This paper seeks to discuss in depth why Steve Jobs is one f the best leaders of the decade. It also seeks to discuss and analyze the functions of leadership and how Steve Jobs fulfilled the functions of leadership. An attempt will be made to identify the key concepts in leadership and style and determine how they are related to the concept of function and style.
Steve Jobs has been named CEO of the decade by the Fortune magazine and other magazines. This is because his leadership was based on the key concepts of function and leadership style. The big question is how Steve Jobs fulfilled the functions of leadership. In fact, he approached leadership in a unique style. He built the necessary skills and used the key concepts of leadership functions and leadership styles. In this way, Steve Jobs was able to communicate with the employees under him. He also allowed his employees to get involved in his innovations and leadership functions. He also made sure that all the employees participated in the general growth and development f the business. This not only brought the company success but encouraged a healthy relationship amongst the employees and the leadership in the company. According to Steve Jobs, ‘quality is more important than quantity’. (DuBrin, 2008)
The key concepts of leadership are communication, motivating, expert social influence or transformation focus, self mastery, installs the right mindset and marketing. Communication is very important in any business. The staff of a company can exchange suggestions, ideas, points and advice by the medium. Lack or poor communication in an organization can only limit the productivity of the same. This means that one of the leadership functions is to enhance and encourage healthy communication in a business environment. Motivation is what drives the employees. It is a function of a leader to ensure that the employees are motivated. This will enable the employees to carry out their jobs and duties with a deeper determination and help the company achieve its vision and goal. Exerting social influences is a very important aspect of a business. The leader has the function and responsibility of ensuring that the company has social influences in the business area and the in social circles. Installing the mindset is another function of leadership that involves training, such as teaching the employees to adopt and embrace a new mindset. This would eventually get the employees thinking in the same line with the leaders in order to achieve the desired vision and goals of the business.
There are many factors that match the concept of leadership or the functions and style of leadership. These concepts include communicating the vision whereby the leader communicates the vision of the company and expects the employees to work to achieve it, as well as being a change agent whereby the leader leads by example and makes the first step to initiating change in the company and in the society as well. (DuBrin, 2008)
Controlling factor can be described as a method used to bring out material effects. These material effects refer to aspects, such as cost saving and quality. This cost reduction method helps squeeze lower prices from manufactures or suppliers. The cause of the decline of Toyota was associated with the fact that there was a problem in the controlling factors. In this regard, the best solution was to identify the problems and find ways and means to solve the problems.
Controlling and cutting costs had a major effect on Toyota. However, it is not entirely to blame for Toyota’s recent massive decline. Other factors and reasons have also contributed to the same. It would help a great deal if the new management was strict and tough. This is because this would help make new improvements on the same. Toyota, on the other hand, has insisted that their focus on the cost has had no negative effect on their clients. However, this fact is reflected in the low sales. This means that by reducing the price, Toyota reduced the quality of their products.
Many factors match the leading and controlling concept. These factors include communication, motivation, installing mindset and being a change factor. In this concept, communication is very important. This is because poor communication or lack of communication may have been the cause of the present state of Toyota. Communication allows flow of information in the company. Motivating the staff would be one of the best way to encourage the staff and employees of the company to do their work and duties properly. The leadership of Toyota should adapt the concept of being a change factor. This is because change starts from the management and flows down to the staff. In this way, the staff will have an alternative to adopting and accepting the changes in the company. The quick ad rapid reduction of cost by the Toyota Company made it successful for a few years. Recent years have seen leaders facing the negative effects of the mess that was made years ago. This calls for caution by the leaders while making major decisions in a business or company. (Schermerhorn, 2010)
Apple Inc, under the management of Steve Jobs was a convectional company, serving a large world market. For an Organization to perform well, it is noteworthy that time management strategies get some considerable concern. This paper addresses the problem of time management in an at Apple Inc, with a focus on a focus on two Chief executive officers, and the pressure Tim Cook faced to sustain the large market and reputation left by Steve Jobs. This paper has also shown long term and short term guidelines to solve this problem. Therefore, time management is an aspect to the company’s performance.
Apple Inc, a multinational corporation based in California, is a hugely successful company. This company designs, develops and sells computer hardware, computer software company and consumer electronics. This company, founded in 1st April 1976,s later got incorporated in 1977. The computer software that this company deals with include; iOs OPERATING SYTEM, OS X, the iTunes, ilife, and iWork. Apple has produced consumer products such as iPod, iPad, iPhone and Mac books in the recent past. These products that this company produces have been hugely influential in shaping its performance. However, production of these products cannot make this company successful if they do not timely launch their products. Apple Inc has an extraordinarily complex management structure (Elliot 2012). Its management includes a board of directors that oversees the C.E.O and the senior management to ensure ethical operation of the apple on a day to day basis. This ensures the serving of shareholders long term interests. The directors set goals that are time bound so that the company is always in the right track. The board of directors, as a part of the leadership management structure also, maintains high standards of ethics and responsibility in the company.
