls the “infinite game.”

In this context, leadership is no longer about having all the answers.

It is about remaining steady amid uncertainty, making decisions with incomplete information, and mobilising and inspiring people to search for new possibilities even when certainty is impossible.

One of the defining leadership capabilities of the future is adaptability.

Adaptability works hand in hand with agility and resilience.

It is the ability to pursue objectives, navigate obstacles and overcome setbacks without compromising moral and ethical principles.

Charles Darwin is often credited with observing that:

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one most adaptable to change.”

The world our children inherit will not ask:

“What did you memorise?”

Instead, it will ask:

Can you adapt?

Can you imagine?

Can you collaborate?

Can you lead with courage and integrity in the storm?

Can you embrace uncertainty and disruption as permanent companions?

The true task of leadership schools and talent development institutions is no longer to prepare leaders for predictable, hierarchical and control-driven organisations.

Rather, it is to empower leaders to navigate the storms of uncertainty, disruption and geopolitical instability.

Domain 6: Climate Resilience and Environmental Sustainability Are Crucial for Human Progress

Education, training and leadership ecosystems must grapple with the existential threat posed by the climate crisis.

Climate science must be integrated into basic education as well as public policy and governance.

From an infrastructure perspective, we need resilient infrastructure solutions and technologies capable of withstanding climate disasters that threaten lives, livelihoods and economic stability.

Rising temperatures, extreme weather events and resource pressures expose the vulnerabilities of existing systems.

This makes it imperative to redesign infrastructure that can absorb shocks while supporting sustainable growth.

We must dream of a greener future built on low-carbon economies, green industrialisation and green jobs through a just transition.

Transitioning to greener economies and energy systems can be achieved in ways that build resilience and reduce dependence on fossil fuels without disrupting vulnerable communities and nations whose livelihoods remain heavily dependent on those industries.

Domain 7: Setting a Higher Standard of Leadership and Leading by Example

Great leadership is both aspirational and inspirational.

Anyone who wishes to consciously develop leadership capabilities must aspire to a higher standard of conduct and performance.

The magic of leadership lies more in doing than in telling.

It is about:

“Leading by force of example rather than the example of force.”

Leaders must be willing to be the last to benefit.

Simon Sinek’s bestseller Leaders Eat Last draws inspiration from the military tradition in which generals only eat after all their troops have been fed.

Great leaders set themselves exceptionally high standards of excellence and ethics.

They uphold these standards consistently and inspire others to follow their example.

This does not mean great leaders never fail or make mistakes.

On the contrary, great leadership is often demonstrated by the ability to rise again after failure and openly acknowledge mistakes.

Nelson Mandela remains one of the most powerful examples of this approach.

He reflected on his own leadership journey by saying:

“I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.”

Domain 8: Leadership in the Age of Uncertainty and Disruption Requires the Skillful Leveraging of Technology and AI

One of the greatest sources of uncertainty about the future is the speed at which digital transformation—and artificial intelligence in particular—is reshaping roles, responsibilities, workflows and leadership structures.

There is considerable debate about how AI will reshape leadership.

There is no doubt that digital proficiency and AI capabilities are becoming survival skills.

Countries, communities and organisations that fail to invest in digital skills risk being excluded from the digital economy.

A critical leadership competency is therefore the ability to guide organisations and societies through AI-driven disruption.

This involves evaluating risks and opportunities, developing scenarios, crafting strategies and safeguarding the future in circumstances where the target is constantly moving.

We now live in an age where investment in physical assets such as land, buildings, minerals and livestock must be complemented by investment in intellectual assets such as knowledge, expertise, talent and data.

The question is whether AI and emerging technologies will make distinct human capabilities irrelevant or enhance humanity’s ability to shape a more sustainable and desirable future.

The goal is not for human beings to compete with machines.

We cannot out-compute computers.

Nor should we attempt to.

Instead, we should use technology while leveraging uniquely human wisdom.

Our value as human beings does not lie in processing information faster.

It lies in our ability to create meaning, context and genuine human connection.

AI can simulate conversation.

Human beings can build relationships.

Technology can generate a business plan.

Only an entrepreneur possesses the intuition, passion and determination to see that vision through adversity.

Humanity’s future does not lie in competing with machines.

It lies in strengthening the qualities that make us uniquely human:

The ability to care deeply about others.
The ability to develop purpose.
The ability to imagine a future that does not yet exist.
The ability to unite people around a common dream.
The ability to act with empathy and compassion.

Our common humanity—our Ubuntu—remains the most valuable asset that future technologies will struggle to replicate.

Leadership development should become a social and collective enterprise that builds these distinctly human capabilities while harnessing technology as a tool for a more inclusive and sustainable future.

Instead of trying to become machines, we should strive to become more human.

4. Implications for Institution Building, Good Governance and Leadership Schools

Strong institutions and strong leadership teams are not merely bureaucratic structures.

They are living systems that enable societies to pursue collective goals with fairness, sustainability and continuity.

They ensure that rules apply equally, public resources are managed transparently and citizens are able to hold power accountable.

In development contexts, strong institutions empower citizens, promote accountability, enhance investor confidence, reduce corruption and foster social stability.

These are all prerequisites for sustainable and inclusive development.

Talent must be identified, nurtured and deployed effectively to achieve the vision and ambitions of institutions.

This shift changes how leadership success is measured.

Success is no longer measured primarily by individual achievement.

It is measured by institutional resilience and team excellence.

Conclusion: Towards a Leadership Approach for the 21st Century

In this paper, we have made the case for a shift from a leadership culture that focuses only on “the Leader” towards a broader understanding of “Leadership” as a collective moral enterprise.

Leadership scholars and practitioners have explored this paradigm shift extensively.

Professor Reuel Khoza, for example, argues that the leadership repertoire most relevant to the turbulence and uncertainty of the 21st century is African Transformational Leadership.

This approach is grounded in Ubuntu—African humanism—which proceeds from the principle:

“I am because you are. You are because we are.”

It is a relational view of leadership that emphasises interdependence and mutuality between leaders and followers, governors and citizens.

Service, compassion and trust are indispensable ingredients of this relationship.

The common good and the pursuit of a better life for all—not self-interest—are the starting points of great leadership.

We have argued that, given the scale and depth of the existential threats facing humanity, the African leadership philosophy of Ubuntu holds the key to a more sustainable and inclusive future.

We would do well to heed Steve Biko’s wisdom:

“The great powers of the world may have done wonders in giving the world an industrial look, but the great gift still has to come from Africa—giving the world a more human face.”

This is the gift of a new and unique civilisation that is deeply spiritual, humanistic and morally regenerative.

The 21st century confronts humanity with challenges that no single leader can solve:

Climate change
Inequality
Technological disruption
Geopolitical instability

These crises require leadership that is distributed, adaptive and institutionalised.

Strong institutions provide the scaffolding for democratic governance, ethical behaviour and sustainable progress.

The mark of great leadership is not how much power leaders accumulate for themselves.

It is how effectively they strengthen institutions and deliver outcomes that endure beyond their tenure.

As Simon Sinek reminds us, leadership is a team sport.

The task ahead is to reimagine leadership as a collective moral enterprise grounded in sound values, sustained by strong institutions and directed toward human flourishing.