Ryan Lee Elon Musk, Business Leader and Superhero

1. Which roles does Musk appear to occupy as a leader of his companies?

As it states in the reading, people who have worked for Musk, say he is an autocratic leader and is as blunt as it gets, almost to the point where he is offensive (Dubrin, 2016). He comes of as an extremely strong entrepreneur based on the reading, from starting his main company, X.com, the turning it into a 1.5 billion dollar company when it turned into PayPal. After selling that company, he started three other companies that have been highly successful. He also carries out the executor role, by making this happen and translating plans into action (Dubrin, 2016). These different roles he plays as a leader help him to succeed in different industries with different companies.
2. What would you perceive to be a key advantage and a key disadvantage of reporting directly to Musk?
The key advantage to reporting directly to Musk is the knowledge he holds in the companies he owns and how he can help his employees. “If you want to change something or fix something, just talk to Elon. It keeps the signal-to-noise ratio high” (Dubrin, 2016). Reporting directly with Musk can also help the company because he can teach the lower-end employees how to properly complete their job and what the exact needs are. A key role for followers is to collaborate with leaders in achieving organizational goals, as reflected in the emphasis on collaborative leadership (Dubrin, 2016). A key disadvantage of reporting directly to Musk is the separating a leader must keep with their employees. A leader can not get to close with their employees because they may see it the wrong way and find themselves leaning on their leader too much.
3. What is your overall evaluation of Elon Musk as both a business leader and a leader in society?
The best leadership style has been