Leadership in Business: Self-Assessment

This report analyzes the case study of Levi Strauss to understand the importance of effective leadership in implementing changes and improving strategies for organizational growth. It also includes a self-assessment of leadership skills and discusses the concepts and models learned from the case study.

Running Head: SELF-ASSESSMENT 1
Leadership in Business
Student Details
4/21/2019

Self-Assessment 2
Executive Summary
Leaders play important role in the success of an organization or they are the one who ensures a
company’s growth. There are certain traits and characteristics of a person that make him/her a
good leader. Good leaders are both born and made. Some people are born leaders while some
develop leadership skills into them through various assessments, learning, and development
techniques. This report considers case study of Levi Strauss where changes were made to
improve the strategies of the company in order to ensure growth of the organization and to deal
with the challenges which the organization were facing. To implement those changes
successfully, effective leadership is required. Also, I have discovered my leadership skills from
the analysis of this case study.

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Contents
Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................2
Introduction......................................................................................................................................4
Cultural Change in Organization.....................................................................................................4
Self-Assessment...............................................................................................................................6
Leadership and Management.......................................................................................................7
Managing Self............................................................................................................................10
Training and Development.........................................................................................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................12
Recommendations..........................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................14

Self-Assessment 4
Introduction
Levi Strauss & Co. is one of the best and biggest brands in the denim jeans industry. This company was
founded in 1853 and its headquarters are situated in San Francisco, California. There is no other company
comparable to Levi Strauss which has such a large presence in more than 160 countries. The company has
manpower of around 8,850 employees worldwide and is making jeans in approximately 108 sizes and 20
fabric types (Goleman & Boyatzis, 2008). This report analyses the ‘Performance Pay Program’ of Levi
Strauss which was introduced in the organization to enhance and foster the corporate values and strategies
of the company. This article discuss about the strategies which were implemented in the company and
changes which were made to respond to the new challenges putted by apparel industry in front of Levi’s.
New president of the company sensed the need of promoting communication, honesty, diversity and
respect, empowerment and personal accountability, trust, and ethical management practices for the
organization (Huczynski, et al., 2013). Analysis of Levi Strauss case study provides knowledge about
several topics and elements of management which are important for a person who wants to be a leader or
the person who is looking for becoming an entrepreneur in future (Dearborn, 2013). Several key elements
of business management can be learned from this case study analysis and this can be used as a personal
development assessment tool for oneself. In this report, I am discussing the leadership skills, theories,
concept, and models which can be learnt from this case study in order to create an action plan for my
organization or team. Various performance management plans and strategies which were used by Levi
Strauss can be helpful in developing actions and goals for our organization for its future success and also
developing my leadership skills.
Cultural Change in Organization
In this case study of Levi’s, management of the company observed that the strategies which
benefited the organization in past are no longer profitable and are not able to respond to new
challenges posed by competitive emerging apparel industry. Therefore, there is need of
implementing cultural changes in the company to deal or meet with the increasing and changing
demands of the market. This suggests one that with changing time, there is need of implementing
changes in the organizations or its culture. Several factors cause changes necessary for a
company such as technology, social norms, and new techniques (Unimelb, 2016). Change is not
easy as resistance to change is common generally among human beings. Hence, organizations
require effective change management strategies to make the cultural changes successful. From

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analysis of various change management strategies, it has been found that the most effective
method is top down. All changes can be best implemented under effective leadership and the
actions taken by corporate leaders ensure success of change implementation. Developing a sense
of urgency among employees and the staff of the organization is the best way of convincing
employees to embrace the change. A leader should communicate the changes and their need for
the growth of the organization and individual (Zoltan, 2015). This makes employees need to
understand the situation and they build trust in their leader and the organization. Second thing
that can be done to successfully implement changes in the company is providing role modelling
to the employees. If the change is implemented from the top down fashion, it shows commitment
of leaders towards change and thus shows a guiding light to the entire organization. This inspires
employees that the leader is taking change ideas to heart and also helping them to clarify that
what changes really look like. If, sometimes, it requires terminating employees or even the senior
leadership then the company should not take back steps in order to show the commitment of the
company towards change (Newman, 2009). There are some techniques for the effective
implementation of changes in an organization such as excellent communication, training
programs for employees to embrace changes easily and effectively, and changing leadership or
the leaders who are creating barriers to change (Cherry, 2012). In this case study of Levi’s, the
company introduced a new pay and performance management program in order to integrate the
values into the business and thus holding employees accountable for acting on them.
Self-Assessment
Self-assessment is important to discover the capabilities and abilities of one-self. Various studies
have shown that the effective leaders are the one who are honest with themselves and always try
to map their strengths and weaknesses in order to make improvements if required. Questioning to
self is not easy but to become successful both personally as well as professionally, there is need
of reflecting ones’ actions, achievements, and attitudes (Review, 2008). Here I am using the case
study of Levi Strauss case study on ‘Performance Pay Program’ to analyse my strengths and
weaknesses as well as how I think and consider the actions adopted by Levi’s to improve its
profitability. In my interactions with various leaders, I admire the importance of listening they
emphasize on. Listening skills of a person refers that person is absorbent to feedbacks and
employees can get more comfortable in sharing their ideas and feedbacks (Allio, 2012). In this

