Leading Change - Carlos Ghosn at Renault and Nissan

Leading Change-Carlos Ghosn at Renault and Nissan

1. Carlos' strengths were that he was non-confrontational, he focused on business objectives not politics, and he saw the importance of not managing from top down, but to create teams that would work cohesively regardless of cultural indifferences. He also allowed himself to start with a clean sheet and not have any preconceived notions or as he called it "prefabricated solutions". He also had a hands-on management style in that he didn't just sit in his ivory tower; he went out into the field to see what was going on and asked the employees themselves. He was also very charismatic and motivating. His weaknesses were that he demanded that in a Japanese culture that everyone spoke English at the executive meetings. If a person did not speak English, they were basically fired. He also did not give the teams he made any decision-making power. Some simple decisions should have been allowed giving the teams a sense of ownership and also buy-in. It's hard to determine whether or not he was successful in making his employees adapt to the new behaviors he expected. The management staff were given incentives such as stock options and he was able to make the profitability goal he promised (or he and the entire management team would quit), but I do believe he was able to motivate the people by being visible and asking questions and having "deep listening" skills. In a Japanese culture, they are traditional in their management expectations and his "westerner" ways may have rubbed some of them the wrong way; however, as mentioned, he was able to meet his promised goals. In order to have a cohesive, productive team, there needs to be buy-in from all staff and the employees must feel an emotional connection with the organization. This could be in the form of loyalty, trust, and/or a sense of belonging. Most organizations that have employees who feel connected to their jobs, employees and management, are much happier. By creating this at Nissan, Ghosn has sewn the