Elon Musk's Leadership and Ethics

This assignment examines Elon Musk's leadership style and its influence on his companies. It analyzes various leadership theories and traits he embodies, such as motivation and resilience, alongside factors contributing to his success despite failures. The role of ethical leadership in his practices is also discussed, including its advantages and potential drawbacks.

Leadership and
Management, Theory
and Practice

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................2
TASK ..............................................................................................................................................2
1. Leadership styles used by Elon Musk linked with the leadership theories.............................2
2. Leadership Qualities of Elon Musk that contributed in his success........................................4
3. Ethical leadership and its advantages and Disadvantages ......................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
1

INTRODUCTION
Leadership and management are the two terms that are considered as very similar but it is
not so. Leadership is a part of management and also plays a very crucial role in managing the
organisation very well. It makes the working environment so innovative and creative that each
and every employee feels developed and excels in their part. It is a very essential part of any
organisation since the employee needs a leader who will guide them and motivate them to
complete their part of part of work very effectively (Bolden, R., 2011). Whereas in management,
a manager is there who plays an important role in developing the whole organisation. He acts as
a leader who has all the leadership qualities that are required so as to run and manage the
company effectively. This report based on a case study on Elon Musk, who is a co-founder of
Tesla and has opened some of its own companies also like Neuralink. He was having a strong
vision and this is only considered as the main reason of its success.
TASK
1. Leadership styles used by Elon Musk linked with the leadership theories
Both leaders and managers are considered as very crucial for the success of the business
organisation. They both complete each other very well as they work at the senior level
management and provides benefits to the organisation. Companies always wants that their leader
should be effective and efficient and they invest it in also b y bringing in such people even at
high pay. But if the CEO of the company will be innovative and creative then the whole
company will grow very fast.
In the case presented, it is said that Elon Musk was the man who had a strong vision in
his. He faced many difficulties in his early years of life but still he never lost hope continued to
work on his vision. He never gave up on his ethical values and standards and the moral
2

convictions as well and that is why he became a good leader who now motivates millions of
people. The various leadership styles that were used by Elon Musk ton establish himself in the
business organisation are :-
 Laissez-Faire – In this type of leadership, the leader does not have direct supervision on
the employees and does not even provide a feedback to the people who are working
under him (Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2012). So, those employees who are highly trained
and require less supervision fall under this category. . Here, basically no efforts are put by
the leader or the manager to rain he employees and this can be a very ineffective step and
it cam lead to poor production and increase in the cost of the company (Crossan, M. M.,
Maurer, C. C. and White, R. E., 2011). By looking at the achievements and qualities of
Elon Musk, it can be said that he was a very responsible person who took cafe of each
and every activity that was happening in the society and thus it can be said that he was
not using this leadership style in the organisation.
 Autocratic – In this style of leadership , the managers are allowed to take their own
decisions for all the important activities that are happening in the organisation. Here, the
managers are having total authority to make rules for the company and the employees
have to follow it whether they like it or not. No one has the right to challenge the
decisions taken by the managers. This style is beneficial for all those employees who
requires close supervision and motivation.
Elon Musk had a belief that if you think thagt something is correct but the world will not
accept it, you should still do it. His this statement showed that he was vert confident and self
reliant therefore this leadership style will suit him perfectly as he was capable of taking his own
decisions and follow his heart. In his life, he did what he really wanted to . Foe ex. He invented
Tesla Model S electric car which was a very innovative invention but in his first attempt he
failed but he never gave up. So, it has a learning that person should never give no matter what
the situation is.
 Participative – In this style of leadership, the leaders give the responsibilities to its
subordinated but the final responsibility rests with the leader itself (Ely, R. J., Ibarra, H.
and Kolb, D. M., 2011). The leader adopts this step so as to motivate the employees and
include them in the decision making process of the company. The leader believe that the
opinions of the employees should also be taken into account as it is also valuable to the
3

