Leadership in Fortune 500 Companies: An Analysis of Two CEOs

Appraise the complexities of leadership and practice. Assess own values and leadership attributes. Background The success of any business is often attributed in large part to the qualities and attributes of its leadership. Business leaders are evaluated across many dimensions.

Choose two business leaders who have held CEO positions in Fortune 500 companies - one who is presently leading a company and another who has led within the past 20 years. They may or may not have led the same company.

Develop a profile of each of the leaders using the leadership theories studied in class and those found through external research. What type of leaders were they? What was their leadership style?

Research the performance of their respective companies during the time they were leading. Based on your analysis, were they effective leaders? Why or why not?

Compare and contrast the two leaders – do you believe one was more effective than the other? Why or why not?

Based on your research, do you feel the leadership styles required to effectively lead a Fortune 500 company have changed in recent years? Why or why not?

Assess your own leadership style.

Do you believe you have what it takes to lead a Fortune 500 Company?

Your paper should be a maximum of 8 pages double-spaced in 12-point font (not including cover page and references). For papers longer than 8 pages, the additional pages will not be considered in grading. Your paper should have a well-defined introduction, body, and conclusion.

Your paper must follow APA style format. Your paper must include a minimum of 5 external academic resources. Critical thinking is important. Evaluation The Individual Leadership Project will be marked in its entirety out of 100.

The following rubric indicates the criteria

students are to adhere to, and their relative weights to the assignment overall. Activity/Competencies Demonstrated % of Final Grade

1. Research (30%)

a. Depth of external research (minimum 5 external sources) /20

b. Relevance of external sources /10

2. Critical Thinking (40%)

a. Development of meaningful leadership profiles that are substantiated through research /20

b. Strength of argument developed to compare and contrast two leaders /10

c. Assessment of changes in required leadership styles /10

3. Report (30%)

a. APA Referencing and formatting (title, headings, and references) /10

b. Formatting (Spelling and grammar, and structure) /5

c. Self-Reflection (extent to which able to assess own leadership style and to substantiate this) /15 Total /100