Leadership
(Case study- Barack Obama)
Submitted by:
Aman Kanwar : 20DEC008
Shambhavi Dogra : 20DEC009
Sujal Gupta : 20DEC010
Contents
➔ What is leadership?
➔ What makes a great leader?
➔ Traits of a successful leader (in reference to Barack Obama)
➔ Some more successful leaders
➔ Conclusion
What is leadership?
➔ Leadership is the ability of an individual or a group of individuals to influence and guide followers or
other members of an organization.
➔ Leadership involves making sound -- and sometimes difficult -- decisions, creating and articulating
a clear vision, establishing achievable goals and providing followers with the knowledge and tools
necessary to achieve those goals
➔ An effective leader possess the following characteristics: self-confidence, strong communication
and management skills, creative and innovative thinking, perseverance in the face of failure,
willingness to take risks, openness to change, and level headedness and reactiveness in times of
crisis.
What makes a great leader?
➔ Multiple definitions of leadership exist, although the different definitions generally
converge in the theory that great leaders have the ability to make strategic and visionary
decisions and convince others to follow those decisions. The consensus is leaders create
a vision and can successfully get others to work toward achieving that goal.
Traits of a successful leader (in reference to Barack Obama)
1. Leading through a crisis
2. Being culturally sensitive
3. Charisma
4. A positive attitude
5. Motivating others and remaining calm under pressure
6. Listening
7. Being a decent person
1. Leading through a crisis
● When president Obama took office, the world was in the middle of a
crisis. Lehman Brothers had collapsed, and an international financial
crisis had been sparked.
2. Being culturally sensitive
● To win the presidency Obama had to pull together a coalition of
voters from across America’s cultural divide.
3. Charisma
● When Ben Tiggelaar, visiting professor at IE Business School and
best-selling author, sat down to interview Barack Obama, the former
president of the United States told him the secret to his skills as an
orator is simple: tell your own story.
4. A positive attitude
● Everyone who has heard of the US elections would have come
across this phrase coined by Obama, ‘Yes we can!’. It inspired a
whole nation because of the context of the US economy at that
time; unemployment was high and it was the aftermath of the
Lehman Crisis of 2008.
5. Motivating others and remaining calm under pressure
● The office of the presidency of the United States demands respect,
professionalism, and non-stop hard work for four years. Stressful, to
say the least.
6. Listening
● During his presidency Obama read 10 letters from members of the
public every day. It was his way of ensuring he didn’t sway from the
goal at hand: to serve the American people.
7. Being a decent person
● One of the qualities of a good leader and something president
Obama has in abundance is decency. Though not perfect—no
president is—Obama showcased throughout his eight years an
amount of grace and likeability that leave no doubt over the strength
of his personal character.
Some more successful leaderships
➔ Nelson Mandela leadership
His tremendous focus, determination, focus and will, even after serving 30 years in jail, urge him to
continue his campaigns, making him come out as a hero and lead his country into having an equal and
free future.
➔ Warren Buffett leadership
His leadership philosophy has served him well, propelling him to unimaginable heights of wealth
creation.
➔ Alexander the Great leadership
As the king of the Kingdom of Macedonia, he was perhaps the greatest military commander to have ever
lived. During his reign, he did a lot of noble deeds, including one that unified the many Greek city states.
➔ Lee Kuan Yew leadership
Also known as the ‘Warren Buffett’ of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew brought revolutions in Singapore due to
his outstanding skills and traits.
Conclusion
➔ Being a leader is not a matter of having your name up in lights, making
speeches or corralling power at the top. It’s identifying the power in other
people and unleashing it.
➔ You’ve got to give folks enough room and ownership to be able to figure stuff
out, and by doing that, it means they’re going to be making mistakes. That’s
part of that process of development.
➔ However big or small your corner of the world, think about how you can make
it better. Listen, be curious, and make change. Try things. Don’t be afraid to
fail. And, most of all, do what inspires you.
Thank you