https://research-methodology.net Necessary knowledge to conduct a business research Sat, 17 Feb 2024 10:17:17 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://rm-15da4.kxcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/cropped-logoBRM-32x32.jpg https://research-methodology.net 32 32 https://research-methodology.net/byd-leadership-an-overview/ Sat, 17 Feb 2024 10:17:17 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=77508 Effective BYD leadership is one of the main factors behind the phenomenal growth of the electric automaker. In April 2022, Wang Chuanfu, founder, Chairman and President of BYD, was listed on The 50 Most Influential Business Leaders in China 2022 by Fortune. Described as “a mix of Thomas Edison and Jack Welch, the former General Electric chief” by Charlie Munger in 2008[1], Wang Chuanfu is a charismatic and passionate leader known for his long-term vision and relentless work ethic.     Transformational leadership principles prevail at BYD. Wang Chuanfu’s audacious vision for a sustainable future through EV and renewable energy motivates employees and stakeholders alike. He articulates a clear picture of BYD’s potential impact on the world, transcending mere financial goals. This inspires employees to see their work as contributing to a larger purpose. It is important to note that maintaining a transformational leadership style as the company scales can be challenging. Effective communication and delegation become crucial to keep everyone aligned with the vision and empowered to act. BYD Company Limited Report contains the above analysis of BYD leadership. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porter’s Five Forces, Value Chain analysis, Ansoff Matrix and McKinsey 7S Model on BYD. Moreover, the report contains analyses of BYD business strategy, organizational structure and organizational culture. The report also comprises discussions of BYD marketing strategy, ecosystem and addresses issues of corporate social responsibility. [1] White, E. & Campbell, P. (2024) “Wang Chuanfu, the driving force behind BYD’s rise” Financial Times, Available at: https://www.ft.com/content/22527628-733e-4188-9678-ab3210fdb1ba]]> https://research-methodology.net/marriott-leadership-an-overview/ Sun, 22 Oct 2023 05:16:10 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=75912 The current CEO of Marriott International is Anthony Capuano. He has been with the company for over 25 years and has held a variety of leadership positions, including Chief Development Officer and President of Global Development. Capuano is known for his strategic thinking and his ability to build and lead high-performing teams. Marriott International‘s leadership team is also notable for its diversity. The company’s executive team includes women, people of colour, and representatives from all over the world. This diversity of experience and perspectives helps Marriott International to better understand its customers and to develop innovative products and services.     In terms of leadership style, Marriott is known for its commitment to servant leadership. Servant leaders focus on serving their employees and customers, rather than the other way around. This approach has helped Marriott International to create a positive work culture and to build strong customer relationships. Marriott International has a leadership development program called Voyage. Voyage is a 12-18 month program that is available to recent university graduates and provides a combination of practical hands-on experience and leadership training. Participants in the Voyage program rotate through different departments within a Marriott hotel and receive training from experienced leaders. Upon successful completion of the program, participants are well-positioned for leadership roles within hotel chain. Furthermore, Marriott leadership practices integrate the following important elements: Focus on employee development. The largest hotel chain in the world invests heavily in employee development and training. The company believes that its employees are its most valuable asset, and it is committed to helping them succeed. Fostering the culture of innovation. Marriott encourages its employees to be innovative and to come up with new ideas. The company has a number of programs in place to support innovation, such as its “TakeCare” program, which allows employees to submit ideas for improving the company.…]]> https://research-methodology.net/netflix-leadership-an-overview/ Mon, 18 Sep 2023 00:53:05 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=75415 Co-founder Reed Hastings had the helm of Netflix leadership as the CEO for a quarter century until he stepped down early in 2023. Hastings practiced unconventional and effective leadership practices such as providing context instead of directions, offering straightforward feedback and paying people more than they expect. Under Reed Hastings, leadership at Netfix largely boiled down to hiring and retaining top talent and remaining innovative largely because of the company’s commitment to hiring high performers, giving them lots of transparency and freedom, and avoiding imposing rules that might get in their way. Currently, there are two Co-Chief Executive Officers – Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters. Sarandos had led Netflix’s Hollywood business for many years and Peters has managed advertising business of the the streaming service.  