The paper will demonstrate the qualities of Darwin Smith as a leader at Kimberley-Clark. It will discuss the analysis of his personality throughout his life. Moreover, it will reflect upon the understanding of the nature of his leadership style as well as the skills that are needed to become a great leader.
A leader is considered to be the one who directs others to move toward the right path rather than a true leader who takes immense efforts to provide convenience to others. A true leader is one who guides and motivates everyone throughout the journey of enlightenment and learning to attain the common target (Chatterjee and Kulakli, 2015). Most of the leaders have born over the ages, but the one who is determined to be the great leader who brought significant modifications in the lives of the people is Darwin Smith. In 1981 he became the chief executive of Kimberly-Clarke as he was associated with the world and later nothing remained to be similar again.
A leader is particularly known by his qualities that reflect upon the features of the true leader that makes a leader unique in comparison with others. The leadership approach is categorized into five different levels that highlight the qualities of the leader. Such types of leaders are determined to be ambitious and are always takes the initiative to achieve the organizational goals. Darwin was a type of leader who gave the entire credit of the organizational success to his predecessors, managers, employees, and customers (Laub, 2018). In the twentieth century, Smith’s turnaround of a Kimberley-Clarke is the perfect example of the leader who takes the organization from merely good to great. Darwin was considered to be one of such leaders who was secured as a level 5 leader as he was merged extreme personal humility along with powerful professional willpower. In the hierarchy of the executive capabilities, Darwin was determined to be the one with the highest level. He took the organization who was lagging to such a great height in the stock market that it became a pioneer. The unique leadership qualities of Smith not only converted a good company into a great organization but also he can choose the right people and eliminate the wrong people (Allio, 2015). He possessed the ability to create a culture of discipline all over the company.
As per the behavioral theories, it is stated that leaders are made and not born. It is believed that an individual could become a true leader with the process of observation, learning, and teaching. Leadership is a combination of skills that could be learned by experience, practice, perception, and training over time. Mr. Smith was an awkward, shunned attention, unpretentious and shy type of person. By looking upon the personality of Darwin Smith it could be understood that leaders are not born but made (RaesIi et al., 2016). For example, when Mr. Smith became the chief executive of Kimberley-Clarke, the stock of the paper company behind the general market had decreased to 36% over the previous 20 years. Darwin who was the mild-mannered in-house lawyer of the company was not sure about the decision that was made by the board. At that time the director of Kimberley-Clarke pulled Smith aside and reminded him of his lack of qualifications for the position of CEO. In his 20 years of tenure at Kimberley-Clarke, he made an extreme transformation by turning the organization into a leading company in the world that provides customer paper products. Under his tenure, the organization beats his competitors Procter & Gamble and Scott Paper to achieve the goal. Under the leadership of Darwin, Kimberley-Clarke made cumulative stock returns that are 4.1 higher in comparison with the general market by surpassing its rivals such as General Electric, Coca-Cola, 3M, and Hewlett-Packard (Ellington, 2017). As per the article of Harvard business review since 1975 Kimberley-Clarke is considered to be the eleven organizations on the Fortune 500 that has been transformed from good to great by maintaining its status of elevation. This accomplishment from good to great has become possible only because of Mr. Smith. This clearly shows that though Mr. Smith was not a born leader through his dedication, he made himself as a true as well as a great leader. Therefore, it could be understood that leaders are not born they are made through their hard work and leadership is not a genetic disposition but a skill.
Leadership style is the approach and manner of motivating people, implementing a plan and providing direction to the people. It involves the overall pattern of implicit and explicit actions that are performed by the leaders. Darwin is determined to follow the transformational leadership style that states that the leader’s works with the team members to recognize the necessary changes that are needed within the organization by inspiring and motivating the employees (Reid III et al., 2014). Based on the case study it is observed that Mr. Smith has transformed the Kimberley- Clarke into a leading paper-based customer product worldwide. With the help of developing strength within the organization as well as raising and redefining the corporate goals, Darwin succeeded in bringing this huge transformation. To attain this target, he consistently examined the leadership group of the company by promoting the one who fulfilled the specification and eliminating those who did not. Also, he developed the organization’s geographical diversification facilities (Segal, 2014). He also adapted management style within the organization that could be determined by the way he managed the things systematically. Later he strengthened the position of the company in the tissue segment of the paper industry by pushing both Kimberley-Clarke and its rivals to strengthen and improve their tissue facilities and technologies.
