Strategic Leadership: An Analysis of the Leadership Style of Richard Branson

Running head: STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP: AN ANALYSIS OF THE LEADERSHIP STYLE OF
RICHARD BRANSON
Name of the Student:
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Author’s Note:

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As stated by Martins, Martins and Pereira (2017), the effectiveness or the efficiency of
the different corporations substantially depends on the leadership approach which is being used
by the leaders related to the concerned corporation. Hunt and Fitzgerald (2018) are of the
viewpoint that the leadership style which is being used by the corporations or the leaders related
to them is an important determinant of the overall organizational performance or the productivity
of the concerned corporation. More importantly, the leaders are required to ensure the fact that
they utilize the power as well as the influence that they have within the corporation in an ethical
as well as fair manner so as to facilitate the long-term growth of the corporation and also help it
to attain competitive advantage or sustainability as well. The purpose of this essay is to
undertake an analysis of the manner in which Richard Branson had contributed towards the
enhancement of the performance of Virgin Group and also its growth as well.
Howard and Ulferts (2017) are of the viewpoint that the primary objective of the plethora
of job roles that the business leaders are performing within the spectrum of the different
contemporary corporations is to enhance the overall organizational productivity, help it to
achieve its organizational goals or objectives and thereby to help it to attain competitive
advantage or sustainability. Adding to this, Sethibe and Steyn (2017) have noted that it is for the
effective fulfillment of these objectives that the different job roles like mentoring, coaching,
motivation, strategy formulation and others are being undertaken by the leaders. Furthermore,
the leaders also make a positive contribution towards the inculcation of the kind of
organizational culture which while reflecting the corporate values of the corporation would also
motivate the workers to perform as per the expectations or for that matter performance standard
of the corporation (Sethibe 2018). More importantly, it had been that these job roles undertaken
by the business leaders while helping the workers to overcome the issues or the challenges that

2STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
they face helping them to perform as per their maximum potential and thereby make a positive
contribution towards the overall organizational productivity (Grobler and Du Plessis 2016).
These aspects of the job roles which are being performed by the contemporary business leaders
for the enhancement of the overall organizational performance become apparent when the
contribution made by Richard Branson towards the conglomerate Virgin Group is being taken
into consideration.
According to Schawbel (2020), the effective usage of the participative leadership style
along with the attribute of emotional intelligence had helped Branson to transform the start-up
venture which was established by him in the year 1979 in collaboration with Nik Powell to the
contemporary conglomerate Virgin Group. Adding to this, Meyer and Meijers (2017) have noted
that an important difference between Branson and other contemporary leaders is the fact that
through the adequate usage of the participative style of leadership he had been able to include the
workers of the corporation within the decision-making process used by the same for the
formulation of the important decisions related to the corporation. The same holds true for the
strategic formulation process which is being undertaken by Branson. For instance, once the
strategies or the visions are formulated by Branson he takes the feedback or the suggestions of
the workers and if feasibility modifications are being made to the same on the basis of the
suggestions or the feedback offered by the workers (Williams 2017). The resultant effect of this
is that this had substantially enhanced the engagement of the workers and also they feel
accountability for the achievement of the goals or the objectives of the corporation since they
have been formulated taking into account their feedback and opinion (Mishra 2016). More
importantly, Branson himself offers the various kinds of mentoring, motivation, coaching and
other related services to the workers of the corporation so as to help them to overcome the issues

3STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
that they face and thereby help them to perform as per the performance standards or the
expectations of the corporation (Bruijl and Gerard 2018). In addition to these, through the usage
of the trait of emotional intelligence he had able to create a positive work environment within the
corporation which in turn had enabled the workers of the corporation under discussion here to
perform as per their maximum potential (Avery 2017). These aspects have enabled the workers
to substantially improve their individual performance which in turn had positively affected the
overall organizational productivity or the performance of Virgin Group as well.
Martins, Martins and Pereira (2017) are of the viewpoint that the leaders by virtue of the
designation that they hold within the different corporations enjoy a significant amount of power
as well as influence and the effectiveness or the efficiency of the leaders substantially depends
on the manner in which they utilize this power and influence. Adding to this, Angka and Darma
(2016) have noted that manner in which the leaders use their power and influence substantially
determines the kind of relationship that they would have with the workers, the organizational
culture of the corporation and thereby the overall performance of the corporation as well. In the
particular context of corporation Virgin Group, it is seen that the usage of the participative
leadership style and emotional intelligence had enabled Branson to exercise his power as well as
influence within the corporation in an ethical and fair manner (Williams 2017). For instance,
Branson ensures that each of the members of the corporation is being treated equally and has the
opportunity to participate in the decision-making process of the corporation. Furthermore,
although the different strategies and also the strategic vision of the corporation are being
formulated by Branson himself yet it is seen that he actively take the feedback as well as the
suggestion of the workers and improvements are being made to the same if possible (Schawbel
2020). In the light of these aspects, it can be said that the effective usage of the power and

4STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
influence which Branson holds in Virgin Group have facilitated the inculcation of an
organizational culture wherein the workers feel not only respect and equal but also feel the desire
to perform as per their maximum potential which in turn had contributed to the growth of the
corporation.
As discussed by Sethibe (2018), the primary focus of the different contemporary
corporations is on the attainment of competitive advantage within the business markets of their
operation and for this they focus on the effective utilization of the emerging innovative
technologies, value proposition of the products or the services offered by them and others.
Adding to this, Howard and Ulferts (2017) have noted that the important issue arises since it is
seen that the majority of the corporations completely disregard the aspect of leadership for the
attainment of competitive advantage and sustainability. In the particular context of the
corporation Virgin Group, it is seen that leadership is an important aspect which is being used by
the concerned corporation for the attainment of competitive advantage and sustainability. For
instance, Branson himself undertakes the formulation of the different strategies, tactics, strategic
vision and others which are intended to enable the corporation to attain competitive advantage
and sustainability (Avery 2017). Furthermore, through the adequate usage of the participative
leadership style and also emotional intelligence he had been able to effective motivate the
workers of the corporation and also create the kind of workplace wherein the workers are being
able to work adequately for the achievement of the business goals or the objectives of the
corporation (Bruijl and Gerard 2018). This while helping the corporation to substantially
enhance its performance had also enabled it to attain competitive advantage within the business
market of its operation.

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Hunt and Fitzgerald (2018) are of the viewpoint that the leaders are required to analyze
the strategic effectiveness of the corporation so as to identity whether they are likely to help the
corporation to attain competitive advantage or sustainability and also to determine whether it is
possible for the workers to achieve the strategic objectives or not. Adding to this, Meyer and
Meijers (2017) have noted that the corporations often take the help of the kind of strategies
which are unrealistic and this in turn adversely affects the ability of the corporations to attain
competitive advantage and also sustainability as well. In the particular context of Virgin Group,
it is seen that Branson himself undertakes the formulation of the strategies for the corporation
and the workers of the corporation are also offered the opportunity to participate in the decision-
making process. More importantly, the workers also have the opportunity to offer their feedback,
suggestion, opinion and others which in turn are being taken into account for the modification or
for that matter the amendment of the strategies (Mishra 2016). This in turn ensures the fact that
the strategies, goal and objectives are achievable and also likely to help the corporation to attain
competitive advantage as well as sustainability. Thus, it can be said that realistic nature,
feasibility, the extent to which it is attainable by the workers and others are some of the most
important criteria which the leaders need to use for analyzing an organization’s strategic
effectiveness.
To conclude, the leadership approach which is being used by the corporation is an
important determinant of their overall organizational performance. For instance, the
contemporary leaders actively participate in the strategy formulation process, motivate, mentor,
coach and offer other services to the workers which help them to improve their performance.
Furthermore, they are also required to help in the creation of an organizational culture through
the adequate usage of their power and influence wherein the workers would be able to perform as

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per their maximum potential. This in turn helps the corporations to improve their performance
and also attain competitive advantage in the business markets of their operations. These aspects
of the impact of leaders on organizational performance become apparent from the above analysis
of the same in the particular context of Branson’s contribution towards Virgin Group.

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