The rationale behind having two CEOs relates to benefiting from the shared expertise of the two executives. There are cases such as Oracle, Salesforce and Atlassian where companies thrived under joint CEOs.     At the same time, having two CEOs managing a company can involve certain challenges such as blurring the line of responsibility, lack of speed of decision making and high potential of ego issues and others. These are valid reasons why majority of companies have lone leaders. Moreover, many business analysts and practitioners argue that joint CEOs are only temporary measure mostly suitable only for start-ups. However, to the credit of Netflix, co-founder and former CEO Reed Hastings has not left the company and he is serving as executive chairman. In case if major disagreements occur between Sarandos and Peters regarding strategic issues Hastings can always jump in with the final voice regarding the issue. An interesting aspect of leadership at Netflix refers to the depth of information provided to board members and the level of engagement of the board members with…]]> https://research-methodology.net/apple-leadership-and-apple-organizational-structure/ Mon, 03 Jul 2023 00:02:06 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=7364 During Steve Jobs era that covers the period 1997 – 2011, Apple leadership was autocratic with Steve Jobs micro-managing a wide range of business operations. It has been noted that “when Steve Jobs was in charge, everything flowed through him.”[1] Apple leadership practices have changed dramatically under Tim Cook.     Acknowledged as the World’s Greatest Leader by Fortune Magazine[2], Tim Cook proved to be effective from various perspectives. Moreover, Tim Cook has been praised by employees for inspirational leadership and helping his subordinates to become a better human being.[3] The multinational technology company is parting with perfectionism and autocracy elements of leadership that had prevailed under Steve Jobs. Apple leadership style integrates the following elements: 1. Democratic leadership style. In contrast to highly autocratic leadership style of Apple co-founder and late CEO Steve Jobs, the current CEO Tim Cook exercises and promotes democratic leadership. For Cook, it is important to build consensus among senior management regarding strategic decisions for the ebusiness. Moreover, since assuming the top role, Cook granted greater autonomy to new product development team, decreasing the direct participation of the CEO in new product development process. 2. “Quiet” leadership. Tim Cook has been praised for his quiet, yet effective leadership style. Nicknamed as “quiet leader” by some industry analysts[4], Cook is totally different from his charismatic predecessor, Steve Jobs. At the same time, Tim Cook is occasionally criticized by analysts and industry watchers for the lack of ambition and vigour, his predecessor Steve Jobs had. For example, according to a report by BGC financial services firm, “under Cook, Apple has been cautious about entering new product categories. The Apple Watch, launched in April 2015, is the No. 1 smartwatch, but overall sales have disappointed. Apple Music, which debuted in June 2015, has grown rapidly to 15 million subscribers, but…]]> https://research-methodology.net/nvidia-leadership-a-brief-overview/ Sat, 17 Jun 2023 13:00:16 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=74366 Leadership style at Nvidia is based on the vision and values of its co-founder and long-term CEO Jensen Huang. The leather jacket-clad CEO has been at the helm of Nvidia leadership since 1993. Huang is known for his charismatic leadership style and his ability to inspire and motivate his team. He is deeply involved in the day-to-day operations of the company and is known for his hands-on approach to management. Huang does most of the company-wide presentations and product announcements himself wearing his iconic leather jacket.  The CEO is also a strong advocate for innovation and is committed to pushing the boundaries of what is possible with technology. One of Huang’s key strengths as a CEO is his ability to anticipate emerging trends and opportunities in the technology industry. He was an early champion of the potential of graphics processing units (GPUs) for high-performance computing, and he has been instrumental in driving Nvidia’s success in this area. He has also been a vocal advocate for the use of AI in a wide range of applications, from self-driving cars to medical research. Moreover, Huang is known for his ability to build strong partnerships with other companies and to work collaboratively with his team. He has fostered a culture of innovation and excellence at Nvidia, and he is deeply committed to supporting the growth and development of his employees. Celebrating failures is an important element of leadership style at Nvidia. Soon after Huang started the company in 1993, raised the capital and employed 100 people, the technology they developed did not work. Nevertheless, Huang was able to turn around the company by developing new products and the early experience played an important role in cementing corporate culture of intellectual honesty and taking risks. Nvidia Corporation Report contains the above analysis of Nvidia…]]> https://research-methodology.net/wework-leadership-a-new-start/ Sun, 19 Feb 2023 01:33:04 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=72582 WeWork leadership has been a controversial topic with co-founder and first CEO Adam Neumann being notorious for deceitful leadership style. In fact, leadership style at WeWork under Neumann is used as a case study in business schools worldwide for its inefficiency at various levels.  