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 Branson's leadership style and assess whether that style might translate well to the American market.
Chapter 10 outlines three basic models of leadership. The first is traits leadership, which holds that characteristics of the individual can be used to determine whether or not that person would be an effective leader. Four traits that have been specifically identified are intelligence, maturity and breadth, achievement drive and integrity. A great leader, therefore, should have all four of these in abundance. Branson demonstrates all…...
mlaWorks Cited:
Chapter 10: Leadership and Team Behaviors.
Chapter 11: Leadership and Team Behaviors.
ichard Branson
Describe Branson's leadership style terms leadership models addressed Chpts. 10 & 11 evaluate effectiveness style U.S. today. 2. ecommend a leadership style (combination styles) make Branson effective leader
ichard Branson: Leadership style
ichard Branson is the charismatic CEO of the Virgin Group Ltd. Branson is internationally famous for his iconoclastic approach to leading his organization. Branson can be characterized as a transformational leader, intent upon using his somewhat unsystematic personality to inspire success amongst his followers. Branson's success came early in life and he continues to prove himself to be an adaptable leader who inspires devotion. "Sir ichard Branson had his first jolt of entrepreneurial success when he published a magazine at 16. Since then, he's become a respected leader of cutting-edge enterprises and an inspiring pioneer of humanitarian projects" as well as Virgin (Adonis 2010). It is important to note that although Branson could be characterized as a transformational leader,…...
mlaReferences
Adonis, James. (2010). Richard Branson's leadership tips. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved:
Crush, Peter. (2010). Exclusive: Sir Richard Branson talks to HR Magazine about leadership.
HR Magazine. Retrieved: http://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/hro/features/1018119/exclusive-sir-richard-branson-talks-hr-magazine-leadership
Richard Branson Analysis
Leader Critique
A Critique of the Leadership Style of Sir Richard Branson
Sir Richard Branson makes an excellent example of an interesting leader to study. Branson's parents provided a relatively unique upbringing and raised him to be as independent as possible. For example, his mother was a stewardess for an airline and also a performer who would create challenging games for her children to play. She would do things like drop off a young Richard Branson in a field close to their hose and make him find his own way home. Another example is that she would tell him to ride his bike to the next town over and then find his way home again (Finkle, 2011). His parents also preached the values of free thought and encouraged him to make his own opinions about life but distilled the importance of hard work as a way to achieve personal goals.
Despite…...
mlaWorks Cited
Bass, B. (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectations. New York: Free Press.
Bass, B. (1999). Two decasdes in research and development in transformational leadership. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 9-32.
Blodget, H. (2014, October 18). Richard Branson Responds To Elon Musk's Criticism; 'We're About To Prove Him Wrong'. Retrieved from Business Insider:
Leadership of ichard Branson
ichard 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 ichard Branson. In so doing, it will amongst other things take into consideration his leadership style and success at the helm of one of the world's most recognizable business brands, the Virgin Group.
The Leadership of ichard Branson
From the onset, it should be noted that ichard Branson is a charismatic leader. Charismatic leadership according to Lussier (2011, p. 337) "is a leadership style that inspires loyalty, enthusiasm, and high levels of performance." In that regard, therefore, a charismatic leader is likely to…...
mlaReferences
Griffin, R. (2007). Fundamentals of Management (5th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Lussier, R. (2011). Management Fundamentals: Concepts, Applications, Skill Development (5th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Morschett, D., Schramm-Klein, H., & Zentes, J. (2011). Strategic International Management: Text and Cases (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Springer.
Preston, J. (2014). Richard Branson: How to be a Real Leader. Retrieved from http://www.virgin.com/entrepreneur/richard-branson-how-be-real-leader
Sir ichard Branson, who is the founder and chairman of Virgin group limited, has been identified as a transformational leader. His form of leadership is liked and disliked by many across the globe. Branson has been known to have a different way of leadership which has led the Virgin group to go through thick and thin over the years. Even though the company now has a total of 50,000 employees and makes about 20 billion dollar sale every year, it has suffered setbacks because of Branson's leadership as well. The leadership Branson exhibits attracts his followers possibly because he is so open about everything. The strategies and skills that he puts forward are not a secret and are very doable as well. Branson went on to openly declare how and when he had caused damage to the company. When the leader tried to launch n Mp3 player or insisted on…...
mlaReferences
Martindale, N. (2011). Leadership Styles: How to handle the different personas. Strategic Communication Management, 15 (8), pp.32-35.
