We Continue to "Manage": A Transformational Leadership Perspective on Social Work Management in the NPO Sector in South Africa?

Abstract

Although South Africa's policies have evolved significantly since the attainment of democracy in 1994, social work management education and training remains visibly neglected and leadership as a subset of social work management appears to be less prominent in social work practice. Social workers at the frontline, middle and top management levels in the NPO sector have continued to deliver services and uplift marginalised communities despite not having formal management qualifications in social work. This paper suggests ways of strengthening management capacity in the Non-Profit Organisation sector from a transformational leadership perspective based on Burns (1978) and Bass and Avolio's (1994) work, so that social workers may continue to "manage" despite the macro level challenges they face in the wake on evolving policies in South Africa.