The long list of wrongdoings by Neumann includes engaging in insider dealings, burning cash recklessly without a path to profitability, systematically exercising poor executive judgement and allowing discrimination and harassment at the workplace.     Neumann had contemplated and it was written in initial company IPO filings that in case he died    his wife Rebekah, the co-founder and the chief brand and impact officer of WeWork, would be responsible for appointing a successor. This scenario reminded some business analysts Game of Thrones show. Neumann also engaged in non-standard financial dealings that caused conflict of interest. For example, he was borrowing money from WeWork at a little or no interest to privately buy properties and then lease them to WeWork. Similarly, Neumann registered “The We Company” as a trademark under his name personally and sold it to WeWork for USD 6 million. Other unacceptable behaviours by Neumann include brining weed on a private jet, organizing notorious parties with free beer on tap and promoting the work culture of discrimination and sexism. These and other WeWork leadership issues emerged  when the workspace provider was scrutinized when preparing for IPO in 2019 and the company had to delay the public listing until October 2021. Due to the mounting pressure from investors and other stakeholders following the revelations Adam Neumann had to resign on September 24, 2019. Co-CEOs Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham took over leadership at WeWork until Sandeep Mathrani became CEO in February 2020. Sandeep Mathrani has an impressive track record as turnaround master and he has led five different…]]> https://research-methodology.net/starbucks-leadership-2/ Tue, 04 Oct 2022 02:15:55 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=10221 Howard Schultz has been at the helm of Starbucks leadership for more than two decades in total. He is rightly credited for making the business the world’s largest coffee retailer with 17133 company-operated stores and 16700 licensed stores in 84 markets employing 254,000 people.[1] On June 2000 Howard Schultz stepped down and assumed a new position as chief global strategist to focus on international expansion in general and expansion in China in particular. New internally promoted CEO Orin Smith oversaw store count to increase to 10000 locations with more than USD 5 billion annual sales. However, at the same time Starbucks market share at US decreased due to increased competition from McDonald’s, Dunkin’ Donuts and other competitors.     Schultz returned at the helm of Starbucks leadership as CEO on January 2008 in the middle of global financial crisis to replace Jim Donald, who had succeeded Orin Smith in 2005. After a series of massive changes such as closing many underperforming stores, re-training employee and enforcing fair trade in coffee supply-chain, Schultz stepped down as CEO for the second time and became executive chairman. Kevin Johnson was appointed as a new Starbucks CEO effective from April 2017. Kevin Johnson admitted having ‘venti-sized shoes to fill” referring to successful leadership by Howard Schultz.  At the same time, the new CEO stated “I’m not going to fall into the trap of trying to be Howard. I’m going to be authentic to who I am as a person and who I am as a leader”[2]. Howard Schultz returned for his third stint as CEO on April 4, 2022. This time the role was interim CEO until more suitable person is found. The main reason for his latest return was to actively block attempts by baristas to form unions. In September 2022, former CEO of Reckitt Benckiser…]]> https://research-methodology.net/ikea-leadership-effective-application-leading-example/ Sun, 14 Aug 2022 00:30:44 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=11380 The current IKEA leadership practices and patterns are based on leadership principles and life philosophy of its founder Ingvar Kamprad. Known to practice transformational and charismatic leadership styles, Ingvar Kamprad had been a driving force for many decades behind the phenomenal success of the home improvement and furnishing chain.  Ingvar Kamprad founded the furniture retailer in 1943 and after leading the business for 70 years, he handed over control to his three sons. Nevertheless, work principles of the founder associated with frugality and effectiveness continues to serve as a basis for IKEA leadership practices in modern days.     