What Makes a Good Leader in Practice - Essay Example

What makes a good leader in practice Name Institution Date Introduction A leader can be defined as an individual who influences the actions of others on what to do and how to carry out those particular tasks in an organization. The definition of a leader therefore means that for one to be a leader, then they must be able to assert their influence over a group of individuals whom they share a common objective with (Drucker, 2004). Considering the act of leading as a process, leaders are affected by their followers the same way they affect the followers either positively or negatively. This paper reflects on Wells Fargo and company’s chairman chief executive officer Mr. John G. Stumpf. The paper is going to carry out an analysis of the company’s leadership because I do not work yet in any company or organization. My choice of the leadership is informed by the admiration for the company’s leadership and how the company has managed to achieve its growth prospects to become one of the biggest companies in the world.  Wells Fargo and company’s chairman chief executive officer Mr. John G. Stumpf Wells Fargo and company is a multinational financial institution situated in San Francesco, California in the United States of America (Fargo, 1999).  The company is ranked as the third largest in America in terms of their asset base and the largest as far as their capitalization in the market is concerned in 2015. It is considered the second largest financial institution in deposits, debit cards and servicing of home mortgages. Forbes magazine ranks it at 10th amongst the Forbes global and number 30 in the largest companies in the world (Stumpf, 2015).  Wells Fargo and company came into being as a result of a merger between the Norwest Corporation and the wells Fargo. The company stuck with the name wells Fargo to take advantage of the economies of scale that come with its history in the country. The company also stuck with san Francesco as the head office. Wells Fargo and company operate under the charter number one, being the first charter to be issued me the United States of America. The charter was given to the First National Bank of Philadelphia on June 20, 1863. Wells Fargo assumed the charter through the acquisition of the First National Bank of Philadelphia In the year 2008 as a result of the tradition that required the parent company to keep the charter (Stumpf, 2015).  Mr. Stumpf became the chairman of wells Fargo ad company in the beginning of the year 2010. He was made the chief executive officer In June of 2007 and appointed to the board of directors. (Stumpf, 2015)  He joined the North West corporation which was later to become wells Fargo and company in 1982 in the credit department. He was later to hold a number of management positions at Northwest bank until 1998 when wells Fargo merged with the Norwest where he was tasked with leading the southwestern group of banks. In the next two years, Mr. Stumpf was to head the western baking group (Fargo, 1999).  He was later in the year 2000 tasked with leading the integration of wells Fargo takeover of first security corporation that is estimated to be worth 23 billion dollars. In the year 2008, Stumpf made history by leading one of the largest mergers with the purchase of Wachovia. Mr. Stumpf is serving in the board of management for the Financial Services, Chevron Corporation, The Clearing House, Roundtable, Target Corporation and. He also serves on the Federal Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Board as the representative appointed by Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco (Stumpf, 2015).  Born in Minnesota, he acquired his bachelor’s education degree with a specialization in finance from St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minnesota and his masters in business administration (MBA) with a specialization in finance at the University of Minnesota (Stumpf, 2015).  The qualities of Mr. Stumpf as a leader at wells Fargo and company The qualities that a leader possesses are what make them to influence the actions of the people they lead (De Paoli, 2011). Leaders can posses both the good and the bad qualities but in this case, a leader must be in a position to capture the attention of their followers (Drucker, 2004). They must ensure that they have the full confidence of their followers by bringing out positive results. Mr. Stumpf as a leader has done well as far as leadership is concerned. This is the reason why the history of wells Fargo cannot be written without the mention of his name. We are therefore going to look at these particular qualities of a good leader that he has that has enabled him to rise through the ranks of management over the years and the fact that the major transformations I the company have been done through his leadership. We are also going to align these leadership qualities to the theories of leadership. Intelligence, sociability and determination These are the qualities that Stumpf seems to possess, and are the ones that stand out from the rest. He gives solutions where his subordinates have reached a dead end. His intelligence played out when he managed to steer out the company out of the 2008 global economic crises that crippled most of the financial institutions in the United States of America. He is a socially viable person who mingles freely with his