Leadership Style: Sam Palmisano, Former IBM Chief Operating Officer Essay

1.0 About surface-to-air missile PalmisanoHe began his c areer with IBM in 1973 as a salesman in Balti to a greater extent(prenominal) Maryland, Since because, Palmisano has held a series of leadership positions during his IBM career, including senior vice president for the Enterprise governing bodys and Personal Systems groups. Mr. Palmisano similarly played a key out role in creating and conduct IBMs Global Services, rising to senior vice president, and building the largest and most diversify information technology services organization in the industry. He overly served as senior managing director of operations for IBM Japan. He became president and primary(prenominal) Operating Officer ( chief executive officer) in 2000.surface-to-air missile Palmisano is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University. In recognition of his leadership role as co-chair of the Council on Competitiveness field Innovation Initiative, as well as his many a(prenominal) business accomplishments, P almisano was awarded an unearned Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2005. In 2006, he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship from the London Business School. He has received a number of business awards including the Atlantic Councils distinguishableiate Business Leadership Award in 2009 and the inaugural Deming Cup, pre moveed in 2010 by the W. Edwards Deming Centre for Quality, Productivity and Competitiveness at Columbia Business School. He is similarly an elected member of the Ameri quarter Academy of Arts and Sciences.2.0 IBM connection backgroundAs late as 1960 IBM was still primarily a punched-card machine supplier. It was not until 1962 that com endueer sales equaled those of its traditional punched-card products. But by the end of the decade, its punched-card machine sales were essentially vestigial. While IBM was making this transmutation in its product line in the 1960s, it was also ripening at the rapid rate of 15 to 20 percent a family and soon achieved a domination of the computer market that was historically curious in any another(prenominal) major industry.IBMs success was creating a difficult environment for its competitors. By 1960 the mainframe computer industry had already been whittled d beset to ripe IBM and s til now others. Of all the mainframe suppliers, Sperry Rand had suffered the biggest reverse, consolidating a radioactive decay that had begun well before the launch of the 1401. Despite being the pi angiotensin-converting enzymeer of the industry, it had never do a gelt in computers and was gaining a reputation bordering on derision. For many socio-economic classs IBMs domination of the computer industry was attri merelyed to a variety of factors like have a go at itrial competence, technological excellence, formidable marketing organization, monopolistic, fair business practices and the leadership exerted by the Watsons.A key difference among IBM and its competitors persisted right into the computer age. Thus, when guild intaked equipment from unity of IBMs component machine competitors, it was all too apt(predicate) to acquire a business rather than a solution. Often the computer and its software were no more than a set of tools with which to fashion a solution, instead of the solution itself. yet IBM guaranteed a complete solution to business problems, and an IBM salesman was all too likely to remind a data processing get awayr that no one ever got fired by hiring from IBM. This was a patronizing attitude that came scraggy to condescension, and often resulted in a love-hate relationship between IBM and its customers.3.0 What was Sam Palmisano move to achieve with his trend of leading?While there are many factors that drive a leaders success, style plays a key role in effectuality. No matter what style a leader embodies, they all provide value to the organization. From the case studies, we ready that there are several factors that have brac e IBMs gr brace successfully year by year under Palmisano style of leading.1-Major player in the Industry.Palmisano is leading IBM back to bigness. He chose to shift IBM from being a play along that produced commodities to one focused on services to clients. He wants to purchase computing causation directly from provider that talk termss and distributes it. The keep company pull up stakes no longer bear and house its protest computing system. To make this be move up a reality, IBM plans to manage and distribute computing power which includes more open source tools and contrastive kinds of ownership.2-Business efficiency.During Palmisano clock as a CEO, he introduces a very audacious idea which is to outsource IBM computer technology operation to India. Making India the eye centre for servicing local markets through its orbicular delivery network, Palmisano found an enviable chieftain start in one of the fastest growing emerging markets. IBM wants to shift its focus fr om pure technology to embrace outsourcing and other services as part of the business model.3-Create more participation from employee.Palmisano constructd aggroups of mint from all levels in the company and put them in fault of operations, schema and technology. He also asked the hint management aggroup to join him in coming up with an idea that would be the major breakthrough that IBM made when it sireed its schoolgirlish business model. matchless of Palmisano action was that he abolishes the bureaucratic incorporated executive directions that influence every strategic initiative in the company. He stresses that effective communication to be utilized in his team to en positive(predicate) that there is healthy team dynamics within and without the team.To do this he organizes training or simulation exercises among team members divided into sub-groups to stimulate healthy rivalry and for the purpose of team-building. He also delegate tasks to stress trust among team membe rs by elaborating the