In 2017 Jesper Brodin became President and CEO of IKEA Group, INGKA Holding B.V. and its controlled entities. He is only the 6th CEO in The Swedish furniture chain’s history of more than 75 years.  Mr. Brodin has worked as an assistant to founder Ingvar Kamprad and it is widely believed that IKEA CEO will not change the strategic direction set by the founder of the business. The CEO of Inter Ikea that manages company’s brand and concept Mr. Jon Abrahamsson Ring has also served as founder’s assistant for many years. It has been noted that “former assistants of Mr. Kamprad have had a near monopoly on the leadership of the two main companies in the furniture empire in recent times”[1].  Apart from two executives mentioned above, former Ingka CEOs Peter Agnefjall and  Anders Dahlvig were also former assistant to Mr. Kamprad. IKEA leadership principles are based on the following pillars: 1. Leading by example. It is difficult to contain IKEA leadership style into a single classification due to a unique nature of the business in more than one ways. Perhaps, leading by example, may the most closely characterise leadership practices at IKEA. The famous quote by IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad…]]> https://research-methodology.net/mcdonalds-leadership/ Mon, 20 Jun 2022 00:34:35 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=7274 McDonald’s leadership team is headed by the President and CEO, who is aided by nine senior managers, each overseeing a specific aspect of the business. [1] The previous President and CEO Mr. Steve Easterbrook took the helm in 2015 and he was widely considered as an effective leader until he was fired for having consent sexual relationships with subordinate employees. During his leadership tenure Mr. Easterbrook was credited with turning around the company and reviving its falling stock price. Most prominent changes introduced by Easterbrook include reducing costs, introducing touch-screen ordering and establishing all-day breakfast. The new President and CEO Chris Kempczinski has also proved to be effective business leader. Under the new leadership McDonald’s has emerged as a clear winner during the pandemic. Mr. Kempczinski has channelled his energy and focus on digital, drive thru and delivery to adjust the business model to the pandemic environment. McDonald’s leadership is currently faced with a serious challenge. In recent years the fast food chain has faced many lawsuits and claims involving sexual harassment and racial discrimination. The former President and CEO Mr. Easterbrook being found violating company code of conduct is the evidence of severity of the issue. One of the important tasks for the new leader Mr. Kempczinski is to create a corporate culture where sexual harassment and racial discrimination is not tolerated in practice. McDonald’s Corporation Report contains the above analysis of McDonald’s leadership. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porter’s Five Forces, Value Chain analysis, Ansoff Matrix and McKinsey 7S Model on McDonald’s. Moreover, the report contains analyses of McDonald’s business strategy, organizational structure and organizational culture. The report also comprises discussions of McDonald’s marketing strategy, ecosystem and addresses issues of corporate social responsibility. [1] Annual Report…]]> https://research-methodology.net/amazon-leadership-visionary-leadership-focusing-customer-service-2/ Tue, 22 Mar 2022 00:56:24 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=11214 Amazon leadership style has been classified as pragmatist. Pragmatist leaders “set high standards and unapologetically expect those standards to be met by themselves and by their employees”[1] The company’s founder and first CEO, Jeff Bezos is an exceptional and proven business leader. Bezos efficiently exercises visionary and servant leadership styles and places exceptional customer service at the core of Amazon’s business practice. Moreover, Jeff Bezos leadership style is unique in several ways. For example, it has been noted that “while you might find other internet firms focusing on a fun, relaxed atmosphere for their employees, no-frills Bezos is proving the potency of another model: coddling his 164 million customers, not his 56,000 employees.”[2] Jeff Bezos’ leadership style can be analysed through the prism of contingency leadership theory. According to contingency leadership theory, “leader’s effectiveness is contingent upon with how his or her leadership style matches to the situation.”[3] Jeff Bezos leadership style has been characterized as harsh, cutthroat and demanding.