Perspective Chapter: Fostering Effective Leadership in Social Work Organisations

Abstract

The need to understand theories and definitions in leadership and organizations from social work perspectives has increased worldwide. The leadership explanations and classifications have been developed to understand how social work leadership in organizations is producing favourable returns. This has been a major concern among governments, policy makers, and academics, formal and informal organizations. Social work leadership is needed by any professional organization that seeks to provide basic social services to the society. So far, many organizations including social work have been using different leadership approaches to achieve their goals and objectives which ultimately help them to motivate their employees for profit or non-profit gains. As such the chapter is based on qualitative information on different leadership models social work organizations use to expand their activities. The study findings demonstrate that there is need for much understanding on leadership approaches used to promote the growth of an organization from social work perspectives. The chapter suggests relevant leadership theories or models that could be used to enhance the full functioning of social work organizations being it local, national, regional or international the world over. The results will inform governments and social work organizations to design and apply broad organization leadership from social work perspectives that promote the growth and function of any organization.

1. Introduction to leadership in organizations

The success of an organization depends on the theories and leadership styles applied by the service institution. Torgersen [1] recommended five leadership styles commonly used in organizations which include; Authoritarian, Democracy Laizzez-faire, Bureaucratic and Charismatic where social work leaders have either to choose the power and structure approach or human relations leadership informed by appropriate theories and models. Sullivan [2] highlights that the core elements of leadership in social work are also comparable to those used in other professions and organizations. Multiple studies for example Moyo et al. explicate that organizations which have common characteristics for example purpose, structure and people tend to use leadership approaches that are dictatorial in styles as compared to those used in spiritual organizations believed to be inappropriate for social work organizations. In pursuant of understanding leadership in social work organization, there are various increasing numbers of evolving local, national or international organizations that require approved leadership approaches of leadership for their successes free from tension and pressures. So many situations, contexts, cultures, working environments, most modern laws and regulations, information overload, organizational complexities and psycho-socio developments which remarkably impact negatively on leadership concepts thus, were making it commensurate to the changing organizational dynamics [3, 4]. In that regard, the current study is conducted utilizing appropriate approaches in social work organizations pertinent to Zimbabwe. In so doing, stratified and convenience sampling is employed to collect data in social work organization which is analysed using content analysis, themes and sub themes corresponding to the objectives. The results, discussion and conclusions are drawn from the discourse analysis.

2. The dimensions of leadership in organizations

This book chapter discusses different dimensions of leadership approaches used in social work organizations worldwide, particularly in developing countries including Zimbabwe. For this particular study, the leader is expected to have certain traits that use various leadership theories and models in organizations from social work perspectives. Basically, leadership is recognized as an enabler of well-functioning of these organizations which are concerned with social care [5]. The social work definition refers to a helping profession that enhances human growth and well-being through helping to meet the basic needs of all people, especially the poor, oppressed, and the most vulnerable [6]. In this contemporary society, the majority of social work organizations working with individuals, families, groups then require effective social work leadership theories and models which are free from conflict and tension as well as not difficult to achieve. Following this line of thought, several organizations such as Governments, the healthcare systems, Faith Based Organizations, among others recognize the potential benefits of using leadership with active support from policy and ethical practices as well as leadership qualities [5]. The bulk of social work organizations evolving from the global north and south are excited to come together and pursue a common idea and create structures and processes best suited to achieving their goals and mandates. Hence, the professional social work practice requires the practitioner to be one with adequate knowledge of human development and behavior, of social, economic and cultural institutions, and of the interaction of leadership in social work organizations. The formal and informal leadership require social workers to address the day to day social problems as they also need to understand their roles as social workers in organizations, not only what the specific tasks they have to do but however what the organization expects of its social workers [7]. The process of leadership occurs within an organization in which Torgersen [1] emphasize that the method or style of leadership may vary and will depend upon the leader, the followers and the setting.

3. The international definition of social work and organization

To foster effective leadership in social work organisations and achieve the expected retains, it is fundamental to appreciate that there are different social work definitions used in various settings. Thus it is important to adequately define social work because it is a profession working in variety of settings that may include profit and non profit organizations or public social service agencies such as Government, Hospitals, Schools, Faith Based Organizations, Industrial settings among others. The social workers in these organizations are concerned with social problems, their causes, solutions and their impacts using different leadership theories or models. The social work as a profession in local, regional and international organizations has been significantly recognized over the past decades. As a result, the global statistics in various social work and non-social work organizations are growing the world afar and social workers in the future have been projected to increase significantly. These and other concerns have therefore called for the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) [8] at its General Meeting and the IASSW General Assembly to redefine social work as:

“A practice-based profession and an academic discipline that seeks to promote social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. The principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work as underpinned by theories of social work, social sciences, humanities and indigenous knowledge’s, social work engages people and structures to address life challenges and enhance wellbeing which could be amplified at national and/or regional levels”.