Also, the Board of governors adopts committee charters and governance guidelines that form framework for Apple. This occurs in accordance with Apple’s articles of Incorporation and their bylaws. The management structure has a design that enables it to easily make effective decisions, and monitoring of compliance and the performance of the company. The performance of this company has to be assessed with time limits, hence the importance of sound, time management techniques and strategies (Forsyth 2010).
Stephen Paul Jobs is the co founder of Apple Inc. This leader is a charismatic leader through his style of leadership he accorded Apple Company during his reign. His career is as an American entrepreneur has taken a tremendously successful bearing. In the management of the Apple Inc, this leader has been particularly keen with time management. He uses this skill productively, and this makes him outstanding in the Mobile and telecommunications Industry. In fact, he is the father of the digital revolution and the master of Innovation. Steve Jobs used the specific skills in management of apple Inc these are skills that are not even found in university management books. These skills were a combination of his excellent ability to innovate in the field of technology and the fact that he was a sheer genius.
Steve Job’s life as an entrepreneur in the field of technology also recognizes the Importance of time management in a magnificent company like Apple (Croft 1996). To quote Steve Jobs, during the days of his life and career as the CEO of Apple, he said that time is an extremely limited resource, and it should not be wasted with living within other people’s thinking. He advised that people should not let other people’s opinions drown their own inner voice as this is the way time wasting in one’s personal life begins.
This problem occurred on 24th August 2011 during Steve Job’s resignation. Steve Jobs resignation in 2011 from he company he co founded was a formidable task. On resigning, he left Coo Tim Cook and assigned him the responsibility as CEO. Steve jobs gave Tim Cook an opportunity to change the world. Steve Job faced a dilemma of the person to give the leadership of Apple. This was a challenge for the service of this company. If Tim Cook did not respond timely to the demands of the company, he could have made huge losses. This is the toughest decisions that Steve Jobs had in his career. In his resignation letter, he articulated that his resignation had come a lot earlier than he wanted because of his health problem. This problem that Steve Job faced is time related. It could take time for Tim Cook to achieve the same status or at least sustain the company all by himself. The problem had widespread implications to Apple as a whole. If Tim Cook did not respond fast enough they would continue suffering losses and poor trust and confidence from both shareholders and the target population. These implications called for an urgent need for Tim Cook to respond to the demands of the company without wasting time, since time is an important resource.
Cook faced the challenge relatively well and used short term solutions to fill the gap left by Steve Jobs. Cook who extremely industrious man by started by re assuring the shareholders that the resignation of Steve Job was a hard hit to apple, but he would perform best in the Company to protect the Interests of the share holders at large. Tim Cook was also careful at maintaining the interests of his customers. Secondly, he ensured that the products produced by Apple Inc were of a better quality than the products produced. A good example to re affirm this is the recent production of the Mac book and tablets that have excellent performance. The third strategy that Team used was motivation of the employees at Apple. This was very instrumental in solving the problem of quality service delivery by apple, after the departure of Steve Jobs.
As a long term way of sustaining Steve Job’s performance, Cook was particularly hard working to motivate the staff, and this served as a Uniting factor. Therefore, the performance of this company is even better than it was before. The second strategy of Tim Cook was to work hard to invest in new products at Apple Inc. This is an essential aspect to shape the current glory of Apple Inc. In fact, the glory of this convectional company is a result of its leaders ability to save time and respond appropriately to disasters and effects of the changing times in the company. The third strategy that Tim Cook used to solve the problem of adapting into this company in long term was by advertising Apple products. This had very successful implications to Apple at large, hence excellent success.
Conclusion
From the foregoing, it is undoubtedly evident that time management is an essential aspect in management of any premise. It is utterly necessary for CEOs to respond fast enough to the pressure they are subjected to from time to time. Effective leaders like Steve Jobs and Tim Cook have proved to be effective time managers during their lifetime. The management strategies of Apple Inc and other companies consider time management as one of the most vital resources to enhance their performance. Time management strategies ensure that effective leaders diligently handle the problems faced by their companies and this serves as a productive way of protecting the company’s interests and the interests of its targeted population.
This paper has outlined and discussed the different aspects of leading and controlling. It has considered and defined the functions of leadership and the style of leadership. The key concepts of leadership functions and style have also been identified. It has integrated other common factors to the different aspects of leading and controlling
Calculate the Price of Your Paper
PROCESS
Order now
Discounts
About
Reviews
FAQ