Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction....................................................................................................................1
1.1 Definition of Leadership........................................................................................................1
1.2 Characteristics of a Leader.....................................................................................................1
1.3 About the Report....................................................................................................................2
Chapter 2: Leadership Theories.......................................................................................................3
2.1 Managerial Grid.....................................................................................................................3
2.2 Contingency Theory...............................................................................................................3
2.3 Path-Goal Theory...................................................................................................................4
2.4 Leader-Style Theory...............................................................................................................4
2.5 Hersey and Blanchard Theory................................................................................................5
2.6 Transformational Leadership.................................................................................................5
Chapter 3: About Richard Branson..................................................................................................7
3.1 Synopsis.................................................................................................................................7
3.2 Early Life...............................................................................................................................7
3.3 Virgin Records........................................................................................................................8
3.4 Business Expansion................................................................................................................8
3.5 Virgin Galactic.......................................................................................................................9
Chapter 4: Virgin Group................................................................................................................10
Chapter 5: Leadership Style of Richard Branson..........................................................................12
5.1 The Emergence of Bransons Leadership Style...................................................................12
5.2 Richard Branson in the Public Eye......................................................................................13
5.3 Branson and his Followers...................................................................................................13

5.4 Richard Branson: Transformational Leader.........................................................................14

5.5 Bransons Success as a Leader.............................................................................................15
Chapter 6: Conclusion...................................................................................................................17
Bibliography..................................................................................................................................18

Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Definition of Leadership
Before a leader can be analyzed, one must define what leadership is. Jackson and Parry (2008)
say that leadership is like beauty it is difficult to describe, but we certainly know it when we
see it.' However, the general consensus is that leadership is influencing people in order to attain
goals (Daft, 2008).
Leadership is a process by which one person influences the thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors of
others. Leaders set a direction for the rest of us; they help us see what lies ahead; they help us
visualize what we might achieve; they encourage us and inspire us. Without leadership a group
of human beings quickly degenerates into argument and conflict, because we see things in
different ways and lean toward different solutions. Leadership helps to point us in the same
direction and harness our efforts jointly. Leadership is the ability to get other people to do
something significant that they might not otherwise do. Its energizing people toward a goal.

1.2 Characteristics of a Leader

In any group situation, the leader has a few bases of power by virtue of which he is in a position
to influence the behavior of group members. They are:

Knowledge, information and experience

Resources for dispensing favors, rewards and penalties

Formal authority

Charisma

Distinct personality characteristics like for example, will to dominate, ability to establish
rapport, skill to communicate, identity with and understanding of people, decisiveness
and soon.

Skillful use of these power bases by a leader is likely to bring success to him; and success in
some cases adds to the power of the leader. A successful leader gains more credibility in the eyes
of people; they often tend to ignore other deficiencies in him; they resolve to adhere to him and
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allow themselves to be further exposed to his influence attempts.

In this way some leaders entrench themselves in their positions. Some even misuse their power
and often get away with it. Power carries with it an equal amount of responsibility. Leaders who
relate their power with responsibility in a consistent manner are more successful in their
influence than otherwise.

1.3 About the Report

This report discusses the ways in which Richard Branson is seen as a leader. It shows which
leadership theories are used by him, in order to lead those that follow him, either through work
or general enthusiasm for his leadership style, and how effectively those theories are applied.
The report starts off with Richard Bransons early life and the beginning of his leadership. It then
goes on to explain how his leadership style emerged as he began to run the Virgin Group. Later, it is
explained how Richard Branson is seen by the public, and how he has followers in the public that
dont work for him. After this, the researcher has considered which technical leadership theories are
used by Richard Branson.

Chapter 2: Leadership Theories

There are several leadership theories available all over the world. Some of the most popular ones
are explained below

2.1 Managerial Grid

Robert R. Blake and Anne Adams McCanse1 refined the Leadership Grid which identified
various types of managerial leadership based on concern for production coupled with concern for
people. While they consider the team management style of leadership to be ideal, they
recognize that it may be difficult to implement in some work situations. Effective managers have
great concern for both people and production. They work to motivate employees to reach their

highest levels of accomplishment. They are flexible and responsive to change, and they
understand the need to change.

2.2 Contingency Theory

Fred Fiedler developed a contingency or situational the-ory of leadership. Fiedler postulates that
three important situational dimensions are assumed to influence the leaders effectiveness. They
are:

Leader-member relations: the degree of confidence the subordinates have in the leader.