[4] It can be argued that such a leadership style fitted the situation on the onset of the business, when the company had to strengthen its position on rapidly expanding industry. In July 2021 Jeff Bezos stepped down as CEO and assumed the role of company’s executive chairman. Andy Jassy CEO of Amazon Web Services became the new CEO of the online retail behemoth. At has been noted that although Andy Jassy values Bezos leadership style the new CEO is “more mild-mannered, soft-spoken and less prone to angry outbursts compared to Bezos”[5] Nevertheless, Mr. Bezos will continue to yield an immense influence on the business and Amazon leadership style for the foreseeable future. This is because his new role executive chairman grants his involvement in strategic decision making and Mr. Bezos remains as the largest shareholder of the e-commerce giant. Amazon…]]> https://research-methodology.net/square-leadership-a-brief-overview/ Sun, 26 Sep 2021 05:10:57 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=57901 Efficiency of Square leadership is one of the competitive advantages of the business. Jack Dorsey, Square co-founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer, also serves as Chief Executive Officer of Twitter, Inc. The payments company Board of Directors comprises strong business leaders such as former CFO of PayPal Roelof Botha, CEO of Shake Shack Randy Garutti and former CFO of Goldman Sachs David Viniar. Square leadership style integrates the following two principles: 1. Purpose-driven leadership. Leadership style practiced by Jack Dorsey can be classified as a purpose-driven leadership. This type of leadership can be defined as “prioritizing purpose and people over profit and greatness over growth.”[1] For Square leadership the prioritized purpose is making easier for everyone to participate in the economy. The payments company attempts to achieve this mission through developing an ecosystem of financial products and services that are greatly simplified versions of banking services. Moreover, the purpose serves as a compass for long term decision making for Square leadership team. 2. Focus on team effort and appreciation of teamwork. At Square great emphasis is placed at teamwork and decision-making at strategic level reflects inputs from teams. It has been noted that “whether he is discussing Twitter or Square, Dorsey gives most of the credit to his team.”[2] Such an approach encourages team members at all levels to feel the ownership of the company with positive implications on their work performance. Currently, Square leadership is faced with a challenge of sticking to its leadership principles and maintaining organizational culture amid an extensive growth of the business in an international scale. Taking into account successful leadership experience of Dorsey at Twitter, which is a truly global business, it can be expected that senior management at Square can deal with this challenge in an appropriate manner. Square Inc. Report contains the above…]]> https://research-methodology.net/new-uber-leadership-chance-become-profitable/ Sat, 17 Jul 2021 00:21:39 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=13400 Uber leadership style was authoritative with co-founder and first CEO Travis Kalanick attempting to micromanage the company. The global transportation technology company had to face a leadership crisis due to incompetency of Travis Kalanick. Mr. Kalanick’s leadership style was criticized as ‘one-man-show’[1]. Moreover, it has been noted that “the sexual harassment claims, the bullying, the intellectual property lawsuit – are attributable to former leader Travis Kalanick’s brash take-no-prisoners, admit-no-errors leadership style.”[2] Scandals at the global taxi technology company escalated to an extent where Kalanick was pressured by investors to step down as Uber CEO in June 2017. The search for new CEO by the Board of Directors took two months and experienced leaders such as former CEO of HP Meg Whitman and former CEO of General Electric Jeff Immelts were shortlisted as potential heads of new Uber leadership. Expedia CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was chosen as a person to lead Uber effective from August 30, 2017. Dara Khosrowshahi was CEO of Expedia for 12 years and has proved himself as an effective business leader. Expedia’s stock has climbed more than 500% since the 2005 spinoff under the leadership of Khosrowshahi.[3] New Uber leadership is faced with a set of complex challenges that include improving organizational culture, building gender-balanced senior management team and improving relationships with drivers.[4] Changes made by Mr. Khosrowshahi so far include securing USD 7,7 billion investment from Softbank[5], emphasizing diversity and inclusion, acknowledging and apologizing for past misdeeds by the company.[6] At the same time, certain aspects of Khosrowshahi’s leadership of Uber have been subjected to criticism. First of all, Uber initial public offering (IPO) which took place on May 2019 has been rather unsuccessful. Shortly after the IPO, shares of the ride-hailing giant dropped by 11%, which was the biggest IPO first-day dollar loss in US history.[7] Moreover, certain analysts note…]]> https://research-methodology.net/tesla-leadership-increasing-stakeholder-concern-with-one-man-show-by-elon-musk/ Thu, 22 Apr 2021 02:20:36 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=25384 Tesla leadership is frequently a topic of heated debates. Tesla CEO and co-founder Elon Musk is a controversial figure. At the same time he is admired worldwide for his entrepreneurial and leadership skills. Elon Musk is a successful serial entrepreneur with a reputation as a creative genius who founded PayPal, Space X and the Boring Company. Each of these companies has become highly successful in its respective field in the global scale. Musk also has been a driving force behind the rapid development of Tesla, assuming the roles of CEO and Product Architect with the company.  