Leadership Styles of Global Business Leaders: A Report

This report provides an analysis of leadership styles within the context of international business, focusing on the leadership approaches of prominent figures such as Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. It explores various leadership styles including autocratic, transformational, and charismatic leadership, highlighting their application and impact on business success. The report also includes a personal development plan, designed to identify strengths and weaknesses, set goals, and outline objectives for enhancing leadership skills. This plan incorporates background research on leadership theories, self-assessment, and strategic planning to facilitate individual leadership development and overcome challenges. The analysis underscores the importance of adapting leadership styles to different situations and the role of leaders in motivating subordinates and achieving organizational goals.

International Business

Table of Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................2
Main Context.........................................................................................................................................2
Leadership styles...............................................................................................................................2
Business leaders................................................................................................................................3
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................5
Personal development plan....................................................................................................................5
Stage 1- Personal analysis.................................................................................................................5
Stage 2- Setting goals........................................................................................................................5
Stage 3- Personal objectives..............................................................................................................6
Exhibit B...............................................................................................................................................6
Personal Development Plan...................................................................................................................6
Background research.........................................................................................................................6
Self-assessment.................................................................................................................................7
Plan....................................................................................................................................................8
Exhibit C:..............................................................................................................................................9
Individual Leadership Development Plan..........................................................................................9
References...........................................................................................................................................12
1

Introduction
The leaders are important for the organization as they make the differences with their visions
and capabilities for realizing the visions. There are different types of leaderships styles can be
seen in the eminent leaders, who keep their mark by their visualization, intelligence,
efficiency, and skills to influence their subordinates to achieve a specific goal. The leadership
theories support in understanding the leadership process of the leaders (Bennis, 2009). There
are several global leaders such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, who has made a headline
in several medias in last few years by their innovative ideas and charismatic leadership style.
Main Context
Leadership styles
Autocratic leadership which is also known as the authoritarian leadership is the leadership
style in which the leader take control over all the decisions. They make decisions on the basis
of judgments and ideas and rarely accepts the advice from the followers. The autocratic
leaders are able to make quick decisions as per the need of the situation. They are also
effective when there is a need of controlling the situation in an appropriate manner (Floyd,
2006). A leader should have the capability to control the situations, make effective decisions
and motivate their employees towards their goals (Burns, 2012). The most important things
that should be kept in mind by the autocratic leaders respect the subordinates, explain in
detail the rules and regulations, be consistent and educate everyone before the
implementation of the plan. The leaders have the responsibility to achieve the goals of the
organization with the help of their leadership styles.
The Steve Jobs is depicted to be following the transformational and the charismatic
leadership styles. The transformational leadership style is depicted to be including the
2

initiatives in the form of changing the environment of the organizations and the groups as it is
depicted to be motivating others than they are intended to it. The setting of the challenges for
purifying the qualities is made with depicting the achievement of higher quality expectations
and also the higher performance (Giuliani & Kurson, 2007). The Charismatic leadership
styles are depicted to be a manifestation of the revolutionary powers in which the sheer
changes in the behavioral changes are identified. This is simply illustrating the transformation
of the beliefs with the increment of the followers' values. The differentiation of the attitude
towards a specific object is identified as it is depicted to be underlying the normative
orientation in the form of structuring the specific attitudes and also the underlying normative
orientation is illustrating the appropriate power by framing the attitude in an appropriate way
(Raum, 2008).
Business leaders
Bill Gates is one of the most successful business leaders in the world. He always had focused
on his goals and encouraged innovation and creativity. He had worked very hard to establish
its company in the market. For this, he always had motivated and encouraged its team
members with its leadership skills and knowledge. Bill Gates requests his staff members to
report and present their own ideas and concepts on a regular basis (Hunt, 2013). In regular
meetings, Gates regularly raise questions that will be beneficial for the company and solve
the issues in an appropriate manner. Autocratic leadership style was followed by Bill Gates to
control its employees. However, like Gates, many leaders exhibit more than one leadership
style. Depending on the situation and conditions, different leadership styles can be followed
by the leaders. Most of the leaders adopt one or more than one dominant leadership styles
(Pinnock, 2012). Bill Gates has always been successful because he only followed the
authoritarian style to carry out its tasks and motivate its employees. Autocratic leaders like to
3

