“Integrity
is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching,” ~ C.S Lewis
We all know it, we’ve all read about it and
you’ll be hard pressed to find a conference or seminar that doesn’t bang on
about the important role that leaders play in the reputation of companies,
countries and even the continent. But have we all become so blasé by the
concept that we just tune it out, believing that it’s a lost cause, especially
if we see the misconduct of company after company, country after country and ultimately
impacting the reputation of the continent?
As you would have seen from my column last
month, the importance of leadership is exactly what the results from the
African Public Relations Association (ARPA) research on ethics and reputation
that we conducted showed us. Leadership plays a fundamental role in a company,
country and continent’s reputation. A brilliant example on the African
continent is Rwanda. I had waxed lyrically about my recent trip to Rwanda and
how they managed to get it right, to create an environment in Africa that is
clean and safe. Until you experience it,
it does sound like an elaborate public relations ploy. Believe it or not, this mythical place does
exist. I felt completely safe walking from the market at 22:00 on a Friday
evening in downtown Kigali; I did not even need to hide my phone. This is as a
result of an active drive by the president and country’s leadership team to be accountable
to the people.
Last week I attended and participated the
second Brand Summit South Africa convened by Solly Moeng. As passionate as I am
about Africa and finding ways to change the narrative about the continent, it
is just as important to start with improving the image back home. I realised that we are not a united, proud
nation, and that we’ve lost that magic. This became very evident to me during
my Kigali trip. When I went sightseeing with my friends from Ghana and they saw
fellow Ghanaian countrymen, it was as if they had met up with long lost
friends. Seeing fellow South Africans had us all ignore each other like stop signs:
you know they are there, but you have no desire to stop and engage in any type
of conversation. Why is that?
We need to fall back in love with our beautiful
South Africa and be proud of who we are. Embrace and be excited when we see
fellow South Africans on our travels.
Yes, a lot can be said about how our
leadership led us down the rabbit hole
of misery, mistrust and mediocrity to where our pride levels lie today. The
research that we conducted for APRA showed that the country level didn’t fare
particularly well at all, with leaders playing the key role in damaging a
countries reputation. But we need to stop blaming and threatening to leave the
continent; what it that going to help? Every single person is responsible for
their own behaviour, which impacts how those around them perceive them and act
towards them. The things that we say and do on an individual level can have a
massive impact on how a company, country and the continent is seen.
What I found particularly interesting from our
APRA research was that individuals scored 89% for reputation and ethics. Which,
taken at face value, looks great! It’s a distinction. It is, however, rather
disturbing: it means that 11% of the people that answered the survey do not
regard themselves as having a good reputation or being particularly ethical.
It’s these 11% of individuals’ behaviour that is playing a key role in damaging
reputations. You might think that what you are saying or doing will not make a
difference, but isn’t that exactly what integrity is? What you do when no one
is looking? And that impacts your behaviour and ultimately your reputation. Take
one of the sessions at last week’s Brand Summit: the panel consisted of
international guests sharing their lessons on changing the perceptions of a
country. One of the ladies from Russia mentioned that when her family and
friends heard that she was coming to South Africa, they were very worried for
her safety, and someone even mentioned that she needs to be careful of the
cannibals! It is these misconceptions that have a major impact on tourism, not
just locally, but across the continent as well. Fortunately, she is keen to
visit our beautiful country again soon. However, when asked whether she would
eagerly visit any other African country, you could see the panic set in of
venturing into the unknown. I don’t think it’s just a Russian thing. We have
our own misconceptions as South Africans about the rest of Africa. Let’s be
honest: we really don’t know our own continent.
We can all rattle off at last five European countries and name their
capital cities and know what their flags look like. How fluently would you be
able to do the same with African countries?
Leadership and governance are non-negotiable,
and we need to continue keeping our leaders accountable. They need to actively be seen doing the right
thing. Take Dr Zamani Saul, premier of the Northern Cape, as an example.
Instead of buying himself and all the MECs new vehicles, he used the money for much
needed ambulances. But it is just as important that we become conscious about
our own actions and what we say.
We have a
magnificent country and continent! If we can all start by celebrating the
positive aspects of our countries and the continent and sharing at least one
positive story each day, we’ll start seeing a massive positive shift in the
narrative of our beautiful continent.
It’s time that we stop selling ourselves short and
start celebrating everything that we have to offer. There is a lot of work that
needs to be done to change mindsets and the narrative, but it starts with each
one of us to make the difference.
The hope is that our leaders are held accountable
for their actions and that they will adopt a non-negotiable ethical value
system, setting the example on a daily basis. That we will respect every
individual so much that our actions are driven by an ethical value system that
becomes a reality in everything that we say and do, and not just something that
sounds good in theory. That we become so proud of our countries,
our countrymen and continent that we can’t ever imagine leaving for other
countries, and that we attract those who did leave, back.
There
is a wonderful African proverb: “until the lion tells his side of the story,
the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” Isn’t it time that we
start telling the story of the lion?
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