He was considered as an effective visionary leader credited with the successful launch of Tesla Roadster in 2018, the first electric car to use lithium-ion battery cells. Later, Musk oversaw the launch Model S, Model X and Model 3 electric vehicles and acquisition of Solar City Corp. for USD 2,6 billion in stock. The company’s board of directors comprises 10 people, including experienced and accomplished business leaders such as Oracle founder Larry Ellison and former 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch. It can be argued that one of the major issues with Tesla leadership is micro-management by CEO Musk and a wide range of roles within the company Musk attempts to perform at the same time. In an interview in August 2018, Elon Musk complained about exhaustion taking a toll on his physical health, working up to 120 hours a week and about times he has to spend three or four days at the factory without going outside.[1] Tesla Inc. Report contains the above analysis of Tesla leadership. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porter’s Five Forces, Value Chain analysis, Ansoff Matrix and McKinsey 7S Model on Tesla. Moreover, the report contains analyses of…]]> https://research-methodology.net/airbnb-leadership-unconventional/ Tue, 03 Sep 2019 00:31:09 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=39256 Airbnb leadership practices are contradictory to leadership principles taught in famous business schools worldwide. Nevertheless, the global success of the peer-to-peer lodging company is an undisputed indication of high level of efficiency of Airbnb leadership by CEO Brian Chesky. Airbnb leadership style is integrates the following elements:   1. Going to the source. Airbnb founders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia and Nathan Blecharczyk had little or no traditional management experience when they founded the global hospitality service brokerage company. Particularly, Brian Chesky had no business or entrepreneurial experience whatsoever. He dealt with the challenge using the method he calls ‘going to the source’ that is getting advice from top experts in the field. Sources for Airbnb CEO included the likes of Mark Zuckerberg, Reid Hoffman, Marc Andreessen, Jeff Weiner and Jony Ive. Going to the source remains a popular practice at Airbnb to these days and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future.   2. Managing by visibility. Hands-on approach can be specified as one of the main aspects of Brian Chesky management style. For example, CEO is known to send emails to all employees each Sunday with “whatever is on his mind, which leads to staff replying to him and opening dialogues about various elements of the business”[1] Immersing himself into important details of various business processes allows Chesky to address root causes of the problem and to find innovative solutions to them.   3. Not leading in consensus during the crisis. In 2011 a female host’s apartment was destroyed, the renter took her valuables, and stole her identity while she was travelling for business.[2] While the Chesky gave a response to the incident, the host rebutted in a blog post his claims that the company had done everything it could to help her[3]. Opinions differed within Airbnb senior…]]> https://research-methodology.net/microsoft-leadership-a-new-era-for-multinational-technology-company/ Wed, 30 Jan 2019 00:24:49 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=10522 Co-founder of the company, Bill Gates was at the helm of Microsoft leadership since its inception in 1972 until 2000, when Steve Ballmer succeeded him as CEO. While Steve Job’s leadership was rightly regarded as successful, Steve Ballmer was pointed to as the worst CEO of a large publicly traded American company in 2012 by Forbes. This viewpoint is shared by many business analysts and practitioners. It has been noted that Microsoft peaked at USD 60/share in 2000, just as Mr. Ballmer took the reins.  By 2002 it had fallen into the USD 20s, and has only rarely made it back to USD30s value, until Ballmer’s replacement by Satya  Nadella as CEO in 2014.[1] Currently, Microsoft leadership team comprises 21 members led by CEO Satya Nadella.  Specifically, there are 12 executive vice presidents responsible for various critical directions and aspects of the business, along with chief technology officer, chief legal officer and CEO of LinkedIn. Microsoft Board of Directors comprises 14 members, who are experienced senior leaders across a range of industries. Microsoft leadership practices are based on the following principles: 1. Focus on organizational culture. Leadership style exercised by Satya Nadella places a great emphasis on developing and maintaining the right type of organizational culture. Specifically, the leader of the tech giant cultivates the integration ‘learn-it-all’, rather than ‘know-it-all’ mentality into Microsoft organizational culture. 2. Efficiency and practicality. Microsoft leadership at the most senior level has been praised for being practical and CEO Satya Nadella told employees “to stop wasting their times at pointless meetings”[2]. 