Leading by example

The world's best-known businessmen inspire by their actions and by their ability to take calculated risks and see them through.

Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric (GE) and arguably one of the most admired in US business history, once declared, "Managers muddle while leaders inspire." Glancing through a list of names of today's business leaders, it is difficult to imagine what the media-shy philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has in common with the media-savvy tycoon Donald Trump or indeed the personable maverick and Virgin group founder, Sir Richard Branson. Lucy and Fiona Knowles who co-run the Dubai branch of Gyro International, an integrated brand communication company, believe that passion, drive and the ability to lead from the front are crucial in the climb to the top of any corporate ladder.

"All the successful people I know are great at delegating as well as having the ability to roll their sleeves up and get stuck in," says Lucy. "It is essential to make strong connections with people and highly important to not being afraid of taking action when necessary."

This certainly fits Jack Welch's management style. In his 20-year reign as CEO of GE, Welch was famous for an informal approach that allowed him to get to know fellow employees and become involved in every aspect of the business. However, despite the informality of hand writing memos to employees, Welch was a demanding boss and displayed unnerving candour in his meetings with executives. Each year, Neutron Jack, as he was dubbed by industry insiders, would fire the bottom ten per cent of his managers while rewarding the top 20 per cent with bonuses and stock options.

In 1980, the year before Welch became CEO, GE recorded revenues of roughly $26.8 billion (about Dh98.4 billion). In 2000, the year before he left, the revenues increased to nearly $130 billion (about Dh477.5 billion). In 1999 he was named Manager of the Century by Fortune magazine. Undoubtedly therefore, when he appears by video link at the Leaders in Dubai event this November, Welch will have indispensable advice for eager-to-listen business leaders.

"When it comes to traits, there is a clear pattern. This pattern includes ambition, energy, intelligence, the desire to lead and relevant job knowledge," says Professor Raed Awamleh, the Director of Middlesex University Dubai, which has a well-regarded business school among its faculties.

"Seeing a purpose to what business people do is
a very important driver for them. With long-term vision and seeing the big picture while not ignoring the details, a sense of continuity develops. Successful leaders are those who can see projects and initiatives to completion."

Dr Sarangapani Reddy is Chairman of Eikon International Holding FZ-LLC, which provides academic infrastructure to Heriot-Watt University's Dubai campus. He believes that a successful leader is a charismatic visionary who has the ability to identify opportunities. He says, "A 'can do' attitude and the drive to overcome any situation are essential factors." Awamleh agrees. "These individuals have the ability to understand their environments and see through obstacles."

Donald Trump, known as The Donald, is a fine example of this. By 1989, the effects of the recession had almost forced him to declare bankruptcy. However by 1994, Trump had eliminated a large portion of his $900 million (about Dh3.3 billion) personal debt and significantly reduced his business debt, which amounted to $3.5 billion (about Dh12.85 billion).

Of course, it is not solely the individual's skills that decide his merit as a leader but rather his aptitude to utilise the expertise of others in a constructive manner. "The mark of excellent business people is their ability to spot talent and nurture it. Being able to build the right team around the business strategy is what separates extremely successful business leaders from others," says Awamleh. "The right team will supply the pool of complementary talents, skills and competences required to complete the task."

Reddy agrees. "It is important to incorporate personnel from all operational backgrounds who function as a cohesive team."

Team motivation is highly effective in the business world as it can be responsible for inducing excellent team performance. "The ability to motivate others is a key attribute for success. Techniques can range from skills and career development to enhancing financial incentives. The key to successful motivation is understanding individuals," says Awamleh. Lucy Knowles agrees. "Each individual is motivated by a unique set of factors," she says. "For example it is pointless to motivate someone with a pay rise if they really crave recognition or praise. Employees can feel self-motivated by the role that they are performing."

Although there are many dynamic leaders in the corporate world, it is only a select few who possess the capability to jump to the next level and become full-fledged tycoons.

"Becoming a tycoon seems to have nothing to do with formal education, training or academic ability," says Fiona Knowles. "The world's most successful and inspirational business leaders all have determination, entrepreneurial spirit, and they are probably the most competitive people in the world. They also seem to have no fear. They are brave enough to take a leap of faith and strong enough to take the inevitable knock backs without giving up." This is certainly true of Richard Branson, who has wowed the public with his failed and triumphant world record attempts as much as he has with his business acumen.

"The clear difference is ambition and a great desire to be distinguished in terms of accomplishments" says Awamleh. "Business tycoons are not gamblers. Gambling is simply taking risks irrespective of the odds. Instead, what they do is to very carefully study each situation and assess the risks and pay offs, then take
a calculated risk and see it through to completion.

"When these business leaders are ultimately many more times right than they are wrong, it makes all the difference."

So there it is, the secret of a successful leader's trump card which, by the way, is not so-called because of The Donald.