Heads of departments (HoDs) in TVET colleges perform a variety of tasks which include curriculum changes, conducting lecturer evaluation, recommending employment of new lecturers and staff, maintaining proper records about staff and students, organising departmental meetings and social gatherings, etc. Their responsibilities are also further compounded by some of the delegated duties from senior management of the college. In this regard, an HoD leadership style becomes an important factor that contributes to effective leadership of the department. Therefore, this study explores leadership styles exhibited by HoDs, as leaders in their own space in the TVET colleges. This qualitative study involved eight lecturers and four HoDs. The participants were purposively selected from two campuses in one TVET college in the Free State province. Research questions focused on how the HoDs perceive their leadership styles, how do lecturers perceive the leadership styles of HoDs, and what kinds of strategies are recommended to advance effective leadership styles of HoDs in TVET colleges. The findings indicate that HoDs at this particular TVET college need proper induction and intensive training on four management functions, namely Planning, Leading, Organising and Controlling. Although the majority of HoDs seem to be using democratic leadership styles, lecturers reporting to them are not entirely satisfied as they feel that they are not included in the decisions that affect them in class. Recommendations to remedy or improve the situation are provided including issues to consider for further research. / Educational Management and Leadership / M. Ed. (Education Management)

How authors and scholars have approached leadership studies – in terms of their thinking, defining and studying – has changed remarkably over time. According to literature, this is predominantly due to greater optimism about the field and greater methodological diversity being employed to better understand complex, embedded phenomena. As a result, there has been a significant rise in the use of qualitative research approaches to the study of leadership. Numerous definitions, classifications, explanations and theories about leadership, exist in the contemporary literature. However, despite the vast array of literature, the challenge of failing leadership persists. Challenges, such as the speed of technological advancements, social, and economic change are ever-present, while the impact of COVID-19 is, as yet, uncertain. Despite these challenges, can companies compete successfully in the marketplaces they operate in while also remaining ethical and engaged with the challenges of the broader business and social environment? To answer this question, this study has undertaken qualitative research on the bouquet of trait, situational and value-based leadership theory, in order to re-assess both established and developing theories. The predominant aim is to describe, explain and analyse available literature in an attempt to ascertain academic guidance on how it might be possible to enable leaders and society to mitigate leadership challenges by proposing a conceptual framework that could support leadership theory and, in so doing, take an academic stance in providing better answers or guidance to the failures currently being experienced. Several authors have noted that leadership makes a difference with resulting impacts on many which implies that to make the world a better place, leadership has two contradictory elements; good and bad. These elements are reflected in today’s connected world where the media, either showers praise on leaders or writes articles deriding their incompetence and abuse of their roles at all levels The proposed conceptual framework of this study endeavours to enable society and leaders, practically and at an individual level, to evaluate leadership issues and link leadership frameworks to their everyday lives and, in so doing, aid in mitigating the challenges being faced. / Business Management / D.B.L.

To stay competitive, the increasingly challenging reality that digitization and globalization have led to a constant evolution of market conditions, Google and other organizations use a model called OKR, objectives and key results. Implementing a model such as OKR in an organization places high demands on the interaction of the management team, which is one reason why not everyone is successful with the implementation. To improve interaction, several management teams have applied Patrick Lenicinois' management team method the five dysfunctions in a team. The purpose of this study is to investigate how a management team's interaction is affected by applying a management team method. To answer the question, two focus group interviews have been conducted, consisting of members from two different management groups that have implemented the management group method, the five dysfunctions in a team, and the goal management model, OKR, in recent years. The empirical work has been analyzed based on Goffman's symbolic interactionism and Weber's bureaucratic structures. Application of a management group method can, according to the study, lead to changes in the interaction, in the form of increased trust within the group, that communication takes place more in the form of dialogue and a higher collective commitment to the management group's common goals and results. For a change to take place, the management team needs to invest time and energy both initially and continuously. This insight is significant for research into the impact of the management team method on norms and behaviors in social contexts and how the corporate world can meet the need for interconnected management teams for e.g. change management.