SBS MBA Case Study: Leadership and Supply Chain at Vodafone

This case study examines the leadership styles and skills of Detlef Schultz in transforming Vodafone's global supply chain. It discusses the suitability of transformational, supportive, and integrative leadership approaches for Vodafone's context. Schultz's ability to inspire, motivate, and communicate effectively, along with his strategic business perspective, are highlighted as key leadership skills. The analysis concludes that effective leadership, particularly transformational leadership, has been instrumental in Vodafone's global success. Desklib provides access to similar case studies and solved assignments for students.

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 1
Leadership types and skills
Name
Institution of affiliation
Date

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 2
Question 1
Every organization requires a leader who has good leadership qualities and has a rich
knowledge of the leadership skills needed in the well running of the organization. Good
leadership skills not only make the running of the organization to be an easy task but also makes
the company or organization achieve its target of hitting the highest profit targets. Is there
specific leadership style suitable for Detlef Schultz? To answer this question, it is important to
consider many aspects. Firstly, it is important to note that leading an organization is not an easy
task and, in fact, not everyone has the necessary skills to be a good leader. A person can be born
with the predisposition to lead but if he does not put it into practice or strive to improve his
leadership skills, this innate capacity cannot be exploited and, therefore, it would be as if he did
not have it (Goleman, 2017). Consequently, before answering the question, is there a suitable
leadership style for Detlef Schultz?, we are going to inquire about the concept of leader.
Contrary to a manager, a leader is the person who is able to influence and support others so that,
with commitment and involvement, they can direct their efforts in favor of fulfilling the
objectives of the organization. Some of the characteristics of a good leader are: commitment,
initiative, empathy, charisma, effort, long-term vision, honesty and self-confidence (Avolio &
Avolio, 2011). Depending on their personality and interests, a leader will decide to adopt an
innovative leadership style or another. Some of the leadership styles that can be adopted are the
following: transactional, transformational, authoritarian, democratic, consultative and laissez-
faire. Answering the initial question, there is no ideal leadership style; each of them has its
advantages and disadvantages. Depending on the employees and the person in charge of leading
the group or team , a certain style of leadership it will be more appropriate than another (In
Mughal & In Kamal, 2018). For example, in the case that a team consists of people who like to

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 3
take initiatives and prefer not to be controlled by their superior, it is possible that the style of
leadership that best suits this case is the Laissez-faire.
For our case, Detlef Schultz would have needed to adopt a transformational type of
leadership in revolutionizing Vodafone’s global supply chain function. This is because the
transformational type of leadership is the best type of leadership that would have made the
transformation of supply chains of the company an easy task (Adeniyi,2007). The first strength
of this type of leadership that would suit Schultz is that it is visionary, charismatic as well as
motivating. Vodafone, at this time, needed that charismatic and visionary type of procurement
leader in order to reach out to the fast and rapidly growing global market.
Transformational leadership also has an influence on the attitudes as well as assumptions
of the members on an organization( Adeniyi,2007). Since this type of leadership centers on the
welfare of the workers, they tend to develop the feeling that they are an integral part of the
organization. This will make them give the best out of their selves. For the case of Vodafone,
Schultz would have applied this leadership type to influence workers in different branches of the
organization to develop that positive attitude towards work. This would have been the best way
to carry out his procurement management plans.
Transformational type of leadership fosters innovations and intellectual growth amongst
the workers. Bradberry, & Greaves(2012) are of the opinion that this leadership style gives the
workers and other stakeholders the opportunity to work on their own and come up with
innovative ways of solving problems and performing various tasks. It is this kind of leadership
that would best suit Schultz. This is simply because Vodafone is a technology related company
that needs a lot of inventions and innovations as well as the use of personal wit in solving

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 4
pertinent issues to technology. A good case example is that he would have to ask the IT and
telecommunication workers to come up with strategies on how to get more and more customers
in the global market. It is valid to say that the transformational type of leadership is the one that
has taken Detlef Schultz to the heights he has reached in procurement and management skills.
Another recommended leadership style for Detlef Schultz is supportive leadership. This
form of leadership is crucial in modern time (Northouse, 2009). Given the circumstances related
to ever-changing business environment, Vodafone need flexible structures that allow them to
adapt immediately to the demands required by global markets; For this, the entrepreneurs who
direct and coordinate these companies must support leadership in accordance with the new
conditions that mark the economic dynamics of a globalized world.
Lastly, integrative leadership approach fits Detlef Schultz. This model integrates the
variables of the leader, the work environment and subordinates, and considers that in order to
comply well with its complex functions, the leader must be fundamentally competent to perform
them, must be able to reward the good performance of his subordinates and have a true
representativeness to their superiors (Kotter, 2012), which allows them to influence them and
achieve superior management support to achieve their objectives together with their people
(Conyne, 2013). This model is crucial for Schultz because he is operating a multinational
company
Question 2
Schultz has good leadership skills that would help him to transform Vodafone ’s global
supply chain. Adeniyi(2007) says that one of the most notable skills that he has is that he is good
at inspiring and motivating others. Since the concept of supply chains needs a supplies manager

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 5
who inspires the workers and motivates them, this skill will go a long way to increase the output
of the workers (Hersey, Blanchard & Johnson, 2011).
Additionally, he has a drive for results. As a supplies chain manager, he needs to apply
this skill to ensure that workers give their best in making the global supplies. He is the one to
ensure that things happen the way they should be and that every worker produces the best results
that would, in turn, elevate the global level of the company (Adeniyi,2007). Schultz knows well
about the power of effective communication. He is aware that proper communication makes
thing happen in the correct manner. Another key leadership skill is that he has a pool of strategic
business perspective. Vodafone ‘s procurement requires this skill as it is necessary for laying
down strategies on how to expand its global market.
Conclusion
In conclusion, every leader running a business organization ought to have a wide
knowledge of the skills and types of leadership. This is necessary as the running of the affairs of
an organization will run smoothly with the right leader in position. In this context, Vodafone has
the right leader who has the right skills and qualities in the form of Detlef Schultz. This explains
why the company’s supplies chain has spread all over the world and consequently making it one
of the biggest companies in the world.

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 6
References
Adeniyi, MA (2007) Effective leadership management: An integration of styles, skills &
character for today's CEOs. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse.
Bradberry, T, & Greaves, J (2012) Leadership 2.0. San Diego: Talent Smart.
Rossiter, DE & JG Ferguson Publishing Company (2004) Leadership skills. New York:
Ferguson.
Northouse, PG (2009) Leadership: Theory and Practice. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Conyne, RK (2013) Group work leadership: An introduction for helpers. Thousand Oaks :
SAGE Publications, Inc
Kotter, JP (2012) Leading change. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business Review Press.

VODAFONE’S CASE STUDY 7
In Mughal, Y. H., & In Kamal, S. (2018). Servant leadership styles and strategic decision
making. Hershey, PA : Information Science Reference.
Hersey, P, Blanchard, KH, & Johnson, DE (2011) Management of organizational behaviour:
Leading human resources. Harlow: Prentice Hall.
Goleman, D (2017), Leadership That Gets Results (Harvard Business Review Classics). Boston:
Harvard Business Review Press.
Avolio, BJ, & Avolio, BJ (2011), Full range leadership development. Thousand Oaks, Calif:
SAGE Publications.