Leadership
Leaders hold positions of power and influence; therefore, they determine an organization’s future based on their leadership styles. This paper is about Mark Zuckerberg, the Founder and the Chief Executive Officer of Facebook.Inc. Zuckerberg is responsible for setting the overall direction and product strategy for the company. He is actively involved in the design of Facebook services and the development of its technology and infrastructure. Facebook began from humble origins; it has become one of the world’s biggest social network companies because of good leadership and business strategies. The company offers a global social network with attractive designs that gives users better experiences. Good leadership leads to value proposition implemented for the sake of customer satisfaction, growth of the company, and improving the society at large
The path-goal theory of leadership theory is a model that is based on a leader’s style or behavior that connects them to employees and the work environment to achieve an objective. The leader has a responsibility to solve the employees’ needs and provide a favorable working environment (Megan). Mark Zuckerberg has been in the forefront to ensure that his employees are well guided towards their goals. He applies the theory to ensure that employees are well motivated, empowered, and fully satisfied to be highly productive. Employee satisfaction is based on the leaders’ performance as a facilitator and leader, and he rewards workers based on their performance.
Mark Zuckerberg possesses transformational leadership traits. A transactional leader maintains normal workflow by using disciplinary powers, rewards, and incentives to keep workers happy and motivated. Transformational leaders go beyond normal routines, which has made Mark Zuckerberg a great leader in the business sector. He embodies a transformational leader’s traits, such as the ability to motivate, which gives the employees clear guidance towards achieving the company’s objective. His confidence, vigor, courage, and intellectual ability make him a transformational leader cherished by most of his employees (Johnson). When Mark started Facebook as a young man, he operated as the manager, the developer, the marketer, and the employee. He rejected lucrative offers to sell his company to Yahoo, MTV Networks, and Microsoft because he had a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve. He explained that he could not sell because h was not being by money but rather his passion for seeing people communicating using his social network. His transformational leadership style has connected nearly all corners of the world, with Facebook being the most used means of online communication. Mark could seek advice from his mentors, such as Steve Jobs, to expand his business and become a great leader (Shegani-Hamzallari ). Being a successful transformational leader is an easy mantra. Zuckerberg created a culture that allows workers to be highly productive.
Mark Zuckerberg decided to accept funds from external sources to enhance the company’s image, improve recruitment, selection, and promotion services. He surrounds himself with a successful management team whose responsibility is to check out operations and hire talented employees to help him achieve the intended goal. Transformational leaders place their premiums on the intellectuals and the development of employees (Baldonado, 40). Transformational leaders pay attention to individual strengths and abilities hence offering coaching and assistance.
Mark Zuckerberg is an effective leader with high intellectual ability because he owns one of the largest global networks. His style of leadership has contributed to his success as a young entrepreneur. He embraces new ideas, which is why he empowers, makes himself available for communication, criticism, and feedback. Otherwise, Facebook would not be so successful if he does not eschew the typical organizational hierarchy. He surrounds himself with visionary people because he understands that he cannot do it all by himself now that the company has become large. Great businesses are always built around great partnerships (Jabbar et al. 477). Zuckerberg has consistently partnered with people who have complementary talents and abilities. His success has also been made achievable due to his real vision for the company (Baldonado, 41). He had repeatedly said that his objective is to create a more connected and open world. From his achievement, it is undoubtedly clear that he is fully committed to making his dream come true and not just mere talks.
Mark Zuckerberg has his own weaknesses, and there is a way he can improve. For instance, Facebook faces competition from other platforms such as Snapchat, Twitter, and Instagram. Any competitor packages their offerings based on the downsides of Facebook, including the privacy challenge. There have been numerous legal lawsuits due to privacy concerns, addiction, and stalking, which Zuckerberg, as a leader, needs to find a solution. The solution could be establishing a counseling department that deals with not only employees but also other Facebook users.
Mark Zuckerberg is a great leader is his vision, passion, effective communication skills, abilities to solve problems, and good interpersonal skills. He has established an open communication culture that allows employees to speak out their minds freely. He has flourished as a leader and is offering continued support within and outside his company. His transformational style can be defined as smart, demanding, aggressive, encouraging, and innovative. Through his leadership, Facebook has changed how people interact and use the internet.
Work Cited
Baldonado, Arthur. “What Can We Learn From Young Business Leaders Today?”. International Journal Of Managerial Studies And Research (IJMSR), vol 3, no. 6, 2015, pp. 40-43., Accessed 7 Oct 2020.
Jabbar, Muhammad Naveed, and Fauzi Hussin. “Effect of organizational leadership behavior and empowerment on job satisfaction.” Opción 34.16 (2018): 472-491.
Johnson, C. (2015, December 22). Seven life skills I learned from Mark Zuckerberg about success. Retrieved September 10, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/yec/2015/12/22/eight-life-skills-i- learned-from-Mark-Zuckerberg-about-success/#186ad49763f0
Megan. “The Path-Goal Theory And Leadership Behaviors.” Sites.Psu.Edu, 2013, https://sites.psu.edu/leadership/2013/02/14/the-path-goal-theory-and-leadership-behaviors/. Accessed 10 Oct 2020.
Shegani-Hamzallari, Jonida. “Mark Zuckerberg: Leader of The 21St Century | PSY 532: Foundations Of Leadership (Clarke)”. Sites.Psu.Edu, 2016, https://sites.psu.edu/leaderfoundationsclarke/2016/09/26/mark-zuckerberg-leader-of-the-21st-century/#:~:text=Zuckerberg%20is%20considered%20a%20leader,by%20being%20a%20college%20dropout.&text=Zuckerberg’s%20leadership%20styles%20have%20contributed,success%20as%20a%20young%20entrepreneur.