Managers, Leaders and CEOs

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses the role and necessity of managers and leaders and notes the distinctions between these positions. The paper then addresses the role of the chief executive officer (CEO) and uses Michael Dell as a symbol of a successful manager who will personally invest in the wellbeing of a company. The paper contrasts this to Enron's founder and CEO, Kenneth Lay, who failed to address corporate needs, causing irreversible damage. The paper concludes that the final success of a leader depends significantly on his personal and innate capabilities.

Outline:
Managers vs. Leaders
CEOs

From the Paper:

"The role and necessity of both managers and leaders is undisputed for the overall success of an organization. However in small and medium size organizations, the two positions are generally occupied by the same person, the skills required and responsibilities attributed are often different. In this particular instance, the manager is expected to cope with the complexity of the business operations; he must be able to make the most informed decisions while keeping aware of the resource limitations and other constraints. The manager must also be a good organizer in order to plan the actions, the budgets and allocate the resources, including capital, labor force or technologies. Then, the manager must also be able to objectively analyze the actual implementation of the adopted course of action; he must follow how the strategies help the company achieve its ultimate goal. He must be able to identify any shortages or difficulties in the process and implement the most adequate decision. In other words, he must be able to take "effective action" (Future Vision)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dell Inc., Business Week, 2000-2008, http://investing.businessweek.com/businessweek/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=266019&symbol=DELL, last accessed on June 11, 2008
• Kenneth Lay, Forbes Magazine, 2002, http://www.forbes.com/2002/03/19/klay.html, last accessed on June 11, 2008
• Leader vs. Manager, Future Vision, http://www.futurevisions.org/ldr_mgr.htm last accessed on June 11, 2008
• Michael Dell's Advice to Entrepreneurs, CNN interview, Retrieved from You Tube, http://youtube.com/watch?v=bBsCZpomy24&feature=related, June 11, 2008
• Michael Dell's Remarks - Building a Competitive Advantage in an Internet Economy, Retrieved from the Official Website of Dell Inc. http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/corporate/speeches/msd/1999_11_01_msd_economy.pdf on June 11, 2008

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• Term Paper # 150215 : "Classical and Contemporary Management"

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