Abstract
Proper leaders navigate the public, create a company’s vision, define an organizational structure, and achieve the goals by motivating their employees. Every organization needs a prominent leader to become successful. They bring new practices and implement the key views of the company through various approaches and leadership styles, which define not only the framework but the employees’ results as well. The transformational leadership style proves to be the most efficient one as it adapts to different companies on examples of Tony Fernandes and Herb Kelleher.
Tony Fernandes
One of several people in the history of aviation who proves to be an authentic leader is Tony Fernandes. He is a Malaysian entrepreneur who heads AirAsia, a government indebted airline that he was able to turn into a successful budget one. It was the first introduced low-cost carrier that changed the world of aviation. Throughout his career, Fernandes became a billionaire and ranked in Forbes.
Tony Fernandes’ Background
Tony Fernandes graduated with a degree in accounting from the London School of Economics, which allowed him to have in-depth expertise in the business field. He also had an experience in the entertainment industry as he worked for Warner Music for a few years. However, he left it to pursue his dream of starting a low-cost airline. The air industry was still undeveloped then, especially in Malaysia. Fernandes estimated that about 50 percent of air travelers in Asia budget airlines were first-times and wanted to take advantage of it (Lam, 2018). For that, he decided to buy an already existing airline instead of starting from scratch.
In September 2001, Tony Fernandes bought AirAsia and became its CEO. Back then, AirAsia was a heavily indebted government-owned company that kept actively losing money. Investing in it was extremely risky, but Fernandes did it nevertheless. He purchased the company for about 26 cents and, in exchange, got two aircraft, Boeing 737, and the debts of $11 million (Lam, 2018). Fernandes had to mortgage his home and use his savings to pull the company out and transform it into an industry player. Within a year, AirAsia got clear of all the debts.
Fernandes’ Leader Performance
Such tremendous results were only due to Tony Fernandes’s outstanding leader traits. Organization leaders play a crucial role in establishing the company’s culture and vision, which leads to the achievement of the firm’s mission. His vision and ambitions turned AirAsia to one of the most successful airlines in the world. Tony’s leadership is characterized by creating a proper organizational structure and teamwork (Fickry, Kee, Sallehuddin, Nabila, & Nuraishah, 2020). Despite the considerable number of employees currently enrolled at the company, Tony remains open and approachable, which proves his democratic style of leadership (Harrison, 2018). The bureaucracy is actively fought with, and the access to the CEO’s office is almost always open.
Such a close relationship with employees created trust and a flow of ideas that workers generate. The issues are actively solved during various discussions at the meetings, and every member of the team can affect the final decision. All the contributions are well-accepted and evaluated, which allows for productive interaction. By doing this and putting employees first, Tony was able to get immense respect and trust among them and create a dedicated team. This structure was mainly achieved because of Tony’s desire to make his workers happy. Teamwork is especially crucial for him, and it affects the growth of the organization.
Fernandes’s leadership style can be described as mostly transformational due to his charisma, individual consideration, and inspiration that he gives his employees. Tony thinks of himself as a leader driven by people (Fernandes, 2018). He has a unique ability to find great specialists and build a team. In his employees, he values communication skills to convey new ideas and, most importantly, a specific goal in life and its purpose. The whole idea of Tony’s leadership stresses the concept of having good interaction among the members by using a less-hierarchal company structure (Harrison, 2018). Teamwork and respect are the key elements in his structure; that is why Tony needs to inspire his employees.
However, finding such people is not the only key to success. Keeping and always motivating these employees presents a much more difficult task for a leader. It requires a certain degree of transparency, appreciation, and giving people the ability to develop. Making workers feel comfortable and validated is an essential job for Tony, which he aims to achieve through open communication between him and the staff.
Leadership Style
It is not easy to describe Tony Fernandes’s leadership style, as it combines several approaches from different leadership theories. Most of all, his leadership style proves to be effective under a democratic or participative theory (Keskes, Sallan, Simo, & Fernandez, 2018). Tony cared deeply for his employees and encouraged open conversations to share new ideas and concerns. These values made him integrate a non-bureaucratic linear interaction system to decrease the gap between authorities and employees and create a team working together. Everybody is considered a valuable member who can contribute to the final product. His management falls under the “walk around” style. He keeps his employees close to himself and believes that it is wrong to sit in an ivory tower as a leader.
Another prominent feature of his leadership style is always putting employees first. Such an approach goes under a servant leadership theory and allows a leader to build a team of goal-oriented professionals (Andersen, 2018). In his Forbes interview, Tony said, “employees come number one, customers come number two” (Lam, 2018). He considered the right work environment an essential basis for the excellent work process and amazing outcomes.
His leadership style may also sometimes reflect an autocratic style. Tony can decide by himself as a leader, which shows his autocratic traits (Chukwusa, 2018). For example, he once wanted to install the mechanism for the disabled at zero cost without any discussions with his team. Another cause that affects Tony Fernandes’s leadership style is the fact that he is undoubtedly a charismatic person. He attracts the employees and partners by his strength of character but still stays humble after getting various accolades. His speaking style adds to Tony’s charisma as he manages to explain the concept for the business people and laypeople to understand him.
