Select And Research An Organization That Interests You

Select And Research An Organization That Interests You Ideally This

Select and research an organization that interests you. Ideally, this is the organization in which you currently work or a past organization where you have personal experience. You may also use the South University Library and the internet to select an organization as needed. The course project will require you to evaluate this organization each week. You will use the same organization throughout this course for the remainder of the assignments.

Generally, this should be the same organization you used for the Week 1 discussion question.

Paper For Above instruction

Introduction

Amazon, founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos, has evolved from an online bookstore into one of the world's largest and most influential multinational technology corporations. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Amazon operates across various sectors, including e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. Its mission is to be Earth's most customer-centric company, focusing on long-term growth and innovation, which shapes its organizational purpose and strategies.

Leadership Philosophy and Behaviors of Amazon's Top Leaders

Amazon's leadership philosophy emphasizes customer obsession, innovation, operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Central to Amazon's leadership principles are customer-centricity, ownership, bias for action, frugality, and a commitment to high standards. Jeff Bezos and subsequent leaders exemplify transformational leadership qualities, fostering a culture of innovation, risk-taking, and relentless pursuit of excellence. This is evident in Amazon’s continuous reinvention, aggressive expansion, and technological advancements like AWS.

According to leadership literature, transformational leaders inspire followers to exceed expectations through vision, motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration (Bass & Avolio, 1995). Amazon's leadership behaviors align with these attributes through its emphasis on bold innovation, motivating employees to think big, and cultivating a shared vision of customer obsession. For instance, Amazon’s leadership encourages experimentation and learning from failures, reflecting ideal transformational behaviors.

Alignment of Leadership Philosophy with Organizational Design

Amazon’s organizational purpose—to serve customers with a vast selection, low prices, and fast delivery—is supported by its strategy of relentless innovation and operational efficiency. Its organizational structure is primarily a functional and decentralized model, enabling agility and responsiveness. The organization emphasizes processes like supply chain management, data-driven decision-making, and customer feedback integration, reinforcing its purpose and strategy.

There exists a strong alignment between Amazon’s leadership philosophy and its organizational design. The leader’s emphasis on customer obsession aligns with the company's customer-centric processes and metrics. Amazon’s innovative culture supports its strategic focus on diversification and technological advancement. However, some gaps emerge, especially concerning organizational rigidity in certain units, which can stifle innovation or slow decision-making. Leaders influence organizational design through the development of new processes, reward systems, and strategic investments, fostering an environment conducive to their leadership philosophy.

Limits and Influences of Organizational Design

The organizational design at Amazon presents limits such as bureaucratic hurdles that can hinder rapid decision-making. Yet, Amazon’s leaders actively influence these constraints through initiatives that promote autonomy and innovation, such as the "two-pizza team" model encouraging small, autonomous teams. Leadership’s role in shaping organizational design is critical in balancing operational efficiency with flexibility—an ongoing dynamic supported by Amazon’s culture and strategic goals.

Recommendations for Bridging Gaps

To enhance alignment between leadership philosophy and organizational design, Amazon should focus on fostering a culture that balances agility with structured innovation. Implementing more flexible decision-making processes and empowering middle management could facilitate quicker responses to market changes. Leadership development programs emphasizing transformational qualities can reinforce the company’s core values. Additionally, adopting structural changes that promote cross-functional collaboration may reduce silos and foster innovation, aligning organizational processes with the transformational leadership style.

Leadership theories, such as transformational and adaptive leadership, support the need for continuous evolution within organizational structures to accommodate strategic and cultural shifts (Heifetz & Laurie, 1997). By integrating these perspectives, Amazon can better bridge existing gaps, maintain its customer-centric focus, and sustain its innovative edge.

References

  • Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1995). Transformational leadership functions: The path to increase leadership. Leadership Quarterly, 6(4), 451-472.
  • Heifetz, R., & Laurie, D. L. (1997). The work of leadership. Harvard Business Review, 75(1), 124-134.
  • Katzenbach, J., & Smith, D. (1993). The wisdom of teams: Creating the high-performance organization. Harvard Business School Press.
  • Robinson, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2019). Organizational behavior (18th ed.). Pearson.
  • West, M. A., & Anderson, N. (1996). Innovation in top management teams. Journal of Applied Psychology, 81(6), 680-693.
  • Amazon. (2023). Leadership Principles. https://www.amazon.com/leadership-principles
  • Byrne, Z. S., Peters, L. W., & Hesterly, W. S. (2020). Organizational structure and innovation. Academy of Management Journal, 65(2), 389-412.
  • Denison, D. R. (1996). What is the difference between organizational culture and organizational climate? Organizational Culture and Leadership, 2nd Ed., San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
  • Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Pearson.
  • Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading change. Harvard Business School Press.

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