Phillips, R.L., & Hunt, J.G. (1992). Strategic leadership: A multiorganizational-level perspective. Westport, Conn: Quorum Books.
Tangpinyoputtikhun, P. And Tiparos, K. (2011). A Study of Congruence of the Behavior of Follower Fit with Leadership Style That Affect Work Performance . Journal of Academy of Business and Economics, 11 (3).
Waugh, R. (2012). Sir Richard Branson will fly into space next year - along with Angelina Jolie and 529 other passengers paying £128,000 each. Mail Online, [online] 11 July. Retrieved from: -- hes-bringing-family-529-passengers-paying-128-000-each.html [Accessed: 18 December 2012].http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2172022/Sir-Richard-Branson-fly-space-end-year
Branson cites his early management decisions at Virgin ecords as prime examples of this people-oriented approach:
At Virgin records we attracted some of the best artists because they liked the way we ran it. 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 ecords 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…...
mlaReferences
Branson, Richard. (2006). "About Richard." From, Losing My Virginity, as it appears on the Virgin.com web site. Virgin.com. URL: http://www.virgin.com/aboutus/autobiography/ .
Hopkins, Michael S. (2006). "Richard Branson, Virgin Group." 26 Most Fascinating Entrepreneurs. Inc.com. New York: Mansueto Ventures, LLC. URL: http://www.inc.com/magazine/20050401/26-branson.html .
A www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5001329434
Charles, L. (1998, March 20). Who Needs the NME?. New Statesman, 127, 9. Retrieved September 27, 2006, from Questia database: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5001329434
Leadership of ichard Branson
Determine two (2) key ways in which ichard Branson is likely to motivate employees in order to achieve his goals for the Virginia Group. Indicate whether or not his approach is likely to work in a different organizational setting. Provide support for your rationale.
Ensuring that the workforce is focused and always motivated can be a very tricky skill for most employers to master particularly when there is a stretch of time and resources. For ichard Branson this seems like an insurmountable challenge with the size of Virgin group and the diverse companies under it. ichard Branson has recognized the influence that the culture of the company has over the members of staff. There are two key ways that ichard Branson is likely to motivate employees in order for him to achieve hos goals for the Virgin Group. The first way is through inviting them to take part…...
mlaReferences
Daft, R. (2012). Management (10th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Reference
Preston, J.(2010). Richard Branson: how to energize your employees. Retrieved March 15,2014 from http://www.virgin.com/entrepreneur/richard-branson-how-energise-your-employees
Branson, R.(2013). Richard Branson: Five Secrets to Business Success. Retrieved March 15,2014 http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/228382
owner of Virgin Company, ichard Branson. The paper puts special emphasis on the leadership style of Branson. It talks about his ease of interaction with the employees and his impulsiveness that he had. There is also comparison between transactional and transformational forms of leadership.
Sir ichard Branson has been given many titles for his extra ordinary working abilities and plans. Branson has been termed as a transformational leader and this title is appreciated and criticized by a lot of people. Where Branson is known to make impulsive decisions, his interaction with his employees is quite remarkable as well. His leadership characteristics have caused the Virgin Company many losses but may benefits as well. Till this day, the company has a total of 50,000 employees. Along with having such a big employee count, the company goes on to make a lot of sales as well. Having sales of about 20 billion…...
mlaReferences
Martindale, N. (2011). Leadership Styles: How to handle the different personas. Strategic Communication Management, 15 (8), pp.32-35.
Tangpinyoputtikhun, P. And Tiparos, K. (2011). A Study of Congruence of the Behavior of Follower Fit with Leadership Style That Affect Work Performance . Journal of Academy of Business and Economics, 11 (3).
Waugh, R. (2012). Sir Richard Branson will fly into space next year - along with Angelina Jolie and 529 other passengers paying £128,000 each. Mail Online, [online] 11 July. Retrieved from: -- hes-bringing-family-529-passengers-paying-128-000-each.html [Accessed: 18 December 2012].http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2172022/Sir-Richard-Branson-fly-space-end-year
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 their ideas into business ventures that he backs" (McCuddy and Morgal).
