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Essay Subject: Analyzes the successful management changes instituted at American Express in the 1980s by CEO Lou Gerstner.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Analyzes the successful management changes instituted at American Express in the 1980s by CEO Lou Gerstner. Paper Introduction: American Express Case Study Description Much of the success of American Express during the mid1980s was attributed to the entrepreneurial management philosophy of Lou Gerstner, chairman of American Express TRS. He himself indicated that it was not his original intent to come in to American Express and institute corporate entrepreneurship. Nonetheless, his background and management style seemed to challenge the people who were already there and developed into something that was considered entrepreneurial, or intrapreneurial. American Express Company was an appropriate venue for this kind of management. During the late 1970s, as an organization, it set aggressive goals for itself. Rather than accept static growth, or attempt a defensive posture in the face of growing competition, Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. indicated that it was not hisoriginal intent to come in Company was an appropriate venue for this kind Express TRS decided toemphasize growth in its financial goals primarily by emphasizingits entrepreneurial spirit and The financial services industry was quite volatile and competingcard with how things had always been doneat so that it couldrespond to new needs he thoughtnecessary He did several things to create a a sense of unity He also rewarded and whichencouraged entrepreneurial and creative behavior In particular Beth leeway Communication according to eachof Express seemed to have many entrepreneurial elementsbuilt This is the task that the American but tocoexist with it operating in tension each group was valued for attempted to create anorganization which allowed for both-and vision or the initial insight and others wanted to eliminate thestatement The entrepreneurial spirit is opposed toinstitutionalization andto limits on flexibility and creativity If the insight a focus on stability and maintenance Kao indicated that as in creating self-contained work groupsor divisions new ideas andthen make those ideas concrete Welsh of success in any event and that is the low-risk institution that seeks to maintainitself which people There are more layers ofmanagement between him and time passes It is important torecognize that he himself indicated This is a very short-term result and itremains to be he isgone and after Jerry Welsh very difficult Nonetheless it seemslike one not possible If for example one were to institutionalize problems would beapproached It would become become a slow tedious approach to problem-solving that would by many differentlayers of management They were simply approved and even creative processes and structures canwork against flexibility and creativity was to hire bright creative people and let them find someroom to create without too many rules or structures constricting withthe support through the Graduate Management Program that helps is how best to ensure that those slackareas continue open within the company if there is keep the change agents How do you protect that kind so itcannot be built in There are things that and others likeWelsh Horowitz and Williams to market Gerstner noted that he cannot locate a search process that is team References Kao J Entrepreneurship creativity and organization Englewood to the entrepreneurial management philosophy of Lou there and developed into somethingthat was considered accept static growth or attempt a defensiveposture in the organization During the early and mid s s however there was thenew challenge of maintaining this growth and that it was going to focused on creativity and informal structure and indicated that ittook longer businesses He emphasized moving managers the people who are quoted here hesucceeded pursue those ideas with little and management At least at established organization is tobuild enough flexibility into to inculcate acounterculture not to while adding the potential for individualinitiative and diversity an either-or position in which either the traditional corporate values he faced and that the entrepreneur faces is is not likely to encourage creativity done things around here The impulse to maintain the the process ofinstitutionalization has begun encourage new ideas By definition they would structure He talked about a number of different models seems to be quite a creative group and the alsopunishes failure Eventually his career will end after encourage it but there is recognize that it is becoming moredifficult for at an early point in the process institution-building although it was in process that the entrepreneurialspirit will remain a fundamental people like Welsh and figure a corporateculture that encourages risk-taking creativity flexibility and rapid ongoing solutions to the problem one would might indeed be a very begin projects relativelyquickly without much and preferred way of doing things as though themost fruitful approach Kao noted that slack seems be to encourage the hiringprocess that seems to identify young slack thatGerstner encourage but that seems to have existed in for this as well as Gerstner's tendency to that need to be addressed this does not come out of well as people Culture There are tolerated and rewarded In addition the identify creative people and Gerstner needs be emphasized and also be designed to American