MGMT 601 - Book Review: Analysis of Mark Zuckerberg's Leadership

This report provides a comprehensive book review of 'Mark Zuckerberg,' focusing on his leadership qualities. The review is divided into three parts: Part A summarizes key leadership attributes such as the ability to influence people, analyze market needs, and demonstrate innovative power, supported by examples from Zuckerberg's life. Part B evaluates the book based on purpose, audience, authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage. Part C identifies the most interesting aspects of the book, particularly Zuckerberg's innovative approach during his Harvard years, and discusses its significance in a business setting, including examples of how the concepts can be applied in personal and professional settings, and provides a recommendation based on the author's perspective. The report highlights Zuckerberg's ability to identify stakeholder needs, his innovative spirit, and how these qualities have contributed to his success, offering insights into leadership development and business strategy.

Running head: LEADERSHIP
Leadership of Mark Zuckerberg
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

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Table of Contents
Introduction:....................................................................................................................................1
Part A...............................................................................................................................................1
Summary of all the important points:..............................................................................................1
The attribute to impact and lead people:......................................................................................1
The attribute to analyse market needs:........................................................................................2
Innovative power:........................................................................................................................3
Opinion of summarized points with reasons:..................................................................................4
Most significant part:...................................................................................................................5
Position on author’s perspective and discussed reason for thoughts:..............................................6
Part B...............................................................................................................................................7
Purpose and Audience:....................................................................................................................7
Authority:.........................................................................................................................................8
Accuracy & Reliability:...................................................................................................................8
Objectivity:......................................................................................................................................8
Currency:.........................................................................................................................................9
Coverage:.........................................................................................................................................9
Part C...............................................................................................................................................9
Identification of the most interesting aspect of the book and explanation:.....................................9
Discussion of content significance in overall business setting:.......................................................9

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Examples of concepts use in personal setting:..............................................................................10
Personal recommendation with reasons for opinion:.....................................................................10
Conclusion:....................................................................................................................................10
References:....................................................................................................................................11

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Introduction:
The aim of the report would be reviewing a book and throw light on the important aspects
covered in the book. The book which has been chosen for the review is ‘Mark Zuckerberg’
written by Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder, the CEO and one of the main shareholders of
Facbook Inc. which owns the social media platform Facebook. The book revolves about the life
and actions of Zuckerberg, The researcher would discuss the findings after reviewing the book to
bring into the light the leadership qualities of Zuckerberg.
Part A.
Summary of all the important points:
The following are the important points or aspects which come to the forefront upon
reviewing the book, Mark Zuckerberg by Zuckerberg (2016):
The attribute to impact and lead people:
The first leadership quality of Mark Zuckerberg which comes to the light upon review of
the book is that he has the attribute to influence and lead people right from his youth. Breevaart
et al.(2016) point out that leaders in order to lead their followers towards achievement of goals
should inspire and motivate them. They have to stimulate the employees to adjust with different
obstacles to transform them into opportunities. The employees in this case are the followers
while the managers are the leaders in a workplace setting. Veliu et al. (2017) strengthens the
argument by pointing that the power of the departmental leaders or departmental heads to engage
employees to achieve predetermined goals transforms to high levels of business performances. A
review of the book ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ shows that Zuckerberg gained the power to influence his