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case study of Levi’s, the company involved its employees in decision making processes and
asked them for their suggestions and ideas for implementing this strategy of performance pay.
Good leaders are the one who do not hold their team back, but there are also two factors
associated with it: micro-managing and hands-off. In both of the situations individuals’
motivation gets destroyed. Hence, a leader should find a balance between these two. Providing
enough freedom to the employees to enhance their creativity and also stay involved enough to
provide guidance in case team members feel discouraged (Odumeru & Ogbonna, 2013).
A good business leader does not avoid difficult conversation and challenges. He/she always
discuss the things and problems with his team members and make his/her best efforts to come up
with a solution. Showing gratitude and appreciating his/her team members is great quality of a
leader and it builds strong relationships with his/her team members (Goleman, et al., 2001). I too
appreciate my team members and colleagues and help them by providing necessary guidance
whenever they required. In this case study of Levi’s, company showed its gratitude towards its
employees through making them partners in performance.
Self-assessment allows one to accept his/her mistake. We are human beings and it is quiet
common that mistakes can be made by anyone. I always make apology for my mistakes as soon
as I realise it. Generally I am not that much emotional and have perfect balance and control over
my emotions but sometimes it happens. But according to me great leaders are those who take
responsibility for their actions (Dugan & Komives, 2011).
Leadership and Management
Leadership is an action that leads the people towards a common goal while management on the
other hand is a process which deals or controls people or things. There is difference between
managers and leaders. Managers are the people who plan, organize, and coordinate. They
continuously reassess their process in order to make sure that everything is going according to
the planned process (Mullenweg, 2014). Approach of mangers is more systematic as they follow
set rules and regulations to properly manage the functions and personnel of the organization.
Leadership on other hand is action of motivating, leading, and encouraging others to do
something in order to achieve the set goals and objectives of the company or individual. In this
case study of Levi’s, in 1984, Bob Haas became president of the company and he and his

Self-Assessment 7
management team observed the need of introducing new strategies to restore the profitability of
the company. The new strategies included removing of unrelated and unprofitable businesses,
and stopping of not required facilities. Along with his management team, Bob Haas hammered
out shared vision and values for the future of the organization. These values defined by Hass
became the ‘Aspiration Statement’ of the company and even today also these are the ideals on
which employees, operations and departments are measured (Meltzer, 1994). This requires an
effective leadership which has the capability of making Aspirations of the company into reality.
Some of the leadership skills which were identified by the company for that process include a
leadership which adapt and also make others open to adapt new behaviours such as personal
accountability, openness to influence, willingness to acknowledge our own contributions to
problems, team work, directness, trust, and commitment to others’ success (Renz, 2016). A
leader who is capable of managing and handling diversity at the workplace at all levels of the
company. Diversity has become a positive factor today as it is providing advantages to the
organizations through its rich backgrounds and abilities of people (McShane, et al., 2016).
Recognition is important to enhance the motivation of employees and thus a leader with
recognition ability is required to provide greater recognition for individuals and teams (Isaacson,
2012). Ethical management practices are important for every organization in order to maintain an
ethical environment at the workplace and to provide safe working conditions to the employees.
Therefore, a leader should be able to provide clarity about ethical behaviour standards to the
employees. A leader should have excellent communication skills in order to tell employees about
company’s expectation from them in terms of performance and goals and in this regard he/she
should provide honest and timely feedback to the employees on their career aspirations and
performance (Malos, 2012). Lastly, the leadership that Levi’s expected from their leaders was
empowerment of employees in terms of responsibility and authority.
Partners in performance program focused on linking objectives of individual and team
performance to the strategic business plans of the company through rewarding employees for
making company’s values as their integral part in their work system (Jarvis, 2003). This strategy
mainly focused on empowering its workforce and directly connecting them to the profit of the
organization (McShane, et al., 2016). It helped the organization in making its employees more
accountable for their work as they are the one who are responsible for their profits or loss.

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In this case study of Levi’s, the leadership model adopted by its leaders was ‘Transformational
Leadership Model’. There are four elements of transformational leadership model: building
commitment to the vision, communicating a strategic vision, model the vision, and create a sense
of urgency or shared commitment and purpose. Transformational leadership focuses more on
people and their desires and motives (Goleman, 2017). This kind of leadership model inspires
employees or people to go beyond their job limits in order to achieve the set goals and objectives
of their own and the organization as well as making them more accountable for their work
instead of looking supervision every time and in everything. Levi’s pay and performance
enhance program was introduced to develop the transformational leadership environment at the
workplace (Government, 2015). This leadership style look beyond the immediate profits or the
missions and focuses more on creating a workforce which requires less help from leaders. Hence,
in short we can say that transformational leaders are focused on people and less on individual
project.
I also appreciate the transformational leadership the most because it is the kind of leadership
which allow or promote innovative and creative thinking in employees. One example of
transformational leadership is ‘Steve Jobs’. Leadership style of Steve Jobs was transformational.
He believed in bringing changes and innovation. He was the leader who used to share his vision,
thoughts, and ideas with his employees and asked them to work on those ideas. It was his
leadership that made Apple Inc. as the biggest brand in Smartphone industry and brought new
meaning in the IT industry (Whatley, 2012). This leadership allows its employees to work more
independently and hence promoting their creativity. Making its employees to be their financial
profit partners inspire them to work with their full potential and thus contributing in the success
of the organization the most. Incentives and rewards are considered as the best motivators for
employees.
Transformational leadership adopted by Levi’s has made the company to overcome from crisis
and it is the most adopted leadership style by most of the organizations. I admire this kind of
leadership the most and believe that I also pose traits of this leadership style. This is because I
think I have the ability of self-management and I am highly internally motivated. I have the
ability of working under pressure and I hardly need direction from others in difficult situations.
Not only I am capable of self-management, I can also lead and direct my colleagues during