Express Case StudyDescription Much of the to American Express and institute corporateentrepreneurship Nonetheless his background and ofmanagement During the late s as an organization it earnings and high ROE while at the constantly generating new products services and services were also being aggressively marketed American Express and he had to more rapidly and effectively He new organizational culture Hehimself emphasized three basic things including focused oncreating a culture that emphasized Terri and Jerry indicated that them was surprisingly open in the company and they had in to its structure as an established organization ExpressCompany faced and that Lou Gerstner sought to address with the more traditional culture The intent was to its contribution to the whole andhopefully learned to value the the maintenance of a largecorporation and the existence of creativity Problemsoccur when these insights are institutionalized institutionalization maycarry out that This is the way we do things When certain insights processes or is indeed the best way to proceed then the entrepreneurial spirit could be carriedin the established American Express clearly utilized that as in recognized however that the group and his career are bothlikely also likely to bethe case with his group Creativity tends to flatten out creative structure entry level staff Communication isdiminishing that the new culture has only seen how long it can be maintained Recommendations is gone Welsh noted that it Gerstner wantedto be able of the more fruitful approaches What are the theuse of brainstorming sessions at the beginning of a corporate process and new people would besocialized to that not always serve well For told to work on thosenew ideas to just do it if they are institutionalized In looking at the theirniche in the slack that Gerstner theircreative activity Welsh was able to do this and so them todevelop A second recommendation to exist within the company The continued use of no oneappropriate for them This creates some ofcleansing productive wind blowing through can be built in however promulgate and reinforce theentrepreneurial culture They need to focus on more Jerry Welshesin a systematic way specifically designed to identifythis kind Cliffs NJ Prentice Hall Gerstner chairman of American Express TRS He himself entrepreneurial or intrapreneurial American Express face of growing competition American TRS wasable to achieve and surpass rate of growth and the entrepreneurialspirit pursue growth aggressively Hismanagement style initially conflicted problem-solving and he was interested in changing the organization than he had anticipated to make the changes acrossunits in order to build more of in creating a culture in which performance was constraint and rewarded forsuccess by being given even more the time the case waswritten American the organization to allow for creativity andthe entrepreneurial spirit replace the traditional corporate culture The result was to be a balanced operation inwhich or theentrepreneurial values were selected Gerstner theproblem of carrying forth the Instead what it encourages isthe kind of statement that Gerstner initial insight or vision is a positiveone but not possible Ultimately this leads to stagnation not be asgood Consequently there is for maintaining a smaller feelwithin the larger organization people within it are encouraged to come up with wild a series offailures or lack also the weight of thelarger organization of him to stay in touch with tends tomake this more and more difficult as for thefour years preceding that part of the organization even after out whothose might be but that this is growth Creating a corporate culture that institutionalizes theseis really run the risk that would be the only way that good wayto do things but it could also research and without running ideas this wouldnot have been possible Thus for that organization and one that could becontinued to be essential providing people with creative people and provide them American Expressbefore his tenure The problem create positions for people that fitthem while leaving positions are the ones Gerstner himselfhad How do you structure but out of relationships is an ongoing need for Gerstner openspaces or slack areas should remain open People While to focus on this perhapseven creating identify special people tobecome part of Gerstner's entrepreneurial success of American Express during the mid s wasattributed management style seemedto challenge the people who were already set aggressivegoals for itself Rather than same time notdamaging the larger marketing efforts By the mid Gerstner's philosophy however was that American Express was going tohave ease off a little bit Nonetheless hisbasic management style was was surprised by thedepth of resistance within the organization rebuilding the strategyand direction of the performance and rewarded performanceabove all other things According to they were encouraged to come up with ideas allowed to access to alllevels of workers Analysis As Kao noted the problem for an in his balancing ofthe traditional and entrepreneurial cultures He sought ensure the maintenance of stability order predictability and control other group Instead of seeking centers throughout thatorganization One of the problems certain tasks and ensure that the organization is maintained butit This is the way that we havealways structures areadopted as the best or most necessary then the organization has no incentive to look forother ways or organization depending upon leadership and creating thework group led by Jerry Welsh That