3. Regular coordination of efforts across the departments and groups. CEO Satya Nadella has 8-hour meeting with his leadership team every month and he runs 4-hour meetings other three weeks.[3] These meetings involve performance review of top executives on the basis of dashboards and…]]> https://research-methodology.net/xiaomi-leadership-effective-leadership-as-a-source-of-competitive-advantage/ Tue, 22 May 2018 00:07:30 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=22612 Effectiveness of Xiaomi leadership can be considered as one of the main competitive advantages for the business.  Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun is a respected businessman in China who previously led Kingsoft and founded Joyo.com that was sold to Amazon in 2014. It is said that Lei has never yelled at his staff. When he encounters a problem, he just smiles and gets down to business, and tries to find a solution. In social gatherings, Lei is always a good listener.[1] Named businessmen of the Year by Forbes in 2014 and along with Alibaba Founder Jack Ma, Lei Jun is rightly considered as the face of China Inc.[2] Xiaomi CEO is recognized as an effective charismatic leader worldwide. Along with Lei Jun, seven co-founders of the company have senior leadership roles with the titles of president and vice-presidents. Having co-founders in the senior management team is an important factor due to increased sense of ownership with positive implications on the performance of executives. Xiaomi has been dubbed as “Apple of China” for its emulation of design of Apple’s products, as well as, Lei Jun style of product announcements and his general image that resembles late Apple founder and CEO Steve Jobs.  However, Lei Jun leadership style is fundamentally different from Steve Jobs leadership. Specifically, while Steve Jobs was known for his centralized and micro-managing leadership style, Xiaomi CEO has a reputation for being a good listener and takes into account views of other members of his senior management team. Xiaomi leadership challenges at present include maintaining cost leadership position amid intensifying competition from other budget internet technology brands such as Oppo and Vivo. Xiaomi Inc. Report contains a full analysis of Xiaomi leadership. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL,…]]> https://research-methodology.net/samsung-leadership-chance-new-era/ Mon, 13 Nov 2017 00:39:09 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=11809 Samsung leadership at the most senior level has been found to be involved in a number of scandals and contradictions during the past years. There is a consensus among business theorists and practitioners that the main reasons of these scandals relate to owner-management model of the global electronics company. “Since taking over in 1987, Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee, part of the second generation of managers from the ruling Lee family, made great contributions to the group’s astonishing management performance and the development of Samsung into South Korea’s leading global IT business”.[1] At the same time, Lee Kun-hee was convicted twice in 1995 and 2008 for slush fund cases, but escaped punishment over the X-files scandal. There were other incidents involving Samsung senior leadership belonging to the ruling family as well. These have escalated into the emergence of massive leadership crisis in 2017. Specifically,  Jay Y. Lee, the former de facto head of the Samsung conglomerate, was given 5-year jail term  for his role in bribery and embezzlement, part of a series of scandals that led in March to the ouster of Park Geun-hye, South Korea’s first female president.[2] Currently, the company is led by Dr. Oh-Hyun Kwon is Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman, Samsung Electronics; Head of Device Solutions.  Samsung Board of Directors consists of four executive directors and five independent directors. The independent directors also meet separately from the Board of Director’s executive directors in order to promote a free exchange of ideas on all aspects of the company’s management.[3] As it is illustrated in figure below, Samsung has a leadership development program that comprises all five leadership levels throughout the company. Samsung Leadership Development Program Samsung Group Report contains a full analysis of Samsung leadership. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in…]]> https://research-methodology.net/alphabet-inc-leadership-overview/ Mon, 19 Jun 2017 00:12:40 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=10831 Alphabet Inc. leadership team is headed by CEO Larry Page. The executive team consists of 16 members, responsible for various aspects of the business.  Formerly, Eric Schmidt was CEO of Google until the business was restructured in 2015 and Alphabet Inc. was instituted as a holding company of Google, along with other businesses. Alphabet Inc. was instituted as an analogue to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway.[1] Alphabet Board of Directors comprises 13 members, led by Executive Chairman of the Board Eric Schmidt. The Board includes successful and experienced business leaders such as Alan Mulally and Paul Otellini, as well as, distinguished economists such as Roger W. Ferguson Jr. Ph.D. and Shirley M. Tilghman Ph.D. Table below illustrates the leadership of companies within Alphabet portfolio Alphabet Inc. Company CEO Google Sundar Pichai Access Greg McCray Calico Art Levinson, former CEO of Genentech CapitalG David Drummond GV David Krane Nest Marwan Fawaz Verily Andy Conrad, founding CEO with background in X Waymo John Krafcik, background in auto industry X Astro Teller Alphabet Inc. leadership challenges in present include ensuring the profitability of business subsidiaries other than Google such as Access, Calico, CapitalG, GV, Nest, Verily, Waymo, and X. Although Larry Page has proven leadership skills, being one of the driving forces behind the emergence of Google to its current state, it is not guaranteed that he is able to replicate that same success in relation to non-Google businesses within Alphabet portfolio. Alphabet Inc. (Google) Report contains a full analysis of Alphabet Inc. leadership. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porter’s Five Forces, Value Chain analysis and McKinsey 7S Model on Alphabet Inc.  Moreover, the report contains analyses of Alphabet Inc.  business strategy, organizational structure and organizational culture. The report also comprises…]]> https://research-methodology.net/facebook-inc-leadership-competent-and-entrepreneurial-senior-management/ Wed, 04 Jan 2017 00:45:34 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=9227 Facebook Inc. leadership is headed by its founder Mark Zuckerberg in the position of CEO and Chairman of the Board. Despite his relatively younger age among CEOs, Mr. Zuckerberg is renowned for his visionary leadership style and he is justly credited for the impressive growth rate of the company since it was founded in 2004. Mr. Zuckerberg’s initial business card read “I’m CEO, Bitch.” reflecting his aggressive leadership style at the earliest stages of business development. Moreover, named as one of the most influential personalities in the world in 2010 by Time Magazine, Mark Zuckerberg plays a dominant role in every aspect of the business and he is famous for his micro-management style.  Mark Zuckerberg, as the founder, Chairman, and CEO, is able to exercise voting rights with respect to a majority of the voting power. Therefore, Zuckerberg is in the position to control a wide range of strategic matters including the election of directors and any merger, consolidation, or sale of Facebook’s assets. As of 2016, Mark Zuckerberg is only 32 years old and the youngest member of the Board of Directors. Facebook Chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg is also a strong and proven business leader who made impressive career in two large tech companies – Google and Facebook. She is also the author of a bestseller book ‘Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead’ about female leadership in corporations. At the same time, Facebook senior leadership team has been criticised for a lack of diversity having only 3 per cent of black members in executive team.[1]… Facebook Inc. Report constitutes a comprehensive analysis of Facebook business strategy. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porter’s Five Forces, Value Chain analysis and McKinsey 7S Model on Facebook…]]> https://research-methodology.net/gap-inc-leadership-attempts-to-combat-declining-sales/ Sun, 23 Oct 2016 03:32:46 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=8654 Since founding the company with his wife Doris Fisher in 1969, Donald Fisher has been at the helm of Gap Inc. leadership serving as CEO until 1995 and Chairman of the Board until 2004, and as company director and Chairman Emeritus until his death in 2009. Millard “Mickey” Drexler served as GAP CEO from 1995 until 2002 and he is credited for transforming the company into a global brand. It has been noted that “Drexler possessed the fashion instincts that built the Gap brand and image into a destination for multiple target customer groups”.[1] Drexler was forced to resign in 2002, following the decline of sales and a loss of USD 7.7 million in 2001. Paul S. Pressler from Disney was named as the new CEO due to his reputation as operations wizard to restore discipline to the floundering company.[2] Failing to appreciate the nuances of the fashion business Pressler oversaw a further decline in sales and brand image. Currently, GAP’s senior management team is led by CEO Art Peck and he is focused on executing the company’s strategy to engage customers and maximize shareholder returns. Today, Gap leadership is faced with a serious challenge of declining sales and profitability. Net sales for fiscal 2015 decreased 4 percent to USD 15.8 billion compared with USD 16.4 billion for fiscal 2014. Gross profit for fiscal 2015 was USD 5.7 billion compared with USD 6.3 billion for fiscal 2014.[3] This is the outcome of the brand using its perception of ‘coolness’ along with a set of other issues. Despite the complexity of the current situation for Gap Inc., there are optimistic views that CEO Art Peck may be successful in turning around the business partially due to his experience of two decades in management consultancy. Moreover, Mr. Peck is credited with the…]]>