Essay Sample on Leadership and Team Building

Introduction

Steve Jobs was one of the greatest global innovators in the tech industry. He created Apple Inc., which was the first company that was valued at a trillion dollars. Jobs was able to create multiple products that transformed the lives of people. For instance, the iPhone transcended geographical boundaries and was embraced by people in all parts of the world. Additionally, iTunes is the largest global online music store (Gupta, 2013). These products were developed by Apple Inc., which was founded by Steve Jobs. Moreover, he had a clear vision and strong leadership which helped actualize his dreams. He was also able to combine different leadership styles to achieve the greater organizational goals of Apple Inc.

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The success of Steve Jobs has created important lessons to entrepreneurs and the general public alike, on how one can have a dream and realize it. People need a clear vision and effective strategies that they can implement to attain their professional and life goals. As a global leader, Steve Jobs can be used as a case study on leadership, and how to build effective teams that are innovative. His global impact through mentorship and other activities also offers young people vital lessons on how to be a leader in the modern competitive business environment (Isaacson, 2012).

This essay will focus on Steve Jobs as a leader, and his management style. The essay will also discuss his personal principles, values, traits, and vision. Additionally, the paper will interrogate the impacts that Jobs, as an individual, and as a former Apple CEO, made in society. Finally, the essay will also evaluate the lessons that I have learned from Steve Jobs, and how they relate to my personal life and future career. Through discussing these aspects as they pertain to Jobs, the paper will develop knowledge on how to develop leadership, and important lessons that corporate leaders should adopt to become as successful as Apple Inc.

Jobs' Leadership and Management Style

Most people who interacted with Steve Jobs claimed that his leadership style was unconventional. These claims can be attributed to his use of a different leadership approach depending on the situation at hand. As the Chief executive at Apple Inc., employees who worked under him viewed Jobs as an autocratic leader. He had an eye for detail and demanded perfection from people who worked for him (Kaipa, 2012). Autocratic leadership entails giving instructions to lower-cadre employees, and supervising their tasks without involving them in decision making activities.

Jobs was not a strong delegator, and he consistently involved himself in organizational functions to ensure that his goals were attained. He knew exactly what he envisioned for Apple, and he adopted a hands-on approach when implementing his ideas. His style of leadership is consistent with a strong leader who seeks to control employees, so that they can achieve the broader organizational goals. Moreover, his key strength was the ability to articulate his vision to customers, employees, and investors. These stakeholders had strong confidence in him, which worked effectively with his autocratic leadership approach.

However, Jobs was also viewed as a participative leader especially when working with teams to accomplish specific tasks. He empowered employees to embrace teamwork, to drive innovation in the dynamic technology industry. Jobs listened to employees, praised, criticized them, and ultimately held them accountable (Kaipa, 2012). He would regularly hold meetings and seek input from team members regarding their ability to innovate new Apple products. Specifically, Jobs used participative leadership when dealing with employees or teams that understood where technology was going in the future. He preferred employees who could manage themselves, and allowed them to work independently in teams. This leadership style was successful in innovating Apple products that target the next generation of IT trends.

Principles, Traits, Values and Vision

Steve Jobs had seven key principles that guided his life decisions. The first principle was 'doing what you love'. He believed that people should do things they are passionate about, since this is the only way they can develop creative, new, and novel ideas. The second principle was 'putting dents into the universe'. People should have big dreams that have the potential to change humanity and society. Steve Jobs had a dream of creating affordable computers for everyday people, and he was able to actualize his vision by creating Macintosh computers (Jacob, 2013). His third principle was 'kick starting your brain', and this entailed seeking inspiration from other environments or people, to enhance creativity. Jobs was inspired by activities such as meditation, or visits to countries such as India.

The fourth principle that Steve Jobs followed was 'selling dreams, not products'. This means that one has to create products that help consumers realize their dreams. Jobs believed that Apple products could unleash the inner genius in a consumer, thereby winning over his/her heart and mind. The fifth principle was 'saying no to a thousand things'. This statement means that companies should focus on simplicity, as opposed to developing multiple products with cluttered designs (Jacob, 2013). Jobs was committed to creating innovations that had an uncluttered and simple design. Apple designed the iPad and iPod with simplicity in mind, and replicated this concept in the packaging, as well as the company website's functionality.