Following the IFSW definition, an array of Governments, national, local and Non-Governmental Organizations have been instituted and mandated to enhance the lives of individuals, families, groups and communities using various models and theories in an organization setting. Due to numerous definitions of the term organisation, it is very difficult to precisely define social work as it is not standardised in certain instances. Because of its dynamic and ever changing nature, the different writers have defined and interpreted the term in line with societal needs, business objectives or environmental changes emphasising different characteristics. Attributable to different forms of organization structures like the bureaucratic structure, entrepreneurial structure, matrix form and independent form, the study found that an organisation is not just a structure or a set of plans and processes but organisations are made up of people who interrelate with each other in carrying out roles and duties in support of the achievement of set goals and objectives. Literature substantiate that organisations are: “(1) social entities that (2) are goal directed (3) are designed as deliberately structured and coordinated activity systems, and (4) are linked to the external environment” [9]. Srivastava [10] treated an organization as “a dynamic process and a managerial activity which is essential for planning the utilization of company’s resources, plant and equipment materials, money and people to accomplish the various objectives”. From the above definitions an organisation can be understood as a unit that is goal oriented with human groupings that work together in creating structures and technologies that are suitable for pursuing intended goals. These organizations in that regard are requiring to using different leadership styles and models to increase motivation of its workforce and produce good returns. Mostly, studies have discovered that the complications in these organizations are that the knowledge base is purely conceptual and lacks a robust empirical basis to address the contemporary organizational social work challenges [11]. It seems to be that some structures and orientation of these organizations are dynamic which call for dynamic leadership styles. Therefore, the global definition of organizations as a unit pursues the vision and mission of the organization emphasizing only their rationality and goal-directed nature depending on the type of leadership. Thus social work challenges are managed by engaging and re-engaging with the social work profession, its knowledge, values and skills [12]. Moreover, various professional skills and knowledge base have long been recognized as the heart of every organization including the health care services [5]). The converse is as well true that social workers particularly those from academic organizations have appeared to resist in the reduction of their struggles in the context of the growing implications in evidence-based social work best models and practice guidelines in decades. An organization as defined by Robbins and Coulter is an entity with a distinct purpose which is expressed in terms of objectives or set of goals that an organization can hope to achieve within a space of time. Even though each organization is made up of different people who work for those organizations to achieve their organizational goals, the leadership approaches in these organizations has however been viewed by Haworth et al. [5] as poorly defined.

Today, social workers are expected to function within the scope of organization structures, programs, and advantages that are offered by governmental, civic society and community players in order to guarantee quality social protection of the vulnerable individuals, families and communities. By so doing, each social worker is required to provide the welfare services under diverse regulatory mechanisms like licensure, registration, certification which are fundamental for the professionalization of the social work practice that ought to guarantee accountability. The regulatory mechanisms in that regard have numerous added advantages to the recognition of the social work professionalization that should differentiate the quality of social work and leadership from those of the non-social work organizations respectively.

4. The leadership expectation in social work organization

Generally, diverse and complex social work organizations require social workers that are both willing and able to practice dynamic and successful leadership in organizations. The social work practice as a people cantered profession or pursuit has a relatively modern origin which acknowledges that many organizations involve themselves in different and complex activities such as developmental work, humanitarian relief work; advocacy, legal, human rights, and health among others [13]. The process in social work leadership is analysed in the context of these formal and informal organizations which require social workers to use different leadership styles such as the authoritarian, democratic, laissez-faire and the charismatic leadership skills. In essence, what it means is that social work practitioners have to be willing to contribute to the effective leadership in various organizations using the required models or theories. Previous studies by Harworth et al. demonstrate that the implementation of social work leadership requests understandable and relevant as well as definition of models of practice [5]. So far, social workers have been employed in assorted organizations with varied organizational structures and objectives in which failure to exercise the acceptable theories and models result in the breakdown of the organization to dispense adequate social services. Haworth et al. [5] underscore that the significance of using effective leadership styles has been referenced by Torgersen well as a number of international organizations, scholars and reports repeating that case reviews which agree to the significance of effective leadership in organizations. Social work organizations’ mandates have been to provide quality services for the people to restore or enhance their capacity for social functioning while creating societal conditions favourable to their goals using suitable leadership styles. The authoritarian leader for example will decide by him/her and the laissez-faire leader to let the subordinates make decisions, hence take no leadership role other than assuming the position [3]. Khan [3] further proffers that the democratic leader assesses his/her subordinates and then makes the decisions. Moyo et al. [13] provides that some of the organizations are developmental in nature whilst a good number focus on different areas of specialty such as health, humanitarian work, clinical social work, schools social workers. Given the diversity and complexity of the context in which leadership is used, a number of studies have proved that inadequate use of leadership models and theories in organizations is a nagging problem which requires careful interrogation from social work perspectives.

