African diasporic millennial leaders are uniquely situated to embark on critical leadership roles at the end of a millennia, in the middle of dual pandemics (race and COVID 19), an at the beginning of a technological/geopolitical revolution. This chapter examines the ways that African diasporic millennial leaders navigate multiple enterprises the impact of panther parenting. Managers engage the components of Ubuntu paradigm and the relationship with: Ubuntu-based axiological evaluation mechanism. Ubuntu-grounded ontological management tool. Ubuntu-constructed epistemological training instrument. Ubuntu-founded methodological device. It examines the narratives and insights of several prominent millennial leaders in popular culture. It analyzes the unique blend of leadership qualities specific to African diasporic millennial leaders. African diasporic governance standards are founded on Ubuntu principles like panther parenting. It explores the ways contemporary managers engage emerging millennial leaders during the evolution of organizational life cycles.
TopIntroduction
Leadership in the new millennium involves transparency, flexibility, and a collective sense of community (Post, 2022). African diasporic millennial leaders (born between 1980 and 1999) espouse these tenets through direct dialogue, transparency in governance, and an Ubuntu-based organization philosophy (Robinson, 2021). There is some variability in how the age range for millennials (Generation Y) is computed. This 19-year age range, however, is widely accepted within the scientific community (Olsen, 2009). Ubuntu orientation refers to the predilection of individuals (in this case, millennial leaders) to 1) “iitaba” (believe) in Ubuntu (ciLuba). 2) belong to/be members of “abantu” (humanity; human beings: ciLuba), and 3) be a practitioner of; a worker of (Meena mudimu) the principles of Ubuntu (Imhotep, 2020). While this study includes limited references to theoretical and community-based ideologies, it is primarily organized as praxis research. At its core, this investigation offers practical insights and actionable steps. This study is divided into three sections.
The first section examines the narratives and insights of several prominent millennial leaders in popular culture. This section uses broad-based presuppositions to understand and explain the thematic observations in the lives of African diasporic millennial leaders. It draws logical and rational assumptions regarding an Ubuntu foundation from observable processes and patterns in the lives of millennial leaders throughout the African diaspora. An Ubuntu frame abductively utilizes implicit assumptions about communal leadership methodologies and goals. These postulates are then situated within a traditional Africana framework.
The second section analyzes the unique blend of leadership qualities specific to African diasporic millennial leaders. African diasporic millennial governance standards and attributes differ from Western ideations of authority because they are founded on Ubuntu principles like Panther Parenting (D. Moore, 2021), Ujamaa (cooperative economics) (Nyerere, 1974), and Sankofa (Hawkins-Moore, 2022). Inductive reasoning occurs when observations are synthesized to develop a general principle (Sauce, Matzel, 2017).
The final section is a deductive exploration of how contemporary managers, supervisors, and senior leaders can engage emerging millennial leaders during the evolution of organizational life cycles. Primarily, Ubuntu paradigm, these modern management strategies, and dynamic governance tools are increasingly crucial as African diasporic millennial leaders assume executive roles in organizations.
The study of African diasporic millennial leadership is critical as the world navigates into intra/post-COVID-19 routines. The current sociocultural landscape is punctuated by the nuances of the global “new normal.” This is coupled with the bold and impassioned regard for humanity and inclusivity brought about by the revolutionary social resistance of 2019-20. The incessant murders of unarmed Black men and women have triggered a conscious uprising, an igniting of the eternal flame of overt defiance, and a consummate rejection of a deficit model in Black and Afrocentric leadership.