The Importance of Business Assessment

“In order to be a good leader, there are two things to remember. Lead from the Front and always set the Example. From these two leadership principles, everything else will fall into place.”

Citigroup was formed as a result of a merger between Citicorp and the Travelers Group on October 8, 1998. Citicorp started as City Bank of New York in 1812. City Bank of New York increased in size from acquiring several other New York-based banks. It continued to expand in subsequent years by acquiring several other banking entities and expanded across the national boundaries acquired International Banking Corporation in 1918. It went public in 1962 and 1976, it was renamed as Citibank. International expansion continued which gave it a new name of ‘Citicorp’. Citigroup merged with the Travelers Group, which started as the Travelers in 1864. It started as a life and accident insurance company. It also started the operations of commercial credit in 1912. It continued to expand and acquired Shearson Lehman Bros. In 1993 and the Travelers Group was the result of this acquisition. It continued to expand through acquiring companies like Aetna Casualty and Surety Co., Standard Fire Insurance and Salomon Inc. between the periods of 1993 to 1996. Finally, it merged with Citicorp to form Citigroup. Citigroup, which insured its stakeholders that it will grow through internal operations, kept expanding through contrasting channel, which was through acquisition of other companies. Until 2003, revenue, net income and pre-tax profit margin of Citigroup grew more than the sum of net income and pre-tax profit margin of its top three

My father and uncles’ instilled a statement in my head from a young age that I will never forget. This statement is closely related to the Law of Legacy and very relevant to being a leader in the modern business world. The statement only consists of a few words, but these words are very powerful and if this statement is followed, your reputation as a leader will be respected and hopefully emulated. The statement is, “Lead by example, do what is right, be the best you can be, and treat others the way you would like to be treated.”

"If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, then you are an excellent leader." Dolly Parton

Leaders, worldwide are judged by their ability to conduct themselves appropriately as well as manage a team. A leader with vision and passion can positively influence persons by injecting enthusiasm and energy. “Today leaders are expected to guide, motivate,

his own words, to “build an enduring company where people were motivated to make great

When looking back in one’s career, each manager in the organization leads and develops employees differently. A person can apprehend that each leader has their own leadership style with

The theories applied to Steve Jobs have opened my mind to realise how important effective leadership styles are to organisations. A lesson learnt from Steve’s leadership qualities is that a leader can adapt different style of leadership and this makes a leader more effective and efficient. The late Apple boss was a master of employing various strategies to adapt to differing scenarios and situations. Steve Jobs did not exhibit a single rhetorical style, but rather altered it depending on the situation and yet still managed to deliver a constant message to support his company’s

Over the course of my career I have had the opportunity to work for dozens of leaders that aided me in the development of my leadership style. As one would easily recognize not all leaders had a constructive impact on my career but rather provided leadership traits to avoid. One person that I have learned a considerable amount from is my father. My father instilled in me the fact that I need to work hard, complete the task at hand, dedicate time to the betterment of my people, and myself and have fun while doing all of this. Another person that introduced considerable leadership influence on me are my grandfathers. My grandfathers lived very different lives; one was a businessman, while the other was a US Army post-WWII veteran, yet they had a uniformed message. That message was continuously grow, be aggressive in studies and work, stay active, and finish what you started. Two additional influencers of leadership are CDR Michael Fredie and MCPO Darrick Dewitt. CDR Fredie is a natural leader, and lives the quote made famous by Theodore Roosevelt, “Speak Softly and carry a big stick; you will go far”. He has the uncanny ability to influence others to work harder through passion and inspiration. Whereas MCPO Dewitt is an authoritative figure that demands respect and continuously inspires his workforce to better themselves in pursuit of bettering the unit, rating, and service.

Leadership is both an inherent value and is forged overtime. Inherently, some people are born good leaders and intrinsically have good values imbedded. Leadership traits can be honed and developed overtime; you never stop learning to be a good leader. Leadership is the cornerstone of all successfully run organizations and is what drives stewardship to successfully carry on the organizations mission statement. Throughout one’s life experiences, they come across some great leaders and some not-so great leaders. Those life experiences transcend one to become a better leader through experiential circumstances.

When I think about leadership this quote impacts my life the most. Leaders develop, cultivate, and invigorate their people. Investing in people is the wisest action a leader can take. That investment requires a leader to operate as a diversified portfolio, adjusting leadership style to fit the people working with them. People can tell if a leader is passionate about what they do. “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” Simon Sinek

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” - Steve Jobs. Jobs is known as one of the world’s greatest innovators. He had an interesting past which led to a successful future. Jobs is most commonly defined by the Apple symbol, but his legacy will live on as an inspiration.

Leadership is essential to the success of any organizations. Strong and effective leaders must have clarity of purpose and a compelling vision to propel organizations forward. Every leader has a philosophy which is a founding principle for their belief. Successful leaders know their personal leadership philosophy and know how to communicate it in everything they do. Leaders must know who they are, their priorities, and their values. This paper will highlight my personal philosophy and the attributes that aspires me.

In this ever growing, rapid developing world as we can see today, there are many different successful leaders. As we know it, leaders are humans just like everyone else. How did they manage to stand out from the crowd? What did they do to achieve great success for an organization? As of all the successful leaders in the world, Steve Jobs is one of the successful leaders that managed to achieve great success for an organization. Therefore, Steve Jobs is the leader that I personally admire and would like to emulate.

“Leadership is influencing others by your character, humility, and example. It is recognizable when others follow in word and deed without obligation or coercion”.( Sonny Newman, president of contract manufacturer EE Technologies)