Leadership with Power and Corporate Strategy - Research Paper Example

Leadership, Power and Corporate Strategy The success of any organization lies in having a strong backbone to rest, rely and develop upon by the organization. Organizations are not born on its own, rather they are built and developed from the ground up, often by one single individual, stemming from a simple idea and branching out into a network. This network is what is referred to as organizational culture. In the words of Gareth R. Jones, organizational culture is defined by him as a collection of norms and values that are present in the teams and individuals of the organization and these values control their interaction amongst each other and with the stakeholders and shareholders of the firm (90). In other words, organizational culture refers to the basic beliefs and aims of any organization, and how all the work and purposes of that organization will revolve around those beliefs and aims. The key to a strong organization lies in developing their organizational culture, such that it is unique to each organization, yet commonly understood by all members within the organization (Parker, 200). This basically means that every person in the organization should have a clear idea of what they are working for, what their core beliefs as a member of the organization are and what is the main purpose of the firm. If these beliefs are instilled into the work and behavior of every employee, small or large, the organization gains a much better chance of excelling in its business strategy. It is clear however that these beliefs and strategies are not developed on their own. Any successful organization will find itself headed by a leader who has a clear vision of the purpose and future of their organization, and who does their best to instill this vision in the members of their organization (Kotter and Heskett, 192). Strong organizational culture is developed by organizational members in leadership positions, whether or not they are the founding members of that organization. The success of any organization lies in the hands of their leaders and in how successful those leaders are in developing this organizational strategy and culture. Consider for example the organizational culture and strategy of Apple Inc. Founded by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne, the company initially started out as a computer technology organization, but over time developed into an organization focused more on consumer retail goods. Apple is both famous and infamous for its highly publicized organization culture, accredited highly to Steve Jobs, both in its success and its infamy. Apple Inc. enjoys a highly unique organizational culture, varied in its style from almost any of its time. The aims of the company are straightforward and simple: the company focuses on quality rather than quantity, producing products at a singular, quarterly or annual basis, but directing all creative energies into that one particular product itself. Unlike other organizations that aim to produce a variety of products, relying on the ‘something for everybody’ policy. Apple chooses to make one single product suitable for users of any demographic, be it age, gender or otherwise. All creative thoughts and direction are therefore highly focused and concentrated into one single area. Developers are encouraged to work on ideas pertaining to a set guideline of briefs, rather than being given creative license to develop a product individually from scratch. Another quality highly unique to Apple’s organizational culture is that of its high level of secrecy, a factor Jobs has often been criticized for in the past. Apple Inc. is infamous for keeping its products under a great level of security and secrecy. Up until the day of a product’s launch, people outside the organization know little to nothing of the product that is about to be released. This likely contributes to a feeling of solidarity and unity within the organization (Harris, 310), which is another feature characteristic of Apple’s organizational strategy. Apple is also famous for having a very unique organizational culture in terms of work hours and work ethics. Employees are not expected to adhere to a strict work schedule, but rather are allowed to choose flexible work hours and work spaces, depending on what suits them best. Jobs chooses to have his employees at their creative best rather than at their developed best and this is another factor that sets Apple’s employees apart from those of other organizations. While Apple has been criticized for its highly unique and quirky sense of working, the fact is that it is this quirkiness that makes Apple work. Jobs has developed an organizational culture that is different from that of any other organization, and it is this very fact that makes its employees feel united and unique, thereby working with a sense of unity and focus that is not found in other organizations. Despite all that may be said about the organizational culture at Apple Inc. the fact remains that the company went from being a mediocre to fair computer development organization to being one of the most popular and profitable organizations of the current corporate world and in much of history (Leavitt, 107). This change took place in a matter of years rather than decades and is without a doubt the result of strong leadership and organizational culture development shown by Steve Jobs. This thereby proves the importance of a strong organizational culture and strategy as being the backbone of a successful enterprise. Having a unique organizational culture and a strong strategy is what allowed Jobs to take the company from the mediocre level where it was at a few years ago to the level it is at now. One creative mind can only achieve so much, but when that mind teaches dozens of other minds the same creativity, and teaches them to work together on the same product rather than each inventing their own, you get the quality over quantity that Apple so wisely chooses. On the other hand, consider the organizational culture at an organization like Johnson & Johnson. Founded by Robert, James and Edward Johnson, the organizational culture at Johnson & Johnson is at a strong contrast from that at Apple Inc. While Apple aims to work towards innovation and creativity, shrouded in a strong aura of secrecy and uniqueness, Johnson & Johnson aims to uphold the same set of traditional products and values that it has since its inauguration. The company does not focus on innovation, but rather aims to develop products that customers have been buying for years, while at the same time ensuring a high level of standard. Employees at Johnson & Johnson all share the same set of core values, with no employee going out of the way to change its traditional product, nor any employee compromising the quality or standard of the product. The focus of the organization is not on invention, but rather on management – they want to make sure they keep producing the high level products they always have, rather than inventing new products and losing focus of their traditional charm and appeal. Furthermore, the organizational strategy is also quite unique, and distinct from that of Apple Inc. While Apple chooses to have the entire organization centered together on a common creative process, Johnson & Johnson chooses to divide the organization into smaller work units, each focusing on its own designated task. While Apple chooses to make unity its strength, Johnson & Johnson chooses to make reliability and responsibility its strength. In this way, even though the company has the same common aims, the subdivisions are able to function in their own unique ways, while at the same time keeping the company’s core values at heart (Tushman & O’Reilly, 187). Ultimately, the fact is that no matter what the core principals of an organization may be, so long as those principle exist and are strongly instilled in each member of the organization, it is likely the company has a strong organizational culture, and thereby a greater chance of success and solidarity. No matter how strong one man’s vision may be, without the strategy to carry the vision through, it is unlikely the process will be carried out very far. The strength of organizations lies in many different people working together on one common aim and outcome, whatever it may be, and this can only be done harmoniously and synchronically if the purpose behind the aim is clear in the mind of each individual. A strong organizational strategy leads to developing that aim, and a strong organizational culture helps keep the strategy working smoothly (Shein, 192). It is up to any organizational member in a leadership position to develop and implement this culture and strategy respectively, and this is the key behind an organization’s success or its ultimate demised, as exhibited time and again. There is no doubt that if any successful organization is examined, one is sure to find a strong core culture and strategy, and there is further no doubt that if that culture and strategy is examined, one is sure to find a strong leader behind its existence. As a result, for any leader to truly carry their organization to solidarity and success, they must first work on developing a strong organization culture and strategy and then work on implementing it through the organizational framework. Works Cited Charles, W. L. H. and Gareth, R. J. Strategic Management. Houghton Mifflin. 2001. Print. Harris, S. G. "Organizational Culture and Individual Sensemaking: A Schema-Based Perspective." Organization Science, Vol. 5, (3): pp. 309–321. 2004. Print. Kotter, J. and Heskett, J. L. Corporate Culture and Performance, Free Press. 1992. Print.  Leavitt, D. The Man who knew too much; Alan Turing and the Invention of the Computer. Phoenix. 2007. Print. Parker, M. Organizational Culture and Identity, London: Sage. 2000. Print. Shein, E Organizational Culture and Leadership: A Dynamic View. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. 1992. Print.  Tushman, M. & O’Reilly, C. A. Winning Through Innovation: A Practical Guide to Leading Organizational Change and Renewal. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. 1997. Print. Read More