It also includes the loyalty shown the leader and the leaders attractiveness.
Task structure: the degree to which the followers jobs are routine as contrasted with

non routine.
Position power: the power inherent in the leadership position. It includes the rewards
and punishments typically associated with the position, the leaders formal authority
(based on ranking in the managerial hierarchy), and the support that the leader receives
from supervisors and the overall organization.

2.3 Path-Goal Theory

The path-goal theory postulates that the most successful leaders are those who increase
subordinate motivation by charting out and clarifying the paths to high performance. According
to Robert Houses path-goal theory, effective leaders:

Motivate their followers to achieve group and organizational goals.

Make sure that they have control over outcomes their subordinates desire.

Reward subordinates for performing at a high level or achieving their work goals by

giving them desired out-comes.

Raise their subordinates beliefs about their ability to achieve their work goals and

perform at a high level.

Take into account their subordinates characteristics and the type of work they do.

2.4 Leader-Style Theory

The Vroom and Yetton Model describes the different ways leaders can make decisions and
guides leaders in determining the extent to which subordinates should participate in decision
making. The expanded version of their model, the Vroom, Yetton, Jago Model, holds that
(1) Organizational decisions should be of the highest quality and (2) subordinates should accept
and be com-mitted to organizational decisions that are made. The model presents methods for
determining the appropriateness of leader style.

2.5 Hersey and Blanchard Theory

Paul Hersey and Kenneth H. Blanchard (a co-author of the One Minute Manager) identified a
three-dimensional approach for assessing leadership effectiveness:

Leaders exhibit task behavior (the extent to which leaders are likely to organize and
define the roles of followers and direct the work) and relationship behavior (the extent to

which leaders are likely to be supportive, encouraging, and the like).

The effectiveness of the leader depends on how his or her leadership style interrelates

with the situation.

The willingness and ability (readiness) of an employee to do a particular task is an
important situational factor.
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This approach is easy to understand, offers suggestions for changing leadership style, and shows
leaders what to do and when to do it. It focuses on the need for adapt-ability (the degree to which
the leader is able to vary his or her style appropriately to the readiness level of a fol-lower in a
given situation).

2.6 Transformational Leadership

According to Bernard Bass, transformational leadership occurs when a leader transforms, or
changes, his or her followers in three important ways that together result in followers trusting the
leader, performing behaviors that contribute to the achievement of organizational goals, and
being motivated to perform at a high level. Trans-formational leaders:

Increase subordinates awareness of the importance of their tasks and the importance of

performing well.
Make subordinates aware of their needs for personal growth, development, and

accomplishment.
Motivate their subordinates to work for the good of the organization rather than
exclusively for their own personal gain or benefit.

Building on Basss contributions, Tichy and Devanna identified the characteristics of

transformational leaders as follows:

They identify themselves as change agents.

They are courageous individuals.
They believe in people.
They are value-driven.
They are lifelong learners.
They have the ability to deal with complexity.
They are visionaries.

Chapter 3: About Richard Branson

3.1 Synopsis
Born on July 18, 1950, in Surrey, England, Richard Branson struggled in school and dropped out
at age 16a decision that ultimately lead to the creation of Virgin Records. His entrepreneurial
projects started in the music industry and expanded into other sectors making Branson a
billionaire. His Virgin Group holds more than 200 companies, including the recent Virgin
Galactic, a space-tourism company. Branson is also known for his adventurous spirit and
sporting achievements, including crossing oceans in a hot air balloon.

3.2 Early Life

Richard Charles Nicholas Branson was born on July 18, 1950, in Surrey, England. His father,
Edward James Branson, worked as a barrister. His mother, Eve Branson, was employed as a
flight attendant. Richard, who struggled with dyslexia, had a hard time with educational
institutions. He nearly failed out of the all-boys Scaitcliffe School, which he attended until the
age of 13. He then transferred to Stowe School, a boarding school in Stowe, Buckinghamshire,
England.
Still struggling, Branson dropped out at the age of 16 to start a youth-culture magazine
called Student. The publication, run by students, for students, sold $8,000 worth of advertising in
its first edition, which was launched in 1966. The first run of 50,000 copies was disseminated for
free, after Branson covered the costs with advertising.
By 1969, Branson was living in a London commune, surrounded by the British music and drug
scene. It was during this time that Branson had the idea to begin a mail-order record company
called Virgin to help fund his magazine efforts. The company performed modestly, but made
Branson enough that he was able to expand his business venture, adding a record shop in Oxford
Street, London. With the success of the record shop, the high school drop-out was able to build a
recording studio in 1972 in Oxfordshire, England.