Fernandes does not need the traits of a great leader, according to the trait theory of leadership. It suggests that a leader needs to possess certain qualities to be outstanding (Khan, Nawaz, & Khan, 2016). They include the level of ambitions, education, and even weight and height. Despite all these characteristics, Tony wore a cap and a simple shirt, which do not make him less influential and successful, but rather more approachable. All these traits combined make Tony Fernandes a transformational leader who uses his charisma and way of thinking to bring the people together and inspire them to achieve their goals. Tony managed to create a team that generates new ideas and aligns them with the organization’s vision (Fickry et al., 2020). As a transactional leader, he unites the employees and encourages them, creates common goals that he is passionate about, and focuses on their achievement.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Nothing is as good as it seems, and AirAsia also has its weaknesses. Putting employees first can have negative consequences for customer service. Various complaints arise as the company does not step back on individual decisions for the sake of themselves. The non-hierarchial structure that Tony promoted also has its flaws. The authority gets blurred as the system decentralizes and can lead to failure on a management level. It provides flexibility but can also result in unpredictability and lead to huge risks.
However, Tony managed to avoid critical situations because of his situational thinking skillfully. Each decision was carefully weighted based on a particular situation, which led to the company’s constant development. Tony demonstrated integrity by applying his beliefs in practice. He worked hard himself and gained respect from his colleagues. The team of creative people from various departments makes the basis of the system and its main driving force. Tony especially emphasized the importance of teamwork and believed in talents. By inspiring his employees to achieve their goals and dreams, he created a truly transformational approach to leading the company. His unique methods and hard work allowed Tony Fernandes to change the field of low-cost travels. The emergence of low-cost airlines created high demand in the whole industry, especially after the economic crisis in 2008/2009. It motivated people to travel and other airline companies to join.
Herb Kelleher
Another prominent leader in the aviation field was Herb Kelleher. He was the CEO and co-founder of Southwest Airlines. He became a billionaire himself throughout his career, earned the profit for consecutive 24 years for his company, and made Southwest the fifth largest airline in the U.S. (Assaf, Qudah, & Bashayreh, 2016). Kelleher became a prominent figure in this sphere due to his outstanding leadership qualities and immense empathy towards the employees.
Background
Kelleher was born in New Jersey and graduated from Wesleyan University, where he obtained a degree in English and Philosophy, and then became a Juris doctor after graduating from New York University. His background shows how being a well-rounded person is critical in efficient leadership. Kelleher’s first intention after getting a degree in law was to start a law firm or business. However, in the process, Kelleher and his partner Rollin King created the concept for Southwest Airlines. Just like Tony Fernandes, they were fascinated with the idea of low-cost air service, which they wanted to implement by incorporating the company “Air Southwest Co.” in 1967 (Assaf et al., 2016). It took them several years to fight against legal charges, but they succeeded in the end. The first flight under Southwest Airlines happened on 18 June 1971 (Assaf et al., 2016). These four years of litigations were among the most challenging times in business but brought great relief as the company was established.
Initially, Kelleher was a legal advisor of the company due to his education and previous work experiences. With time he moved to the position of general counsel, then the chairman, and finally the new CEO. Kelleher’s ruling can be characterized as highly efficient in means of aviation and leadership. Under his guidance, Southwest introduced a new strategy of offering low fares, using a single aircraft type, and eliminating unnecessary services. Not only that, but he also led the company to be one of the most admired in America, according to Fortune magazine. Moreover, Kelleher himself was called possibly one of the best CEOs in the U.S.
Leader Performance Overall
Herbert Keller’s leadership style was instrumental in building such a successful company to a global enterprise’s size. A leader’s strong vision allowed the company to take a specific course and stay consistently profitable. His leadership style’s main characteristic is his famous motto “be yourself,” that he implemented to bring the employees together and stay creative. Since the time Kelleher became the Southwest president in 1981, he significantly contributed to its vision and ethos. He applied his personal beliefs to work and put employees’ happiness as a top priority. According to this value, the company shows its care by never charging for bags, dramatically raising prices, charging the change fees, and instating new policies. Such a caring approach from the leader’s side corresponds to the servant theory of leadership that proves a leader’s necessity to be empathetic for his employees to respect and follow him.
Kelleher’s personality was one of the primary factors that defined him as a leader and showed his charismatic side. The prime example of enjoying the job was at the arm-wrestling event in 1992 with Stevens Aviation CEO. They resolved the conflict over the motto “Plane Smart,” which is usually subject to judicial review (Assaf et al., 2016). Kelleher lost the match but was still able to use the slogan under the condition of donating $5000 to the charity (Assaf et al., 2016). He charmed his employees and promoted the attitude of taking themselves lightly but their job seriously.
