GS Paper 4
Syllabus: Moral Thinkers
Context: New Zealand’s Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern who announced her resignation citing burnout, offered an alternative leadership model rooted in a moral vision rather than political opportunism and rose to become a global hero of liberalism.
- She is considered a classic example of ethical leadership.
About Ethical Leadership:
Ethical leadership is the practice of demonstrating appropriate conduct inside and outside the office. It is mainly concerned with moral development and virtuous behaviour. Ethical leaders display good values through their words and actions.
Lessons from the life of Jacinda Ardern:
Motherhood is powerful
- Jacinda Ardern became the second world leader (After Benazir Bhutto) to ever give birth and subsequently take maternity leave while in office. She said, “I’m just pregnant, not incapacitated”.
- Multitasking: The Prime Minister then made history and headlines worldwide when her three-month-old child accompanied her to a United Nations General Assembly in New York City.
Keeping calm under pressure
- The New Zealand Prime Minister has demonstrated her ability to stay cool numerous times throughout the coronavirus pandemic, but it was her response to a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that set the tone for her approach to a crisis. During a live television broadcast, the parliament building she was in was hit with a mammoth natural disaster.
- Her ability to immediately gather her thoughts and address a crisis can be a learning lesson for all of us.
Act swiftly, decisively and do not downplay situations
- Her decisiveness during the COVID-19 pandemic had a huge impact on how the country handled the crisis and the measures she implemented.
- Not once did she attempt to downplay the severity of the crisis. Instead, she offered facts, educated herself on the data, and made tough choices that would ultimately allow New Zealand to handle the pandemic astutely and save many live
Responsible leadership: The PM, along with her ministers took a pay cut of 20% for 6 months during the pandemic. In her own statement – “While it in itself won’t shift the government’s overall fiscal position, it is about leadership”.
Emotional intelligence
- During the pandemic, Prime Minister Ardern showed her humane side and fostered the public’s trust by acknowledging the emotional aspect brought on by the crisis.
- She even went so far as to reassure children that the Easter Bunny was classified as a key worker and would be able to do their Easter rounds as always. While this may seem like a small gesture, the fact that she incorporated such an emotional response into her address showed her humanity and her relatability.
Effective Communication: The underrated value of listening and asking
- Ardern used regular Facebook Live sessions to check in with citizens during their relatively brief time in lockdown.
- In an incredibly informal, chatty manner, she effortlessly demonstrated consideration and empathy, whilst also delivering some tough messages, and providing clear direction to mobilize effort.
- To support citizens through lockdown, Ardern also conducted a series of video interviews in which she conversed with experts, including a psychologist about coping with the stresses of the pandemic, and an experienced business mentor about supporting small businesses.
Clear vision and humility
- Jacinda had earlier mentioned child poverty as the reason why she joined politics at the age of 17. She often visited refugee children as a part of working for an international youth organization.
“If you ask me why I’m in politics, my answer would be simple — children. I genuinely believe our success as politicians should be based on the status of children. We need to change how we measure success and our indicators for action,” she had said in an ardent speech at the Social Good Summit 2018.
Trust
- Demonstrate credibility – for instance, by gaining the necessary knowledge and data and/or drawing upon relevant experience
- Show reliability – be honest and do what you say you will do
- Create intimacy – share some of yourself and be interested in others
- Limit self-orientation – keep your self-interest in check
Strength and solidarity are key
- In March 2019, Jacinda Ardern responded to a series of terrorist attacks on mosques in Christchurch with an approach that supported the people of New Zealand and quickly banned military-style assault weapons in the country. The leader refused to name the shooter in order to avoid giving him notoriety and assisted in uniting not only the people of Christchurch but New Zealand as a whole.
- Ms Ardern wore a hijab and went to mourn with the grieving families. By keeping the focus on the victims rather than the perpetrator, she brought a healing touch to an otherwise tense, polarising moment.
Inclusivity
- She appointed Nanaia Mahuta, a Maori woman, in the high-profile portfolio of foreign ministers, while her party vowed that schools in the country would have the Māori language integrated into their curriculum by 2025.
In a world where politics is synonymous with realpolitik, she demonstrated that politics informed by a moral vision — doing the right thing rather than what best suits one’s interests — is not unthinkable.
Quote:
At the heart of her leadership style:
“Kindness, and not being afraid to be kind, or to focus on, or be really driven by empathy. I think one of the sad things that I’ve seen in political leadership is – because we’ve placed so much emphasis on notions of assertiveness and strength over time – that we’ve probably assumed that it means you can’t have those other qualities of kindness and empathy. And yet, when you think about all the big challenges that we face in the world, that’s probably the quality we need the most.”
Jacinda Ardern
InstaCurious:
Transformational leadership is defined as a leadership approach that causes a change in individuals and social systems. In its ideal form, it creates valuable and positive change in the followers with the end goal of developing followers into leaders. It refers to a leadership style that focuses on inspiring and motivating followers to not only achieve their goals but also to develop their own leadership potential.
Nolan Committee Recommendations – Find the link below.
Insta Links:
Mains Link: UPSC 2019
Q. What are the basic principles of public life? Illustrate any three of these with suitable examples.
