Popular public commentator and economist, Prof. Pat Utomi recently
described the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode as a man with a
lot of substance who is administering the state methodically and is
very sensitive to important things.
Utomi, who spoke in an interview with newsmen shortly before delivering a
keynote address at the unveiling of the Office of Overseas Affairs and
Investment otherwise known as Lagos Global, said from his assessment of
the Governor so far, “the man is governing the state with the mindset of
an accountant, and that informed why he was being methodic and
concentrating on getting things done”.
He said those criticizing the Governor have really not taken time to
study his management style, a development he said informed the unfair
criticism of the Governor and his team.
He said, “You know I have had the opportunity of talking to him
(Governor Ambode) quite a number of times before the elections and after
the elections. I think people have not been as fair to him as he
deserves.
“However, I think he is a very clever guy and I think that he is very
sensitive to what is important to do, but people who are used to one
style are not in a hurry usually to accept a new way of doing things,
but I think he would probably be more methodic in getting things done
from what I see of him.
“He has the accountant mind which is a different kind of mindset. When I
teach corporate leadership, I refer to styles of management or cultures
of management as they are called and there are three unique cultures of
management as stated by a former professor at the MIT Sloan School of
Management, Edgar H. Schein.
“One is called the operator culture, another one is called the
engineering culture which means people who have specific professional
kind of background loyal to the way their professional backgrounds
affect the way they do things like engineers driven by safety;
accountant driven by certain things.
“So all of those things will mean that there would be a shift in style
and if people pay more attention to what is getting done than style,
they would probably find out that the Governor has a lot of substance,”
Utomi said.

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