project objectives so that from each one team member leave behind be aware of what to do to achieve team goals with little or no interference.4-Develop talent.In spite of the grand home base of Palmisanos strategy, he kept his staff small, preferring to do without the executive service that other CEOs had employed. He surprised many in his company when he disbanded the 12-member Executive Management Committee on January 23, 2003. The committee had been in innovation for 92 years and had served as a filter for high-level planning, but was much too slow for the new-made century.Palmisano replaced the committee with a new system of three teams, one focusing on operations, the second on strategy, and the third on technology. Palmisano ensure participation of all team members in formulation of strategic plan, ploy, action and style for the team. Strategic plan is what allow for act as scarper for the operation of the team. He has shown that an effective team is artificially built and not naturally born.Instead of filling each team with top-level executives, he drew members from all divisions of the company and all levels of employment. One immediate effect of this restructuring was to draw a new generation of young men and women into the heart of IBMs operations. He had been careful to groom a generation of leaders to follow his time and to shit and develop their talent.5-Create creative thinking.Palmisano plan to create a integrity integrated system of computers, software, and other electronic devices that would allow anyone to purchase any part of IBMs services and use it with any other part. IBM created open-source software that altered a companys need for innkeepers dedicated to notwithstanding one task. For example, a server dedicated to computing accounts might become overloaded, causing delays of hours or even days. IBMs new software was designed to recognize when a server had reached its capacity and automatically redirec t the excess work to other servers with ready(prenominal) space.A key part of this strategy was that if the servers at the clients company had no excess space, the overflow workload would be sent to IBMs own computers, which would recognize any program that accessed them and silently set the clients work. Palmisano hoped to take this service to the next level, which would allow IBMs computers to check the clients computers for flaws automatically and fix them before anyone could break them.6-Develop direct rapport with customer.Palmisano was very redeeming(prenominal) at engaging customers, because he has a reputation for making customers feel involved. He has a levelheaded realiseing of IBMs software, services and hardware business enabling scurrying responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing endureing communications barriers.Palmisano announced his intention to make IBM a computer services-on-dema nd company. IBM would function like a utility, charging its customers for the use of data-centered web sites. IBM would create software capable of fixing clients software problems automatically online. The clients would pay only for the amount of services they used, in the same course they presently pay for utilities bills.Palmisano mounted his own personal campaign to make sure it was a success. He toured software companies and met designers to persuade them to devise new applications that would give it a competitive edge. When he became head of global services back in the 90s, he blocked off 70% of his calendar for customer coming togethers, and he still speaks to at least one customer every single day.4.0 Was it necessary to depart from the established way of doing things at IBM?Yes, it necessary for Sam Palmisano to shift from the established way to a new leadership style. The actor is simply because IBM has already been part of his life, so he wants to make sure that the c ompany will prosper in the long hunting expedition. Although IBM was stable at that time, Sam Palmisano believes that the traditional way was not enough to drive the company into more challenging business ahead. Furthermore, most of the top management including him will not around in some years and new substitute should be discovered.Before the new leadership era, all the determinations tended to be made at the top, communicated downward and then implemented by the followers. Most of the time employees did not get change to involve in the ratiocination making. Their responsibilities were just to execute all the decision instructed although they think it was not the most capture one. It was all about one man show. Immediately later in-charge, he delegated some of the decision making responsibilities downward. Sam Palmisano created teams made up of people from all levels in the company and put them in charge of operations, strategy and technology. He believes this teams that wi ll drive and determine the destiny of IBM.This new leadership style will benefit the company in few ways. First, the company can get more brilliant ideas from the employees that cannot be seen by top management. It is important to gather as much as view possible because it would assist easier and better decision making. Indirectly, it will enhance creativity of the staffs which should not come for only an individual. Second, employees will be more incite since they feel that all of their ideas are important and they can decide their own destiny. So, there will be no more bureaucratic corporate executive committee that decided almost everything previously.Then, IBM also can develop more new talent in the company that will guide the direction of the company in future which the old leadership way hardly to offer. Sam Palmisano believes that the best way in scouting good talent was by giving them some room to make own decision. All the success and mistakes will make them better and ma ture.Sam Palmisano also decided to shift from a centralized system to a decentralise system. His idea is that a company will no longer own and house its own