Steve Jobs as a Transformational leader

Steve Jobs was born on February 24th in 1955 from two University of Wisconsin graduate students who gave him up for adoption. Paul and Clara Jobs, a lower middle class couple, adopted him. They lived in Mountain valley, California which later became Silicon Valley. Since he grew up in a neighbourhood of engineers, that influenced him from a young age to get into technology. Steve was very intelligent and was an innovative thinker in his youth.He was a prankster at school because of boredom. His fourth grade teacher had to bribe him to study. Steve did so well, that administrators tried to convince his parents to skip him to highschool (which they declined). When Steve jobs went to highschool, he met Steve Wozniak. Although Steve Wozniak was 18 and Steve Jobs was 13, they clicked quickly because of their interest in computers.

A Transformational Leader is a person who assesses a country, or organization/company, and recognizes the need for a change in the entity and is able to envision what this change should be. The transformational leader not only envisions the necessary change but has the required personality and strength of character that will enable them to influence others to buy into their vision and make it their own, and hence be willing to follow the leader in the quest to bring about the vision.

Transformational leadership describes a leader moving followers beyond immediate self-interests through idealized influence (charisma), inspiration motivation, intellectual stimulation, or individualized consideration. Transformational leaders are change agents. They influence the mission and objectives to make way for a brighter future for the organization. Followers are motivated to do more than is originally expected because of their feelings of trust and respect for the leader.

Transformational Leaders - refers to leaders who seek to make changes and improvements in individuals and social systems. This type of leader uses as a method the evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the employees in order to help them to reach their maximum potential.

Niccolo Machiavelli spent adequate time studying past rulers, observing how their strategies either lead to their success or ruin. He later wrote, The Prince, in which he outlined the strategies a prince should follow in order to acquire and maintain power. Machiavelli gifted Lorenzo de Medici his book, as it was customary to present the prince with your most prized possession. However, the book was not well received, as it was perceived to go against the Catholic Church. Today, however, The Prince has been deemed a classic and its teachings are applicable to the business world. By adhering Machiavelli’s teachings many companies have become successful. For example, some of Michael Kors’ business practices reflect principles outlined in The

Leadership is “ critical in codifying and maintaining an organizations’ purpose, values, and vision. “ ( PM World Today Journal ). Having good leadership methods in place at an organization is vital in bringing success to a company. Steve Jobs is highly stimulated and has a strong idea of what he wants for Apple to achieve in upcoming periods. He is a transformational leader, and this, “ represents the most popular current view of leadership. This leader is characterised by a capacity to create a highly motivating and absorbing vision of the future, and has the capability to energise others to pursue the vision. “ ( Claremont McKenna College Journal ). Jobs has put in a huge effort to create a strong framework of control and direction, for example, “ Since returning to Apple, Steve has put as much energy into creating a strong management structure as he has into the products. “ ( www.ft.com ). This is highly effective leadership, trying to improve the design of the organisation in order to achieve more efficiency.

Transformational leaders express a clear vision, inspire others and work together with their team to identify common values and goals (Marquis and Huston 2009). They also recognise followers’ potential, assist them to develop their strengths and identify individual differences (Bass 2008).

One can see many parallels when comparing Machiavelli's writing to powerful modern day leaders, more specifically Barrack Obama who is arguably the most powerful individual in the world at this time. All around his presidency, it has gotten clear that President Obama has gained numerous political techniques that are fundamentally the same to Machiavelli's plans, further supporting the way that Obama is a cutting edge Machiavellian ruler. This gets to be especially evident when one studies Obama's procedures and moves made concerning the matters depicted in the accompanying parts of Machiavelli's "The Prince"; How a Prince Should Keep His Word, On Generosity and Miserliness and in conclusion, On Cruelty and Mercy, and Whether It Is Better to Be Loved Than To Be Feared or the Contrary.

