THE LEADERSHIP OF MUHAMMAD

The appearance of any work by British-New Zealand scholar Joel Hayward is a matter of interest and significance for those interested in History, but the breadth, scholarship and intellectual ambition of this tome make it of particular importance. In a meticulous analysis of the leadership style of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) (ca.570–632), Hayward

traces the key nodal points of his career, relying a lot on the text of the Qur’an itself, but also on al-sirah al-nabawiyyah of Ibn Hisham, or Abu Muhammad [Abd al-Malik ibn Hisham ibn Ayyub al-Himyari al-Mu[afiri al-Basri (d. 833), plus the mainstream Sunni Hadith collections. As such, his sources are impeccable and his interpretation irreproachable. This engrossing and sympathetic study portrays the Prophet as a highly competent and reliable human being possessed of significant political and spiritual talents. In short, the aim of this book is to ‘analyse Muhammad’s leadership ideas, methods, and related behaviour in order to ascertain whether his fascinating life can provide substantial and meaningful insights about the effectiveness of his strategic leadership’ (p. 20). In this, Hayward is most successful.