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friends and family members through his actions. For example, the ‘Early years’ section of the
book reports that Zuckerberg developed a software programme which aided computers in his
residence to communicate with the computers located in the dental chamber of his father by
pings. This software enabled his father send messages from home to office by using simple pings
and vice versa. The second instance which brings out the leadership quality of Zuckerberg to
influence people is that he developed computer games for other kids to play. Thus, he could
impact their way children entertained themselves by developing computer games for them. Thus,
one can establish from the review of the book that Mark Zuckerberg could influence people by
his actions, which is undoubtedly one his most important leadership qualities.
The attribute to analyse market needs:
One of the significant aspect which come into the light upon review of the book is that
Mark Zuckerberg has developed the ability of analysing the needs of the stakeholders as early as
his student days. Kujala, Lehtimäki and Freeman (2019) point out that business leaders should be
able to identify the needs of the stakeholders like customers and create appropriate products to
create value for them. Jones, Harrison and Felps (2018) mention that the power of corporate
leaders (like departmental heads) to recognise the needs and expectations of the stakeholders
enables them to develop appropriate products which create value for the latter. This creation of
value for the stakeholders enables the companies (and their managers) gain support of the
stakeholders which ultimately transforms into the competitive advantage. The ability of
identifying the needs of the stakeholders can be pointed in Mark Zuckerberg in several instances
cited in the book. The first example, which verses about the ability of Mark to identify the needs
of the stakeholders, is when he programmed software, which allowed the computers at home to
communicate with the computers in the dental clinic of his father. Here the father of Zuckerberg

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is the stakeholder. The second instance in which Zuckerberg showcased his ability to understand
the needs of the stakeholders was when he programmed computer games for the kids to play
with. Here, the kids which played the computer games corresponded to the term, ‘stakeholder’.
The third instance, which brought into the light the capability of Zuckerberg to analyse the needs
of the stakeholders, is etched in the section ‘Harvard years’. The students at the Harvard
University felt the need of an internal digital system, which would enable them to share pictures
and contact information amongst themselves. Here, the students of the university were analogous
to the term stakeholders. Mark Zuckerberg identified this need of the students and programmed
the software named ‘Facemash’. The software enabled the students the upload their pictures and
names. The software even enabled the students to hold contests, which enabled them to choose
the most handsome contestant among the contesting students. Thus, the review of the book
clearly brings out that Mark Zuckerberg has developed the ability to identify the needs of the
stakeholders and develop appropriate products (software in these examples) for them.
Innovative power:
The third important point, which comes to the forefront upon reviewing book ‘Mark
Zuckerberg’, is the innovative power of Zuckerberg, which is undoubtedly one of the most
important attributes leadership should have in order to lead their followers to achieve certain
predetermined goals. Gurd and Helliar (2017) mention that business leaders (like managers)
should have innovative skills to identify the needs in the market, which are unmet. They should
capitalise on these gaps to develop new products, which fill the unmet needs, or gaps. As far as
Zuckerberg is concerned, the leader has developed the power to bring about innovative products
right from his college days. This innovative power of Zuckerberg has been exemplified in the
section ‘Harvrad years’ in the book. Mark identified the need of a platform, which would allow

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the students at the Harvard University to share their photographs and contact details. He
developed software called Facemash, which enabled the students to hold contests based on the
photographs they uploaded. Thus, one can establish on the review of the book that right from
school days, Zuckerberg developed leadership qualities like influential capabilities which
continued into his college days and finally into the present days when he serves as the president
and the CEO of Facebook Inc.
Opinion of summarized points with reasons:
One can opine on the basis of the aforementioned points that Zuckerberg developed
several leadership qualities like innovative skills right from his days of education. One can also
opine that the book ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ can inspire future leaders to develop their own leadership
skills. The points are likable because they speak about the leadership qualities, which leaders
must develop to be able to lead their followers towards achievement of goals.
The leadership qualities of Mark Zuckerberg can help the future leadership in their
professional life by guiding them whenever faced with leadership challenges. For example, the
leaders in the corporate organisations like managers at the top and middle levels are often faced
with challenges like changing preferences of customers and intense market competition. These
challenges often prevent the marketing departments of companies from achieving their sales
targets. The managers can use innovative strategies like introducing a new product variant
aligned with the changing preferences of the customers in order to boost sales. The marketing
managers and their subordinates by achieving higher business targets can achieve more
incentives and ensure better performance appraisals. One can point out from the review of the
book that one of the noteworthy leadership attributes of Zuckerberg is innovativeness. Thus, one