subordinates without considering himself as superior to them (MacNeill & Tonks, 2009). His determination has managed to steer the company over the years to be one of the largest companies in the world. The qualities mentioned resonate well with the trait theory. The theory states that individuals are either born with or acquire qualities that make them successful leaders. A skillful leader Stumpf is definitely a skill full leader. He has developed different ways of dealing with different situations. He doesn’t entirely rely on a common way of doing things. According to the skills theory, acquired knowledge and skills are very important aspects in effective leadership. The theory stipulates that coming up with a style, having some knowledge and learning some skills is a key ingredient to effective leadership (Wolinski, n.d.).  It is for this reason that Stumpf always emphasizes on the mobilization of resources ad efforts towards training and development of leaders at wells Fargo and company. A motivating leader Stumpf uses his qualities to motivate his subordinates at wells Fargo to achieve the identified and set goals. The path-goal theory states that good leadership requires that the leader has the ability to motivate their subordinates by showing the paths to be followed as well as getting rid of the obstacles that could prevent the organization from achieving its objectives (Boundless, 2015).  The basic belief of this quality of effective leadership possessed by Stumpf is that individuals in the organization will have more focus on the goal and will as well have more motivation if they are made to believe that they can perform at higher standards. They will be assured that their hard work will lead to the sort after goals ad that their effort in making the organization more competitive. A transformational leader Stumpf is a kind of a manager who creates a situation where he engages with his subordinates to strike a rapport that leads to improved motivation and integrity amongst the individuals working in the organization (De Paoli, 2011). The quality is always compared to the theory of charismatic leadership that states that managers that have certain qualities confidence and clear values are in a better position to motivate their followers (Boundless, 2015). The most important aspect of transformational leadership is that the leader should be sensitive to the needs of their followers as they strive to achieve their potential. It additionally stipulates how leaders can startup, develop and ensure implementation of projects that leads to changes in an organization (Boundless, 2015).  The aspects of Stumpf’s leadership that I would choose In summary, Stumpf is a good leader as well as an effective manager. He possesses numerous skills such as intelligence, social viability and transformational skills that are worth emulating. What made him stand out is his ability to initiate changes specifically the numerous acquisitions and mergers that transformed wells Fargo and company into one of the global leaders in financial services. Stumpf’s example has made me understand that one can actually adopt a dynamic way of doing things for the good of the organization by focusing on the three aspects of Stumpf’s leadership qualities. There are lots of similarities that exist between the aspects that Stumpf practices at wells Fargo and those practiced by other global business leaders that I would definitely want to emulate. Conclusion In conclusion, the individual’s influence on a group of people is usually meant to achieve a common goal (Northouse, 2015).  It is, therefore right to suggest that there is a mutual relationship between the leaders and their followers unlike the much the rather familiar thought of a one-way relation where it is only the leader who influences the actions of their subordinates. In contemporary management, leadership exercises the authority and responsibility that comes with it to make decisions that are binding whether acceptable to all or not (Northouse, 2015). Therefore, Stumpf has good qualities of a leader and that’s why I emulate his leadership style. Reference Boundless. (2015, July 21). Four theories of leadership. Retrieved March 30, 2016, from https://www.boundless.com/management/textbooks/boundless-management-textbook/leadership-9/defining-leadership-68/four-theories-of-leadership-344-7580/ De Paoli, D. (2011).’The role of leadership in changing art institutions – the case of the National Museum of Art in Oslo, Norway’. 11th AIMAC International Conference, Antwerp. Drucker, PF (2004). ‘What makes an effective executive’. Harvard Business Review, 82(6): 58-63. Fargo, 2016 Wells. (1999). John G. Stumpf biography – chairman, president, and CEO – wells Fargo. Retrieved March 30, 2016, from https://www.wellsfargo.com/about/corporate/governance/stumpf/ MacNeill, K. & Tonks, A. (2009). ‘Co-leadership and Gender in the Performing Arts, Asia Pacific Journal of Arts and Cultural Management, 6(1): 291-404. Northouse, P. G. (2015). Leadership: Theory and practice. New York. Stumpf, J. G. (2015, July 23). How wells Fargo’s CEO built the team at the world's most valuable bank. Retrieved March 30, 2016, from Fortune Insiders, http://fortune.com/2015/07/23/john-stumpf-culture/ Wolinski, S. Leadership theories. Retrieved March 30, 2016, from http://managementhelp.org/blogs/leadership/2010/04/21/leadership-theories/ Read More