He does not seesaw between the world’s richest man and the world’s second richest man for nothing. Ignore for one minute the fact that he was wont to already sell what he was beta-testing (didn’t others follow suit, anyway?). Many might disagree but a mark of Bill Gates’ leadership and the tremendous impact it made is in the area of marketing. Innovative and aggressive marketing strategies are a hallmark of the Gates’ leadership, and these had a tremendous influence on the rise to the top of Microsoft.
In his time, Gates was a marketing genius in his own right. This is because of his relentless ability to be in touch with his markets. It is said that Gates spent many times and occasions meeting large numbers of Microsoft’s customer base and target markets.
As with many CEOs, Bill Gates was able to successfully move Microsoft in the direction he saw the industry going. In the process, he not only advanced his own company but the entire industry it belongs to, as well. His vision was not only for Microsoft alone but for the entire software development industry. (Never mind that he wanted to monopolize it along the way.)
He worked hard at leading the industry and brought it to where it is now. It is no small wonder that he has greatly influenced the industry he is in, as well as all the other corollary industries that are served by the industry he has developed from a singular and determined vision. Let’s just say that Bill Gates created an entire value chain.
Gates’ leadership style has been unrelenting, the impact of which also reverberates in many corners of the earth and for many more years to come. One can say that the leadership of Bill Gates did not only have tremendous impact on his industry; he is veritably the industry itself. The visionary is an authority.
Now that he’s into cars and their environment-friendly engines, as much as creating sustainable livelihood for the poor of Africa (teaching them to fish instead of giving them fish), we can just let him be.