computing system. It should include more open-source tools and different kind of ownership. His leadership created an outsourcing story in many places especially India. By making India the nerve centre servicing local markets through its global delivery network, it achieved the biggest ever non-linear growth.5.0 Was it necessary for him to reach to the bottom of IBM?Definitely yes, because Sam Palmisano wants each teams from all levels in the company to take part to form IBM back to greatness. This strategy has given each of them to participate directly or indirectly to revolutionize Big Blue to be a great company. It is important for him to go through the function of each level. With this understanding he can drive those departments to certain level which will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of each department. The advantages of this approach are to find a root cause of each problem. He can advise and manage his team how to get well the problem very well so that they will able to manage it in the future. Sam Palmisano needs to delegate the responsibility to his top management. This style his top management will collaborate across organizational boundaries. He believes that more ideas would come out and shared rather than only top management decision if everyone participating. Sam Palmisano wants his subordinates to show their participant in decision making. He believes teams will be the engines of creativity.6.0 Is this the case of a leader who is micro managing and interfering with operation?No, Sam Palmisano is not micro managing. Micro managing is most observed or controls the work of an employee with less rooms for creativity, HRD, trust, responsibility and teamwork. In this case, we can see that Sam Palmisano do questioned a lot occult into the organization. But his intention is to und erstand the circumstance better and not to decide on his own. He wants the top management involvement in bestow new idea in reshaping the IBM. It clearly shows that he need shop at and valued others opinion to make a better result in his decision making. It is a room of creativity in each decision he make to suit true situation.Once did says that Two head is always better than one For a classic example Orville and Wilbur Wright aka the Wright Brothers perhaps cannot fly the first Flight in history if they did not coupled their creative idea. Sam Palmisano also do rely in his executives to run IBM. He had abolish the Bureaucratic bodily Executives Committee that held monthly meeting and overseas every strategic initiatives. It shows that Palmisano do want his executive to foster but not to details in making decision.Enough for them to understand the situation and control it. So it just make the decision more efficient and more fast at each level required. Palmisano had created a teams made up of people from all levels in the company and put them in charge in operations, strategy and technology. It shows that Palmisano in reality serious to make his subordinate to land their creativity and decision in each levels. He believes team will be the engine of creativity in IBM. This will definitely create efficiency and cut all the bureaucratic. It clearly exist from team work, responsibility, trust, human resource development and combined creativity. Palmisano strongly believes that creativity in large organization not coming from the celebrity CEO alone, it is from collaboration of team works.For instant the Toyota is strongly believes in their Toyota Production System (TPS) atom, one of it is KAIZEN, a Continuous Improvement as our understanding. This Kaizen is happen in each level in Toyota. Where every each of their workers can contribute the continuous improvement in their process. Same goes to Palmisano where he try to create his team to go creative at each level in their own process and decision is more efficient without Bureaucratic Corporate Executives Committee interfere in their way. Another example GENBA in TPS is Comedown to the mess and understand the problem firsthand. Genba encourage the management especially to understand the current situation at site or workplace.Not for them to offset to conclusion instead but for them to understand further about the situation or problem occur so that they can brainstorm to come out with brilliant idea. Same goes to Palmisano where he him selves go further in the organization to understand the situation first hand and then decide. but we never classify the Toyota Production System (TPS) as micro manage. So this strongly revealed that San Palmisano also is not micro managing IBM.7.0 ConclusionSam Palmisano had turn out that he is an Effective Leaders where he successfully balances this three element of Mastery of Strategy, Ability to Execute Strategy and Develop Talent. With that element he had pulled back IBM back to greatness.With the clear vision Palmisano managed to turn IBM from a profit losing company to a middleware and enterprise software and solutions giant. He had turn the dictatorial way of leadership to Deligative type of leadership, where efficient is the key of success to the current demand market. There is no more Bureaucratic Executive committee involve in decision making. Thus he is not micromanaging his company but to understand it better and drive it back to success.For the past fiver years (2002-2011) Palmisano had become a great leader to IBM, he really shows high value (self-sacrifice) and high expectancy (self-confidence) in his organization. Before he retired he manages to portray a new vision Smarter Planet for IBM. He laid down what services and products would be needed the company since then has built hundreds of reference customers around it.Despite of his greatness in characterisation his vision to reality lie a true leader th at manage to pull his downstream together to works towards the vision that they build together for the sake of IBM. He really shows a high structured and considerateness in making IBM leading forward in their own field.