Closing the Digital Divide in Africa

DEALING WITH DRUCKER’S “RESPONSIBILITY GAP” IN AFRICA

A new special report from SMR International takes a look at efforts to train Africa’s youth in ICT and KM skills.

Linking that effort to recent attention about the “responsibility gap” from the Drucker Institute at Claremont Graduate University, the report (“Closing the Digital Divide: Dealing with Drucker’s ‘Responsibility Gap’ in Africa”) takes the position that management leadership has a greater responsibility than simply achieving organizational effectiveness.

In addressing what Peter Drucker used to refer to as the “responsibility gap,” SMR’s new report has five key points:

1. Current examples of unprincipled behavior in corporate and organizational management seem to imply a moral weakness in society
2. Peter Drucker asserted that managers have a moral obligation to avoid the “responsibility gap” and embrace social responsibility
3. In Kenya, managers and leaders are joining together to provide youth with strategic learning and training in ICT/KM
4. NGOs, the Kenyan government, development and humanitarian organizations, the international business community, and local businesses are working together to achieve this goal
5. These initiatives exemplify Drucker’s assertion: management’s task is two-fold: to achieve organizational effectiveness and to contribute to the common good.

The SMR International Special Report is available at SMRShare. Or the Special Report can be accessed directly here.