Introduction
The purpose of this paper is to study a
role model, a leader; and to analyse closely his/her personal style in
effectively leading men towards a common goal. This analysis will be used to
compare and contrast with the researcher’s personal leadership traits in order
to evolve a personal growth plan.
The subject of study for this essay will be
Mr. Li Ka Shing, as he is a businessman who has gained repute and respect for
his approaches in leading his team, thereby maintaining supremacy of his
various businesses by employing strong business acumen.
Biography
Mr. Li’s family relocated to Hong Kong from
China (Ghuangzou being Mr. Shing’s birth place) to avoid post war turbulences
in the country. Mr. Shing’s father expired in 1943, forcing Mr. Shing to quit
formal education in order to support his mother and siblings. The entrepreneur
started his career working on the ground level as a helper in strap
manufacturing organisation. However, his persistence, hard work and
intelligence paid, and Mr. Shing was promoted to the post of salesman and then
General Manager within a period of few years. In 1950, the entrepreneur setup
his first company Cheung Kong Industries and within a short span, the company
became the largest supplier of plastic flowers in Asia. In the following two
decades Shing diversified his business to industries like real estate and port
management and establishing as the strongest players in the industry segment.
Currently the company also functions in industries as diverse as telephony and
technology products. Also Shing’s business portfolio has diversified to include
companies such as Hutchison Whampoa and Hong Kong Electric Holdings Limited.
Shing’s trade prowess is proven already in
the business world. He was referred to as ‘Asia’a most powerful man’ by
Asiaweek and is called the ‘Superman’ of the world in his own country.
Accounting for his wealth, Shing ranks as the ‘eighth richest man in the world’
according to the Forbes magazine and was recently awarded ‘Malcolm S. Forbes
Lifetime Achievement Award’ (2006). Apart from this Li is also an avid
philanthropist and his total combined donations have exceeded $2.8 billion.
Analysing Leadership Style
In this section a brief analysis of Mr. Li
Ka Shing’s leadership approach, is attempted at:
Transformational Leadership
Mr. Shing has had a long career. Since
starting up in 1950, he has diversified into various industries such as
manufacturing of plastic products, real estate, port management, mobile
telephony, infrastructural enterprises and turn key projects among others. His
businesses approximate 15% capitalised value of Hong Kong stock exchange
(approx $450 billion) and major operations span over 24 countries. Such a broad
portfolio has obviously required continual change and adaptation. Mr. Li’s
style in leading his people has been transformational, wherein he has
continually motivated his followers to have a dynamic approach and fit into the
requirements of the changing times and diverse business interests.
Democratic Leadership
Mr. Li Ka Shing is known for his
exceptional humility and modesty. He leads a very simple life and believes in
equality and leading by example. The business man believes in team work and
group decision making so as to achieve goals by self motivation of team
members. It is his policy to hire intelligent and experienced people, so as to
be able to trust them with the responsibility of being an equal part of the
decision making process. Mr. Shing’s trust in democracy is highlighted by the
fact that the name of his major company Cheung Kong means ‘holding’ which
communicates a philosophy of equality and inclusivity. Thus his leadership
style can also be cited as Democratic.
Since we have analysed the leadership style
of Mr. Li, one must also pay attention to the traits of his personality which
shape his approach in leading men:
Cognitive Ability
Although Mr. Shing couldn’t complete formal
education nevertheless he understands the importance of learning continually.
He is an avid reader and spares some time before bed to read regularly. Mr.
Shing believes that one must attain knowledge as an ever going process in order
to update oneself and retain the ‘edge’. This is one of the foremost reasons to
allow Mr. Shing to adapt to the needs of various industries especially,
technology which is a dynamic sector.
Flexibility
Mr. Li embraces the virtues of dynamism,
accommodation, adaptation and flexibility. He understands that in order to stay
ahead of the competition one must be ready to change with the times. Thus, the
leader often allows time and space to himself and his followers to the changing
needs of the situation and of the new sectors and industries the business is
embracing.
Inclusive Growth
Mr. Shing is a social person; this is
evident from his affable personality and dedication to the cause of people. He
believes that in order to grow one requires a team; and individual’s success is
dependent on team success. His commitment to inclusive growth is substantiated
by his various philanthropic initiatives which enable education and development
of various marginalised elements of society.
Benchmarking
Observing Mr Li Ka Shing’s leadership
style, an attempt to benchmark his approach and contrast my leadership style
against it has been made in this section.
It has been noted that Mr. Shing follows a
transformational leadership style. I personally believe in flexibility and
continual learning (and adaptation); this is established by my inclination
towards reading on and discussing about diverse subjects. However, my personal
approach to leadership may not be as inclusive or democratic as Mr. Shing’s.
Mr. Li believes in hiring the best and then giving them reasonable autonomy to
decide whereas, I have usually worked in structured environments where decision
making processes and task implementation have been influenced majorly by my
beliefs and knowledge and have been closely monitored.
This is an area where I believe, is a scope
for improvement; An inclusive team work process is the need of the time as
strict hierarchical structures have given way to flatter organisational setups
and sound decision making requires different point of views as team’s
commitment and self motivation has
become essential for achieving goals.
Conclusion
The report has been critical in unearthing
an effective leadership style in context of modern organisations. Also, it has
benefitted me in knowing the strengths and weaknesses of my own approach to
leadership. Thus, the report will be useful in developing a personal growth
plan by benchmarking the style of a successful leader as Mr. Li Ka Shing.
References
1.
cs2leadersproject.wikispaces.com/Li+Ka+Shing
2.
mobile.breakingnews.com/storypage/story.aspx?id=21020837
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