But not only that he guided himself by attributions, he also became their target. Probably the most relevant example in this sense is offered by the years spent in educational institutions, where he struggled due to dyslexia and poor eyesight, resulting in a poor social perception of the future entrepreneur. It could be possible that his being attributed the perceived characteristics of laziness and stupidity motivated him to prove his…...
mlaReference:
McCuddy, M.K., Morgal, M.L., Sir Richard Branson: Development of an Entrepreneur
Leadership
SADDAM HUSSEIN VS ICHAD BANSON
COMPAISON OF LEADESHIP SKILLS AND ABILITIES
In comparing two very successful leaders we will be able discern the key qualities and actions that made them either a good leader or a bad leader. The path both Saddam Hussein and ichard Branson took to elevate themselves to the high level leaders each of them became will be discussed and I will compare and contrast the methods of leader development and the advantages and disadvantages each provides.
Saddam Hussein
Born in Tikrit, Iraq in 1937, Saddam Hussein endured a humble existence and difficult childhood. Nevertheless, the secularist Hussein was a political animal who rose through political ranks with the Ba'ath Party, learning his leadership methods by studying Josef Stalin (Hickman, 2003). In 1968, a bloodless coup by the Ba'ath Party resulted in the Presidency of Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr and the high government position of al-Bakr's Deputy for Hussein (Biography.com editors, n.d.).…...
mlaReferences
Biography.com editors. (n.d.). Richard Branson biography. Retrieved from www.biography.com: http://www.biography.com/people/richard-branson-9224520
Biography.com editors. (n.d.). Saddam Hussein biography. Retrieved from www.biography.com: http://www.biography.com/people/saddam-hussein-9347918
Feloni, R. (2015, October 19). Richard Branson explains his 10 rules for being a great leader. Retrieved from www.businessinsider.com:
entrepreneurial leaders, charismatic Richard Branson and visionary Muhammad Yunus, and discusses their leadership styles and major business principles.
Richard Branson
ho would have guessed that this high school dropout would become a billionaire and world-renowned entrepreneur? Born Richard Charles Nicholas Branson on July 18, 1950 in Surrey, England, Branson launched his first successful business at age 16. Branson struggled with dyslexia until he dropped out of boarding school to launch a youth culture magazine called Student. The publication was run by students, for students and sold $8,000 worth of advertising in its first edition. The first run of 50,000 copies was disseminated for free, after Branson covered the costs with advertising (Bio, 2011).
Branson went on to become the founder of the Virgin Group, an international conglomerate of some 350 companies, all of them combining for more than $8 billion in annual sales. He became Sir Richard Branson when he was knighted…...
mlaWorks Cited
Bio. (2011). Muhammad Yunus biography. Retrieved October 21, 2011 from: http://www.biography.com/people/muhammad-yunus-218222
Bio. (2011). Richard Branson biography. Retrieved October 21, 2011 from: http://www.biography.com/people/richard-branson-9224520
Gangemi, J. (2005). Nobel winner Yunus: Microcredit missionary. Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved October 21, 2011 from:
Branson
Describe Branson's leadership style in terms of the leadership models addressed in Chapters 10 and 11 and evaluate the likely effectiveness of that style in the U.S. today.
Sir Branson's leadership style is the combination of authentic and transformational. He believes in hiring staff that have the skills to perform effectively. he authentic leadership style leads the way to his skill to work with the understanding that people make mistakes and they can be corrected while the work continues. As a transformational leader he demonstrates the capability needed to foresee company development, inspire and empower staff. With these attributes it requires him to have balance as a leader in the day-to-day working environment while creating a productive work environment and focusing on company goals.
According to Chapter 1, "Leadership is the process of developing ideas and a vision, living by values that support those ideas and that vision, influencing others to embrace…...
mlaThis leader is known as a risk taker and someone who is always looking for new projects as attempts to elevate his business to new levels. With the input and help of a strong management staff, Virgin Group is comprised of retail, air travel, financial, music, books and telecommunications. Branson is at the helm of a multi-million dollar global business, so his leadership style has proven to be quite successful with his decision-making and people skills.