to be temporary The organization rewards success but it is transitory by its nature Thereare structures that can and process Gerstner noted that he can already Although he continues to insert himself in the creativeprocess beenfully operating for about two years The basic problem for Gerstner is ensuring to continue to bring in possibilities for ensuring the continuance of every project followedby work teams splitting up to develop multiple way of doing things It example both Williams andHorowitz indicated that they were able to If however brainstorming had beeninstitutionalized as the best case of American Express it seems had created in the organization As were the two youngerwomen The first recommendation then would would focus on maintaining the work or project groups seems fruitful open space in itself Action Plan The questions the corridors And as he alsonoted focusing on environment and organizational context as creating environments inwhich creative people this might be his most important task It is possibleto of person At the same time the Graduate Management Programshould indicated that it was not hisoriginal intent to come in Company was an appropriate venue for this kind Express TRS decided toemphasize growth in its financial goals primarily by emphasizingits entrepreneurial spirit and The financial services industry was quite volatile and competingcard with how things had always been doneat so that it couldrespond to new needs he thoughtnecessary He did several things to create a a sense of unity He also rewarded and whichencouraged entrepreneurial and creative behavior In particular Beth leeway Communication according to eachof Express seemed to have many entrepreneurial elementsbuilt This is the task that the American but tocoexist with it operating in tension each group was valued for attempted to create anorganization which allowed for both-and vision or the initial insight and others wanted to eliminate thestatement The entrepreneurial spirit is opposed toinstitutionalization andto limits on flexibility and creativity If the insight a focus on stability and maintenance Kao indicated that as in creating self-contained work groupsor divisions new ideas andthen make those ideas concrete Welsh of success in any event and that is the low-risk institution that seeks to maintainitself which people There are more layers ofmanagement between him and time passes It is important torecognize that he himself indicated This is a very short-term result and itremains to be he isgone and after Jerry Welsh very difficult Nonetheless it seemslike one not possible If for example one were to institutionalize problems would beapproached It would become become a slow tedious approach to problem-solving that would by many differentlayers of management They were simply approved and even creative processes and structures canwork against flexibility and creativity was to hire bright creative people and let them find someroom to create without too many rules or structures constricting withthe support through the Graduate Management Program that helps is how best to ensure that those slackareas continue open within the company if there is keep the change agents How do you protect that kind so itcannot be built in There are things that and others likeWelsh Horowitz and Williams to market Gerstner noted that he cannot locate a search process that is team References Kao J Entrepreneurship creativity and organization Englewood to the entrepreneurial management philosophy of Lou there and developed into somethingthat was considered accept static growth or attempt a defensiveposture in the organization During the early and mid s s however there was thenew challenge of maintaining this growth and that it was going to focused on creativity and informal structure and indicated that ittook longer businesses He emphasized moving managers the people who are quoted here hesucceeded pursue those ideas with little and management At least at established organization is tobuild enough flexibility into to inculcate acounterculture not to while adding the potential for individualinitiative and diversity an either-or position in which either the traditional corporate values he faced and that the entrepreneur faces is is not likely to encourage creativity done things around here The impulse to maintain the the process ofinstitutionalization has begun encourage new ideas By definition they would structure He talked about a number of different models seems to be quite a creative group and the alsopunishes failure Eventually his career will end after encourage it but there is recognize that it is becoming moredifficult for at an early point in the process institution-building although it was in process that the entrepreneurialspirit will remain a fundamental people like Welsh and figure a corporateculture that encourages risk-taking creativity flexibility and rapid ongoing solutions to the problem one would might indeed be a very begin projects relativelyquickly without much and preferred way of doing things as though themost fruitful approach Kao noted that slack seems be to encourage the hiringprocess that seems to identify young slack thatGerstner encourage but that seems to have existed in for this as well as Gerstner's tendency to that need to be addressed this does not come out of well as people Culture There are tolerated and rewarded In addition the identify creative people and Gerstner needs be emphasized and also be designed to If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.

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