3.3 Virgin Records

His first artist on the Virgin Records label, Mike Oldfield, recorded his single "Tubular Bells" in
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1973 with the help of Branson's team. The song was an instant smash, staying on the UK charts
for 247 weeks. Using the momentum of Oldfield's success, Branson then signed other aspiring
musical groups to label, including the Sex Pistols. Artists such as the Culture Club, the Rolling
Stones, and Genesis would follow, helping to make Virgin Music one of the top six record
companies in the world.

3.4 Business Expansion

Branson expanded his entrepreneurial efforts yet again, this time to include the travel company
the Voyager Group in 1980, the airline Virgin Atlantic in 1984, and a series of Virgin Megastores.
But Branson's success was not always predictable. By 1992, Virgin was suddenly struggling to
stay financially afloat. The company was sold later that year to THORN EMI for $1 billion.
Branson was crushed by the loss, reportedly crying after the contract was signed, but remained
determined to stay in the music business. In 1993, he founded the station Virgin Radio, and
several years later he started a second record company, V2. Founded in 1996, V2 now includes
artists such as Powder Finger and Tom Jones.
Branson's Virgin Group now holds more than 200 companies in more than 30 countries,
including the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada, Asia, Europe and South
Africa. He has expanded his businesses to include a train company, a luxury game preserve, a
mobile phone company and a space-tourism company, Virgin Galactic.
Branson is also known for his sporting achievements, notably the record-breaking Atlantic
crossing in Virgin Atlantic Challenger II in 1986, and the first crossing by hot-air balloon of the
Atlantic (1987) and Pacific (1991). He was knighted in 1999 for his contribution to
entrepreneurship, and in 2009, he landed at No. 261 on Forbes' "World Billionaires" list with his
$2.5 billion in self-made fortune, which includes two private islands.

3.5 Virgin Galactic

In recent years, the ever-adventurous Branson has focused much of his attention on his space
tourism venture. He partnered with Scaled Composites to form The Spaceship Company, which
is currently developing a suborbital spaceplane, and, in April 2013, the project made an
impressive leap forward with the test launch of SpaceShipTwo.
Branson was delighted by the success of his spaceship's first test, telling NBC News that "We're
absolutely delighted that it broke the sound barrier on its very first flight, and that everything
went so smoothly." He expects to be finishing testing the craft by the end of 2013. By April
2013, more than 500 people had bought their tickets for Virgin Galactic's voyages.
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Chapter 4: Virgin Group

Led by visionary founder, chairman, and owner Sir Richard Branson, holding company Virgin
Group gets around. The group's travel-related operations, led by 51%-owned Virgin Atlantic
Airways, are among its largest cash generators. The airline flies to about 35 destinations around
the world with a fleet of almost 40 aircraft. Virgin Atlantic is complemented by its Australian
low-fare cousin, Virgin Blue, which operates a fleet of some 80 aircraft. Virgin Group
also runs Virgin Rail and sells tour packages. Besides travel and leisure, the group's major
operating areas include financial services and telecom (Virgin Media). Virgin, with offices in
some 30 countries, was established in 1970.
Branson has made Virgin one of the most recognizable brands in the world by plastering it on
everything from balloon flights to wine, representing 200 companies. Rather than maintaining
full ownership of the companies, Branson typically has entered new businesses via partnerships
with other investors or by licensing the Virgin brand name.
Virgin Group also runs Virgin America, a luxury low-fare carrier (sweet deals, unexpected
amenities) based out of San Francisco. The US airline licenses the Virgin brand and borrows
heavily from the Virgin customer-experience playbook. Nonetheless, Virgin Group is limited by
US law to a minority stake in the carrier. Its destinations include about 10 major US cities.
The group continues to look for growth opportunities to offset the airline industry's ups and
downs. Emerging Virgin projects include stem-cell storage, alternative energy, and other
innovations that strike Sir Richard's fancy. Virgin's space tourism division, Virgin Galactic, hopes
to one day offer holiday packages that include views of earthrise. The space line's first spacecraft
-- the six-passenger, two-pilot SpaceShipTwo -- will undergo continued testing by its
builder, Scaled Composites, throughout 2012 with the hope of offering commercial space flight
in 2013 or 2014 at $200,000 a ticket.
The company launched into another sector in 2010 when it formed Virgin Care, fueled by the
purchase of a 75% interest in Assura Group's Assura Medical. The British health care
provider offers more than 80 NHS services in the UK. The move followed Virgin's introduction
of Virgin Digital Help. In partnership with Sutherland Global Services, the help line caters to
consumers struggling with such IT gadget gaffes as wireless networks failing to network, PCs
crashing, and game consoles not playing nice with peripheral equipment.