To become a great leader, it is significant for any leader to acquire basic leadership skills. All the good leaders within the organization needed a variety of soft skills that will help them to interact with the team members or the employees in a positive manner (Goswami et al., 2016). Darwin Smith was determined to be the virtuous leader, were beautifully he practiced humility that is regarded as the virtue of service. He was regarded as a level 5 leader where usually people assume that transforming the organizations from good to great needs leaders with great personalities. Level 5 leader is regarded to be the countercultural leader that is counterintuitive (Holmes, 2017). Hence, as the leaders are categorized into five levels, the leaders are required to acquire some of the skills based on these five levels in the genre of Darwin. Level 1 leader needs to be highly capable as he plays a significant role in the success of his company through his good work habits, skills, knowledge, and talent. A level 2 leader is considered to be the contributing team member who is excellent while working with his subordinates and assures that his team meets the core purposes and fulfills the desired targets assigned to him. A level 3 leader is regarded as a competent manager who possesses the skills of managing the resources and people to attain the organizational goals efficiently and effectively (Storey, 2016). A level 4 leader is again determined to be the effective leader who is remarkable at inspiring and motivating the team members to realize the vision of the company. A level 5 leader is specifically known to transform a good company into a great organization. Level 5 leader was established by Darwin, and thus it is required for every leader to acquire the following skills to become a great leader.
Darwin is considered to be the mastermind of the remarkable turnaround of Kimberley-Clark. He was an excellent businessman who effectively practiced the virtues of humility and kindness that are the specific virtues for a leader. Mr. Smith transformed the company from good to great that was facing the fall of the revenue by 36% (Smith, Lewis and Tushman, 2016). He has succeeded in bringing this massive transformation only because he was an effective leader. It is observed that due to his outstanding management style within the organization extremely helped to become an effective leader. He helped the team members in the company to attain the organizational goals by strengthening their capabilities. He gave a tough competition to his rivals within the market by increasing the stock returns. He was a type of leader who gave the overall credit of the success to his team members such as predecessors, managers, employees, and consumers. Smith acquired great knowledge and skills within the field that he applied within the organization to achieve the target (Bourne, 2016). To become a great leader like Darwin, nothing is impossible. Anybody could become a great leader by acquiring the basic skills of leadership and in turn applying the leadership skills within the organization to achieve desired objectives
Moreover, it is essential for an individual to obtain the skills as per five level leader. It can be seen that Mr. Smith has been determined to have obtained the skills of five level leader. To become a trues leader just like Darwin, an individual must execute its work with full dedication and hard work (Higgs and Dulewicz, 2016). An individual must have a positive attitude and determination towards his work by giving a tough competition to its rivals. It is significant to follow the leadership qualities of Darwin as he knew that achieving the organizational goals will bring growth to the company. He was not only an outstanding manager but also a magnificent leader in the twentieth century. He possessed the sense of personal dignity and worth that he applied into his work. He knew that to motivate the people it is essential to build a good leadership and to manage the things systematically it is significant to have an appropriate management style (Renko et al., 2015). Thus, in today’s it is possible to become an effective leader by adopting the leadership qualities of Darwin as it teaches various innovative skills for strengthening the capability of an individual by motivating people to achieve the desired objectives.
Conclusion
The paper concludes by demonstrating the leadership qualities of Darwin Smith who was a chief executive at Kimberley-Clark. It provided with excellent leadership qualities and leadership styles possessed by Darwin that helped to bring transformation within the organization. Moreover, it presented his hard work and dedication to achieve the organizational goals.
References
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