SECTION A [100 Marks]

Read the extract and answer ALL questions that follow.

Steve Jobs: Triumph at Apple

Steve Jobs was the only man in the whole world who could have saved Apple in 1997, and Apple needed to be saved. The

company was successively mismanaged and was failing. Without going into the gory details, Apples products had

deteriorated, its marketing was dreadful, and its finances would have collapsed had it not been for CFO Fred Andersons

work. Apple went shopping for a new operating system in a desperate attempt to remain relevant in the world of Windows

95. In a remarkable turn of events, Apples then CEO, Amelio, engineered the purchase of NeXT in December 1996 for the

startlingly high price of $429 million in cash and stock. It was obvious to any sentient being that Amelio was not the man to

save it. Michael Dell said it should be liquidated. Did Steve really want to put himself through what was needed to fix this

company?

There are two reasons that only Steve Jobs could have saved Apple in 1997. First, Jobs persuaded Bill Gates to continue

supporting Apple by announcing a five-year commitment to writing software, specifically Office for the Mac. Jobs also

convinced Gates to invest $150 million in nonvoting shares of Apple. Amelio had attempted to negotiate a similar

arrangement with Gates and had failed. Second, Steve was able to endow the work of others with meaning as no one else

at Apple could. Fred Anderson, who was hired as chief financial officer in 1996 and did yeoman work keeping Apple afloat

financially despite its declining sales, said Steve understood the soul of Apple. We needed a spiritual leader that could

bring Apple back as a great product and marketing company. So we had to have Steve. They got Steve. Amelio was

summarily ousted on September 16, 1997. He wrote, I had, along with many others ... been trapped by the charisma and

boldness of this unusual man.

Steve became interim CEO, a title he held for three years.. The interim was dropped in 2000. In the years from 1997 to

his death in 2011, Steve became an icon of the business worldthe man who defined charisma in the context of enterprise.

Four reasons stand out: the creation of Apple Retail, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. In order to transform Apple into the

vehicle to fulfill his ambition, Jobs had to whip the company into shape. His goal was not only to make a dent in the

universe but also perhaps, in the far-off and unimaginable future, to put himself on par with Bill Gates.

(Adapted from source: https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/steve-jobs-and-the-rise-of-the-celebrity-ceo)

Answer ALL the questions in this section.

Question 1 (20 Marks)

Drawing relevant examples from the extract, discuss the leadership qualities of Steve Jobs and bring out how his leadership

embodies the nature and elements of leadership.

Question 2 (20 Marks)

Drawing from the extract and from your knowledge of the big five personality traits and emotional intelligence, assess Steve

Jobs personality and emotional intelligence competencies.

Question 3 (20 Marks)

Steve Job is best described as a charismatic leader. Charismatic leaders have the ability to enable ordinary people to

achieve extraordinary results and are known for their capacity to inspire their employees to over-achieve. Some

characteristic qualities of a charismatic leader are self-confidence, a clear vision, extraordinary behaviour and

environmental sensitivity. Based on this and with the use of relevant examples from the extract, argue in favour of the

statement that Steve Jobs is a charismatic leader.

Question 4 (20 Marks)

If you were in a situation like Steve Job where you had to take over a failing company, state which process theory of

motivation (Expectancy or Equity) you will employ, to motivate staff and provide a detailed explanation to substantiate your

choice.

Question 5 (20 Marks)

In order to transform Apple, Steve Jobs had to whip the company into shape. This would involve setting up high

performance teams. In setting up these teams, what are the characteristics that Jobs should consider, to ensure that the

teams could perform highly?