Challenge of Leadership Information 2022


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The Leadership Problem and BlackberryThis study source was downloaded by 100000832290775 from CourseHero.com on 05-29-2022 12:40:05 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/36838488/Challenges-of-Leadershipediteddocx/

CHALLENGE OF LEADERSHIP 2
The collapsing of the Blackberry signified the failure of the leadership in the theory of
behavioral leadership. This framework concentrates on the actions of the leaders rather than their
qualities. It assumes that leaders can be made and successful leaders are not necessarily born
with leading skills. The behavioral theory of leadership behaviors can be learned from the
context in which the leaders are subjected to, and depending on the specific stimulus (Marshall,
2012). The leadership of Blackberry did not learn from the environment and the trends in the
market competition. They remained over complacent and failed to identify the efforts of Apple in
reinventing itself, and the threat that was posed by Google Inc. as it introduced the Android
market. Even after Apple launched its iPhones, the leadership was still overconfident that they
would persist in dominating the market. On the other hand, Google collaborated with other
mobile phone companies such as Samsung by giving away its Android operating system to
compete with the OS of Apple. The market for the smartphone was instantly flooded. Consumers
could by Android phones at cheaper prices or buy relatively expensive iPhones that were
designed to suit their demands. Blackberry remained rigid holding on to the plastic designs of
their phones, which had small screens, inconvenient apps, and physical key buttons. The
leadership failed to understand that the consumer preferences had changed and the company
needed to meet the changes in these preferences. They missed the opportunities for addressing
these threats until it was too late when the company was phased out of the market.
The behavioral theory of leadership is based on the principle that ideal leaders can
observe and adjust to certain behavioral patterns. The leadership of Blackberry failed in this
principle. The market of the smartphones was changing with consumers preferring sleek
designed phones that could easily fit into small spaces such as pockets. Apple and Android
manufacturers had identified this trend and were designing small, thin and rectangular phones
that easily fit in pockets (Marshall, 2012). In contrast, Blackberry was still based on the squaredThis study source was downloaded by 100000832290775 from CourseHero.com on 05-29-2022 12:40:05 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/36838488/Challenges-of-Leadershipediteddocx/

CHALLENGE OF LEADERSHIP 3
phones such as the BlackBerry Passport that was now being considered as ridiculous and
uncomfortable phone by some consumers. Even after the leadership of this company identified
this challenge, they did not respond to the demand, and soon enough, Blackberry was becoming
uncompetitive. The leadership was overconfident in continuing to dominate the market but
shortly, the market for the smartphones revolutionized. The American, Asian and European
markets were flooded with phones that had faster browsing and other additional features such as
the ability to tap servers that were providing data over the upgraded networks. Apple was
launched its SDK network in offering their services while Google Android was becoming
rampant. In 2011, the company suffered significantly due to its ineffective and inferior
applications, where it has since then lost 82% of its company value, to a current net worth of $ 8
billion (Marshall, 2012). The Blackberry had to redefine its operating system but remained
unresponsive.
The Organizational Culture and the Failure of Blackberry
Initially, the Blackberry had an organizational culture of engineering which served in the
immediate market. This culture led to the efficiency of the market by manufacturing low-power
devices for customers. It eventually made the company to dominate the market. As time
progressed, the company developed a culture of ignoring the customers (Obasanjo, 2016).
Instead of investing in market research and development to identify the needs of the consumers,
the leadership of the company assumed that they knew the market demands and that the
company was sufficient in satisfying these needs. They capitalized on the power of the devices at
the expense of their convenience. The leadership thought that they had the best strategies to
address the challenge of stiff competition that was roaming. However, the organizational culture
was not sufficient for Blackberry to address these challenges. The company emphasized on
businesses and carriers as the primary customers since they were paying for the services andThis study source was downloaded by 100000832290775 from CourseHero.com on 05-29-2022 12:40:05 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/36838488/Challenges-of-Leadershipediteddocx/