5. Significance of leadership perspectives in organizations

Social work practice in organizations is significant and unique in that it seeks to concurrently navigate across and within macro and micro leadership approaches in order to effective address and resolve problems using appropriate leadership skills from its social work perspectives. These situations fundamentally require the leaders to choose the apt leadership styles appropriate in social work organizations reading the signs of the times in an organizational setting. For example, it has been evidently stated that multiple social work organizations focus on various activities with different groups like child adolescent, children in conflict with the law, older persons among others with some form of membership, elected leaders, full time staff members which all require different brands of leadership apt to the needs of the people. From these social work perspectives, the social work profession continues to face an unprecedented periods of challenges and uncertainties which obviously require the development of appropriate leadership capabilities at each level of the workforce and in the society [11].

Furthermore, most organizations are basically a heterogeneous group which requires effective social work leadership techniques because some exist for a variety of reasons, usually to further the political or social goals of their members or funders. Regardless of the traits of the leader, most social work organizations in various realms are launched to complement the efforts of National Governments with the purpose of improving the standard of living of the individuals, groups and communities. Earlier studies found that lack of a robust empirical foundation is a particular confront for social work leadership in such organizations which call for improvement in any perspectives ([5] in [11]). More remarkably, social work is practiced in a diversity of settings and interacts with different discourses that are dominant in its diverse fields of practice [14]. In practice, Government organizations are controlled by the state and depend on tax payers, bilateral aid, and multi-lateral aid or tied aid. However, others are operational and advocacy social work organizations which are registered, and have donor accountability, act as gap fillers of the state activities characterized by their flexibility in emergency situations moreover obtain grants per capita and voluntary sources, social work organizations. These local, national, regional and international organizations exist in various forms and sizes which require the use of appropriate leadership theories and models depending on their classification as some are operational nature while others are involved in advocacy work. Studies have shown that developing the knowledge base about social work leadership in whichever organization helps to address concerns of knowledge base being applied from outside social work practice with the associated lack of social work values [5]. Moreover, even if social work and non-social work organizations differ in terms of hierarchy, both share similarities in that they all require some form of structures like an office and a budget as well as some form of understanding of the rightful leadership styles and theories in delivering the services. Over and above, a number of organizations have been classified as independent sector, volunteer sector; civil sector, grassroots organizations, and private voluntary organizations moreover have administrative structures and complement each other. Studies have shown that the related professions have decades, if not a century, of knowledge to utilize and yet there is a lack of leadership topics and training in social work education on the correct leadership models and theories which fails to address the profession’s oversight [15].

The combination of their sources of funding to carry out their activities are availed in the form of grants per capita, loans, donations, volunteering and the lack of an empirical base which is fundamental for any social work organization can be a major challenge. The missing pedagogical content can be connected to other elements of social work practice, such as the inability to professionally advance in improving the curricula without moving into effective leadership in organization. The leader may lack ‘clinical leaders’ knowledge base as well as verbal abilities to drive up standards [16]. Even though social work has adopted a more momentous and holistic approach to understanding and intervening in social organizations using different leadership approaches, the profession has been blamed for starting on a more scientific footing aimed at controlling and reforming individuals. These alleged complications however require the robust leadership’s ability to redirect from within the profession; presenting solutions that promote social work values, in order to be grasped by social workers on a wide scale [5].

6. Leadership gaps in social work organizations

Generally within the social work organizations, some gaps from social work perspectives have been substantial over the past decades. Due to the global complexities and diversities of the evolving organizations and resource constraints at different levels, some social workers have been seen throwing in to their failures to achieve the desired social work organization goals and objectives. In that regard, most social workers have seemed to use the wrong leadership models either used in religious fraternities or the military styles used in academy which obviously do not match with the evolving diversities and complexities of the evolving social work organizations from the onset. Moreover, it has been confirmed by Taylor [17] who observed that teaching on organizational leadership skills has been largely absent from the social work education curriculums. Thus unskilled and uninformed social workers in organizations have been operating in predicaments using inappropriate leadership brands to suit their current situation. Hafford-Letchfield et al. [6] suggest that understanding the organization’s style of operation is crucial, for example, whether professionals expected to operate relatively independently or are they expected to rely heavily on the direction of their supervisors. In searching for acceptable leadership category from a social work perspectives, Harworth et al. [5] citing in Lawler and Bilson; Holosko; Perlmutter agree that there is limited attention to leadership in social work education and a potential incongruence between education for frontline practice and education for leadership. In social work organizations, leadership approaches using the leadership styles generally used in spiritual organizations and armed forces which are not appropriate for social work organizations have been alleged to create ongoing leadership tensions and pressures. Bolzan [18] citing in Alston and McKinnon [19] affirm by calling for social work education to take some responsibility for the lack of progress in fostering healthy and effective leadership styles in social work organizations. The authors emphasize that various governing bodies have to formulate a vision that allow them to take a lead in reshaping the structures and policies of the state that would be egalitarian and open to reducing opportunities for bias, racism, and prejudice in groups and communities. Haworth et al. [5] crowned the entire saying a consistent definition, models of practice, and development opportunities throughout professional social work careers are the building blocks for success in leadership used in social work organizations. Informed by the above observations, it has been found that many questions concerning leadership style from social work perspectives have been raised many questions in social work organizations which have remained unanswered like; 1. What are the appropriate leadership models used by social work organizations in the contemporary society? 2. What are the responses by social work organizations, society, community, family and individuals that benefit from those leadership styles? 3. Which leadership styles could be used in social work organizations of this contemporary society? This book chapter seeks to discuss leadership and organization to determine proper definitions, leadership styles and theories from social work perspectives.

