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The COVID-19 pandemic has led to various governmental challenges in the digital age. Consequently, social changes have resulted, inevitably leading to competitive economic, commercial, and industrial situations between countries. These changes may motivate many countries to adapt or change their governmental organizations to be consistent and effective in wider social contexts.
As a result of the pandemic, the roles of managing local governments and budget disbursement on behalf of the public relied on digital age frameworks. Local administration is authorized by the government to manage the necessary activities within local areas. In local administration, citizens elect those who will work as the executives and staff to perform the administrative matters, including essential services within the municipality.
There are many forms of local administrative organizations in different countries. However, in any kind of management, the leader is key (Tancharoen, 2011). In effective work management, the leader must express the competence in management and the flexibility towards situations in addition to bringing people together to accomplish goals. Administrators should be able to apply their knowledge and skills to persuade groups of people to pursue the same goals. In this regard, leadership is crucial for the organization’s management because of its impact on individuals.
Authentic leadership is a form of leadership influenced by positive psychological theories (Avolio & Gardner, 2005). Authentic leadership has gained respect as a response to administrative mistakes and violations of rules by executives in both governmental organizations and private sectors, causing damage in terms of finance, credibility, and organizational image. Therefore, many individuals would like greater accountability inside organizations, accompanied by the expectation that leaders have fundamental ethical values and perform with honor while driving their organizations to benefit the whole rather than serving goals of special interest groups (Avolio & Mhatre, 2011).
Authentic leadership highlights the leader who understands the organization’s driving mechanism and team members under his or her leadership. Another reason that authentic leadership is suitable for the modern era is the increasing number of members of Gen Y (1980-1994) and Gen Z (1995-2015) in the labor market. These two groups are similar in the way they were raised and in their use of various technologies and social media, enabling them to learn things quickly and broaden their minds from their exposure to information provided by the digital world. Additionally, both groups tend to dislike being forced to “think inside the box,” and they often do not respond well to traditional forms of leadership that focus on control and power rather than the formation of authentic relationships between a leader and a follower.
In addition to leadership that promotes people’s well-being in the workplace, social capital is also influential as a means of knowledge exchange that allows organizations within communities to engage in beneficial activities. A foundational knowledge base is a significant asset that every organization and individual should have. Through social capital, which is regarded as values, some communities in Thailand were found to be self-reliant, surviving with little external influence. The long-existing values of Thai society function as social capital, and they are evident in the case of Satcha Savings Group in the southern region, network groups for conservation in the northern region, and other communities in Thailand.
Through leadership and social capital, the well-being of people could be enhanced. The importance of living a life according to the rules of well-being has gained global attention. According to a United Nations report, the Thai way of life under the rule of well-being has become clearer based on the major objectives of the Tenth National Economic and Social Development Plan (2005-2008), which considers people as the epicenter for developing the country by prioritizing happiness instead of solely focusing on economic growth (Termpittayapaisith, 2008).