Chapter 5: Leadership Style of Richard Branson

5.1 The Emergence of Bransons Leadership Style
Richard Branson is the CEO of the Virgin Group, which consists of many companies, all bearing
the infamous Virgin logo. Virgin began as a simple mail order company selling records,
eventually setting up shops and a recording studio. However, at this stage he was heavily in debt,
and in order to pay it off, he expanded the business quickly. After this, he launched Virgin Rags,
a clothing company with his then wife, Kirsten Tomassi. From there, the business went from
strength to strength, obtaining a record deal with the Sex Pistols and launching Virgin Atlantic
Airlines (Grint, 2000).
Because Richard Branson leads the Virgin Group, rather than just one company within the group,
it is harder to define what type of organization the Virgin Group is. Certainly, it is a corporate
one. But Virgin is more than that. Upon starting Virgin Atlantic Airlines, Branson himself
claimed were still in the entertainment industry at 25,000 feet (Grint, 2000). If we assume
that Branson considers himself still to be in the entertainment industry, then, he must offer all his
products and services with entertainment in mind. Following on from this, one must consider
how Branson leads an entertainment corporation when there are good ranging from books to cola
and services such as satellite television and space tourism.
Being the leader of a huge organization in the entertainment has greatly affected Bransons
leadership style. His style of working for fun that is work-driven rather than fun for funs sake
has been leaked through the company, so that everyone, ranging from senior managers to retail
staff and air hostesses work with this philosophy in mind (Grint, 2000)

5.2 Richard Branson in the Public Eye

Richard Branson is one of the UKs most famous and successful business leaders. The results of
a survey that first appeared in the Financial Times explain how Richard Branson is seen as a
maverick, encouraging people to do things differently (Boddy, 2005: 454). Robbins and Judge
(2009: 419) describe Branson as fun loving, sensitive to the needs of others, hard working,
innovative, charismatic, enthusiastic, energetic, decisive, and risk taking. The above traits that
Branson possesses have proved him to be a great leader of such a successful organization. He is
perceived as a socially conscious entrepreneur, setting up Virgin Unite to look at entrepreneurial
methods when it comes to environmental and societal issues. In addition to this, he has also set
up the Virgin Green Fund which deals with renewable resources (The Telegraph, 2012).
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Bransons employees obviously love him. On several occasions, he has been voted Britains
favorite boss. According to Dearlove (2007), working for Branson is an adventure, simply
because of the way he motivates people. This is a key skill to have as a leader. His staff only ever
has praise for him because, since the beginning of Virgin, he has organized bonding sessions
with his employees in order to encourage staff loyalty. He refers to everyone who works for him
as his family. (Dearlove, 2007)

5.3 Branson and his Followers

His followers include many, from those who are led by him as a matter of their job, to managers
who strive to lead like him. Branson also leads other business leaders. Today, many people speak
of how Google and Facebook are great companies to work for, because of the laissez-faire
leadership style and the laid back approach to working.
However, it can be said that Branson had this in Virgin before Mark Zuckerberg was even born.
Thus, he led the way to this style of leadership.
In addition to this, Branson is renowned for his socially conscious way of thinking. He believes
that companies should work for something beyond mere profits. Again, Zuckerberg has followed
Branson in this train of thought, stating that these days, I think more and more people want to
use services from companies that believe in something beyond simply maximizing profits (The
Telegraph, 2012).
As for Bransons followers, one only has to look at the declarations in Dearloves book (2007),
where people announce in pubs I work for Richard Branson. They are proud to follow him
because he is such a great leader.