company and it can definitely bring positive changes ion the organisation. This style
cannot be adopted by the management whenever they have to take decisions in a short
duration, in this the leaders are only contacted.
 Transactional – It is a type of leadership in which the managers and team have a
combined goal in which they work together. Employees here follows all the guidance and
supervision of the leader so as to accomplish its goals successfully. Here , the managers
are required to train the employees correctly whenever they fail to meet their goals.
Elon Musk is having a powerful personality who is now a role model of many people. He
motivates and guides his employees in such an effective manner so that that they can achieve
their aims effectively. He follows this style whenever he sees that the team is not able to achieve
their goals and needs good training.
 Transformational- In this style of leadership, the leaders motivate the employees by doing
good communication with them (Fletcher, D. and Arnold, R., 2011). Thus will definitely
help in increasing their productivity as well as their performance.
Elon Musk was a very reliable person and he gained trust of his followers by becoming an ideal
personality. There were various times when Tesla struggled with various issues and at that point
of time, Elon Musk used the transformational leadership strategy for controlling the whole
situation and it was worked very well at that point of time.
2. Leadership Qualities of Elon Musk that contributed in his success
Every company has a leader but effective leaders are very few. Elon Musk was one of
them. He is having some rare qualities that makes him different from others. A person should be
ambitious in life then only they can achieve success in their life and Elon Musk is a very
passionate person who believes in never giving up and that is why in-spite of facing son many
failures, today he is a successful man.
The various leadership qualities that are present in Elon Musk are:-
 Be obsessed and Obsessive :- Elon Musk is a person who never adjust in the mediocre
thjings . He always wanted the best otherwise there are many companies present who
believes that work should be completed whether it is good or not and their this thinking
makes them an ordinary organisation. Elon Musk is a completely different person . His
this passionate work style is an inspiration for every other person who is following him,m
as an ideal. He is committed to work and obsessed with every little detail related ton hios
4

project. Because of his this kind of behaviour , he was also accused of being
uncompromising and unreasonable. If any person in his team did not perform as per his
instructions then he pushes them beyond their limits so that they come out of their
nutshell and work more better (Fry, L. W. and et. al., 2011) . This leadership trait helped
him a lot in achieving success in all the ventures he started or worked in.
 Having a Passion :- In order ton become a great leader,the person should have a clear
vision in his life because if vision will not be present then he will not be ablpe to perform
his best. Vision should not just relate to where you are but also with where you want to
reach (Meyers, M. C. and van Woerkom, M., 2014). Elon Musk is known for his strong
vision and commitment , he has come this far. It is to be learned from Elon Musk that
how he started as an investor in internet company and now he is involved in pushing
forward space travel. This journey of Elon Musk is a worth watch.
There are various companies currently who is just watching and making plans about solving the
problem of global warming but Elon Musk has already started to work upon it. It is a very rare
quality and few exceptional people only have such traits. He had a vision but he also his
followers in his vision so that everyone is benefited .
 Love the brand like a religion - Elon Musk is a famous motivational speaker also and in
one of his TED talk speeches , he said that he is having a contagious love with Tesla and
his other companies . His this statement clearly specifies that he is an ardent follower of
all companies is working for and love them from the bottom of his heart. He is a great
leader too and it can be said because he loves his brand like a religion and if you want
others tom love your brand then you should love it then only you will be able to
convince others .
It is correctly said that whenever you will pour your heart into something then that thing
definitely be successful. Elon Musk is having a personality like this. He has various followers
whom he has convinced enough to become loyal to the company.
 Working for greater good – Being a leader it is the ethical responsibility of the person to
work for the betterment of the society. Elon Musk is the man who really cared about the
environment and is working for its betterment since very long. Most of the other
companies concentrate on making the customers happy and working to earn only profits
5