control their employees and situation. The autocratic leadership style is very much effective
in emergency circumstances or when there is the quick decision is required (Iszatt-White &
Saunders, 2014). The main reason behind the success of Bill gates can be determined by his
quick decision-making processes. The decision making processes in business is considered as
the most significant aspect of achieving the goals of the organization. However, Bill Gates
has appropriately managed all its staff members and processes.
The business leader Steve Jobs is identified as the unconventional leader who is depicted to
be consisting of the well-built management styles. The leadership styles undertaken or
followed by him is depicted to be showing the increment of the ability to articulate its own
vision and also to bring the employees, investors and the customers in the track of the journey
(Kaushik & Bhatnagar, 2008). This enabled him to shown the appropriate characteristics of
setting the vision with showing the enhancement of the business by undertaking the following
styles of the leadership. These leadership styles enabled the Steve Jobs to overcome the harsh
challenges during the establishment of the business. Steve is also gaining many failures, but
by sticking to the leadership styles, he managed to stand again in the business world by
wrapping its weaknesses and the issues (Owen, 2012). As per the leadership qualities are
identified, Steve Jobs is depicted to be consisting of adaptability, focus, urgency and the
vision. The innovative and the determined genius descriptions can be easily depicted the form
of the legacy as identified in this context. The suitable characteristics are determined to be
showing the development of the qualities in a perfect way and also the out control
characteristics can be easily controlled by determining the adaptability characteristics
(Cotton, 2012). The focus and the urgency are very much important as it determines the
quality work delivered within the prefixed time period. The vision must be obtained for
determining the target for the achievement in its own life. This is the overall characteristics in
the leadership style point of view of Steve Jobs.
4

Conclusion
There are various leadership styles followed by the eminent leaders in order to motivate and
influence their subordinates. Bill gates are one of the most dynamic leaders in modern age
follows the orthodox autocratic leadership in his company Microsoft, but with his grasp in
this field and huge acumen he can easily influence his men to follow him unconditionally
(Peters, 2005). Alternatively, other eminent leader Steve Jobs with his transformational
leadership style charismatic approaches had brought revolution in the electronic world.
Personal development plan
Stage 1- Personal analysis
Personal analysis: As per the course of the management is considered in this case, the study
of the leadership in this course work enabled me to identify my strengths and the weaknesses.
The strengths that have been present in me is identified to be leading quality, accuracy,
managing the queries and appropriate usage of the tool in managing the profitable outcomes.
The weakness that has been identified in me is depicted to be loosening of hope while facing
the extreme level of difficulties.
Stage 2- Setting goals
The goal which is set by me is to overcome the loosening of hope during the extreme
difficulties. The PDP provides the clear guidance of the issues as I face it during this case.
5

Stage 3- Personal objectives
The personal objectives which are defined by me are to overcome the weakness and to
enhance my skills with the help of building the leadership qualities in me.
Exhibit B
Personal Development Plan
Background research
Leadership theories
Leadership theories provide guidance to the leaders about different aspects of leadership. The
leadership theories are as follows:
Trait theory: This theory states that people are either made or born with certain qualities that
help them to enhance their leadership roles.
Skills theory: This theory depicts that acquired abilities/skills and learned knowledge are
important factors in the effective leadership practices.
Situational theory: This theory states that different situations need different leadership styles.
It depicts the ability to adjust or adapt different leadership style as per the circumstances.
Contingency theory: This theory states that an effective leader is contingent on how well the
style of the leaders matches with a specific situation.
Transformational theory: This theory depicts that leadership is a process by which an
individual engages with other people in order to establish a relationship that results in
increased morality and motivation among leaders and followers.
6

