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Running head: MASTERING LEADERSHIP IN 3M COMPANY
Mastering Leadership in 3M Company
Name of Student
Name of Professor
Course Title
Date
Institution
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MASTERING LEADERSHIP IN 3M COMPANY
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Mastering Leadership in 3M Company
Introduction
3M was formerly referred to as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
engaged in different production and sales processes. The global company has been in business
for many years giving employment to more than 85,000 people worldwide. With the high
number of employees and diversification of products, the company has continued to ensure that
the demands of the consumers and operations are streamlined. The leadership of the company
has been able to show creativity in different sectors that has allowed it to grow without facing
major administration challenges. Mastering leadership involves proper management of products
and services and also the proper management of the human resource in the entity.
Creative Culture of 3M Company
The company has employed its creative culture in different areas. The leadership has
employed the creative culture in the innovation sector whereby the company has been able to
come up with products that cater for different needs of the consumers. The creative leadership in
innovation saw the company awarded the by the US Government the National Medal of
Technology in the year 1995. From then, the company has been able to continue with its
innovation trend putting its position on top of other organizations in the same industry. The
company has also employed its creative culture to create an environment that fosters the right
tension and thinking in employees (Alldredge, Johnson, Stoltzfus & Vicere, 2003). For example,
the company established the “Post It Note” phenomenon in its operations that has allowed the
employees the employees to seek funding from the organization in different departments. The
phenomenon also allows the employees to use 15% of their time in the organization to work on
their independent projects. The creative plan also tolerates risk and failure.
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It is through such activities in production and human resource that the company has been
able to ensure that it retains its employees for a long time and also maintains the customer
loyalty. The leadership values as indicated in the handbook show that the company’s top
management has been able value employees in different ways as well as ensure sustainable
growth in the entity (Roepke, Agarwal & Ferratt, 2000). It is through proper leadership that the
company can be able to enjoy the many benefits it has today. 3M leadership has been able to
meet the two most important criteria of effective leadership in management of products and
services as well as management of human resource.
Opportunities for Strategic Change
Even though 3M has been able to meet the two most important criteria of management of
products and services, and the management of human resource, there are also other areas in those
sectors that offer opportunities for strategic change. Strategic change involves bringing a new
ways which the company can adopt to improve its services and overall income from its
operations. The leadership of the company has an opportunity to diversify its activities to other
regions of the world, a change that can see the company reap a lot of profits from the operations
that it is engaged in (Alldredge & Nilan, 2000). The opportunity should also be guided by the
innovation culture of the company whereby its production should meet the needs of the people
on those regions. 3M Company specializes in a field that is considered to be most profitable
throughout the world. Most regions of the world are engaged in mining and manufacturing
activities however the leadership of the company seems to concentrate in only regions around
America.
Another opportunity for strategic change that the company can capitalize on is in the
human resource sector. In this area, the company should consider other aspects that can be
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employed to motivate workers. It is important to note that employees are the greatest asset of the
company who impact the organization in major ways. Leadership of 3M should consider the
inclusion of different incentives in payment plan of the employees. The inclusion of incentives in
the payment plan can help in motivating the employees to work harder and also increase the sales
of the company. Leaders can also be involved in recognizing the different efforts made by the
employees in the organization. Personal recognition or even compensation makes the employees
feel appreciated for their work and this can motivate them to work harder thus benefiting the
organization (Alldredge, Johnson, Stoltzfus & Vicere, 2003). Appreciated and motivated
employees will have no reason to leave the organization in search of better pastures. Employee
retention will therefore save the cost of hiring new employees. Such are the changes that the
leadership should focus on because they hold a lot of weight in bringing positive change to the
organization.
Considerations of Culture and Structure in addressing the Opportunities
In the first opportunity regarding diversification of the customer, the culture of the
organization puts it clear that one of the main values is to provide global growth and ensure that
all the investors are given the attractive returns from the investment (3M, 2017). If more
operations are set up in other regions of the world that have different mining activities, it means
that the returns will generally increase and that the company will be able to heavily reward its
investors.
The opportunity present in rewarding employees with incentives is also part of the culture
and the structure of employees of the organization. One of the values of the organization states
that the company has an aim of developing employees’ diverse talents, initiative and leadership.
By providing incentives to the employees, the organization is also to allow them grow financially
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and strategically (Alldredge & Nilan, 2000). Motivated employees will also be able to ensure
that customers are satisfied and that innovative technology, superior quality, and good customer
service is achieved. The opportunities present for the organization to implement are in line with
the culture and structure if 3M.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the leadership of 3M Company has constantly ensured that honesty,
integrity, and fires are achieved in each of its operations. It is clear from the example of 3M that
effective leadership is important in the growth of an entity. The different ways that the leadership
of the organization has employed through creativity has allowed it to achieve success in its
operations (3M, 2017). Effective leadership should also focus on opportunities that can present
positive change to the organization. The best opportunities to implement should also consider the
corporate values, culture, and structure. 3M could not be celebrating the achievements it has
made till today if it was not for the effective leadership employed.
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References
Alldredge, M., Johnson, C., Stoltzfus, J., & Vicere, A. (2003). Leadership development at 3M:
New process, new techniques, new growth. People and Strategy, 26(3), 45.
Alldredge, M. E., & Nilan, K. J. (2000). 3M's leadership competency model: An internally
developed solution. Human resource management, 39(2, 3), 133.
Roepke, R., Agarwal, R., & Ferratt, T. W. (2000). Aligning the IT human resource with business
vision: the leadership initiative at 3M. Mis Quarterly, 327-353.
3M. (2017). Company Information. Retrieved from
http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/3MCompany/Information/AboutUs/WhoWeAre/