This person is the equivalent of a king or queen without a throne; he or she may influence the people around them positively as they all work to fulfill daily obligations, but his or her reach is very limited. By contrast, a person in a position of authority who fails to recognize, trust, value, and encourage the flourishing of skills among his or her colleagues and staff will quickly lose respect and support from these people. In 1513, Machiavelli wrote, “I'm not interested in preserving the status quo. I want to overthrow it.” Therefore, in addition to having a low tolerance for dishonesty, he apparently did not buy into transactional management theory either. I hold the belief that the key ingredient that distinguishes a leader from an authority figure is power. To the traditional Machiavellian, power allows the ends to justify the means. But in a frail world where leadership consists of power grabs for the sake of power-grabbing, leadership will ultimately fall apart for, as Machiavelli wrote, "It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles." Any leader who focuses solely on the accrual of power is acting disingenuously and, when the people revolt against this behavior, this leader's employment status may meet a tragic end. To Machiavelli, true leaders strive to shatter false pretenses. "Men judge generally more by the eye than by

Niccolo Machiavelli, who lived during the Renaissance, was a politician, a philosopher, and an author. His most highly regarded book, “The Prince” details the ways in which Machiavelli believes the world should be run. By using real world examples, as well as his own opinion, Machiavelli puts up points about everything that could harm a ruler, but also about what could lead to a leader becoming one of the greats. Machiavelli’s work was accepted widely around the world, and still to this day is read around the world; not necessarily as a guide, but as an insight into the world that Machiavelli wanted. Leaders around the world currently follow many different methods to rule their people, however if they followed some of Machiavellis rules, there might be less backlash towards those in power. Rulers, in Machiavellis mind, must be smart and cunning, but also thoughtful of those he is ruling, because in the long run, the people of his kingdom can determine his fate.

Honoring his word is also key in gaining the respect of his employees as well as the bosses of other CEOs of companies that do business with Machiavelli Co. If respect is given to the CEO then this means that the rules are much more likely to be followed and force will not be needed. In the company scenario and the The Prince, force means termination from the job and no so much the physical punishment found in the novel. The last thing that the CEO must do in order to be successful is to not be distant from his workers. Any executive who comes down from his high perch and visits with the lowest workers and show how much they know about the company are going to have the most employees who respect their employer and in turn have more success. “Nothing causes a prince to be so much esteemed as great empires and giving proof of prowess.” This quote from chapter 21 says that proving prowess is one of the best ways to be esteemed by your

In 1978 Burns (Bass, 2008) defined a transformational leader as a person who raises a followers level of concern to the well being of others, the organization and society. Transformational leaders inspire and motivate

Niccolo Machiavelli’s advice towards leaders in his book The Prince is both relevant and not relevant today in many ways. The European leader that I have chosen to prove what advice Machiavelli gave in The Prince is relevant and what is not, is Edward Heath. Some of Edwards work relates to the advice given by Machiavelli while many of it is the pure opposite of Machiavelli’s advice.

Nicoló Machiavelli’s The Prince highlights important aspects of successful leadership and power. The representations of gender and power in this text help to display the principles and guidelines that would make a leader successful in Machiavelli’s eyes. Throughout The Prince, Machiavelli implies that an individual with good morals will not obtain power, but rather that an individual who obtains power is assumed as morally upright by the people. One may wonder how a man whose reputation was a worshipper of the devil can have a profound impact on the individuals who live in this current generation; in this text, Machiavelli gives readers his advice on how to rise to power using history as evidence. Although Machiavelli’s The Prince was written in the 1500s, his work is still being read, praised and applied to this day, which suggests that his principles really are applicable to anyone. Machiavelli’s advice on power emphasizes that power is a game of deception, however an individual must master themselves before they can deceive. Through analyzing Machiavelli’s advice on power, one can see how the text contains nuances about power concepts which can aid individuals to attain power regardless of their gender.

A TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADER is a person who stimulates and inspires followers to achieve extraordinary outcomes (Robbins, 2007)It has been shown to influence organisational members by transforming their values and priorities while motivating them to perform beyond their expectations (Rowold, 2007)Increased levels of job satisfaction & reduced turnover intentions are consequences of transformational leadership. It is all about leadership that creates positive change in the followers whereby they take care of each other’s interests and act in the interestsof the groupas a whole (Warrilow, 2012)