Question

Review the Baldrige Criteria for Category 1.1. Using the criteria, identify some key strengths and key opportunities for improvement for the leadership system of your organization. Overall, how would you rate the leadership system? Please share your assessment as a response to this topic. If not, research a technology organization and assess its leadership system using Category 1.1.

Answer 1

Zappos is one of the greatest example of a paternalistic company. The culture of the company puts the internal customers i.e. the employees of the company at the center-stage of business. Various initiatives are taken to facilitate the life of employees in the organization. This in turn gets reflected in the way, the customers of the organization are valued by the organization. This culture and value system of the company has flourished under the leadership of Tony Hsieh.

Let us evaluate the leadership of Tony Hsieh on Baldwin Criteria for Leadership (1.1):

• Vision, Values and Mission
  • Vision and Values: Tony Hsieh acts as a guiding power which aligns the employees to the vision and values of the company. The cultural fit is given prime importance in the company. Even the new recruits are rigorously tested on their culture fit.
  • Promoting Legal and Ethical Behavior: Tony Hsieh promotes innovative and out of box thinking in the company, provided it lies within the domains of ethical principles. All the business processes are legal-compliance aligned.
  • Creating a Sustainable Organization: All the business processes of the company are aimed towards maintaining sustainability. Tony makes sure that the company is value adding to the overall society. He ensures that all the resources are totally utilized, before procuring any new resource, thereby maintaining the sanctity of resources
• Communication and Organizational Performance
  • Communication: Clear lines of communication exist in the company. Tony believes in having ear to the ground. So, he maintains constant touch with the ground workers. Honest Relationships are developed in the company by capitalizing on lines of transparency and open communication.
  • Focus on Action : Tony has propagated the idea of Holocracy. The company takes pride in being unique. The focus of action is always on innovation and out of box thinking. The diverse workforce of Zappos helps in maintaining this in the culture of the company.

So, we can infer that Tony Hsieh has been faring quite well on the Baldwin Criteria for Leadership. He can be considered as an ideal leader for a growing organization.