Journal of Business and Economic Development 2021; 6(1): 30-36 http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/jbed doi: 10.11648/j.jbed.20210601.14 ISSN: 2637-3866 (Print); ISSN: 2637-3874 (Online) Influence of Organizational Leadership on Organizational Learning in Private Chartered Universities in Kenya Beth Wangari Njuguna * , Esther Waiganjo, Willy Muturi School of Business, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya Email address: * Corresponding author To cite this article: Beth Wangari Njuguna, Esther Waiganjo, Willy Muturi. Influence of Organizational Leadership on Organizational Learning in Private Chartered Universities in Kenya. Journal of Business and Economic Development. Vol. 6, No. 1, 2021, pp. 30-36. doi: 10.11648/j.jbed.20210601.14 Received: February 5, 2021; Accepted: February 15, 2021; Published: March 4, 2021 Abstract: Organizations are facing many challenges due to multiplicity of factors such as globalization and the resulting intensification of competition within organizations. This calls for a reexamination of organizational leadership and its response to the increasing competitive world. It also implies that organizations need to introduce robust organizational communication between leaders and subordinates in an institutionally supported and coherent package combined with high reliance on technology-based systems. The objective of this study was therefore to determine the influence of organizational leadership on organizational learning among private universities in Kenya. The study reviewed the theories of organizational learning focusing mainly on the human capital theory, contingency theory, and institution theory as well the empirical literature relevant to the study. The study adopted descriptive research design using both quantitative and qualitative approaches because it ensures complete description of the situation, making sure that there is minimum bias in the collection of data. The target population for the study was obtained from 18 private charted Universities authorized to offer higher education in Kenya, through purposive sampling. The sample population was made up of a total of 180 respondents, comprising 10 participants in the rank of senior managers from each of the 18 chartered Kenyan Private Universities. Data was collected through interview schedules and drop and pick questionnaires and analysed with the aid of descriptive and inferential statistics. A response of 87% was obtained. Pearson Product Moment Correlation analysis was carried out to ascertain the extent of the relationship between the variables. The study revealed that in private chartered universities in Kenya, organizational leadership is a valid antecedent since the variable had significant positive relationship with organization learning. Keywords: Organizational Leadership, Organizational Communication, Organizational Learning, Private Universities, Stratified Sampling 1. Introduction Transformational leadership lies in the leader’s ability to inspire trust, loyalty, and admiration in followers, who then subordinate their individual interests to the wellbeing of the group. Rather than analyzing and controlling specific transactions with the followers by using rules, directions and incentives, transformational leadership focuses on intangible qualities such as vision, shared values, and ideas in order to build relationships, give larger meaning to separate activities, and provide common grounds in order to enlist followers in the change process [1]. Transaction leadership is defined as the style of leadership that heightens consciousness of collective interest among members of the organization and assist in achieving collective goals [2]. Transactional leadership differs from transformational leadership in that the transactional leader does not individualize the needs of subordinates or focus on their personal development. Transactional leaders exchange things of value with subordinates to advance their own and their subordinates’ agendas. Transactional leaders are influential because it is in the best interest of subordinates for them to do what the leader wants [3]. In an organizational learning context, transformational leadership is believed to be the most suitable leadership style [4-6]. Transformational leadership suggests that such leaders