Self-Assessment 9
difficult situations. I motivate them and increase their enthusiasm to achieve their and
organization’s objectives. I have the ability of taking risks and I do not afraid of taking them.
With proper research and team support I can make risky decisions to facilitate growth.
Managing Self
Self-management is the key factor to become a good leader. As discussed above, I mentioned my
qualities as being a transformational leader. A person to be managed self if he/she wants to
manage others. Managing self is the greatest source for a person to becoming a good leader. A
leader is a role model for his/her followers and inspires them to do what he/she wants them to do.
Therefore, managing self plays an important and crucial role in leadership. Managing self refers
knowing self-capabilities, how one functions best, building their skills, and nurturing one. Every
person has his/her individual personality according to emotions, thought, and behaviour of a
person. Depending on the ‘Five Factor Model’ (Goleman, et al., 2001), I have analysed my
human personality as careful, self-disciplined, dependable, calm, comfortable, creative,
imaginative, and sociable. There come several challenges while working on various tasks and in
that situation a leader should be self-managed and emotionally strong to deal with any kind of
stress and challenge (Government, 2015). Balance and control are among two most important
factors of or elements of a good leader. This is because if a person losses his/her self-control then
it will lead to over stressed conditions and the stressed workers are the least or non-productive at
all. Stress limit the ability and efficiency of a person and thus makes him/her less capable for
being a leader (Youtube, 2019). Through developing a work-life balance I have achieved self-
management skill which is one of the best or necessary skills to become a good leader.
Training and Development
Training and development is important for every organization in order to make its employees
capable of adapting and learning the changes and new technologies without any difficulties.
From the analysis of Levi Strauss’s case study, it has been found that the organization also
implemented a training program naming ‘CORE CURRICULUM’ for its employees (Meltzer,
1994). The motive behind this program was to make its employees aware about aspirations of the
company and integrate them into daily work lives of them. Similarly, training and development
program enhances the performance of individual and groups by educating them various concepts,
skills, and attitude.

Self-Assessment 10
Hence, it is known that training and development programs provide several benefits to the
organizations which include enhanced productivity, decrease in redundant work and errors,
reduced accident rate, enhance competency on job, increase retention of employees, and
promotes innovation and creativity at workplace (Goffee & Jones, 2005). Training is required to
make its employees more adaptable towards change. When employees are asked to adapt
changes without providing them necessary guidance and training for completing task, then the
chances are that employees without having sufficient knowledge for the job might make more
mistakes and errors rates are increased (Whatley, 2012). Increased errors thus reduce the
productivity and efficiency of the organization and hence causing revenue loss to the company.
Training and development programs are also helpful in personal development of individual.
Training helps in learning and enhances the skills, concepts and knowledge of a person and thus
increases their self-confidence. I consider myself as adult learner as I learn from my life
experiences and learn from both my success ad failures (Goleman, et al., 2001).
Conclusion
From the above discussion and self-assessment practice, I have identified that I pose qualities of
a good business leader. According to the assessment I have the qualities of transformational
leader and I would be able to lead my team members effectively similar to Steve Jobs. This case
study of Levi Strauss also concludes that it adopted the transformational leadership style to
implement changes in its strategies and functioning. This resulted in huge success for the
company. Transformational leadership style is one of the best leadership styles and these
qualities of mine will make me successful in future. Although, these qualities of mine, training
and development programs and managing self-techniques will further help me in improving my
leadership skills.
Recommendations
From the above discussion, below are the some recommendations for a person who wants to be a
good business leader in future. By adopting or following these recommendations, one can
improve his/her leadership skills:

Self-Assessment 11
1. Perform weekly self-assessment to check up on ones’ strengths, weaknesses, and to
identify the areas which need improvements;
2. Motivate others;
3. Accept your mistakes and failures;
4. Reward your team;
5. Effective listening;
6. Following the role model;
7. Dealing struggles;
8. Well disciplined;
9. Self-management;
10. Balance and control

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References
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Leadership, 41(1), pp. 4-14.
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Dugan, J. P. & Komives, S. R., 2011. Leadership Theories. In: s.l.:s.n., pp. 35-57.
Goffee, R. & Jones, G., 2005. Managing Authenticity: The Paradox of Great Leadership.
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