7. Specific objectives of the chapter

All through this chapter, the readers are anticipated to have attained much knowledge pertaining to social work perspectives on leadership and organizations with reference to:

• The existing social work definitions, theories and models on leadership and organization.

• The prospective benefits of social work leadership and organization policies that subscribe to social work theories.

• Suitable social work leadership and organization models which could be used to improve social work service delivery in the contemporary society.

• Suggest appropriate leadership attributes that could be adopted by leader’s social work organizations.

8. Literature review

8.1 Leadership theories and models in organization

In today’s society, the application of leadership theories and models in organizations starting from the global north to the south from social work perspectives is very important. Varieties of literatures demonstrate that there are many leadership theories and models that have been long and remained a highly elusive concept in social work organizations. The blurred lines between leadership and the social workers needing leadership makes it difficult to clearly define leadership in the social work and organization context. For example, some organizational approaches which are scientific in nature have failed to consider the workman by however concentrating on the organizational processes gearing towards production which evidently do not resonate well in the modern social work organizations. The success of social work as a profession is contingent on the effectiveness of the leadership itself and however it is from this fact that fostering effective leadership in social work organisations using leadership theories and models in organization has been leaving a lot to be desired. However, multiple studies such as Munro [16] is of the view that leadership will be needed throughout organisations to implement the recommendations successfully, especially to facilitate the move from a command-and-control culture encouraging compliance to learning and adapting culture. These underscore the importance ascribed to leadership for improving social work practice. The desire on leadership in social work is to span the entire profession, from the education stage, where social workers are trained, all the way to the frontline in their social work practice in organizations. Kinds of literatures show that there is however, a notable incongruency between leadership education given to students and that given to social workers in practice [19, 20, 21]. Thus leadership in social work organizations is often referred to as managers or leaders, with both titles being used interchangeably. There is however a need to distinguish between the two as they differ greatly in meaning. Thus managers are often strict leaders who do things by the book i.e. is concentrating on the management process devoid of approach where human relations is of paramount significant. Under the former, organization manager plans, organizes co-ordinates and controls the subordinate social workers under authoritarian leadership style in order to achieve the tasks at hand. Thus organization managers often put emphasis on completing tasks and meeting deadlines and targets. They follow protocol and “manage” staff to make sure positive results are achieved. Leaders on the other hand, give direction, offer inspiration, build teamwork, set an example and gain acceptance among their subordinates. In that regard, social work leaders in organizations believe the title of leaders and not those of managers. Social work leaders are visionaries [22] “who act as role models and inspire practitioners in contexts of turbulence and uncertainty” [23]. As indicated earlier on, social work leadership is a process of social influence in which one person can enlist the support of others in the accomplishment of a common task [23]. Thus social work leadership in various organizations may refer to the structures within the organization through which information is relayed to the subordinates. Moreover, these ranks are often displayed in the form of an organization structure for example the bureaucratic form which shows the top, all the way to the bottom, often forming the shape of triangle. The bureaucratic leadership at the top often adopts different theories and authoritarian leadership styles used in military to effectively foster the required leadership in that particular organisation when working with the frontline social workers to achieve the goals of the organization. In contrast, the democratic leadership used in social work organizations fosters group participation to ultimately achieve the goals and objectives of the social work organization. The reviewed literature shows that some of the theories anticipated to foster effective leadership in organizations from social work perspectives are the following;

8.1.1 Transformational theory

The available literature shows that the Transformational leadership is a model of leadership that puts emphasis on bringing about change in an organization. This model resonates well with the social work profession because it harnesses the power of the individual and the potential they possess to effect change [20]. The leaders work with the frontline social workers to bring about this change. This leadership model is also important because it focuses on the motivation of the frontline workers. Social workers all over the globe face an increasingly large workload, which adds to the tremendous amount of fatigue it presents to the workers. This fatigue has led to a great number of social workers quitting the profession. Because of this anomaly demonstrate that there is need to constantly motivate the social workers to foster effective leadership in executing the duties in an organization. Multiple studies have shown that the Transformational model is the most effective model as far as the motivation of the social workers is concerned. It transforms staff perceptions and it focuses on the collective action of the organization as a whole [2].