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can establish that the points discussed in the book would enable the future leaders like me in the
business organisations to achieve professional development.
The points of discussed above informed me about the various leadership qualities of
Mark Zuckerberg by citing instances from the different stages of the life of Zuckerberg like
school days and college days. The aforementioned leadership aspects are extremely informative
because future leaders like me can derive knowledge about leadership qualities, which are
required to lead business teams towards achievement of business targets.
The leadership attributes of Zuckerberg discussed above have impacted me emotionally
to a great extent. It has increased the respect I hold for the global corporate leader. It is because
the points above show that Zuckerberg did face oppositions like oppositions from the authorities
of the Harvard University when he attempted to introduce Facemash in the initial level.
However, these oppositions could not bog him down and in fact led to foundation of Facebook,
one of the most sought after social media platforms today.
Most significant part:
The most significant part of the book ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ is the section, ‘Harvard years’.
The key point I strongly remember is that Zuckerberg is immensely innovative. This is because,
he identified the need of a platform which would enable the then students of the Harvard
University to communicate with each other and share photograph. He developed the software
called Facemash which enabled the students to put up their photographs. However, he had to
withdraw the software under compulsion from the college authorities. This was bad. However,
the very development of the software shows the social networking skills of Zuckerberg and his
ability to understand the needs of the stakeholders, students in this case. I can opine that the book

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missed certain key information about Facebook like the data threats, which the company faces
today. The book also does not mention about the criticisms, which the entrepreneur has to face
owing to data threats (Ram 2018).
The author Mark Zuckerberg himself was trying to speak about his journey right from his
college days to the point of operating as the CEO and president of Facebook Inc., the global
social media company he has confounded. The author did a good job and covered the incidences
relating to the education and professional career with great succinctness. However, he did not
speak sufficiently about the criticisms he faces while leading the global social media giant.
The part of the book speaking about the college education days of Zuckerberg at the
Harvard University is the most significant part, which has stuck to my mind because it is this part
of his life, which ultimately has led to the foundation of Facebook Inc. The challenges, which he
faced during his college days like opposition of the college authorities to Facemash largely,
motivated him to launch Facebook.
Position on author’s perspective and discussed reason for thoughts:
The thinking of the author, Zuckerberg himself in my opinion behind authoring the book
was to communicate his journey as a corporate leader to the readers. I also feel that somewhere
he wants to point in out that leadership qualities are developed over years of education, personal
background and experience. He also wants to tell that leadership skills are also developed by
deriving knowledge from the market situations and capitalising on them. The thoughts which
Zuckerberg has put into the book have developed acquired by him from different stages of life.

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Part B.
Purpose and Audience:
The purpose of the book, ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ is to throw light on the leadership journey
of Mark Zuckerberg. Mark Zuckerberg, the author himself narrates his journey as a student to the
coveted position of the president and the CEO of Facebook Inc, which he holds today.
The purpose is implied because Mark Zuckerberg nowhere in the book mentions the aim
behind his authoring the book. However, it can be implied from the review itself he wanted to
narrate his story to the readers.
The intended audience of the book is mainly the students who envision to emerge as
corporate leaders. The employees employed with different companies who are aiming to bring
about professional develop and acquire managerial positions which would put their leadership
skills to use can also be regarded as the target audience of the book.
The intention behind Mark Zuckerberg’s targeting the above mentioned audience base in
not expressed clearly. However, it can be assumed strongly he wants to inspire and motivate
employees of different organisations as well as students to develop and sharpen their leadership
skills.
The factors of purpose audience affect the tone because they impact the very presentation
of the book. For example, the intended purpose of the author to author the book was to narrate
his journey as a leader. Thus, the tone he has used while writing the book is narrative and flowy.
He has succinctly gone to narrate the incidences of his life one after the other. However, in spite

