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Case Study: Bill Gates’ Leadership Methodology
Bill Gates was born in 1955 in Seattle. Gates had a hobby of developing computer programs when he was a teenager. He attended Lakeside School with Paul Allen with whom they developed programs. Later, Allen went to work at Honeywell as a programmer while Gates went to Harvard. Gates later dropped out of college. They teamed up again in 1975 to start Microsoft, which was worth $2.5 million by 1978. Microsoft later produced Windows in 1985. Gates went on to work at Microsoft for about thirty years. Throughout his tenure as a leader, he showed the importance of clear thoughts and executing them. Gates always dreamt big; he always had a clear vision for his company. He wanted Microsoft to dominate the Computer industry. This involved investing in great risks, in areas he was unfamiliar with. He was passionate about his company. Gates was very adaptive; he would reinvent the company to accommodate the business market which kept changing every day.
When Gates started Microsoft, he worked on weekends and never went on vacations. He spent most of the days in his office, most of the times preferring to sleep on his office floor rather than go home. He wanted his employees to follow his example though he was met by some resistance on this front. Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, once described the early working environment at Microsoft as a “high-stress environment.” He goes further to explain how Gates drove other employees to the limits as much as he drove himself.

Gates liked to record the license plates of the cars in the parking lot of the company to know those who early or late and those putting in more effort by staying over past the required time. However, as the company grew, he loosened up. To some, it is a surprise that Gates was successful considering his approach to leadership. He was considered harsh by many, and his approach would have sent many employees away but he achieved remarkable results in the company.
As a leader at Microsoft, Gates used various approaches to ensure the success of the company. It is possible he would never have been as successful had he employed the use of a single approach. Gates liked to be control of every situation in the company, especially when the company was at its infancy. He was very directive, knowing exactly what he wanted and how he wanted things done in the company. However, this hindered the creativity and innovation of certain employees, so he had to adopt another approach to nourish employees’ creative side.
Gates would normally visit teams working on new products, and he asked tough questions until it was clear that the team understood whatever they were doing. Employees also reported and presented their findings and ideas to Gates regularly. During such meetings with employees, Gates would interrupt on some occasions to question anything that was not clear.
As a boss, Gates was a bit abrasive and also demanded a lot from his employees. He always kept everyone on their toes. However, he encouraged innovation and creativity among the employees. He also recognized both team and individual achievements. One area that Gates decentralized and completely did away with the bureaucracy was the process of gathering information. He believed that this would make the company stronger if everyone had their way of gathering information. It also meant more information was collected making the company stronger than if there were limits. Through this, Gates was also able to gain the trust of his employees, and it showed that he cared about their opinion which was always welcomed when running the business.
As a leader, Gates was also very consultative, and he participated in most of the company’s activities. Gates sought advice from his subordinates, but ultimately he made his own decisions. He considered the opinions of all his employees, making sure to respond to each one of them whenever necessary. Microsoft had an activity referred to as “Think Week,” and Gates participated in all of them. The activity involves Gates reading out over a hundred documents written by employees on issues affecting the company. The employees also wrote about future technology that could be employed by the company. Since Gates was a programmer himself, he was able to interact with the employees on common ground, showing that he was not just a manager, but he was certainly one of them. This made employees more open to him, and they were able to discuss issues affecting the company.
Gates was also the pioneer of the new model of workplaces where the main aim of the office is to make employees feel as comfortable as possible. This creates a second home for the employees making them spend a lot of time at the workplace. Microsoft allows its employees to individualize their offices as much as they desire. Employees can relax and feel at home hence maximizing the company’s productivity.
Gates’ hiring policy was also an impressive aspect of his management. He always hired the smartest and the most talented of individuals, but they were also committed and motivated people in achieving the company’s goals. He always found people who knew how to get the job done. Gates did everything possible to keep such employees, even if it meant lowering his demands. He believed employees were the most important to the company.
Gates was very strict with the company’s budget. At first, he had to sign off expenses of his management staff including Steve Ballmer. Ballmer was second in command after Gates. Until 1999, he and his number two flew coach.
Gates was a success driven leader, pushing those around him to greater heights. Some may consider his leadership methodology as harsh though he got the job done. He always challenged his employees to better previous performances. This proved effective since employees become motivated, leading to increased company productivity. Gates also liked to curse at his employees. Employees knew the fewer the curse words he used during a presentation with an employee, the better the presentation. In a way, this approach showed that Gates was honest with his employees. Honesty is an important attribute for leadership. Another unpleasant approach used by Gates in leadership was through conflict. Gates thrived on conflict. He used to provoke an argument with his employees, with the aim of ensuring they understood whatever they were doing. It was to ensure that all ensure were on their toes. These increased the company’s overall productivity.
Though he dropped out of college, Gates shows that learning is a lifelong process. Gates is undoubtedly one of the most successful entrepreneurs of our time, with a net worth of over $50 billion. Over the years, as the company grew, Gates’ image has changed to look more of that of a corporate leader.
Reference
Spahr, P. (2014). Transactional Leadership: Definition, Examples, Traits. Online.stu.edu. Retrieved 10 February 2018, from https://online.stu.edu/transactional-leadership/