Even as Kenyans debated the BBI Court of Appeal judgment, an interesting argument was raging in Parliament.
The National Assembly is discussing a slew of proposed amendments to the Kenya Roads Bill
.
One of the hot button issues is a proposal to amend a provision in the Kenya Roads Act, 2007 requiring CEOs of the road sector agencies – the Kenya National Highways Authority, the Kenya Rural Roads Authority and the Kenya Urban Roads Authority to be holders of at least a degree in civil engineering.
In their submissions to Parliament, some professional institutions have taken the unusual stance that the role of “management, development, rehabilitation and maintenance of respective road networks” does not require civil engineering expertise.
Traditionally, and in Kenya, people perceive leaders with technical expertise as more professional, credible and successful.
However, recent experience and studies have shown that leaders who rely solely on technical expertise in a particular field tend to get caught up in the details instead of thinking strategically and holistically to build a culture of performance, motivation and inspiring teams to achieve the vision of the organisation they head.
The Institute of Human Resource Management, Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management, among others, postulated that a CEO’s job, regardless of industry, is more strategic than technical and the holder of that position should be able to lead technical teams to achieve the objectives of the institution.
On its part, the Institution of Engineers of Kenya argued that the road sector CEOs should be experts in civil engineering to avoid being misguided on technical matters such as road design, preparation of bills of quantity and budgets, among others. But this begs the question: What exactly is the day-to-day role of a CEO? Does a CEO at KeNHA, KeRRA or Kura get involved in an operational scope like review of road designs, preparation of bills of quantity or even the development of tender documents?
The CEO’s key responsibilities are decision-making, ensuring performance, motivating teams, communication, stakeholder engagement and building momentum to achieve an organisation’s strategic corporate goals.
In today’s rapidly changing business environment, effective leaders will be those who are able to identify the technical skills required and ensure that they are surrounded by experts needed to actualize the organisation’s long-term success.
Drafters of the Mwongozo Code of Governance, which is the final authority on this matter, envisaged the role of CEOs of public institutions as “responsible for overseeing the execution of the Board’s directions and policies to ensure desirable outcomes”.
In his book What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, Marshall Goldsmith argues that technical skills and expertise may propel managers to the to the top of the organogram; but behavioral skills are what get them to higher levels of success and leadership. There is no shortage of examples in the Kenyan corporate scene where this has been demonstrated.
Fernandes Barasa has been leading the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company as the MD through one of its most transformative phases, despite being an accountant and not having a degree in electrical engineering. Rita Kavashe started out as a sales representative at vehicle assembler General Motors before rising to her current position of MD and board chair at cigarette manufacturer BAT.
Safaricom’s first CEO, Michael Joseph has been credited with transforming the telco from an obscure department within Telkom Kenya to the most profitable company in East Africa. Kenya Airways would later appoint Joseph to steer the loss-making national carrier as chairman.
While being interviewed on his leadership style, Joseph said: “The ingredients I used to transform Safaricom are not the same as those needed to revamp Kenya Airways. To be successful in a company, you need people. While you can buy hardware, people and culture is the hardest thing to change.’’
Kenya’s roads sector has witnessed unprecedented growth in road development and improved maintenance over the last 15 years. Undoubtedly, engineers have excelled as captains in the road sector, but this success cannot be attributed to their qualifications in highway engineering only.
While professional bodies are expected to pitch for their members, they should train them beyond technical skills, and equip them for corporate leadership. Skills like risk mitigation, strategic communication, innovation, emotional intelligence and the ability to inspire and motivate workers to achieve the desired corporate goals are equally critical.
The author is the executive director Institute of Human Resource Management
