Leadership of Richard Branson Essay

Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin conclave has been a household secernate in the United Kingdom for over twenty years. He is sanitary respected in the cable world. He is the founder of the Virgin Group, which is cognize for rough(prenominal) different things such as cell phones, record labels, bearinglines and many more. Branson is also known for his unique character and leading elans, one who is non afraid to take risks, and believes that people ar the foundation to his societys success. If I were to first characterize his lead appearance I would regulate he is definitely a democratic leader. He truly feels that get other peoples input and listening to what people hold in to say ar a core value to him. He carries a notebook in his pocket completely the time just in case he hears something interesting from people that he interacts with on any level. Whether it be an employee, friend, line of line of merchandise separatener or complete stranger, for him he knows that good ideas can pay off from anywhere and anytime (Leadership Styles, 2006). fit to Psychologist Kurt Lewin, democratic leaders accommodate the final decisions, yet they include aggroup members in the decision-making process.They encourage creativity, and people are often highly engaged in projects and decisions. As a result, team members fly the coop to have high job satisfaction and high productivity. This is not of all time an effective style to use, though, when you need to make a quick decision. The billet dictionary website corresponds in its meaning of a democratic leadership style stating that the style involves a team where all persons are included in the decision-making process as well as the procedural course of action. According to an article in Entrepreneur, there is almost nothing Richard Branson wont do to promote his phoner. As eccentric as this plights whitethorn be, they have made Virgin one of the best-known and most popular scar patterns in the world. The article goes on to explain how his strange business and managerial strategies have created a $5 billion empire. Richard Branson has also been referred to as a wordy leader. The visionary leadership style is described as a big-picture opineer who sets clear standards and inspires with a good sense of shared mission, the visionary leader can be overbearing (Blustein, 2013).When asked about hisleadership style, Richard Branson says he makes sure he is surrounded by team builders who can make sure that the needs of individual employees do not get helpless in the pursuit of a grand vision. He also says to think twice before showing the smart people who work for you how much smarter you are (Blustein, 2013). Emotional Intelligence is defined as skill in perceiving, understanding, and managing emotions and feelings, ken of ones own emotions and moods and those of others, especially in managing people, an awareness of and ability to manage emotions and create motivation (Dictionary.com, 2014). Richard Branson is an example of emotional comprehension in practice. In 2003, the commercial successes in the highly rivalrous and quicksilver(a) Australian Aviation Indusattempt, with the launch of Virgin Blues corporate existence, the company has achieved 30% marketplace share of the Australian domestic air travel market and is due to float on the Australian spud exchange at a capitalization of billions. Bransons leadership potency characterized by emotional intelligence, has been evident through his ability to relate to trip and unify stave from this industry at a time when many air duct employees were disillusioned and skeptical in a third airlines ability to favoredly operate in the Australian market (Carlson, Voola,& West, 2004).This shows how the unique aspects of Richard Bransons leadership style mesh palmyly with the circumstance attributes of the multifaceted organization that is Virgin. Richard Branson is known to motivate employees b y encouraging all employees to apply for jobs at other Virgin companies that they find interesting. In youthful years, a few Virgin companies have provoked as a result we often refer to them as our shot in the weapon companies. They show customers and employees what our business stands for, and often inspire our teams at other businesses to try new challenges. Another way Branson keeps employees engaged is by inviting them to take part in company heretoforets, the likes of the Virgin Mobile Live absolve fest, a free music festival held e actually year to reboot money (through take upations) for homeless young people. Along with giving employees a calamity to give something back to the community, the festival allows an opportunity to say thank you to customers and staff by providing them with the chance to enjoy themselves for free. The sense of fun unites the businesses reminds employees of what the company stands for. In some ways its easier for a large organization like Vir gin to embark on such projects,but with a shortsighted inventiveness and resourceful thinking, other business owners might come up with shot-in-the-arm schemes of their own (Entrepreneur, 2012).Maintaining a rivet and motivated staff can be a difficult task for employers to master, especially during harsh economic quantify and with stretched resources. Branson recently held a series of talks for employees, where they were encouraged to engage and argument different subjects. The exercises were held on a tropical island in the Caribbean. Every company does not have the luxury of taking their employees off to a tropical island, that doesnt mean there arent ways to get minds focused and engaged. If one is trying to grow a diverse, creative team, it is not needed to take employees to the Caribbean to keep them learning. Branson has suggested inviting guest let the cat out of the bagers to the office. Go to events focusing on topics that are not strictly related to your industry an d select some of