Raj Kamal Bisht

The case describes a full entrepreneurial cycle right from Opportunity recognition to execution and to the final delivery. It emphasises the importance of having champions/ intrapreneurs in the organization who could think creatively and as well be enthusiastic enough to carry forward the business idea navigating various obstacles and barriers of bureaucracy. Issues/Key Learning: Recognizing an opportunity: Telford saw an opportunity in the emerging dot com area and thought of utilizing it to their existing business. Leadership: Ian had little support from the higher management - ELT team, only three out of twelve were in the support of the idea. Problem of co-ordination/ conflict with other department: The IS department was launching an extranet website for customers, and also exploring to create a common commercial web platform. Pricing: Prices of the products were usually negotiated and differed client to client, so the problem making pricing information public might affect their usual offline business. Support from Higher Leadership: Chairman of ELT, Henry, believed and supported the idea. Resource Allocation/ Funding: $100,000 were provided as seed capital to develop the prototype. Networking, Relationship building: Telford used his contacts to help him for free during the business plan development process. Creative thinking: By thinking creatively Telford resolved the pricing issue he introduced promo code to be sent to selected accounts. Politics/ Going out of the line/ Breaking the rules: He created an elaborated plan (rumours, false video interview etc) to assert the importance of his work to the ELT team. In my opinion such behaviour was unwarranted particularly from such a high executive, it might have jeopardised the whole venture. Control - Planning, Goal Setting, and Schedule: Telford first delivered the business prototype to convince his managers, and then the whole web portal was developed in just six months, and within budget. Organization hierarchies/ Hindrance to business/ Bureaucracy: Due to change in management structure, Telford project was put on hold and he now had to convince two new layers of management Leadership Trait Passion: He pitched his idea with zeal and management favoured it as a critical project. According to Phil Cook he was impressed by not just the idea but the high energy of the people behind it.

Driving Factor: Money was not the primary driving factor for Telford but he seemed to be more driven by the challenge of a new venture itself. He left his post as high profile sales director and took the job as the head of the e-eproxy. Team Building: Team was a group of individual who knew what they were getting into, it was risky, they had one thing in common they were risk takers. This attribute helped them bond really fast. Also, Telford was more concerned about the team than about his own job, he acknowledged they participation and supported them by trying to develop escape routes Choosing the right leader: Telford was chosen to lead the e-eproxy project not because it was his idea but because he seemed the right man for the job which was clearly evident from his enthusiasm and tact to drive the initiative. Also, he was very experienced and resourceful person within the organization, perfect for leading an entrepreneurial project. Confirming to the rules: He confirmed to the various IS requirements, made sure that there were no major revisions as the project proceeded. Credit where credit is due: He recognized the hard work of IS team, law, legal, technical and accounting people and thanked them upon launch. Breaking the rules/ Calculated risk: Took a decision to use dollar as payment currency in Brazil, ignored the advice of legal staff and launched the website. He acknowledged that the Internet was a new business channel which was still growing, so rules could be challenged. In my opinion Ian Telford fits the profile of an Adaptive Leader who is working through the constraints fighting for their idea. He is less an Administrative leadership although he full-fills the basic criteria (planning, organization, co-ordination etc). It was so as he appeared less to be a topdown person, his leadership was more interactive, he listened to his customers, worked closely with and cared for his team, and other teams from various departments, and followed and influenced his managers. The role of Henry Vermaark and later Phil Cook were as Enabling Leaders as they helped to catalyze the conditions which helped the adaptive leadership manage the entanglement between bureaucratic (administrative leadership) and emergent (adaptive leadership) functions (Ref: Complexity Leadership Theory).