Embrace uncertainty: The essential guide to thriving in business

Book review

When a top negotiator and a decorated scholar combined efforts to give tips for leadership, the result became a condensed easy to read, pocket size gem of a booklet titled :

Entrepreneurial Leadership: A compendium from high achieving leaders.

From the 5Ds of staying powered for success to the 9Cs of leadership, the authors give snippets of wisdom and theories that would otherwise have taken years to learn. The 5Ds are desire, determination, discipline, diligence and details without which one cannot expect much success. In leadership, the 9Cs represent curiosity, creativity, communication skills, common sense, conviction, courage, character, charisma and competence.

Despite the term entrepreneurship being a buzzword, no universal definition exists for it. The authors do observe however, that it is a process of scanning the environment to identify existing opportunities and use available resources to exploit those opportunities, in order to establish enterprises and create wealth.

This necessarily makes the entrepreneur a risk taker. They hope they will be successful where many people see no hope and no opportunity. Success, it is noted, depends on a leader who has clear vision, is an intellectual with passion and integrity. These combined, allow the gifts, values and personality of those under the leader to emerge authentically.

This little read is an excellent go-to book. It uses heart-warming African examples of leadership like the late Tanzanian leader Magufuli to international figures like Richard Branson and Steve Jobs to show the point that one can relate with.

The authors note that few people take risks in their life, yet risk is the price to pay for opportunity. It permits our gifts, values and personality to emerge authentically. Leadership on the other hand is described as providing purposeful direction and deliberate effort to achieve the purpose. It is necessary to shape goals, coordinate efforts, motivate employees and monitor performance.

Joyce Achola led the Kenyan delegation in top level trade negotiations and helped develop some of Kenyas key policy documents such as the Kenya National trade Policy of 2017, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) strategy and action and the Buy Kenya, Build Kenya Strategy among others. She gained her doctorate degree in entrepreneurship from Kabarak University (2018) and her Master of Science in the same field from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in 2000.

Geoffrey Gitau is a decorated scholar with wide work experience.  He earned his doctorate degree in Entrepreneurship and Technology from JKUAT in 2016. He holds a Masters degree in the same field from the same university and a second Master of Science in Communication from the University of Rwanda. He is an associate professor at Zetech University and an adjunct lecturer at University of Nairobi and JKUAT. Both authors are members of the Kenya Institute of Management.