A comparison & contrast of two comparable company leaders Essay

A comparison & contrast of two comparable company leaders - Essay Example Businesses have increasingly discovered that their successful survival depends largely on their capacity to leverage collective knowledge which consequently depends on the cadre of supervisors and leaders that they possess in order to meet the growing demands of speed and innovation in the fast moving business world. Leadership has attained importance in its ability to influence individuals and groups in directing and supporting their efforts towards accomplishments of organization goals and objectives. Leaders have been recognized as heroic figures that have the capabilities to determining the future and fate of the organization. The search for the leadership traits and characteristics has been continuing for centuries and extensive research has been conducted to find the qualities distinguishing an individual as a leader. History suggests that different leaders have followed different leadership styles over the years; while some have been participative others have been autocratic. However, this largely depends on the personal characteristics of the individuals standing out as leaders. This project seeks to bring forth the differences and similarities of leadership styles pursued by Bill Gates and Steve Jobs who are owners of Microsoft and Apple respectively. This is done with particular reference to the theories of leadership and real life examples from organizations. Steve Jobs has been an unconventional leader and is known as for ability of building consensus and consultative approach. His leadership style demanded high degree of excellence and accuracy from his co-workers and he was known for his blunt release of criticisms. On the other hand, Bill Gates is known for his technical bent of mind and demonstrates task oriented leadership style where he is found to be mostly concerned with the accomplishment of tasks and organizational objectives. Leadership style of Steve Jobs In order to understand the core steps and ideas which led to the growth of Apple an d accounted for its success, it is crucial to make a thorough understanding of the leadership style followed by Steve Jobs who had been the CEO of the company during the same period. One of the statements made by Steve Jobs throws light on the style of leadership that Steve Jobs he considered adopting. He had said that innovation is the main distinguishing factor between a leader and a follower. Innovation has been the key to the style of leadership that Steve Jobs has followed in his organization. Also his leadership style has made innovation easily accessible to all his customers such that they remain open to acquiring his products frequently (Hitt, Ireland & Hoskisson, 2010, p.352). In this context it is surprising to note that Steve Jobs did not successfully graduate from any college. He rather devoted all his time to technologies and innovations in his domain. Thus it can be inferred that leadership is a feature which cannot be acquired, rather individuals are born with the cha racteristics. Steve Jobs is considered to be the central personality in his organization. He has become the icon in the organization and seems to have developed a cult-like personality. This is the reason why Apple is considered to be personality driven (Dailey, 2011). Charismatic Leadership Style followed by Steve Jobs Charismatic leadership typically instils submission and awe in the minds of the followers