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of the being, he did not want to the book to be his autobiography and has used third person to
narrate the incidences.
Authority:
The author has the appropriate qualifications and expertise to author the book. The
qualifications indicate that they are authorities in the field because in order to write a book,
authors need to sufficient knowledge in the field. Mark Zuckerberg and his leadership have been
cited in innumerable writings, which include books, articles and documentaries. Some writings
laud Zuckerberg while others criticise him. For example, Little and Winch (2018) laud Mark
Zuckerberg in their book, ‘Mark Zuckerberg and Mediated Paternalism’ while Ram (2018)
criticised him in his newspaper article titled, ‘Facebook faces threat of tough international
regulation’.
Accuracy & Reliability:
The book ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ provides trustworthy information. It also contains reference
list which can be verified. The facts regarding the leadership journey of Zuckerberg have been
documented along with specific time periods.
Objectivity:
The information is objective. This is because the book speaks both about the
achievements of Zuckerberg as a global corporate leaders and about the controversies as well as
challenges his faced. The opinions are sufficed by facts and research. This is because they
mention the characters like Moskovitz with whom he is closely very succinctly. The evidence
presented is authentic and documented. It is credible but not adequate. This is because, the book

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though provides authentic information the life of Mark Zuckerberg, it does not discuss his
failures as a leader sufficiently.
Currency:
The information is current. It is authentic and rich in facts about the life of Zuckerberg.
Coverage:
The book covers the content well. Certain important aspects of Zuckerberg’s life like the
criticisms he faces owing to data have been omitted. The omissions have not been
acknowledged. The book significantly contributes to the field of leadership as has great potential
in guiding aspiring corporate leaders.
Part C.
Identification of the most interesting aspect of the book and explanation:
The most interesting aspect of the book is that phase which speaks about the college life
of Zuckerberg. This is because it this phase which is largely responsible for Zuckerberg founding
Facebook.
Discussion of content significance in overall business setting:
The content is extremely significant. This is because it covers the incidences of the life of
Zuckerberg ultimately leading him to launch Facebook.

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Examples of concepts use in personal setting:
Examples of concepts like innovation and leadership have been used through the book.
The book narrates the leadership journey of Zuckerberg.
Personal recommendation with reasons for opinion:
I would personally recommend aspiring leaders to read the book. This is because it shows
that leadership attributes like innovativeness are developed over years.
Conclusion:
One can conclude from the review of the book and its contents that it speaks about the
leadership journey of the global corporate leader namely, Mark Zuckerberg in great detail. The
tone used in the book is extremely lucid sans complex terms. The book throws light on the
different stages of life of Zuckerberg which have contributed towards development of the
leadership skills which he possesses today. The book is motivating and should be read by
aspiring corporate leaders.

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References:
Breevaart, K., Bakker, A. B., Demerouti, E., & Derks, D. (2016). Who takes the lead? A multi‐source
diary study on leadership, work engagement, and job performance. Journal of Organizational
Behavior, 37(3), 309-325.
Gurd, B., & Helliar, C. (2017). Looking for leaders:‘Balancing’innovation, risk and management control
systems. The British Accounting Review, 49(1), 91-102.
Jones, T. M., Harrison, J. S., & Felps, W. (2018). How applying instrumental stakeholder theory
can provide sustainable competitive advantage. Academy of Management Review, 43(3),
371-391.
Kujala, J., Lehtimäki, H., & Freeman, E. R. (2019). A stakeholder approach to value creation and
leadership. Leading change in a complex world: transdisciplinary perspectives.
Little, B., & Winch, A. (2018). “just hanging out with you in my back yard”: Mark Zuckerberg and
Mediated Paternalism. Open Cultural Studies, 1(1), 417-427.
Ram, A., 2018. Ft.Com. [online] Ft.com. Available at: <https://www.ft.com/content/67968ece-f240-
11e8-9623-d7f9881e729f> [Accessed 12 March 2020].\
Veliu, L., Manxhari, M., Demiri, V., & Jahaj, L. (2017). THE INFLUENCE OF LEADERSHIP
STYLES ON EMPLOYEE'S PERFORMANCE. Management (16487974), 31(2).
Zuckerberg, M. (2016). Mark Zuckerberg. AV2 by Weigl.