5.4 Richard Branson: Transformational Leader

Richard Bransons leadership style is definitely that of transformational leadership. According to
Robbins and Judge (2009), transformational leaders are leaders who inspire followers to
transcend their own self-interests and who are capable of having a profound and extraordinary
effect on followers. This style of leadership gives followers a vision to work towards alongside a
sense of pride. This can be further described as idealized influence, inspirational motivation,
intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration. Idealized influence ensures that leaders
are trusted and respected by their followers because they are active in the leadership process.
Branson is definitely trusted and respected by those that follow him, because as previously
mentioned, those that are in employment in the Virgin Group frequently declare their love for
Branson. In addition to this, inspirational motivation allows the leader to communicate what their
expectations of their followers are. Leaders can show followers important goals and strategies in
10

simple, yet effective, ways. Intellectual stimulation allows the leader in question to promote
cognitive abilities, such as problem solving and rationality. Branson does this by delegating work
as much as possible. He also treats each company within the Virgin Group as a totally separate
entity. He allows the managers of each of the companies in the Virgin Group to manage on their
own merit. Finally, individualized consideration means that the leader can treat each employee
personally with individualized coaching and advice (Robbins and Judge, 2009).

5.5 Bransons Success as a Leader

Richard Branson is a successful leader. This is shown in how willing people are to declare that
they work for him. Its also seen in how he has managed to set up a corporate empire, with a
globally recognizable brand without any prior knowledge of any of the industries that he has
moved into. Branson never succeeded in academia due to dyslexia, but he has a profound ability
to connect to other people and to get them to do things his way. He doesnt have an MBA, but
simply great interpersonal skills.
If we think back to the definition of leader at the beginning of this analysis, a leader is someone
who influences people in order to attain goals (Daft, 2008). This is definitely true in Richard
Bransons case. He has influenced thousands of followers, both those that are employed by him
and those that follow him because he is so successful.
There are numerous reasons that explain why Branson is a good leader. For example, Robbins
and Judge (2009) state that he is a transformational leader. They then go on to explain how only
those leaders who are transformational can motivate their followers in such a way that they
perform above and beyond expectations.
In addition to this, he can be described as a good business leader because he has managed to
make Virgin Atlantic Airlines a success in a market that was full of long-established firms such
as British Airways and American Airlines.
Branson can also be described as a good leader because he has been in business for more than
forty years, constantly building on his empire and ensuring that those that work for him remain
loyal to him. He has been so influential, that he managed to get those that worked on Student to
do so for no payment. In addition to this, his own philosophy of working for fun has filtered
down throughout the company, so that it has become the philosophy for all those who work for
Branson.

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Chapter 6: Conclusion
After analyzing Richard Branson as a leader, it can be said that, he is a leader who gets his ideas
across quite well. He manages to ensure that his followers get things done his way through his
transformational leadership, while maintaining high standards across all the companies within
the Virgin Group. Essentially, Richard Branson is the Virgin brand, and this is because he has
been so successful at how he has led the company. He is as closely associated with the brand as
Steve Jobs was with Apple.
Richard Branson is respected as a leader simply because he is so good at it. While his official
title may be CEO of the Virgin Group, he is so much more than that. His leadership style is
built into that title. And because of that, it would be hard for anyone to take over that position
without being constantly compared to Branson. As well as this, Branson is an inspiration to
everyone as he was listed as the fourth richest citizen in Great Britain, with a net worth of $4.2
billion, without ever going to university. This will give hope to younger people who cant
manage to get into third level institutes.
There are many things one could learn from Richard Bransons leadership. While Bransons style
of leadership has been classified into a transformational leader, it is believed that he brings
something extra to that style of leadership. I think that his interpersonal skills are excellent,
which is invaluable trait to have as a leader. While anyone can read any of the numerous
leadership books out there, there are some skills that leaders require that can only be learned by
being led by a leader who already has those skills. I believe that Richard Branson is one of the
few successful, well-known leaders that could offer that. He is all those things that come to mind
when someone tries to define a leader: inspirational; motivational; gets the right things done.

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Daft, R. (2008) New Era of Management, 2nd ed. Mason: Thomson Higher Education

Dearlove, D. (2007) Business the Richard Branson Way, 10 secrets of the Worlds
Greatest Brand Builder. 3rd ed. Chichester: Capstone Publishing Ltd.

Grint, K. (2000) The Arts of Leadership, Oxford: Oxford University Press

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Jackson, B. & Parry, K. (2008) A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book About
Studying Leadership, London: Sage Publications Ltd.

Robbins, S.P. & Judge, T.A. (2009) Organizational Behavior, 13th ed. New Kersey:
Pearson Prentice Hall

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