The sixth principle that Steve Jobs held was 'creating insanely great experiences'. He was passionate about developing simpler and smaller innovations that created an emotional connection with Apple users. For instance, Apple stores had consultants and experts, but no cashiers. The company held the view that it was in the business of enriching lives, as opposed to moving boxes. Finally, Jobs believed in 'mastering the message'. He was a master storyteller and could turn a product launch into an art form. Jobs could create excitement about new products, and this directly increased demand among consumers (Jacob, 2013).

Impacts that the Leader Made in Society

Steve Jobs is considered to be one of the greatest entrepreneurs in history. His contribution to society was in several ways, and the first was transforming the world through developing Apple products. Jobs, through his company, created several technological products that transformed how people communicate globally. He developed products such as the iPhone, iPad, iTunes, iPods, and others, which revolutionized the mobile phone industry, and facilitated file-sharing between people in diverse parts of the globe. Apple Inc. was the first trillion-dollar company, and this is proof of its mark on the IT industry, globally. Additionally, iTunes is the largest online music store, and it has over 200 million users (Gupta, 2013). Steve Jobs has significantly impacted the world through facilitating the creation of these revolutionary products that have transformed people's lifestyles and improved human interactions.

Jobs has also impacted the world through leadership and mentorship opportunities. He gave several lectures on leadership and explained the strategies that he applied to attain success at Apple Inc. Through his personal experiences, he was able to give lectures on how modern leaders can replicate the success he had attained in his company. He was also passionate about mentoring young people and encouraging them to develop a vision and pursue it. For instance, Jobs mentored Facebook CEO Mike Zuckerberg during the formative years of the company (Isaacson, 2012). His mentorship helped the young entrepreneur develop a vision and realize his dream of creating the largest social networking site in the world. Jobs visited many institutions of higher learning where he taught students the key principles of entrepreneurship and leadership. Many people across the globe have watched his videos, and most have acknowledged that Jobs inspired them to pursue their goals.

How the Leader has Impacted Me

I have learned many lessons from Steve Jobs through his vision, personality traits, vision, and leadership style. Even though I have not met him in person, I have read widely about him, and watched several videos where he gave presentations and speeches on topics such as leadership. One of the most important lessons that I have learned through him, is the importance of having a vision, and working towards realizing it, regardless of obstacles I face. Steve Jobs was largely successful since he had a clear vision and could outline it to stakeholders. He believed in predicting future trends in the use of technological products, and positioned Apple Inc. to be the market leader. I have understood the importance of setting clear goals and developing appropriate strategies to actualize them. One should have a vision regarding what he/she needs to achieve in their personal and professional life, as this makes one redirect his/her energy and effort towards realizing these goals. Regardless of the obstacles one faces in life, an individual should be focused, as this is the only way that he/she will attain their potential in life.

Another important lesson that I have learned from Steve Jobs is that one should apply leadership different styles depending on the circumstances facing him/her. Although Jobs used autocratic leadership when dealing with lower cadre employees within the organizational setting, he applied participative leadership when dealing with self-managed teams that had clear tasks. Through observing Jobs' approaches to leadership style, I have learned that I should use the autocratic leadership style when I am dealing with employees or people conducting routine tasks that are not highly specialized. This style is also effective in structured tasks where employees do not need to use their creativity skills. However, when dealing with teams, and especially in the innovation and creative fields, I should use participative leadership since employee input is required. Additionally, involving employees in decision making under such circumstances usually motivates them, and it improves the synergy within teams.

Finally, through evaluating the personal principles that Steve Jobs held, I have learned what it takes to convert an idea into a product that can transform people's lives. One should not concentrate on the bottom line, even though profit-making is the main goal of corporations. Rather, one should focus on improving user experience and creating emotional connections between the customer and product. When a person is passionate about a goal, and works towards fulfilling such passion, he/she is likely to be successful. People should strive to pursue dreams that positively impact society, and once they do so, they will inadvertently profit from their work. Jobs was not motivated by profitability when he started Apple Inc.; he sought to change the world. However, in the course of pursing his endeavor, he made huge profits and became a billionaire.

Conclusion

Generally, the lessons I have learned from Steve Jobs are applicable to my personal and professional life. As a future business professional, I will create a strong vision and use leadership to mobilize employees towards pursuing my dreams. I will keep them motivated through applying the participative leadership style, and involving them in decision making activities on issues affecting their tasks. Moreover, I will use autocratic leadership when dealing with complex and highly specialized tasks, especially in areas where I have strengths. Jobs has also inspired me to be a mentor in future so that I can teach young people crucial life skills, and how to make effective decisions that will...