He developed his entrepreneur ability at an early age. As a person who by society's standards was not successful academically and suffered with dyslexia, he never let others define him. Instead what some saw as a weakness it was used to his advantage, while pursuing his dream of being a top business leader. Overall, his inexperience and personal treatment from others helped with creating a strong commitment to treating people with respect. "Virgin Group is an organization driven on casualness and data, one that is bottom heavy rather than one that is made difficult by upper-level management. (Richard Branson/Herb Kelleher-Leader Extraordinaire, 2012, Pg. 1).
For a number of years Branson has been leading global teams by recognizing how valuable staff is to the success of a business. The additional skill needed is to be aware of the societal and organizational culture and global laws that affect business. In Chapter 11, "Societal culture is shared motives, values, beliefs, identities, and interpretations or meanings of significant events that result from common experiences of member of collectives and are transmitted across generations (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011,
He also is the richest man in the world, and came from a high-achieving family. (His mother was a college regent and the head of United Way.)
Gates was known for years as an autonomous loner. He did not marry until he was nearly 40, and he keeps a very low public profile, unlike the more charismatic and outgoing Branson.
Gates is legendary for his need for dominance. Neither he nor Branson "need" to work anymore, they could live comfortably off their income for the rest of their lives. However, Gates continues to run Microsoft, and be involved in all the decision making. He is "transitioning" out of the leadership role to lead his charitable foundation, but it will take two years and he will still be involved in high-level decisions. It seems it is very difficult for him to give up the reins and he must dominate the company he…...
Hierarchy Leadership
Henry IV Part
There are many fears people have for the unknown. However, the confidence a leader has when facing unknown risks sets him apart. That is an aspect ichard Branson the Chief Executive Officer of the virgin group understands and takes to his advantage. He faces the risks coming his way with confidence as he drives his team towards the achievement of his company goals and objectives. For ichard Branson, there is always a positive end to every challenge faced, and that drives him courageously to face any difficulties. ichard Branson has managed setting up standards for a vast range of virgin logo. He has a vast empire, entertainment industries like Virgin records, telecommunications ventures like Virgin Mobile and airline business such as Virgin Atlantic Airways (Lambert, 2012). The major aim for ichard is self-achievement. This is a part of life; he has reached through several challenges. It,…...
mlaReferences
Branson, R. (2012). Richard Branson: Be a Leader - Not a Boss. BasinessDay, Retrieved from day.co.zalarhcles/Content.aspx?iF162636http://www.business
Branson R. (2011). How Can I Empower Employees? Entrepreneur, Rehievedfrom ml article/2l7 880http://www.entrepreneur.co
Branson, R. (2011). Look Good in a Corporate Photo. Bloomberg Businessweek,
Collins, J. (2001). Level 5 Leadership: The Triumph of Humility and Fierce Resolve, Harvard Business Review, Retrieved from http://www.sturgesspurtill.com.aullibrary/Leadership.pdf
Leadership
Few leaders so overtly and ostentatiously embody the concept of transformational leadership as Sir Richard Branson. Branson heads the mega company Virgin Group. The leader's unconventional personality has been described as vocal and flamboyant, (Management and Leadership of Richard Branson at Virgin Group Ltd., 2010). Although Branson is known for his personal charisma, he does not limit himself to a charismatic leadership style. Charismatic leaders operate on the assumption that Charm and grace are all that is needed to create followers, (Leadership Styles, Changing Minds).
From his charismatic character flows a natural leadership style that encourages personal freedom of choice at the managerial level. Thus, Richard Branson can be best appreciated as a transformational leader, and one who has extraordinary vision. Transformational leadership is characterized by the empowerment of workers to make decisions that promote organizational goals, visions, and values. Transformational leaders aim to achieve an articulated vision of the organization,…...
mla"Management and Leadership of Richard Branson at Virgin Group Ltd." (2010). UPX Success. Retrieved online: http://www.upxsuccess.com/leadership_richard_branson.html
"Most Recognized Organizational Leadership Models." Retrieved online: http://hubpages.com/hub/Global-Leadership-Models
Murray, A. (n.d.). Leadership styles. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved online: http://guides.wsj.com/management/developing-a-leadership-style/how-to-develop-a-leadership-style/
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