Leadership : case study , answer 2 questions - Essay Example

Leadership Case Study The first and most crucial step in initiating and implementing change is to identify and remove the obstacles to change. When Rene Obermann took over as the CEO of Deutsche Telecom in 2006, there were a lot of challenges that he had to overcome in order to put the company back on its feet. Change was inevitable. Obermann was obliged to remove obstacles to change so that he could implement change successfully. One of the ways he used to overcome obstacles to change was to work with the former CEO Kai-Uwe Ricke.

Ricke understood the obstacles more than he did because he was in the company for long (Korotov 2013). Therefore, working with him to draw a change plan would help him to focus on the obstacles facing change and develop appropriate change plan to overcome such obstacles. The main obstacle to change was the high number of employees and high wages. It was therefore necessary to reduce costs in order to improve the company. Obermann formed a new company called T-Services to allow many employees to work for more time with less salary (Korotov 2013).

This avoided the need of laying-off employees while at the same time keeping costs of the company down. The main strategy was to demand and achieve commitment from employees. He also used a new management team to oversee the changes. Weekly workshops were also held with the group management to enhance dialogue and drive alignment in order to overcome obstacles to change. Obermann created a sustainable change because all managers and employees worked together to meet the needs of customers. The company also achieved lower costs due to Obermann’s cost-saving strategy.

Improving the quality of service was also an important mechanism of change in the mind of Obermann (Anderson and Ben-Hur 2012). This was successful; hence the change was indeed sustainable. A new winning culture was rebuilt and costs saved were channeled to growth areas which were sustainable. Therefore, it may be argued in general terms that the change initiated by Obermann was sustainable.Works citedAnderson, Jamie and Shlomo Ben-Hur. Deutsche Telekom: A Transformation Journey (A). Lausanne, Switzerland: IMD. 2012. Print.

Korotov, Konstantin, Muller Urs and Schafer Ulf. “Do you really think we are so stupid?” A letter to the CEO of Deutsche Telekom (A). Lausanne: ESMT. 2013. Print.