The article I found talks about Jack Welch, the former chief executive of GE, and his leadership style. There is no doubt that Welch had displayed an extreme amount of charismatic leadership during his reign at the company. This can be related back to chapter 12 of our textbook titled Leading People Within Organizations.
Chapter 12 describes charisma as "behaviors leaders demonstrate that create confidence in, commitment to, and admiration for the leader." I think it is clear that Jack Welch has done this through his leadership. I do find the article very contradicting though. It seems at times that Jack is being praised for his charismatic leadership, and at other times he is being looked down because of it. Charismatic leaders often go wrong, so to speak. They have a way of building trust and an image for themselves, that can be used negatively, but I'm not sure I believe that he has abused his power.
Along with being a charismatic leader, I also believe Welch has been a transformational leader. He continually is trying to inspire and motivate his employees to be the absolute best that they can be. In order to be a transformational leader you must possess four things: charisma, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. It is clear that Welch has displayed all four of these characteristics. The question is, has he abused his power?
I do think that it was wrong for Jack Welch to accept large gifts such as a rent free apartment, sporting tickets, and the use of a private jet. However, I do believe that the use of many of these things allowed Welch to take on a persona and appear to the public as such a great charismatic leader.
So, what do you think? Was Jack Welch wrong in taking the gifts, or did it help his leadership by building a facade that encourages others to follow him?
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/13/opinion/good-charisma-bad-business.html?src=pm
- Kelly Moran
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