8.1.2 Client-centred theory

Multiple literatures show that the Client-centred leadership is grounded on the client or service user as the distinguished focus, with the motivation and job satisfaction of social workers merely acting as a means towards the desired end of meeting service users’ needs and improving their life circumstances. This approach resonates with that definition of the social work profession and also on the core principles, which is client self-determination [2]. This means that there is constant communication between the social workers and the clients in order to make sure that at any given stage, the interests of the clients are put at the helm of the interaction. Within the social work profession, the client-centred approach means that the roles of client and service provider are interchanged between the leadership and the frontline workers. For example, in the situations where the frontline social workers are being audited on the results of their organizational work, the leadership assumes the role of the client and the social workers become the service provider. In that regard, there should be constant interaction between the two to ensure that the needs of the leadership are met. For instance, this could possibly be in the form of reports and other feedback mechanisms which inform the leadership on the progress of activities on the ground. Hence, the client-centred approach makes interaction between both parties a key feature and leaves little room for speculation and guesswork in an organization.

8.1.3 Participatory theory

To add on, participatory leadership is an approach that is linked to developing shared purpose and values, constant improvement and cooperative culture between leadership and the workforce. It has been observed that this approach realizes leadership not as a rigid structure, but as a dynamic practice that is distributed among the leaders and the social workers [24]. Also, this approach brings the specific situation into focus and makes the approach an influential factor regarding leadership. Even though the organization has its rigid leadership and organizational structure, participatory leadership for specific tasks is determined by the nature of the dilemma at hand. In the specific circumstances, leadership is rewarded based on one’s experience and expertise. There is a considerable amount of meritocracy taken into account before deciding on leadership for a specific mission. Participatory leadership has a hand in glove relationship with social work values and has benefits in social work organisations. Participatory leadership model enhance the level of cooperation between the social workers and the leadership. It takes a bottom up approach, where any major decisions are discussed at grassroots level before being elevated to the top of the hierarchy. When such decisions are implemented, they are more readily accepted by the majority because they are a reflection of their own thoughts. The mindset and esteem of the social workers on the ground is a highly underrated component that plays a pivotal role in the effectiveness of social work practice. The participatory approach is one that upholds the positive esteem and motivation of the social workers.

8.1.4 Situational theory

Another theory is the situational leadership approach which is a model that was developed by Hersey and Blanchard [25]. This model realizes leadership as being inseparable to situations. It views leadership as a highly dynamic force that keeps changing to match different situations. This model of leadership matches with the nature of contemporary social work. Social work is a profession that deals with people from all walks of life and the problems they face. The nature of such problems is ever changing and not set in stone. The rate at which this change takes place has increased greatly, with modern technology and globalization playing ever increasing roles. Hersey and Blanchard [25] noted that two factors come into play when considering candidates under the situational model, experience and knowledge. Experience is important because it determines whether or not an individual will be able to do their job independently and take responsibility for it. The social workers in an organization should also have adequate knowledge of what is happening here and now as well as the required skills in order to adequately perform their job. Hence it is also important for the leadership to have motivation, as they are the top of the organization. If the leadership is well motivated, there is a high likelihood that the workforce will also be motivated. Within situational leadership, four leadership styles are created, which are directing, coaching, supporting and delegating. However, even though this book chapter has only selected a few theories highlighted to foster effective leadership in social work organizations, the list is endless as there are other theories and models appropriate in social work organizations.

8.2 Methodology

8.2.1 Desk review

The current study established those organizations that are using social work methodologies using different leadership theories and models as well as carrying out a desk review to analyse secondary data on social organizations in Zimbabwe. The organizations covered by this study were; Department of Social Welfare and Development, CARITAS Zimbabwe, Plan International Zimbabwe. At the outset, a review of journals, articles, books and websites, national reports and documents on different leadership models and information from social work organizations that are using different social work leadership styles at both International, national and local levels was done. Afterwards, the survey collected data through individual and focus group interviews. Interviews were conducted with those government social work officers and International Organizations employed by the organizations using different leadership styles and models in their service delivery to individuals, families, groups and communities. The sampled organizations were sampled to provide information on the type of leadership theories and models currently used by their social work organizations. The current thinking/knowledge and available statistics of various social work organizations implementing different models were explored respectively. The sampling design was based on geographical location, meaning the organizations were representative of the social work organizations in Zimbabwe. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data collected from the social work organizations and data was made available in a narrative and table or matrix format.

8.2.2 Research ethics

Research ethics and privacy were observed and all organizations voluntarily agreed to partake in the study after information was assured that it was for academic purposes. The collected data was to be kept in confidence to protect those organizations who participated.

