We never lost a major artist in 20 years which is quite rare in the record industry. We dressed as we felt comfortable. We worked in pleasant buildings rather than office blocks and people working there had fun, enjoyed the job, enjoyed challenging, taking on the major record companies. (Glancey & McQuaid, 2000, p. 94)
If Virgin Records was going to about catering to the musical tastes of a new generation, then the company that supplied those wants was going to have to be a company that operated in accord with the views and aspirations of that new generation. Traditional business attire and the smug accoutrements of the typical corporate headquarters would be dispensed with in order to create an atmosphere more in tune with the nature of the business; its employees, and its clientele.
For many years, Branson has cultivated an almost anti-corporate image. He shows up for meeting wearing jeans and a short-sleeved shirt and his hair is unkempt. He likes to tell people that he dropped out of school at fifteen (Garten, 2000, p. 115), rather than play up his education background as do many other CEO's or persons in positions of influence. The ambience at corporate headquarters is casual, relaxed, and non-threatening. The powerful owner of one's of the world's mega-corporations likes people to know that he prefers carousing with ordinary employees to black-tie dinners and formal parties:
Last night, when I came to New York, I was very tired," he said. "But I made absolutely sure that I took one hundred and fifty [of my employees] out -- not to a formal dinner but to Mr. Chow's [so that we could] let our hair down, get drunk and have a good time. But I also sat down and listened and talked to them and made notes which I dealt with the next day. And it's often... The little things that can turn a positive workforce against a company. (Garten, 2000, p. 115)
Richard Branson likes to show himself off as an outsider bucking the establishment and its ideas. He will use familiar language, and does not refrain from expressing dissatisfaction with figures presumed to have not kept their promises to the public or to the organizations they manage and control. Regarding a scheme to take over the Royal Opera House,
Richard Branson ("Virgin MegaSing"). No, when we are sitting round the conference table in his office he produces some pop paper, whose front cover has a pic of the Master and the headline "You cheated us Tony, now piss off!" (Charles, 1998, p. 9)
Branson is the "everyman" at the helm of a multinational corporation.
Perhaps a good part of Richard Branson and Virgin's success can be attributed to seamless blending of an apparently unconventional leadership style with the traditional attributes of the successful corporate executive and entrepreneur. While Branson is careful to let his employees, associates, and the public see the unconventional leader who says what he thinks and does what he feels is right, there is also another side to the business genius.
Richard Branson, the head of Virgin, is a fairly ruthless, driven businessman, like most very successful capitalists, but he has caught the zeitgeist. People wanted to believe that you could be a hard-nosed businessman, not wear a tie, be a bit of a fun guy and listen to pop music. And that is what he represented; it was a simplified ideal... Such icons will continue to pop up. The fact that we are an advanced society does not mean that people do not want these simple stereotypes. (Davies, Chun, Silva & Roper, 2003, p. 43)
Richard Branson's leadership style is a combination of a highly-accessible, and cutting edge public image with many of the values and characteristics formerly and usually associated with successful corporate empire builders. Branson would like the world to believe that he built up a gigantic conglomerate by partying, making the occasional vulgar comment, and indulging a taste for the new and unusual in music and art i.e. By acting like a perpetual teen or college student, but there is another reality. Branson knows how to work the public. He knows how to play the corporate game. And he knows what the marketplace wants. He uses popular trends to enhance the standing of the brand he has created Virgin - and to increase...
Branson Richard Branson leads the Virgin Group as an inspirational leader with a high amount of personal charisma. His views on doing business in an unconventional manner and believing in the power of motivation characterize his style as almost a servant leader. By meeting the needs of his employees, Branson is able to build a team around him that is willing to work hard to overcome obstacles. This paper will outline
Leadership of Richard Branson Richard Branson is arguably one of the most successful entrepreneurs of all time. Other great business leaders in his class include, but they are not limited to, Steve Jobs, Jack Welch, and Donald Trump. Although all have been hugely successful in their respective areas of operation, all the three leaders I have mentioned above have different leadership styles. This text concerns itself with the leadership of Richard
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Today, he challenges his employees, and stimulates them to work in strong, self-monitoring and self-efficacy spirited teams. "Branson […] relishes teamwork and brings it into play in his entrepreneurial ventures. He has 'an advisory team whose job is to capture his entrepreneurial ideas and wrestle them into some kind of corporate structure that is both attractive to investors and palpable to him.' He also gives others opportunities to develop
Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc. Company Overview The Coca-Cola Company is one of the oldest and largest companies in the United States. The Coca-Cola Company had its roots in 1886 when Dr. John Pemberton began to produce Coca-Cola Syrup for fountain drink dispensers. Coca-Cola bottling has been around since 1899. From there the franchises grew into the giant that it is today. Its most recent accomplishment is its entry into the global marketplace. (CCE,
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