Page 81 - (DK) The Business Book

LIGHTING THE FIRE 79

See also: Leading well 68–69 ■ Gods of management 76–77 ■ Changing the game 92–99 ■ Develop emotional
intelligence 110–11 ■ Mintzberg’s management roles 112–13

Renault and Nissan. Within a
year of his appointment in 1999, Carlos Ghosn
Ghosn returned Nissan to
Born in 1954, Carlos Ghosn,
profitability and was credited with
a French-Lebanese Brazilian,
saving the company from collapse.
started his career with
This proved to be one of the most
Michelin, moved to Renault
dramatic turnarounds in modern
in 1996, and was appointed
business history.
the CEO of Nissan in 1999
Among the leadership traits following Renault’s purchase
that contribute to Ghosn’s of a substantial stake in the
effectiveness is his belief that ailing Japanese company. At
leadership is learned “by doing.” the time, Nissan’s debts had
On joining Nissan as CEO he reached $20 billion and only
walked around every factory, three of its 48 car models were
meeting and shaking hands with generating a profit. Promising
every employee. To this day he to resign if the company did
Actively participating in business remains a common sight on factory not reach profitability by the
end of the year, he defied
life, from the boardroom to the factory floors. Integrity and trust, Ghosn
floor, is vital for effective leadership. believes, are built when leaders are Japanese business etiquette,
Carlos Ghosn visited car assembly lines cut 21,000 jobs, and closed
seen to be willing to “get their
to build integrity and trust with staff. unprofitable domestic plants.
hands dirty” and remain in touch
Within three years Nissan
with the factory floor of the business.
became one of the most
a curse—the void created by the profitable automakers, with
departure of a charismatic leader Empowering staff operating margins of higher
can be hard to fill. It may flatter the Leaders must communicate a strong than 9 percent—more than
ego to be proclaimed a hero, but vision but, above all, they must twice the industry average.
great leaders know that success empower staff to make decisions Having presided over what
involves building long-term themselves. In large, diverse has been described as one of
organizational capacity that will organizations a leader cannot, and the greatest turnarounds in
outlast their own tenure. should not, make all the decisions— business history, Ghosn was
helping others to understand the named “the hardest-working
Keys to effectiveness necessity for change, and giving man in the global car business”
by Forbes magazine in 2011.
To be effective, a leader must be them the tools to manage that
confident and secure, and at the change is key to the leader’s role.
same time open and empathetic. The success of Nissan is also
Effective leadership involves the attributed to Ghosn’s ability to
ability to create capacity in others manage cross-cultural teams.
through the process of interacting, Leaders, Ghosn suggests, require
informing, listening, developing, the ability to listen and to empathize,
and trust-forming. Credibility of not just with employees from their
The universe rewards
the leader is achieved through own countries, but also with people
action, not thought.
collaboration, not domination. from different countries and cultures. Russell Bishop
Central to effective leadership is Ghosn’s insights illustrate that
US executive coach
empowerment—the art of enabling effective leadership requires putting
other people to get things done. vision into action. Achieving this
One of the most effective requires more than just rhetoric:
contemporary business leaders is effective leaders must “talk the talk”
Carlos Ghosn, CEO of car makers and “walk the walk.” ■