In our discussion on Monday, we got on to the idea that
companies are different entities than the people that are in charge of them.
Although a CEO could enforce their morals, ideas and goals onto the company, it
is possible that they could be replaced, while the company still continues on.
Take Apple, for example. Even though Steve Jobs is gone, the Apple Company is
continuing on with the ideas he put forth. Let’s say, however, that the person
who took over after him wanted to add graphics to the outside of the products,
going against Jobs’ precedent of simple-looking products. Would this be
possible? Would the company allow the CEO to do that? Or would this individual,
being the CEO, be able to have jurisdiction to change something like this? In
the end, I’m wondering if a company based on the people, or are the people
based on the company? Who holds more power in this situation?
That is a hard question. I think that it would depend on how trustworthy and charismatic the new CEO is. For example, in the case of Apple, because Steve Jobs is so greatly respected and appreciated, I think the employees would stop a new CEO from trying to change the motives of the company. Public opinion would dictate that his legacy should live on. However, this might not be true for every company. If the previous CEO was promoting bad ideas, maybe a new CEO would try to completely change the motives of the company, even though most of the old employees would probably have the mentality that the previous CEO set in place. I think the CEO holds the ultimate power. He or she could fire any employee that disagrees with his or her ideas, even if they are different from previous motives or goals of a particular company. It may seem like the people determine how the company acts, only because more likely than not a new CEO would have been a former employee or customer and sees how the outsiders look upon the company. But in the end, I think the CEO or board of directors or whoever is in charge holds the power to determine the direction of the company.
ReplyDeleteI agree I think it's difficult to answer. I think that major companies have a lot of power and with power can come a lot of responsibility. I do believe that companies have to be in touch with their consumer. Even with a company like Apple that had a brilliant CEO, Steve Jobs and has great products. At the end of the day, if the majority of the consumers are not happy with the products. Apple will have to do something differently. Even though they have a lot of money and power, their company relies on people enjoying the product and buying it. I do believe despite everything that the CEO is the one that has the most say and power no matter what.
ReplyDeleteAfter wrestling with this idea for a while, I’d have to say that the company is based on the people. If you think about it, a company is created based on an idea, and that idea is based on a person’s beliefs and dreams. So from the very beginning a company is based off of a person, even as the CEO may change the company may change with that person or remain the same but either way it was initially based off of that founding person. I don’t think it is any secret that the CEO has power over the company.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think that the company is based on the people who run it. When someone starts a company, he brings a set of values and morals to the table that he expects his workers to abide by; how a founder goes about this is crucial because it in effect molds the entire culture of the company. Furthermore, this is going to attract a certain type of person to work for the company. However, in the case that the CEO changes, I think that it would be rare that the ideology would stay the same. I would assume that the nature of how the company is directly dependent on the unique personality of the man in charge.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is completely up to the new CEO to change whatever he or she wants within the company. Unless they sign some form of legal document that states that hey will not change anything, new CEOs have the power to make any new business decisions they want. But I do think that often times they will leave the company working the same for various reasons. One being that the company is running smoothly on the old terms. Another being out of respect for the former CEO of the company and his or her wishes for how the company should proceed. It is ultimately out of the former CEOs hands to control the workings, so the new CEO has the power to make any changes he so desires.
ReplyDeleteI think that at first, companies are run by people but as those values are instilled in the company they become ingrained in it and cannot be changed. Apple is a good example of this. Steve Jobs was the person who implemented the simple design on products, however now that he is gone the company has stuck with that policy because it came to define the company. Companies come to be known for certain policies and that defines what they are. It would be bad business to change what the company stands for all the time because no one would be able to predict what they would do, and no one could profit off of that. On the same point, the consistency of remaining true to a company's identity, enables a company to establish a loyal base of customers. Apple is again another good example of that because they have people camp out for weeks in anticipation of the release of a new product. Therefore, people are the ones who establish the company's initial identity, but over time, the identity becomes synonymous with the company and is then rooted in that company and can't be changed without great difficulty.
ReplyDeleteIt is true that a company is really nothing more than a legal fiction. A company needs people to be the heart and soul of the company- it is what keeps them up and running. While a CEO is one of the people who has a lot of power within a company and who often makes a majority of the decisions, if a CEO does something that does not align with the goals and slogan of the company it will not go through. First, the CEO is working for shareholders. If the CEO does something that the shareholders do not agree with or think does not align with the company’s vison more likely than not the decision will not be passed. Also when companies are first created they are created by people who have some sort of vison. Who create a character and persona of the company. Eventually this character may grow and change, but when the original owners or people are hiring employees they will look for people who they feel fit in with their companies vison. They will look for candidates with qualities they want their employees to have. Soon enough the company will then begin to develop a culture all of their own. So while the CEO of Apple could decide to change something with an Apple product they would not get too far if the people of the company felt it was something that went against the company’s vison and culture.
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