Research on leadership has been a fascinating area among Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management researchers for the impact leaders make. Be it expanding the empire, good governance, success of organisation, or effective management of resources leaders make a difference in the outcome. Large volumes of researches over the yearshave confirmed thatleaders display several traits and behaviours and the styles also differ to suit the situation. The definition of situation ranges from subordinate characteristics, task difficulty, and natureof businessto culture of the organisation. Since NGOs substantially differ from for-profit organizations in their nature, culture and the environmental context in which they operate, leadership in NGOs have been viewed differently by researchers and the research in this area has commanded distinct attention of researchers.
Researchers like Haily (2006) have reviewed several literature on NGO leadership and reported that there exists distinct kind of leadership style which is different from the styles found in for-profit organisations. Haily (2006) found that the leaders display either of the following styles: paternalistic, activist, catalytic and managerial. Similarly, several traits of leaders have been identified (see Haily, 2006 and Apostu, 2013). It was also observed by the researchers that leadership styles differed across countries owing to thefactthat activities of NGOs are greatlyinfluenced by socio-economic, political and cultural context of the country. Hence, the complex and unique nature of internal and external environment of NGOs still opens the door for future exploration of leadership styles in different cultural context.
The study adopted a qualitative case study method and conducted interviews with 26 managers from top, middle, and lower management level of BRAC. Qualitative content analysis of the interview transcripts yielded several traits and behaviours identified in three different levels of management. However, there was a cluster of behaviours and traits displayed across the levels, and we termed it as inspirational style of leadership. These leaders were found to be punctual, hardworking, and passionate about theirwork and prefer to become ideal role model for their subordinates. Theyadopt aconsultative decision making style and give their subordinates lots of autonomy and freedom. Their main aim is to empower their subordinatesand see that thegoal is achieved on time and quality of work is maintained. Wehave also identifiedfour dimensions of NGOsuccess as perceivedbythe leaders: work orientation, culture and governance, operational aspect and HR practices. Although, participants opined about different activities under these dimensions, the emphasis was placed on activities such as working for underprivileged, maintain transparency, meet ethical standards, appropriately manage funds and create an enabling and empowering organisational climate through good HR practices.
Thefindingshave theoretical and practical implications. First, this studyidentifiesa uniqueleadership style i.e., inspirational leadership style which is an addition to the exiting identified styles (servant leadership, paternalisticstyle, catalytic style, democratic style) in NGOsliterature. Second, itidentifies the specificleadership attributes and leadership process existing in a successful NGO. Third, it provides glimpses about the organisational structure and governance of a successful NGO which can be a valuable contribution to the existing literature on NGO. Fourth, the NGO effectiveness parameters developed in this study can be used and validated as a measurement tool by quantitative researchers.
Although it was not a conclusive study to give sound recommendations to the organizations, still the findings touch upon vital issues of NGO management which can be the ‘take home’ for many NGOs striving to put their feet in this sector. Recently it has been realized that the nature of NGO is changing.
Their focus of work and working procedure has seen major shift with the changing external environment. Thefindings of this study canhelp policymakers of boththe successful and unsuccessful NGOs to fill the gaps in their leadership practice. Moreover, the traits and behaviours of leaders of successful NGOs identified here can be a good guide for leadership trainers focusing on NGO sector.