9. Study findings and discussions

9.1 Nature of social work organizations

The study examined the nature, sizes and structures of organizations with the aim to establish the models appropriate for each organization from social work perspectives. The key findings show that social workers are employed in public, private and voluntary organisations local, national, regional and global moreover the nature of their job identifies more with the organisation than the profession to a great extent. The key findings also demonstrate that organizations have structures that require effective leadership from social work perspectives for them to implement their mandates successfully, especially to facilitate a move from a command-and-control culture or bureaucratic to encouraging compliance or democracy to the learning and adapting culture [16]. For that reason, social work organizations have outstanding contributions to make effect leadership; however, by drawing on its strong tradition and passion for service user empowerment and involvement [5]. The broad initiatives to understand social work perspectives as practiced in organizations are appreciated through understanding the different leadership styles and models used in different organizations. The study observed that various social work organizations are classified by types and can be understood by orientation and level of cooperation. These organizations by orientation for example have been identified to include charitable organizations, participatory organizations, advocacy and empowering organizations among others. The structures of social work organizations vary according to their sizes, and structures as some are locally based or community based organizations which have become more active in the rural areas. At any level however, it has been noted that social workers’ leadership and organizations have been inadequately defined and understood by society for too long. Therefore, in this study, it was found lucid that understanding and paying allegiance to leadership in organizations from social work perspectives could perhaps be first achieved by calling on social workers to be captivated in the decades ahead which require democratic leadership where policies are established and decisions are made by the general populace rather than the authoritarian or laissez-faire types of leadership. So far, organizations have been inclined to practice the authoritarian or laissez-faire types of leadership styles which are alleged to be effective in military and religious organizations respectively. The obligation in social work has however been a major concern within the social work organizations because many organizations are using leadership styles which are not perfect in their service delivery for various reasons and in most cases beyond their control.

The study found that various organizations have chipped in trying to employ acceptable leadership models and approaches like democratic leadership style; closing gaps created in social work leadership. The desk review indicate that scores of organizations have so far continued to exercise the leadership styles for example authoritarian leadership approach that a number of organizations refer to as military where decisions are made by the leader or laissez-faire Christian leadership where little leadership is necessary. The key findings basically found that operating under such diverse and complex conditions has perpetuated social workers to adjust reluctantly which some researchers have considered it a major global challenge but perhaps less noticeable in the organizations of the developed countries. Moyo et al. [13] highlight that the use of assorted leadership styles is made more complicated by complicated social problems or ills such as unpredictable political, economic, and environmental conditions that are common in developing countries with increased natural disasters such as floods, and droughts as well as socio-economic and environmental challenges which are bound to determine the quality and effectiveness of leadership used in organizations. Though organizations have not taken legal and moral obligation to implement proper leadership theories to achieve the goals and to instigate the right leadership styles in series of severe droughts, floods disasters, socio-economic and environmental hardships experienced particularly in the Southern Africa countries including Zimbabwe. Haworth et al. [5] stress that this highly developed area of knowledge and practice is an important contribution the social work profession which could possibly contribute to the conceptualizations of leadership in organizations in every service delivery systems from social work perspectives.

Through grounded qualitative method using participative discussions in various organizations, the study found that social workers practice within confinements of organisations that determine the nature of activities and tasks they carry out using the task-centred approach in providing human services. The study noted that some social workers use these different social work leadership and theories or models for example the Task-cantered model which lays emphasis on a situation where a social worker breaks down a problem into manageable tasks. Even though social work is practiced in different organisational settings, the vast majority possess unique knowledge that allows them to understand individuals, families, groups and communities within their broad social and political contexts. The situation is demonstrated through upholding and promoting values of social work (importance of human relationships, integrity, social justice, service, dignity and worth of a person and competence) and defending them through evidence based practice, policy development, capacity building, counselling and networking. Above all, the key findings confirm that the ultimate goal of social workers in an organisation is to work towards achieving the organisation goals by incorporating knowledge, values and skills acquired through professional education, experience and socialization at local, national, regional and global level.

9.2 Leadership and variable behaviours

The primary data was grounded in qualitative data which was obtained through interviews and focus group discussions with statutory and non statutory organizations. On the other hand, secondary data were collected through desk reviews; journals, articles, books and websites, national reports and documents on different leadership models and information from social work organizations using different social work leadership styles at both local, national and international levels. The primary purpose of the study was to gain an appreciation of the different leadership and variable behaviours from social work perspectives. There are leadership theories and models with different levels of variable behaviours which are directive and supportive behaviour. In this context, different styles are used by social work organizations in accordance with the diverse levels of confidence and skills exhibited by the frontline social workers. The first stage is the directing stage, where social workers are told the tasks they are supposed to be executed and closely monitored along the way. The leadership uses high directive and low supportive behaviour. The observation was that this is commonly used for entry level social workers, who have little experience, knowledge or confidence and low motivation level. The second stage noted is the coaching style, which is also referred to as selling style. The observation was that this may be used with newly qualified social workers who are highly motivated or more experienced social workers who are new to a certain position. The leadership in the organization guides the social workers by explaining why and how decisions are made and giving attention to the workers. The communication in this instance is at a level of equals and leadership often adopts an Open Door policy, where the social workers may approach the superiors at any time. Hence, it is called the selling stage because the leadership has to sell the tasks at hand to the social workers and convince them that they are able to achieve the tasks. In addition, there is also regular constructive feedback which helps the workers to build confidence and skills.