Transactional theory: This theory shows the exchanges that take place between followers and
leaders.
Leader role model
The leaders play a significant role in motivating their followers and achieving the goals of the
organization. The leaders should open doors for perception and analyze the things in an
appropriate manner. They should put efforts to develop people and motivate people to
support the changes in the organization. The leaders set standards for other and themselves.
They think about others and introduce new ideas. They explain organizational views and
importance of change within the organization.
Self-assessment
 Identification of the benchmarking tool is very much important as my career is
concerned since it enables in defining the appropriate measurement and the
comparison of the performance of mine for the purpose of identifying the work
progress and the strategies which will lead to the improvement. This must be applied
for the betterment of my skills as well as for my career.
 The finding clearly reflects the steps which are very much crucial for the
identification of the appropriate tool and also the implementation process can be
easily identified. The steps include the planning, identification, collection of data,
analysis and the implementation. These steps enable in defining the appropriate
measurement of my career and also the context of the improvement can be made in
my personal context.
7

Plan
Opportunities:
For the purpose of determining the opportunities, the collection of the data regarding the
context of the improvement must be made by me for implementing the opportunities of
leadership.
Rationale:
The rationale illustrates the identification of the appropriate goals which is identified to be
showing the planning of the work. The goals must be appropriately placed for the
achievement of the target made by me for the development of my skills.
Obstacles/ challenges:
The obstacles or the challenges that is faced by me is that the inappropriate placement of the
strategies which are depicted to be the major challenge faced by me during the achievement
of my goal.
Strategies:
The strategies include the planning process with setting the goals for the achievement of
overcoming my weakness and also to strengthen my leadership skills.
Timeframe
I have to list all the tasks in an appropriate manner. The timeframe will allow me to set
deadlines for each task which is important for me to complete the tasks in time.
Measures
8

I can measure my performance with the help of setting standard objectives. SMART
objectives will also enable to measure the performance of the tasks.
Resourcing
I have to use the resources in an appropriate manner to accomplish the tasks. I have to also
use the skills and knowledge of my team members.
Exhibit C:
Individual Leadership Development Plan
Leadership
Developmental
Objective
The behaviors and the competencies that I want to develop is
indicating confidence which is lacking too much in me. I am
aiming to overcome this for improving my leadership skills and
the time frame allocated by me will be between one to two
months.
Development
Activities/oppo
rtunities
Rational/
Relevance
Obstacles/
challenges
Strategi
c
process
involve
d
Timefr
ame
Basis
and
Measures
Resourc
es
I want to
overcome my
weakness. I
lose my
confidence in
The
reasonable or
the realistic
basis
illustrates the
The main
thing that can
obstruct me
in achieving
my goals is
I will
definite
ly want
to face
my
I think
it will
need
one to
two
The
measure
ments
can be
easily
I have
to
enhance
my
skills
9

extremely
difficult
situations. So,
I want to
enhance my
leadership
skills and
knowledge to
deal with such
situation which
is my
leadership goal.
In the long run
also, it will
help me when I
start working
for any
organization.
accepting of
situation
present in my
path while
selecting my
opportunities
and also
these must be
appropriately
executed for
the
development
of my
weakness.
not able to
handle huge
pressure or
critical
situations. It
is a great
challenge for
me to
overcome
from this
problem.
weakne
sses,
again
and
again,
to
overco
me
from
this.
The
most
importa
nt thing
is that I
have to
keep
my
mind
cool
and be
patienc
e when
such
situatio
months
to
attain
the
leaders
hip
knowle
dge
and
skills
and
imple
ment
strategi
es.
depicted
by the
conduct
that I
used to
carry out
in my
work and
also this
will
signify
the
completi
on of the
specific
objective
with
quality
within
the
prefixed
time
frame.
and
knowled
ge to
achieve
my
develop
ment
goals. I
also
need
appropri
ate
guide
and
mentors
hip.
10

n arises
in front
me.
Leaders
hip
skills
and
knowle
dge will
enable
me to
overco
me such
proble
ms.
11