Leadership ethical orientations, mindfulness and procurement contract performance in the COMESA central governments

Date12 July 2013
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/WJEMSD-02-2013-0020
Pages87-110
Published date12 July 2013
AuthorJoseph Mpeera Ntayi,Pascal Ngoboka,Isaac Ndahiro,Sarah Eyaa
Subject MatterPublic policy & environmental management
Leadership ethical orientations,
mindfulness and procurement
contract performance in the
COMESA central governments
Joseph Mpeera Ntayi
Faculty of Computing and Management Science,
Makerere University Business School, Kampala, Uganda
Pascal Ngoboka
College of Business and Economics,
University of Wisconsin River Falls, River Falls, Wisconsin, USA
Isaac Ndahiro
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA),
Lusaka, Zambia, and
Sarah Eyaa
Faculty of Computing and Management Science,
Makerere University Business School, Kampala, Uganda
Abstract
Purpose – In thisstudy,the authors seek to examinethe prevalenceand relationships betweenconstructs
of mindfulness, task autonomy, inter-functional coordination, teamwork, contract implementation and
monitoring which have been largely ignored or not fully explored in previous empirical research; and
attempt to use them to predict contract performance.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper usesdescriptive andanalytical research designs guided
by multi-methods qualitative and quantitative research approaches to collect and analyze data predicting
contract performance in the Common Market for Easter n and Southern Africa (COMESA) member states.
Data was collected from a representative sample of ten countries and subsequent sampling was done at the
government ministries. Contracts were the unit of analysis as suggested by Brousseau and Glachant.
Findings – The study findings reveal that deontology, mindfulness procurement task performance,
competence of the procurement staff, inter-functional coordination and teamwork, mindfulness, task
autonomy, inter-functional coordination, teamwork, contract implementation and monitoring for
contract implementation and monitoring significantly and positively predict contract performance.
Contrary to the authors’ expectation, teleology ethical orientation and autonomy of procurement staff
significantly and negatively predicted contract performance. These findings have both policy and
managerial implications which the authors present.
Originality/value – Lastly,the authors recognize the virtue of ethical orientation of PDE leadership
which resides in deontology and teleology that has been largely ignored in previous contract
performance research. Paralleling previous empirical studies, the study brings together constructs of
mindfulness, task autonomy, inter-functional coordination and teamwork, contract implementation
and monitoring in predicting contract performance in a large regional sub-Saharan market of the
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).
Keywords Uganda, Contracts, Mindfulness, Leadership, Autonomy, Teamwork, Monitoring
Paper type Research p aper
Introduction
Cases of deviant behaviors in public procurement contracts continue to be a common
workplace occurrence in sub-Saharan Africa. A critical analysis of these coun try audit
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/2042-5961.htm
World Journal of Entrepreneurship,
Management and Sustainable
Development
Vol. 9 No.2/3, 2013
pp. 87-110
rEmeraldGroup Publishing Limited
2042-5961
DOI 10.1108/W JEMSD-02-2013- 0020
87
Leadership
ethical
orientations
reports from Africa, read together wi th the world bank country assessment reports
since 2004 to date, reveal cases of respectable leaders of central government, procuring
and disposing entities (PDEs), non-governmental organizations and the private sector,
who chose to engage in ethically questionable procurement contracts that harm
their entities of which they were custodians, to the detriment and embarrassment of
their governments and citizens. The ethical conduct of procurement personnel has left
donor and aid agencies, policy makers and researchers wondering why unprofessional
procurement contract behaviors persist in sub-Saharan African workplace setting
where strict regulatory regimes prevail ( Joan Elise Dubinsky Rosentreter Group, 2008;
The Global Fund Audit Report, 2010).
The current procurement regulatory regimes in Africa are tied to good governance
and anchored on the UNCITRAL (1994). UNCITRAL availed its Model Law on
Procurement of Goods, Construction and Services to national governmen ts seeking to
introduce or reform procurement legislation for their domestic economies. These
procurement reforms have been spearheaded and financed by donor agencies and
international financial institutions like the World Bank. The ethical lenses of the
international aid agencies seem to favor the Kan tian ethic of duty (Kant, 1785-1956)
ignoring the existence of other ethical orientations like utilitarian. Kantianism
advocates for an obligation to adhere to the law and a sense of duty. This is one of the
major features of the procurement reforms in the common market for eastern and
southern Africa (COMESA) region.
The deontic ethical orientation demonstrated by Kant asserts that right action is
action in accordance with a rule that can be made applicable to everyone. Such
ethical schema tends to blame and castigates any act that results in injustice and
breaking rules (Felps et al., 2006). The deontic approach ignores and/or fails to examine
the motives behind procurement personnel’s ethical behavior. Additionally, it does not
delve into organizational behavior that may have enabled or even encou raged non-
compliant acts. This has created a perception that breaking rules, laws and regulations
or acts of behavior which contradict Kantian ethics are unethical, without examining
the day to day ethical dilemmas faced by leaders, managers and procurement
personnel of these procuring entities (PEs), which seem to acc ount for their behavior.
Proponents of such deontological ethical orientations tend to ignore the influence of
an alternative teleological ethical stance of utilitarianism. Utilitarianism posits that
humans are rational individuals who seek to maximize pleasure and minimize pain.
Staffs involved in public procurement of the PEs, tend to perceive procurement laws
and regulations as a pain in the knee because they are; complicated, laborious and time
consuming (Ntayi et al., 2010). This has conditioned procurement personnel in the PEs
to innovate around the procurement laws and regulations in an attempt to reduce pain
and maximize the greatest good for the greatest number (Mill, 1863-1985). They focus
on the goodness of the outcome rather than the means (Calhoun, 2004). Leaders of PEs
with a utilitarian ethical orientation tend to ignore and intentiona lly break the laws,
rules and regulations that are too numerous, too complex or too old (Vaughn, 1983).
Some procurement practitioners argue that the procurement profession is one of the
few professions in which every step is carefully and systematically documented and
regulated to its detriment and demise .
Attempts to innovate around these procurement laws, procedures and regulations
are considered illegal and unethical, even when it is for the common good of the
organization and society. This has hoodwinked government into believing that these
PDEs can achieve value fo r money procurements if forced to conform and adhere to
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