MAPM8.200 Term 2 2019: Leadership Style of Steve Jobs Case Study

This case study examines the leadership style of Steve Jobs, focusing on his visionary approach and its impact on Apple's success. The analysis explores Jobs' ability to articulate a clear vision, inspire employees, and make strategic decisions that drove innovation and growth. It highlights his emphasis on perfection, accountability, and his role in fostering a culture of innovation and teamwork. The study references academic research and illustrates how Jobs' unique leadership traits, including his risk-taking abilities and focus on product development, contributed to Apple's position as a global leader. The paper also touches on the importance of his evolving management style and his ability to create a successful brand through a distinctive vision. References include Heracleous & Papachroni (2016), Hunt & Fitzgerald (2018), and Krapfl & Kruja (2015).

Running head: LEADERSHIP STYLE OF STEVE JOBS
Leadership Style of Steve Jobs
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author note

1LEADERSHIP STYLE OF STEVE JOBS
2.2 Contemporary Leadership Issues
The leadership style of Steve Jobs can be said to be visionary leadership as the vision
set by him proved to be advantageous for his followers. Steve Jobs had the sheer genius along
with the ability of articulating the vision that helped him in bringing the employees, investors
along with the customers together in the event of working in Apple. Under his able style of
leadership, Apple’s shares grew from $ US 5 billion in the year 2000 to that of $ US 351
billion that has ensured its reputation in the world. Steve Jobs can be said to be a great
business strategist who was able to deliver results for Apple and he successfully brought
about a change in the organization (Krapfl & Kruja, 2015). Apple became the largest
publicly listed company as Steve Jobs could predict the future within the live business
setting. Steve Jobs used to exert his control in the various areas of business in his quest for
the perfection. Steve Jobs encouraged the culture of that of strict accountability in the various
hierarchical levels of organization.
Steve Jobs had the clear vision along with passion for people that helped in the
development of Apple. Steve Jobs took care of the fact that everyone in the company
believed in his vision which was instrumental in creating the “higher purpose” for the
company. He had the ability of inspiring the trust that helped in the growth of the company
(Heracleous & Papachroni, 2016). The employees of the company used to believe in the
leader that took the company forward in the long run. He was able to show his competence in
the company that helped in improving the performance of the company. The people who
were working under Steve Jobs knew the fact that he did not have any kind of self-interested
needs that made his subordinates trust him.
The visionary leadership style of Steve Jobs helped him in meeting the goals of the
organization. He was imbued with the passion along with the confidence that helped him in

2LEADERSHIP STYLE OF STEVE JOBS
turning the dream into the reality. He had great passion for his work that helped the business
in achieving the success. Steve Jobs challenged the limitation of his employees that helped in
the process of professional development of the employees. He used to encourage the
employees that helped in bringing about innovation in the company. He succeeded in
increasing the productivity of the employees with the help of his strong vision (Hunt &
Fitzgerald, 2018). Steve Jobs laid stress on providing the quality services along with the
products that helped him in moving the company in the right direction. Steve Jobs was able to
lead the change within the competitive environment as he was able to split the product matrix
of Apple into the four box grid of the computers that was inclusive of pro desktop, consumer
desktop, pro notebook along with the consumer notebook. He was able to streamline the
aspect of the hardware development that helped him in achieving the best for the company.
Steve Jobs exhibited the traits of global leadership as he was able to stop the feuds that were
taking place in the company and laid stress on the aspect of the product development.
Steve Jobs never compromised on the element of perfection that helped in ensuring
the success for Apple. He could act as a risk taker on account of the fact that he had a strong
vision pertaining to the future. He could trust his judgement and he could understand the need
of his people. It helped him in embarking on the progressive path that helped him in dealing
with the challenges while working in the company (Krapfl & Kruja, 2015). He was able to
create a successful brand with the help of his unique vision. Jobs realized the significance of
teamwork in the organization that can prove to be useful for the employees. He had the
evolving management style and he used to make the final decision in relation to the designs
of the products. He knew that the right kind of people can act as the greatest asset for a
company. He was possesses of high quality that helped in the creation of the right kind of
environment in the company. He had the unique intuition that helped him in the development
of the products of Apple. Job was a visionary as he made use of his experience in making the

3LEADERSHIP STYLE OF STEVE JOBS
products. Steve Jobs was able to revolutionize the laptop computing that helped in setting the
stage for the success of Apple.

4LEADERSHIP STYLE OF STEVE JOBS
References
Heracleous, L., & Papachroni, A. (2016). Strategic Leadership and Innovation at Apple Inc.
SAGE Publications Ltd.
Hunt, J., & Fitzgerald, M. (2018). STYLES OF LEADERSHIP. Leadership: Regional and
Global Perspectives, 62.
Krapfl, J. E., & Kruja, B. (2015). Leadership and culture. Journal of Organizational
Behavior Management, 35(1-2), 28-43.