Leadership and productivity in Nigeria: Implications for work organisations and national development

Abstract

Leadership has been identified as one of the main factors affecting productivity in every work organisation. This paper examines leadership-productivity nexus using Nigeria as a focal point. This paper reviews critically the concepts of leadership and productivity. It examines the various theories of leadership as well as other empirical works on the subject matter. Further, it explores the various meanings of productivity, how it is measured, factors that affect it and some benefits associated with productivity improvement. In discussing leadership-productivity nexus, the paper argues that situations usually determine the leadership style that may be applied to motivate higher productivity among employees in work organisations. The paper posits that due to poor style of leadership, productivity of workers in both public and private sectors has remained dismal. However, this is not surprising considering the fact that work  organisations are the microcosms of larger Nigeria society in which poor political leadership has deprived the nation from transforming from a poverty stricken country to a more prosperous and buoyant one. The  paper, therefore, argues that unless there is effective and focused political and organisational leadership and virile followership both at the  organisational and national levels, the vision of improved productivity in work organisations and national development will remain a mirage

Keywords: Leadership, productivity, leaders, work organisation, national development.