Organizational Behaviour

Article Analysis on Leadership

Submitted to: Prof. Vidhya Thakkar

Name: Sanaiya Jokhi

Enrolment Number: 1720221903

Program: MBA

Division: 9
Jacinda Ardern, the current Prime Minister of New Zealand, is the world’s youngest female
head of government. In 2017, the Labour party in coalition with Green Party came to power
which made Jacinda Ardern the Prime Minister of New Zealand. Ever since then, she has
helped steer her country through the aftermath of many difficulties like the Christchurch
Mosque shootings, the pandemic of Covid-19, and the Whakaari volcano eruption. Unlike
traditional politicians, she is known for her unconventional way of addressing the public and
openly communicating. During her reign, she has taken over the problem of child poverty and
promised to halve it. Her government has also been steadily increasing the minimum wage of
the country on an economic front. On the diplomatic front, she has tried to amend New
Zealand’s relations with Australia. Her rise to politics was so popularised, that people started
calling it ’Jacindamania’.
• Why did I choose Jacinda Ardern?
1. She is self-aware and she has a modern approach to politics:
She shows the strength of the country in an unabashed manner. She doesn’t back down
on accepting her mistakes, and she is not the one to distract the media by putting
pressure on some other story just to distract them from hers. She has redefined the idea
of a modern leader and she likes to lead with kindness. She has mentioned time and
again how kindness is at the core of her leadership style.

2. Compassionate and empathetic:

During the Christchurch Mosque shootings, she refused to address the gunmen and
instead talked about the victims. She shifted the whole country’s focus to victims rather
than getting into the dirty politics of condemning the gunmen for their violence. And
when she finally visited the aggrieved, she wore a Hijab as a gesture of solidarity for
the aggrieved. This shows her empathy and how she can compassionately handle such
a serious crime.
3. A multitasker:
She, along with her partner, welcomed their first child while she was running the office
as a Prime Minister. She also became the first Prime Minister to go on maternity leave
while in office. She brought along her child to various conferences and when asked
upon, said she wasn’t the only one to do so. Hence, encouraging and appreciating
women to multitask.

4. Emotional Intelligence:
During a time of crisis, it can be easy for a leader to forget the importance of the
emotional quotient. She acknowledged the emotional aspect of being in and going
through the pandemic publicly. This shows her humanity towards the citizens and also
her relatability.
5. Not underestimating the situation and acting decisively but quickly:
As we all know well that New Zealand is one of the countries where the spread of the
Covid-19 pandemic was the least. This was only possible under the leadership of
Jacinda Ardern. She made robust, firm, and quick decisions when it came to lockdowns
and the Covid-19 measures. It was her that led New Zealand through the tough times
of the pandemic.
• Leadership style of Jacinda Ardern:

Jacinda shows a pattern of transparent and ethical leadership behavior that encourages
openness in sharing information is needed to make decisions while accepting followers’
inputs. This suggests that her leadership style is Authentic Leadership.

Authentic leadership is about bringing your true self to the organization and inspiring
people to be loyal and show trust by constantly displaying who you are as a person, and
how you feel about others.

• Why Jacinda Ardern is an Authentic Leader?

1. Self-awareness:
It is near impossible to lead others with authenticity when you yourself are not
aware of your values, your weaknesses, and your strengths. By knowing and
displaying the same, you make yourself relatable in front of your subordinates. Self-
awareness helps you grow as a leader and as a person.
2. Transparency:
During the pandemic, she had clear communication and at the same time was very
open and straightforward about the measures taken related to lockdown and Covid-
19. At a leadership level, if you emote honesty and transparency, people will be
inspired to follow the same policy.
3. Balanced Processing:
It is crucial for a leader to be accepting of constructive criticism and an alternative
point of view before making a plan of action. It is essential as a leader to make
others feel like their opinions are valued and for them to feel safe about sharing the
same. During the pandemic, she consulted her team of scientists and doctors and
took firm measures to prevent the spread as much as possible.
4. Empathy and Ethics:
We previously saw Jacinda showing solidarity with the Mosque Shooting victims.
In 2020, during her reign as the Prime Minister, she took a pay cut of 20% along
with her staff to show solidarity with people who experienced the same or lost their
jobs. She lives out her values in a very public manner and maintains a bond of
empathy with those around her.
5. Clear communication:
 Earlier, it was mentioned that Jacinda has a modern approach to politics. It refers to
her public relations (PR) as Prime Minister of the country. She is a PR powerhouse,
which comes to her naturally as a result of her education. She knows how to
succinctly communicate and not fall prey to the misinterpretation of the media.

Jacinda Ardern has changed the ‘leadership’ perception of a lot of people related to gender
roles, she is self-aware, she assesses and evaluates a situation based on her value and ethics,
and she takes action but she never fails to ask for or get support and finally she works on being
a good communicator. She tries to lead people by example and behavior. Thus, she has the
qualities to be an Authentic Leader.