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CHAPTER 12: LEADERSHIP POWER AND INFLUENCE 359
giant company’s international profits have soared and its revenue from “supply
IN THE LEAD chain solutions”—running other companies’ operations for them—has more than
doubled. Today, UPS employees repair Toshiba laptops, manage warehouses full
of spare parts for Bentley automobiles, pick and pack Nike athletic shoes, and ship
Birkenstock sandals from German factories directly to U.S. retail stores. Over the
past several years, UPS has acquired six logistics companies, e-brokerage fi rm,
small companies that specialize in so-called less-than-truckload shipments, freight
forwarders, an airline, and even a small bank.
No one would doubt Eskew’s careful attention to the structures, systems, and
processes that have kept UPS humming. His first job at UPS in 1972 was redesigning
a parking lot so that it could accommodate more trucks, and Eskew still pays close
attention to the details that help employees accomplish their jobs smoothly and ef-
ficiently. Yet he sees his most important role as helping people understand the vision
and how they fi t—that is, where the company wants to go and how each person can
help it get there. Eskew doesn’t like the attention that comes with being CEO; he
prefers that the focus be on the people who do the day-to-day work of the company.
When he visits facilities, he tells employees: “What you do is noble. . . . You make
business better. You make communities better. You bring order to chaos.” 10
Transformational leaders like Mike Eskew give people a chance to make signifi cant
contributions as well as recognition for their accomplishments. “People want to
accomplish great things,” says Eskew. “They want to make a difference.” 11
Charismatic Leadership
Many transformational leaders have charisma, a seemingly-innate ability to in-
spire enthusiasm, interest, and affection from followers. However, charismatic
leadership typically instills both awe and submission in followers, whereas trans-
formational leadership seeks to increase the engagement of followers. 12
Charisma has been called “a fire that ignites followers’ energy and commit-
13
ment, producing results above and beyond the call of duty.” Charismatic leaders Charismatic leaders
Charismatic leaders
leaders who have the ability
have the ability to inspire and motivate people to do more than they would nor- leaders who have the ability
to inspire and motivate people
mally do, despite obstacles and personal sacrifice. In describing the charismatic to inspire and motivate people
to do more than they would
to do more than they would
leader, one business writer says, “He persuades people—subordinates, peers, cus- normally do, despite obstacles
normally do, despite obstacles
and personal sacrifi ce
tomers, even the S.O.B. you both work for—to do things they’d rather not. People and personal sacrifi ce
charge over the hill for him. Run through fire. Walk barefoot on broken glass. He
doesn’t demand attention, he commands it.” 14
Charismatic leaders have an emotional impact on people because they appeal
to both the heart and the mind. They may speak emotionally about putting them-
selves on the line for the sake of a mission and they are perceived as people who
persist in spite of great odds against them. Charismatic leaders often emerge in
troubled times, whether in society or in organizations, because a strong, inspiring
personality can help to reduce stress and anxiety among followers. For example,
Amr Khaled emerged as a young, charismatic Muslim religious leader in Egypt
during the Mideast crisis of the early twenty-first century. Khaled’s sermons, de-
livered in an emotional, impassioned manner, touched people who were searching
for a moderate approach to living as a good Muslim. An organizational example
is Lloyd Ward, who was brought in as chief executive of the United States Olympic
Committee (USOC) at a time when the organization was torn by internal strife
and suffering a loss of public trust. The USOC believed Ward, known as a master
motivator with the ability to unite and inspire people with a vision, could use his
charisma to heal the fractures in the organization and restore the U.S. Olympics
to glory. 15

