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Some people would disagree about his style, however, calling him dictatorial and aggressive. This surprised me, although it probably should not have. Hanson (2011) stated, “Steve Jobs was far from perfect…. Let is well known that Steve Jobs could be arrogant, dictatorial and mean-spirited. Yet he was a great leader. ” Is this the type of leader that is needed in today’s world? Is this the type of person want as my leader? I’m not sure, to be honest. Of course, an ethical leader doesn’t have to be a friendly leader.
Covey’s characteristics of principle-centered leaders (1991) include things such as “they believe in other people”, “they radiate costive energy’ and “they are synergistic”, but nowhere does it say that they have to be friendly and affable. While most of us would like our leader to also be friendly, it is not necessary for a leader to also be your friend. Hanson states, “leadership style is situational”, meaning that the leader can act one way now and a different way later, depending on what needs to be done at the time.
He or she is still exhibiting ethical leadership, but doesn’t always have to be nice or pleasant. For example, if a person is in danger because of what he or she is ongoing, it is the leader’s job to immediately take action to stop the dangerous work. This may mean shouting at someone or pulling him or her away roughly. Are they being friendly at that time? No. Are they showing leadership? Yes. The situation is different from a time when that same person is writing a report to go to the leader and the leader is providing guidance in how it is to be written.
Then the leader can be friendlier and less pushy. The leader has to have a vision and a way to bring that vision to reality. He or she must then decide how to lead those working for or with him to bring about that final vision. Sometimes the leader will be the follower’s best friend and other times the leader will be their worst enemy. It all depends on the situation and what needs to happen at any given time. Steve Jobs was, apparently, well liked and respected by his employees, despite being labeled by some as being “arrogant” or “dictatorial”. He knew how to lead and what style to use when.
Otherwise Apple would not be the leader in the industry that they are now. I think I would have liked to meet and work for him, learning as much about his leadership style as I could, even if it meant being “a dictator” at times. References Cilia,J. (2003). The Ethics of Leadership. Belmont, CA: Headwords Coinage Learning Covey, S. (1991).