only. Elon Musk allowed other auto mobile manufacturers to use the battery technology
of Tesla. Through this step , he wanted to promote sustainable transport.
Elon Musk was a very inspiring leader and that is even after being in loss, Tesla motors was not
ready to leave him . They also believed that sometimes more than winning, leaders should
inspire and same is the case with Elon.
3. Ethical leadership and its advantages and Disadvantages
Ethical leadership can be defined as a kind of leadership which focuses more on the
ethics and beliefs that should be followed by the person while doing their work (Northouse, P.
G., 2015). It is related with the concept like trust, honesty, fairness etc. It is the basic quality of a
successful leader that he should be ethical. It is important because if leader will not be ethical
and do the work as per the rules and values then only his followers will do the same. Being
ethical is one of the greatest personality trait also. Through this, the leader will be able to
establish a positive working envelopment inside the organisation which will definitely help in
improving the relationship prevailing in the companies.
This theory works on the principle that “ the choices that are made by the leaders and
how they respond in a given situation are well informed and directed by their ethics”. Leaders
are having a strong influence in the society and thus they play a major role in making an ethical
climate inside the organisation.
The principles of ethical leadership are as follows:-
 Respect – It is a situation in which in which the person is allowed to be themselves and
use their creative wants and desires as well. It is very necessary because then only the
person will be able to work effectively and not in any kind of pressure (Parris, D. L. and
Peachey, J. W., 2013).
 Service – It is a situation in which the leader puts the welfare of its followers on top
priority and it includes giving due attention to others and help them in solving their
issues.
 Justice – It is a situation in which the leader treats all its followers in an equal manner.
Musk sets the same bar for its every employee and is equally strict for every one. He is
never really satisfied with himself so is the case with everyone around. He pushes his
employees so much that they give their best and achieve their goals.
6

 Honesty - It is a quality in which the leader is open with others and represent everything
clearly in front of the employee. Musk is also having this quality because he always share
all types of information with his colleagues so that they do not feel that anything is
hidden from them. When the space X was failed , at that moment Must shared a good
news with his team that he had already planned about this situation and arranged funds
too. So , the situation was very relaxing after this news.
 Community – It is a situation in which a leader and follower is having an agreement in
which the direction is given by the leader and the followers have to follow it (Raelin, J.,
2011). But there is a rule set that which says that the leaders cannot impose their will on
the followers. People who are following Elon Musk knows that he is very particular
about his work but still they are following him. So it means that people follow him by
their own will and not under any pressure.
The advantages and disadvantages of Ethical leadership are :-
Advantages Disadvantages
 Through this , things are done correctly
and quickly.
 It helps in doing the work innovatively.
 It helps in inculcating better and quick
communication.
 Better response to change in
environment.
 It sometimes brings confusion in the
minds of the employees that whom
should they follow, the leader's value or
the company's value.
 It also creates a fear in the minds of the
company that if they willn dismiss the
leader then they will loose the
employees too.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that leadership and management is very
essential in an organisation. These are the factors that are responsible for maintaining the
functions of the organisation. It is very important for the companies to have an efficient leader
because he will only guide and motivate the employees because of which they will work more
better and their performance will also improve. This report discussed about the case study of
Elon Musk who is a famous entrepreneur and a motivational person as well. This report
7

discusses about the various leadership style and traits that are followed by him in his working
and the factors that helped him gain success even after failing several times. Along with this, role
of ethical leadership and its advantages and disadvantages suggested by Elon Musk is also
suggested.
REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bolden, R., 2011. Distributed leadership in organizations: A review of theory and
research. International Journal of Management Reviews. 13(3). pp.251-269.
Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2012. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave
Macmillan.
Crossan, M. M., Maurer, C. C. and White, R. E., 2011. Reflections on the 2009 AMR decade
award: do we have a theory of organizational learning?. Academy of Management
Review. 36(3). pp.446-460.
Ely, R. J., Ibarra, H. and Kolb, D. M., 2011. Taking gender into account: Theory and design for
women's leadership development programs. Academy of Management Learning &
Education. 10(3). pp.474-493.
Fletcher, D. and Arnold, R., 2011. A qualitative study of performance leadership and
management in elite sport. Journal of applied sport psychology. 23(2). pp.223-242.
Fry, L. W. and et. al., 2011. RETRACTED: Impact of spiritual leadership on unit
performance. The leadership quarterly. 22(2). pp.259-270.
Meyers, M. C. and van Woerkom, M., 2014. The influence of underlying philosophies on talent
management: Theory, implications for practice, and research agenda. Journal of World
Business. 49(2). pp.192-203.
Northouse, P. G., 2015. Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications.
8

Parris, D. L. and Peachey, J. W., 2013. A systematic literature review of servant leadership
theory in organizational contexts. Journal of business ethics. 113(3). pp.377-393.
Raelin, J., 2011. From leadership-as-practice to leaderful practice. Leadership. 7(2). pp.195-211.
Online
Benefits of ethical leadership.2017.[Online].Available through.<https://www.ethics.net/a/five-
benefits-of-ethical-leadership>.
9

10