The third model is the supporting stage, also referred to as the participating stage. This is used when the social workers have the knowledge and skills to do the task but may lack confidence or are overwhelmed by the workload. The leadership uses a low level of directive and high level of supportive behaviour. Because of their experience and skill set, the social work is able to work so the low directive behaviour is good because the leadership avoids a situation where they may be imperious to the social worker. The high level of supportive behaviour helps the social work to gain the confidence they require to be able to undertake tasks with minimal supervision. The fourth and final model is the delegating model. This is used for social workers who have the necessary skills and knowledge and also possess the will power and confidence to carry out the tasks effectively. Social workers are keen on updating the leadership on the status of their tasks and various situations they may face. For the leadership, this is the most desirable model for the social workers to be in because there is very little supervision required. Situational leadership is therefore a very effective model because the leadership assesses the social workers on an individual level and adjusts according to each specific individual. Directing, coaching, supporting and delegating are all used interchangeably when working with different social workers. Individualization is a principle that is often applied when working with social work clients [26]. Social work leadership should therefore realise that individualization also applies to the social workers themselves. By assessing them on an individual, the leadership assumes a model that brings out the best in individual social workers. This improves the efficiency of the organization and aligns it with achieving the goals of the social work profession.

9.3 Theoretical approaches to leadership in organizations

The study reviewed some of the theoretical approaches to leadership in organizations from social work perspectives. The study noted that the theoretical approaches in social work organizations are required to help the social workers understand that human beings are important with the sole purpose of fostering effective leadership that produce the services to meet the basic human needs of individuals, families, groups and society at large. These organisations use alternative theories to organizations from social work perspectives to foster effective moral work, upholding social work values and principles that enhance people’s social functioning. The professional and organisational competence in leadership is of paramount importance in both social work and non social work organizations. Mostly, teamwork and collective efforts using different leadership styles appropriate for social work organizations is deemed necessary for effective tasks and activities which lead to the achievement of its goals and objectives. In this context, the provision of organisational services and expert advice in both organizations was an indicative of an important aspect to all social work professionals. Also, within each organisation, fostering effective social work leadership as the management body has a function of constantly and continuously supporting for best ways to influence subordinates to accomplish the organisation goals and objectives [27]. The leaders achieve this by engaging in a continuous process of coordinating the human, financial and material resources using anyone of the social work theories and models. Thus any rules, policies and procedures guiding relationships and activities in an organisation are basically determined by leaders and this in turn determines the effectiveness of the organisation goals and objectives. Thus leadership in social work organisations possess professional and organisational competence and have expertise and knowledge needed across the whole organisation. For the organisation to grow and adapt to the ever changing community and societal needs and demands, social work leaders take much interest in change and innovation which eventually distinguishes them from managers that are more interested in preserving the status quo of the organisation.

9.4 Other leadership models used in social work organizations

The study as well looked at other different models used in either social work organizations or non social work organizations from social work perspectives. Thus in pursuant to the findings of various studies conducted earlier, these organizations employ different models for example the crisis intervention model and the problem solving model among others. The problem-solving approach model for example is where a social worker facilitates an individual to identify a problem, create an action plan to solve the problem and implement the solution together. The social worker and individual both discuss the effectiveness of the problem-solving model and adjust it as necessary. Although organizational roles may limit the professional identity of social workers, their commitment to the principle of social justice distinguishes them from other professionals. For this particular study, the key findings demonstrate that because of various disasters experienced by some organizations for example during severe droughts, floods disasters, extreme food shortages, Covid-19 pandemic to mention but a few, these social work organizations use different theories and leadership styles as intervention strategies. However, under those diverse and complex socio-economic and environmental hardships, the study noted that sometimes these organisations fail to foster effective social work leadership models. As a result, the majority of social workers end up being not well organised, controlled or coordinated and may end up having a non-cooperative attitude resulting in unproductive leadership models applied. Often, it is fundamental to nurture or foster effective leadership in social work organisations in order to succeed meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups and communities. To add on, fostering effective leadership is quite essential deriving its power from the apt theoretical approaches that can be used to sustain successful and professional delivery of human services in the face of social, economic and political environments that are continuously changing. In this respect, leaders are obliged to set optimistic goals and objectives as these are the ones taking charge and control of the operations of an organisation towards the attainment of the intended goals and objectives.

To add on, the success of social work organisations in today’s world is characterised by sophisticated technology which is increasingly and constantly changing and relies on a transformational leadership model as a means for social workers to execute theories in their social work practice. The cognitive behaviour model and the task centred model for example are also some of the models applied in organizations to address the challenges from social work perspectives. Under crisis situations like COVId-19 pandemic and forced displacement due to floods disasters, growing empirical evidence demonstrates that transformational leaders in social work organizations involves more innovative strategies to instil creativity in their subordinates, which strongly correlates with high employee satisfaction rates, productivity and decreases attrition rates. In essence, transformational leaders develop a vision that is followed by employees accomplishing the set goals and objectives of an organisation. Thus effective leadership is enhanced through appropriate leadership skills to influence and motivate employees to strengthen a positive organisation culture as well as favourable provision of employee benefits such as health care insurance, workers compensation and leave benefits among others [28]. The key findings of the desk review and qualitative data from interviews and participative discussions was obtained by re-evaluating governmental and social work organizations leadership models and the scope of social worker’s responsibilities. The effectiveness of leadership in organization was also provided by reviewing academic and NGO literature to identify current thinking and analysis of critical factors and trends relevant to the leadership models in organizations prom social work perspectives whether transformational models, cognitive model, task centred, crisis intervention and extract major elements of knowledge. Again, data was accessed in journals, books, articles and websites, national reports and documents on different leadership theories and models as well as information from social work organizations that are using different social work leadership theories and models. Following this fundamental comprehensive evaluation, our study concludes that the current models have been developed and tested elsewhere but however, there is still need to develop other models suited to the locally based small organizations which are experiencing severe hardships in the form of cyclical droughts, floods disasters, socio-economic and environmental conditions unexpectedly. These key findings therefore suggest that leaders ought to have the following attributes to foster effective leadership in social work organisations from social work perspectives:

Strong leadership ability depicted in a person’s behaviour, thus leaders should be role models to their subordinates. To gain trust and admiration from employees a leader must be able to produce good results and achieve the goals of the organisation and it advertently inclines their values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviour toward work values and ethics which will results in consistency in service delivery. Leaders with strong leadership qualities are also charismatic and have great influence on how workers carry out their tasks and activities in the direction of achieving the organisation goals and objectives.

Leaders to have a clear vision for the future of the organisation through investing in research and development. Research promotes evidence based practice which focuses on informing decision making based on evaluating existing research and knowledge. Essentially, leaders should organise staff development training and education programmes (workshops and conferences) where workers learn from others on effective and efficient ways of delivering human services. In addition, leaders need to keep abreast with the contemporary needs and demands of individuals, families, groups and communities and bring to light the necessary reforms that will take the organisation into a brighter future.

Inspirational motivation is required from leaders. Leaders should encourage employees to commit to attaining the set goals and objectives of an organisation on individual basis as well as a group or team. In doing this, leaders should demonstrate enthusiasm and optimism by accelerating the flow of information and knowledge across boundaries of the organisation, thereby encouraging workplace relationships. Employees should also be motivated through giving them a provision for retreats and workplace events that create opportunities for socialisation.

Workers need intellectual stimulation which increases their innovation. Innovative leaders instil creativity in workers to encourage them to approach problems in new ways. Creativity also thrives in collaboration of ideas from people across the organisation with different backgrounds, thinking styles and expertise (for example, in a hospital setting). When workers value collective innovation diverse perspectives are captured that foster effective and efficient human service delivery.

Leaders need not be selfish. They should prioritise the individual needs of the workers, serving as mentors, advisors, advocates and coaches taking into account individual needs within a group. Catering for individual needs also requires listening and emotional control; as such leaders should develop patience and understanding as well as being accommodative to change and criticism. Good communication and transparency, in addition, cements a good relationship between the leader and individuals resulting in fostering collaboration needed for effective provision of human services.

10. Conclusions

Summing up, the study examined the effectiveness of leadership in organizations from social work perspectives. The study found that many organizations including social work organisations have been fostering effective leadership approaches using different leadership theories and models to achieve their goals and objectives to motivate their employees for profit or non-profit gains. The study engaged qualitative approach through desk review and, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions to obtain information on different leadership models used in social work organizations. The study observed significant implications in fostering effective leadership in social work organizations in which the study recommend that there is need for much understanding on leadership approaches that foster the effectiveness and growth of organizations from social work perspectives. As such, there is need to conceptualize social work and leadership models in organizations as well as using appropriate theoretical frameworks that allow additional appreciation of how social work leadership in organizations produce favourable returns. Toward this purpose, some leadership models and frameworks used in organizations in general tend to be socially and unethically unacceptable in social work organizations. This definition of social work by the International Federation for Social Workers and theoretical framework presented from social work perspectives is suggested. Therefore, implementation of social work leadership models aimed at ensuring appropriate leadership in social work organizations is needed. In pursuant of an appropriate approach, in this contemporary society, this study proposes that further evaluation and monitoring studies should be performed that promote valuable investigation to determine fitting leadership in organizations from social work perspectives. The professional social workers and organizations can better understand the barriers to foster the effectiveness of leadership models in social work organizations being it local, national, regional or international.

Acknowledgments

This research was conducted with the help from profit and nonprofit organizations who provided superior environment to access information. We also want to acknowledge our collegues from the Departments of Social Work who provided support during the writing of this book chapter who volunteered to share their valuable views during data collection.

Conflict of interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest in the entire work itself.

Authors contributions

Stella Chipo Takaza, Diana Kanyere and Chipo Chitereka significantly contributed to the development of this book chapter. All the authors participated in drafting and revising the work as well as approving the final version of the book chapter. Each author offered very useful directions and a helping hand throughout the process. Therefore, all the contributors meet the criteria to be listed as authors in this book chapter.

Funding

The research project received no assistance from anywhere except the initiatives of the authors.

Rights and permission

The data and code used in the work is available on request from the authors.