Influential Business Leaders : Bezos Of Amazon

There is a great importance put on business leadership, this is directly due to how a business not only functions but in how fruitful the company can become. A great leader essentially can take a business plan that is weak yet turn it into a success, whereas a poor leader stands a higher chance of ruining the best of business plans. That is why it is essential to develop effective leadership throughout a companies entire management program at all levels. How does one develop or retain strong leadership? Companies must be focused on hiring strategies that encompass very specific parameters, building from within whilst creating a strong foundation for employee development and succession planning. Leadership is essential in any organization. The style and theory embraced determines whether the company will or will not achieve their goals. in all cases theory must be embraced, as a companies theory, style, and strategy is greatly dependent on the industry the company is in (Sadler, 2014). “The behavioral theory is one of the widely used theories of management. It suggests that leaders are made and not born. It gives room for training to install leadership traits in leaders at the expense of denying them a chance. There are various leadership styles embraced by companies (Cyert, & March, 2005).”  This paper takes a look at the management styles of two specific

The intended audience for this piece of writing is struggling entrepreneurs. These employers or owners can belong to either big business or

Best Buy Co., Inc. is currently the world’s largest retailer for consumer electronics. The company has 1,400 brick and mortar stores and is a popular online retailer as well. The stores serve as display room for various online retailers. Best Buy consumers can purchase electronic products such as mobile, corded and cordless phones, televisions, cameras, personal computers, laptops, appliances and more (David & F.R., 2015). Today’s society relies on convenience and technology, forcing companies to implement new ideas and projects in an effort to maintain their ability to compete with other companies. For continued success the company must look at the internal and external issues the company may face as well as their competitors and their best practices that are contributing to their success.

Allen has given money to many wildlife conservation projects including funding millions in gifts and grants to program, projects, initiatives, and charities. He is working to end the trafficking of endangered animals and ensure safety for wild animals.

Jeff Bezo’s began Amazon in his garage in July 1995 with three Sun workstations setting on wooden doors for tables and extension cords running from everywhere (Academy of Achievement, 2010). Right from the beginning he was a visionary leaving his well paying job as a senior vice president with D. E. Shaw to begin Amazon.com (Academy of Achievement, 2010). Being the visionary that he is he saw an opportunity prompted by the huge growth rate of internet use in a single year and ran with it never looking back. Jeff realized that the internet had “no real commerce to speak of” so he began researching possible businesses (Academy of Achievement, 2010). “After reviewing 20 mail order businesses and deciding which

From Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela’s charisma, to Winston Churchill and Martin Luther King’s intelligence and Steve Jobs’ analytical nature, there can be as numerous ways to lead as there are leaders (Crossman, 2010). Leadership is a hot debate both in the business world and other areas of the society. Throughout the world's, there have been as many leadership models as there have been their commentators (Burns & Peltason, 1966). Fortunately, psychologists and businesspersons have established useful frameworks that refer to the main ways of leadership.

The presence of strong as well as effective leadership in today’s organization imposes a great responsibility to the organization’s team and management networks as leadership implies the overall capacity of the organization’s performance like for instance, in terms of operations and research development. It can be said that Amazon’s resources and capabilities can be divided in the management of the company specifically their leader which is Bezos, the ability of the management to effectively use strategic supply chain management and aligning it with their business process and information technology, their competitive advantage in the online market, and the financial resources that it gains through its successful approaches.

Amazon is a company we all know and love. The company is widely known for its online retail shopping, it’s popular Kindle Series with e-bookstore, along with their cloud and order fulfillment services amongst many other things. Amazon has become a great example of a perfect collaboration system and utilizing all of its information systems. With the vast history of Amazon we can begin to ask certain questions that would help understand Amazon and its continual success in innovating: How does Amazon, as a company show their ability and willingness to collaborate, experiment, perform systems and abstract thinking? These questions and more will be further explained in this case study.

The authors of “Why Should Anyone Be Led by You” are Robert Goffee and Gareth Jones. Goffee is a founding partner of the organizational consulting firm, Creative Management Associates, professor of Organizational Behavior at London Business School, professional speaker, and an author of numerous books. Gareth Jones is the co-author and a Fellow of the Center for Management Development at London Business School, a visiting professor from IE Business School in Madrid, and is an author and speaker as well. Their main contention in their book “Why Should Anyone Be Led by You” is that numerous or most companies in the world are not led by “true leaders,” but they are simply managed by pencil pushers and employees playing different roles on the company’s professional stage. In my evaluation of the book “Why Should Anyone be Led by You” written by Goffee and Gareth, I will be using different personal examples from my own life to expound on the book’s strengths, my likes, and the book’s limitations and weaknesses as well.

Due to the growing competition and diminishing market share, companies are opting for different strategies to achieve their survival objectives as well as growth. Companies are thus executing grand strategies to provide their businesses with a clear direction for its strategic actions. These strategies, therefore, aim at both short term and long term sustainability and growth, and they include innovation, market development, product development, and concentration.

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, has an autocratic leadership style. He has surrounded himself with lower level leaders that do not question his decisions or authority. Additionally, he is a micromanager that has implemented rigorous standards. Further, individual performance is continuously measured and employees ranked against each other. This has created a very competitive atmosphere. Notably, employees that meet his high demands are often called “Amabots.”

Jeff Bezos is the fifty two year old Chief Executive Officer and founder Amazon, the largest United States based online retailer. A critical and innovative thinker, he created his online book sales company in his garage and has led Amazon to absolute market domination, technological innovation, and has become the third riches person in the world (BBC.com, 2016). His innovative ideas, demonstrated hard work and discipline, coupled with his ability to envision the future of online retail operations, positions his company at the forefront of the market. And behind the technology, the innovation and the drive to convert cash flows into opportunity, is the underlying commitment to the customer. Jeff Bezos demonstrates the leadership practices described by James Kouzes and Barry Posner’s as the five practices of exemplary leadership, model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act, and encourage the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2012).

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon.com, was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1964. His mother, Jackie, was in her teens when he was born and she was only married to his biological father for about a year. She married Mike Bezos when Jeff was four years old. Mike was a Cuban who escaped to the United States when he was fifteen. He put himself through college in New Mexico and eventually became an engineer at Exxon.

Prior to attending the Business Internship course, my knowledge and understanding on successful business leaders was very limited. Although I had heard of countless success stories in business, I had never actually understood what it took to achieve such measures of success. However, it wasn’t until we had the privilege of hearing from four different business magnates in weeks 6 -9. Each of the business leaders gave an hour’s seminar and which was aimed at providing insights into their personal lives, working experiences and the core essence of 21st century business leadership.

Jeff Bezos is an effective conscious leader that supports the values of conscious capitalism. “Conscious businesses—that is, businesses that become conscious of their higher purpose, which is not just about maximizing profits and shareholder value (Krietner & Kinicki,2013, p.64).” Trust is associated with conscious leadership. The use of his expert power has gained Jeff trust from the general public, customers, shareholders and employees. One of the key proponents of conscious capitalism is being customer centered and ethical. Jeff has developed leadership principles that align the needs of the organization and employee which is ultimately practicing conscious business.