IB Business Management Task: Examining Hitler as a Leader

Examining Hitler as a leader

Hitler was quite an autocratic leader, as he is infamous for his ability to make a large mass number of people follow his orders and decisions.

WHAT MAKES HIM AN AUTHORITARIAN (AUTOCRATIC LEADER)?

• Hitler did not consult the German people for decisions, and people had no rights to oppose the laws of the Nazis. This shows that Hitler was definitely not a democratic type of leader.

EXAMPLE: Hitler did not consult the people of Germany whether he should exterminate all the Jews during the Holocaust; it was mainly based on Hitler’s strong anti-Semitic ideas. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Holocaust)

• Hitler is not known for delegating tasks to other people, actions are done based on his own judgment. This shows that Hitler did not adopt a ‘laissez-faire’ type of leadership style as he sought to control every aspect of people’s life.

EXAMPLE: Hitler always had to be in charge of the affairs in Germany, he had to be in control of everything. This is shown in the Hitler Youth groups; where youths were taught follow the rules of Nazism.

• Hitler told the people of Germany exactly what to do, for example people were ordered to join the Nazis and help the Nazi cause, like exterminating the Jews.

 

Why was he a good leader?

1. Hitler was a good orator; his oratory skills were effective in persuading people to do what the Nazi’s wanted. Hitler had the skills that allowed many people to follow him, which is good for management and leadership.


2. Hitler was quick to make decisions, he was not democratic so therefore decisions were made quickly, and because he had a lot of support they were obeyed.


3. Hitler kept people disciplined, if he had a laissez faire type of leadership it would make his position as leader of Germany vulnerable as it didn’t keep people restrained.


4. People believed in Hitler, and what he said was always seen as rational as Hitler had a large amount of support.


5. Hitler’s style of leadership made people want to reform to his ways better, for example they all attended his Nazi-run organizations. This continued the support they have for him, and also it is good for self improvement for people. This is a good style in management as well, because it encourages staff to continually improve.

 

IMPROVEMENTS FOR HITLER AS A LEADER

 

• A disadvantage for autocratic leadership is that many people tend to be de-motivated because the leader is not always amiable. Hitler controlled people out of fear, so therefore I think that Hitler should have been more democratic to keep his support, as many people had complaints about the Nazi state.


• Situational leadership might have been good for Hitler as well, as it means that he was not always autocratic but instead democratic when needed. This would keep people disciplined AND have his continued support.

Hitler’s influence on others and their achievements

 

• Hitler was effective in influencing a large section of the German population; people often followed his decisions because his influence was great.

-  People were quick to join Nazi-run organizations to become the “ideal German” where they learnt racial differences between Jews and non Jews and also Nazi ideology.

- Hitler created a very strict atmosphere in Germany where people were made to obey the laws; people often achieved a lot to satisfy the needs of the Nazis.