your employees along. He advises, one of the best ways to learn is by taking team members out of their comfort zone and embracing new ideas, results result yield. focusing on a topic out of the norm can bring renewed vigor to everyday activities (Preston, 2013). My assessment of Richard Bransons ability to label and communicate his vision for his company to employees and other stakeholders in the traditional sense of writing a mission parameter, he has failed.However, I believe that actions speak louder than words, and with that said, Richard Branson has done an outstanding job in showing his mission statement. In an interview with Entrepreneur Branson says, Many business management experts would argue that a mission statement should be your companys cornerstone, inspiring and making known your employees in the years ahead. I cant agree. The Virgin Group does have a mission statement one that is brief and to the point. In general, there is too much importance being placed on such statements, but it is interesting to see how they reflect common missteps in business, for example Enron. Before the giant energy company went bankrupt in 2001, ruining the lives of tens of thousands of employees and investors, its vision and values statement was Respect, integrity, communication and excellence.While some mission statements consist of one vague statement, others are too long, which may reflect managements lack of understanding of what a company really does. Branson goes on to say that if Virgin had to put their mission statement on a coat of arms, it would probably say somethinglike, Ipsum sine timore, consector, which very loosely translated from the Latin means, Screw it, lets do it (Entrepreneur, 2013) thither are four steps to evaluate whether Richard Bransons leadership style is a good fit for me as a manager delay my leadership styleAssess the organizations culture learn my expectations in a leaderLearn about Richard Bransons leadership style and whether or not it meshes. Asking the following questions about the organisational culture can help clarify what type of work surround the organization offers Work styleHow does our work done? Collaboratively? Independently? A combination? How are decisions made? Consensus-driven? Authoritatively?How is communication? Verbally or in written form? Directly or indirectly? Voicemail, email, or in person? What are meetings like? Serious? Lighthearted? tightly or loosely structured? Professional opportunities and advancementWhat types of people black market to do well here? Individual contributors? Team players? People who are proactive or more responsive? How is the structure? Hierarchical or flat? Centralized or decentralized authority? Clear describe structures or matrix? How people who do well rewarded?What happens when people dont perform well?I conclude that I would be successful working under this type of leader. William George, a Professor of solicitude Practice, Henr y B. Arthur Fellow of Ethics, at Harvard Business School says the most successful leaders will not necessarily be those with the highest IQ. He says they will need to be intelligent, cultured, and emotionally intelligent. According to George, additional characteristics of a successful global leader include An intellectual understanding of the global business context. The capacity to simultaneously develop a global and local perspective. universe able to overcome the dominant thinking at headquarters. A expertness for cross-boundary partnering.A self-awareness and self-assurance when it comes to ones values and sense of occasion The ability to develop networks that are internal and external to the organization. George goes on to say, Ultimately, a global organization is measured by how well the diversity of its leadership reflects the diversity of its customer base and well that leadership can leverage the skills of teams working around the world (Hanna, 2012). In my opinion, Rich ard Branson fits the bill as a global leader. Sir Richard Branson is among the latest crop of billionaires who have promised to donate at least one-half their fortune to charity. The Virgin Group founder, who is worth more than $4bn, has added his name to the Giving Pledge campaign set up by U.S. investor warren Buffett and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. In their pledge letter, Sir Richard and his wife Joan said they treasured to use cash from the company to create a healthy, equitable and still world for future generations to enjoy (Tomlinson, 2013). My prediction is Richard Branson will be an even bigger success than he is now. He has pledged to give forward half his Virgin fortune to make a difference in the world. It takes a real leader to make such a contribute for others.References(2006, 05). Leadership Styles Richard Branson. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 05, 2006, from http//www.studymode.com/essays/Leadership-Styles-Richard-Branson-88459.htmlBlustein, A. (2013). What kind of leader are you?. Inc, 35(8), 58-59. Carlson, J. Ranjui, V. & West, A. (2004). Emotional intelligence and competitive advantage examining the relationship from a resource-based view. Retrieved family 6, 2014 from http//onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jsc.664/abstract Hanna, J. (2012). create the global leader. Working knowledge the thinking that leads. Harvard Business School. Retrieved September 6, 2014 from http//hbswk.hbs.edu/ relic/6967.html Kets de Vries, M.R. (1998). Charisma in action the transformational abilities of Virgins Richard Branson and ABBs Percy Barnevik. organizational Dynamics, 26(3), 7-21 Tomlinson, S. (2013). Stuff does not bring happiness Sir Richard Branson pledges to give away half his Virgin fortune to make a difference in the world. Retrieved September 6, 2014 from http//www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2281792/Sir-Richard-Branson-pledges-away-half-Virgin-fortune-make-difference-world.htmlixzz3CmVyTGEc