Competencies for medical laboratory professionals transitioning into management and leadership roles in Sub-Saharan African public health systems

Objective To identify leadership competencies required by medical laboratory professionals transitioning into management and leadership roles within resource-constrained public health laboratory systems in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Methods A qualitative case study design integrating semi-structured interviews with 16 laboratory professionals across 14 SSA countries and a concurrent document review of 24 national laboratory policies (NLP) and national laboratory strategic plans (NLSP) from 22 SSA countries. Data were analysed using thematic analysis, with findings triangulated across multiple sources and subsequently mapped against the WHO Global Laboratory Leadership Programme (GLLP) competency framework. Findings Ten leadership and management competency domains were identified: communication and stakeholder engagement; values-based and ethical leadership; relational and emotional intelligence; vision setting and strategic leadership; people management and team leadership; resource mobilization and financial stewardship; organizational and systems oversight; technical and scientific competency; research and data use; and public health orientation. None of the 24 reviewed national laboratory policies and strategic plans contained an explicit leadership competency framework. Triangulation against the GLLP competency framework revealed full convergence across six competency domains, while three competencies represented as sub-domains in the GLLP emerged as standalone domains in this study. Relational and emotional intelligence, the third most cited domain by participants, encompassing empathy, adaptability, humility, and approachability, is absent as a discrete competency in the GLLP framework. Conclusion Existing global laboratory leadership frameworks insufficiently capture the relational and emotional intelligence competencies demanded by SSA laboratory leaders and managers. These findings reinforce calls for context-sensitive and locally grounded leadership competency frameworks. In addition, laboratory policies should embed explicit, competency-based leadership frameworks to guide the systematic development, implementation, and evaluation of laboratory leaders.