Kenyan leaders face tough task in implementing Constitution

Kenya is undergoing a period of significant change following adoption a new constitution.

Implementing the new order will be hard work.

Departments in government in charge of justice will be responsible for drafting over one hundred laws.

The bureaucrats in this department have to prepare themselves for long-working hours and lots of coffee to meet deadlines.

As the two top leaders of the nation come together to drive this national agenda forward, it may be in their interest to consider that the private corporate sector has some good lessons and principles regarding how to manage change.

This is primarily because private companies are always undergoing some kind of change which more often than not underpins there very survival.

Whether it is the appointment of a new CEO, the entry of a new competitor, changing key suppliers or a radical change in technology, to business leaders in the private sector, the concept of change is in all intense and purposes, a constant.

Strategy without proper execution leads to poor results and mediocre outcomes.

Our national leaders are very aware that the constitution is only a piece of paper and the real work will focus on operationalising this new dispensation.

In this regard, the leaders driving this agenda may want to borrow a leaf from the private sector on best in class thinking on what critical steps to follow to avoid problems that typically occur in any change process.

As we go through this historical transition, our leaders need to establish a sense of urgency.

To borrow a leaf from the private sector, it is well known that companies frequently allow high levels of complacency to develop during times of transition.

Without motivation, people won’t help and the effort goes nowhere.

Executives underestimate how hard it can be to drive people out of their comfort zones.

To accept change, our leaders need to embrace a “burning platform” to remove complacency and inertia.

Our leaders appear to be strong and unified and this is consistent with the need to form a strong guiding coalition.

Most companies going through significant change have a group of strong unified leaders who drive the change process and establish support throughout the organisation.

In this regard, our national leaders should be cognisant that they have to reach out for support from all corners of the country.

Centralising implementation to be driven by a select few at the centre of power may be catastrophic.

To maintain the momentum of this change effort, this is as good a time as any for our leadership to aggressively communicate the vision.

They need to be aware that as much as national awareness of the constitution was probably at 99 per cent during the referendum, chances are that people will now continue with their daily normal lives and put this significant event behind them.

To avoid apathy and indifference, the leaders must aggressively communicate the vision as well as empower others to act on the vision.

The expected end result of the implementation of this new constitution must be clearly communicated to all involved.

For example, if it means increasing the visibility and communication of the vision 2030 agenda, so be it.

Those who are empowered to act on the vision should “walk the talk” and should act as role models of the types of behaviours and decisions needed in the new discourse.

They need to be viewed as “new wines in new wineskins” and if old procedures and obstacles remain in place, it will be demotivating to those involved in the implementation effort.

This is particularly so for bureaucrats who are consistently accused of perceiving procedures as everything and output as nothing.

Kenyans on the ground should be allowed to make the right changes without necessarily always referring upwards.

For our leaders to be successful in the implementation process, they should not forget to celebrate short-term victories to maintain momentum and once the changes are made, they need to be anchored firmly in our culture.