The Leadership of Chuck Hull - Research Paper Example

Leadership Chuck Hull’s Biography Chuck Hull is one of the greatest inventors in the world having invented the 3D printer. Little is talked about his early life but it is known that he was born on 12 May 1939. His invention made him become the vice president, head technology officer and co-founder of 3D systems. He started as an engineer for a UV lamps manufacturing company where he came up with the idea of the 3D printer (Lipson, et al 30). After deliberating for a while, he approached his boss sharing with him his idea. To make the boss understand his idea better, he explained that the 3D printer would possess the ability of printing objects, which individuals could hold with their hands. The approach did not go well as his boss discouraged the idea claiming that the company dealt with the production of UV lamps. The boss claimed that the 3D printers were replicators of “Star Trek” which the company could not spend on. Chuck hull however did not give up and kept on insisting to the boss that he be given the permission to make the machine. Eventually, they both reached a compromise, which stated that Chuck would concentrate in the making of the company’s lamps during daytime while at night concentrate on making his 3D printer(Lipson, et al 49). The UV lights manufactured at the company mainly influenced the idea of the 3D machine. Factories would use the lamps to harden plastic veneers onto rubber tiles or tabletops. With this in mind, Hull discovered that the UV light could be used to engrave plastic layers. The plastic layer’s etching would be into whatever shape he deemed attractive. The layers would be stalked forming a 3D object. At the initial stages however, he wrote codes that guided the machines on cutting the layers (Lipson, et al 65). Personal Leadership Chuck Hull’s success was not mainly because of his invention but also due to the leadership styles and qualities he possessed and practiced. Both internal and external drivers influenced his leadership qualities and styles. One external driver is the situational interaction that came about while talking to his boss. The two were close as they worked in the same company and this gave him the opportunity of telling and convincing his boss about the idea. Had he not been in a situation where he would convince the boss about the 3D printer, he would never have gotten the chance to use the company’s resources to come up with the printer. Another external driver is the function role (Sadler & Philip 76). He used to work in a UV lamps manufacturing company and this made him to realize that the UV lights emanating from the lamps had the ability of hardening plastic veneer onto rubber tiles or tabletops. It is from this knowledge that the idea of using the UV light in etching plastic layers to whatever shape he deemed fit came into place. The stacking of these layers would form a 3D object and hence the invention of 3D printer. The innovation made him rise to the top management of the company as it started selling the printers. He quickly rose from a mere factory worker to becoming the vice president, chief technology officer and its co-founder. The innovation gave him power as he had the patent rights to the 3D printer(Lipson, et al 69). The internal drivers of leadership that made Chuck hull successful included perseverance, energy, being initiative, and being assertive. He whole-heartedly pursued his goals and not even being turned down by his boss at first made him gave up. He kept on pestering the boss, who had called the 3D printer a “Star Trek” replicator, to give him the go ahead of making the printer, which he eventually got (Lipson, et al 80). His passion and determination to come up with the printer made him work at night because it was the only time he was permitted to work on it by the boss. He could easily become accustomed to changes in the environment and this was a drive that made him successful. After the invention of the printer, technology advancement grew rapidly and Chuck would embrace it in making newer printers to keep up with the changes. Leadership Field To be a successful person, Chuck’s main leadership field was the thought leadership field. This field comprises of unique set of competencies, skills and mindsets different from other fields. Leadership fields have been defined as the primary domains whereby a leader sorely exercises his or her leadership. Chuck fits to the thought leadership field, as he was observant shared his thoughts and was a willing listener and learner. He had been working for the UV lamps company and it is from where he observed how the UV lights hardened plastic veneer onto rubber tiles or tabletop. It is from this observation that the thought of using the lights to help come up with the 3D objects (Lipson, et al 60). He integrated this discovery into his initial idea to help come up with the printer. The successful innovation of the printer made him rise in ranks becoming a leader to many. People under the thought leadership field have the skill of sharing their ideas to other people who can help them. Chuck demonstrated this by sharing the idea of the 3D printer to the company’s boss to be give the permission to use the company’s resources in coming up with the printer. He continued sharing his thoughts to the boss even been severally turned down. Some of the qualities that Chuck possessed included, perseverance, being goal minded, persuasive and a hard worker. The main drivers in the thought leadership field fell under social, ecological, political and economical drivers. To keep up with the various changes in the world, Chuck and his co founder have embraced change. Some of the notable changes is incorporating the vision for future technique which is under the systematic leadership field. This made them easily incorporate new technological methods of creating the printers. Leadership Style Leadership is an individual’s ability to lead other people by guiding them and giving them directives. Leaders hold a powerful position in the country, community or institution. The main duties of a leader are to establish and uphold the vision of the institution and pass on useful information to workers. Chuck adopted the engaging style of leadership, which eventually proved to be one of the core reasons for his success (Northouse & Peter 55). He would engage people in discussions and idea sharing in a view of getting new ideas and advice from them. Before the successful manufacture of the printer, he did not shy away from sharing his initial idea with his boss. It is from this sharing that the boss gave him the permission to use the company’s resources in creating the printer. He did not stop engaging with other people, even his junior workers after assuming leadership status in the company. Engaging with people brought new ideas of improving the printer. It also motivated the junior workers, as they felt appreciated as the Chuck incorporated their input while making changes and in decision-making. Problems faced by the workers that would affect the smooth running of the company would be solved easily and promptly as he freely engaged with workers making the company run effectively (Kouzes, et al 120). Leadership-Fellowship Relationship The company had departments headed by various department heads. The heads were responsible for the operations in the department. The junior workers could report any grievances or suggestion to the departmental heads who would pass on the message to the head top management. Chuck and his co founder would tackle every issue arising in each department. They would let the departmental heads implement the company’s ideas in making the 3D printers (Lussier, et al 99). The followers in the company, who were the junior workers, followed the leaders directives as they had the necessary expertise and knowledge that would make them grow. The leaders would teach them the techniques of coming up with the printers. The followers would be given space to help them work under minimum supervision but they would be held accountable for any actions they took (Riggio, et al 80). Conclusion Chuck hull’s rise from being a company’s engineer to being its co-owner proved that he had something special and knowledge on leadership that would be useful to an individual aspiring to repeat the same feat. His leadership styles ensured that he related well with his juniors and superiors. It also ensured that the company ran smoothly as it embraced changes in the environment. References Kouzes, James M, and Barry Z. Posner. The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership. San Francisco, Calif: Pfeiffer, 2011. Internet resource. Lipson, Hod and Melba Kurman. Fabricated: The New World of 3d Printing. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley, 2012. Print. Lussier, Robert N and Christopher F. Achua. Leadership: Theory, Application, Skill Development. Australia: SouthWestern/Cengage Learning, 2010. Print. Northouse, Peter G. Leadership: Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2010. Print. Riggio, Ronald E, Ira Chaleff, and Jean Lipman-Blumen. The Art of Followership: How Great Followers Create Great Leaders and Organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2008. Web. Sadler, Philip. Leadership. London: Kogan Page Ltd, 2003. Print. Read More