Leadership and People Development, Case Study Example

A1. A founder should play a major role in creating the organizational culture which guides the employees regarding the expected behaviors and norms. A founder should also set long-term vision and short-term goals and communicate them clearly to his subordinates so that everyone works towards the same objectives. A founder should also make sure his short-term and long-term plans are realistic and he can arrange for and manage the financial and human capital to achieve his goals.

A2. The management refers to making sure that every day operation is carried out in the manner it is intended and human and financial capital are utilized efficiently. Leadership refers to making sure that human capital is inspired to be the best they are capable of and everyone shares the same vision and goals. It is better to manage when it is possible to exercise effective control over operations as was the case in ERL’s early days. But now ERL has grown larger and it is apparent that Barry is struggling to exercise effective control over operations. Thus, it is now better to lead and inspire people to take charge of their responsibilities and become the best they are capable of.

A3. Towns should immediately abandon his managerial role and instead focus on providing overall vision and developing competitive strategies. He should hire managers to run day-to-day operations and focus on bigger issues instead of occupying himself with every single detail, no matter how minor it may be.

A4. First of all, Towns should create divisions so that each focus on one specialized function such as R&D, Finance, Marketing, and HR. He should hire more managers who may give reports to him on regular basis so he continues to have an understanding of the bigger picture when it comes to operations. He should focus more on developing client base and monitoring the external environment for competitive threats and/or opportunities.