Kelleher’s attitude to life was the central reason for his success as a leader. He showed his lighthearted side even at the challenging times, which made him a leader based on a trait leadership theory (Toh & Ruot, 2019). He obtained huge ambitions and was a bright and loud person, instantly attracting people’s attention. His primary belief was that work could and should be fun. Such a spirit translates into his company as the employees regularly gather to dance, sing, and express themselves in many ways besides work. According to Kelleher, a person should not change one’s personality at work and act differently. He told USA Today that they allow people to be themselves, and they value it. Such an attitude primarily falls under the democratic theory of leadership (Sheshi & KĂ«rçini, 2017). The leader values the group culture and contributes to its positive development. He stays open to the employees’ suggestions and does not give out orders to conform, but rather express oneself.
One of the most outstanding Keheller’s achievements in leadership was his ability to overcome the aviation crisis after 11 September 2001 without significant losses for his employees and the company itself. As the aviation industry suffered from millions of dollars lost and many companies had to lay the workers off, Southwest kept steady. The organization managed to keep all the workers employed because of proper management and remaining low expenditures. This was a result of long-term cost management. Kelleher even confessed that he used to approve every expenditure of over $1000 to keep track of the spendings and make the employees more selective (Assaf et al., 2016). These actions also show his slightly autocratic style as a leader (Chukwusa, 2018). He made his decision final and unquestionable despite what employees may have thought about it.
Altogether, Herb Kelleher can be called a transformational leader. He truly prioritized the inspirational and authentic atmosphere in the company and promoted it himself. Herb stated that his employees always come first, as it leads to customer and shareholders satisfaction. Herb managed to find a perfect way to keep his employees inspired by the payment’s transformational approach. Southwest was the first company that introduced a profit-sharing plan to the staff. With the implementation of this concept, the employees’ income depends specifically on their degree of involvement and ambitions. Introducing a new system that transformed the company’s structure establishes the valid ground to call Herb Kelleher a transformational leader. Moreover, Kelleher renounced bonuses for himself and pay increases to remove the gap between him and his employees.
However, such a system also has its weaknesses as having fun often borders with not taking the job seriously. The corporate culture is essential, but the balance is much more crucial. Herb Kelleher also earned his employees’ trust the hard way. As he turned down the bonuses for himself and the pay increases, he has lost a potential financial gain but instead got long-term support.
Altogether, Herb Kelleher proves to be one of the closest to ideal examples of a charismatic person and a transformational leader. His traits, vision, and immense ambitions made it possible to develop the company to the top level. His primary belief in life about being oneself no matter what formed the company’s culture of valuing people and craving happiness. Such an atmosphere created favorable conditions for an employee’s professional development, which led to an overall company’s success.
Leaders Comparison
The two analyzed leaders, Tony Fernandes and Herb Kelleher, show high resemblance in several factors. They were very successful and prominent people in the aviation sector, which is proved by public recognition and various awards. Apart from the proof of their competence through various interviews, Tony Fernandes and Herb Kelleher both were very charismatic and earned public and employees’ approval. However, despite the fact they had charisma, they did not stop at it and developed an operational plan of inspiring the employees.
From the point of leadership theory, they were also mostly transformational leaders who valued their workers and created a unique company culture (Assaf et al., 2016). Tony Fernandes and Herb Kelleher were transformational as they possessed a unique approach or view of life that they implemented in their organizations (Assaf et al., 2016). This sort of transformation allowed them to be the innovators in the aviation field. They also highly valued their employees, and both referred to the idea of putting them first. They appreciated personal relationships and personal approach, which in return allowed them to have higher results. Finally, a specific belief that they embedded in their company culture made them true leaders. They translated their beliefs, whether of being oneself or breaking down hierarchies, into the company mottos and lived their dreams.
On the contrary, even if they worked in one field of aviation, they were the CEOs of different competing airlines. They still had somewhat distinct goals and ideas for company development. Even though Fernandes and Kelleher claimed to put their employees first, Fernandes appeared to be more concerned about relationships, while Kelleher valued individual approach. Fernandes sought the employees’ insights and encouraged team working to build trusting relationships. Kelleher encouraged self-expression and individual uniqueness to inspire the staff to generate new ideas. Secondly, due to the difference in an approach to employees, the company’s structure also differed. Tony was striving to demolish the hierarchy and make his employees the team workers. Thus, the inspiration was the ability to have an impact, and the team depended on results. The initiative was always appreciated, and everyone was free to contribute. In contrast, Southwest was more oriented to value individual methods and creativity. Kelleher created the profit-sharing approach to promote the personal contributions of the employees. The very idea of being oneself proclaims the value of everyone’s uniqueness as individual beings rather than a team.
Proper leadership proves to be vital for a company’s successful performance. Such qualities as integrity, charisma, and a set goal that both Tony Fernandes and Herb Kelleher portray are essential for a transformational leader who inspires one’s employees and leads the company to the triumph. It is pivotal to find these qualities in oneself, apply the knowledge of great leaders in the aviation field, and build the company with one’s vision.
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