How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci - Case Study Example

DA VINCI PRINCIPLES Introduction: Attributed to famous philosopher, painter, mathematician and intellectual of fifteenth century Italy Leonardo da Vinci, the da Vinci principles refer to the seven rules articulated and defined by da Vinci for the individual and collective strategic planning and career growth as well. Gelb (1998) has elaborated these seven principles in his book under the title “How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci”, which serves as a great service of humanity at large, where the writer has explained the ways to take maximum benefit of the intellect and logic of this great philosopher and thinker. The da Vinci principles encompass every possible area of thoughtfulness that may be helpful for the industries and entrepreneurships for the better understanding of their corporate activities on the one hand, and for the projection and promotion of their business on the other. Leonardo da Vinci—Brief Introduction: Leonardo da Vinci was one of the most famous personalities the world has ever produced. An illegitimate son of a notary of Florence, Leonardo spent his early childhood under the supervision of his father, who provided him with the best available opportunities to exercise his abilities and talent as an artist. He had exceptional talent for paintings and was fond of reading and writing. His keen observation, gifted intellect and superb intelligence won great fame and respect for him. Since Leonardo maintained great curiosity for the objects of nature as well as in religion, most of his paintings focused on these two fields of interest. It is therefore he portrayed Jesus being baptized, the last supper of Jesus Christ, John the Baptist and others. Most of Leonardo’s time spent in learning and seeking knowledge. He studied science, astrology, mathematics and geography, and determined something new and novel in almost all fields of both science and arts. It is therefore one of his seven principles look for the maintenance of equilibrium between science and arts. Leonardo did not confine himself to paintings only; rather, he exercised his talent in music, philosophy, mathematics, science and literature too. It is therefore he is referred to as one of the most illustrious personality of all times and all regions of the globe. Application of da Vinci Principles on the Firm Under-study: The present study focuses on the first three da Vinci principles with the perspective of Microsoft Corporation. World famous IT organization Microsoft Corporation is the leading corporation of not only the USA, but also of the entire world at large. The corporation has over eighty thousand employees working in more than one hundred countries under the dynamic leadership of William Bill Gates. The corporation has been functioning as the pioneer of Microsoft engineering services, products of which have become the requirement of every commercial, educational, domestic and personal learning, record keeping and business promotion activities by dint of its untiring efforts and hard work. The wisdom, foresight and vision of the Founder Chairman, Bill Gates for personal computing, have been central to the success of Microsoft and the software industry. (www.Microsoft.com). Bill Gates applied best of his capabilities and exercised all his energies to bring utmost improvements and advancements in this field. It seems there was a whole generation of us, all over the world, who dragged that favorite toy with us into adulthood. In doing so, we caused a kind of revolution. (Gates, 1995) The first one of the seven da Vinci principles focuses on unflinching and unabated curiosity, in respect of learning process, for the attainment of goals and winning success in life. In simple words, da Vinci lays stress upon the presence of curiosity that could be extremely helpful in learning something new and nice. It is curiosity that leads the professionals towards introducing innovative ideas, techniques and products. World famous business tycoon Bill Gates also looks for innovative ideas and curiosity for achieving something great in life. He (1995) declares competition as the outcome of curiosity, which paves the way towards innovation. Competition is a boon for consumers, but it can be tough on investors, especially those who invest in a product that does not exist yet. In addition, he views knowledge and information a reason, which distinguish an enterprise from others. On the basis of the first da Vinci principle, Microsoft is always curious to introduce novel ideas and best possible reforms. It makes comprehensive strategic and competitive analyses keeping in view the developments made by its rival companies and organizations. It is curious to explore the needs and requirements of its customers, and revise its strategy on the foundations of these requirements. The organization introduces changes in its website time and again in order to capture the attention o the customers and alter it according to the changes being made in the industry. The most meaningful way to differentiate your company from your competitor, the best way to put distance between you and the crowd, is to do an outstanding job with information. How you gather, manage, and use information will determine whether you win or loose. (Gates, 1999) It is estimated that Microsoft Network maintains more than four-fifth of the whole computer industry. Not only this, but also it possesses many hundreds of the products relevant to computer technologies including CDs, MP3, latest internal and external modems, Windows 98, 2000, XP and other versions, games and offices in word, excel and other formats, and much more. The second da Vinci principle looks for seeking knowledge and wisdom through experience. By examining the history of the industries and corporations of the world at large, it becomes evident that most of these companies made successes and acquired achievements with a gradual pace on the foundations of the long experience they undergo during the course of time. Experience play dominant role in the journey towards accomplishments and triumphs, without which there are only few examples of climbing the ladder of successes. The accomplishments require long experience gathered over years to be applied to a given situation so that the corporate firms can take decisions upon relevant information by which to assess the need for change. (Johnson & Scholes, 1993) Microsoft Corporation applies the same principle from recruiting the employees from its various departments to strategic management and policy making. The third principle takes application of senses and making of comprehensive analyses on the basis of observation made through the senses very necessary for result oriented strategies. Collection of proper information and using senses keeping in view the gathered information is an essential element according to da Vinci’s perspective. The collecting, encoding, managing and use of information will determine whether you win or lose.” (Gates, 1999) The implication of different views and suggestions of various brains give birth to new ideas and help in improving the old ones. It is therefore, the Corporation is recognized and celebrated for its developer-centric culture. The Corporation invests a huge amount of money specific in the budget to hire the services of the fresh Microsoft university graduates and appoint them against various posts. It not only provides the company with fresh talent and energetic environment, but also the company extracts innovative ideas and support in introducing something new and novel. In addition, it is also helpful for Microsoft Corporation to prevaricate the budding genius join rival organizations and companies. It is therefore the Corporation faces no rival of such a great level who can manage to challenge the Corporation for the future years to come. In addition, it is also in the corporate culture of the Corporation that the talented personnel from the local population be hired for the overseas offices and administrative structure of the Corporation. Fourth principle i.e. willingness to embrace ambiguity is related to the preparation of the entrepreneurship regarding an uncertain outcome of a strategy. Many a times it so happens that policies devised and implemented by the companies witness a grave set back and causes severe losses for the firm. But it does not mean that the firms start quitting their activities because of the fear of failure. On the contrary, the losses and set backs are estimated by the organizations while devising a strategy as well as launching a product or policy. Hence, da Vinci provides a comprehensive scheme regarding strategic management and commercial activities, which appear to be as beneficial and helpful at present as it had been effective five centuries ago. It reveals deep insight and unique intellect da Vinci had been blessed with. Maintenance of equilibrium between arts and science is the fifth of the da Vinci principles. It does not mean that scientific formulae should be applied in the same proportion while creating an artistic work. Rather, it simply means that every creative activity demands for the balanced proportion in its composition. The same is applied while examining the newly invented designs, logo, slogans and models of the artistic work as well as commercial products. The management of the corporate firms should envisage the actions necessary to complete the full transformation into consumer satisfactions, which strongly recommend attractive product in economical rates. (Longman, 1976) Taking the example of Microsoft Corporation, it becomes crystal clear that the giant company gives due attention to the color combination, style, design and manufacturing while introducing every novel device of its product. Dynamic capabilities enable firms to create new products and processes and respond to changing market conditions. (Helfat, 1999) Da Vinci also stresses upon dignity and sophistication for the making of strategic plans. He does not allow an individual or the firm put its dignity at stake. On the contrary, it looks for completing all tasks in a dignified manner. Customers are the net asset of an industry, on which it focuses its concentration. The client satisfaction is the key that takes the companies higher and higher unlocking new dimensions of accomplishment for them. A successful enterprise gives utmost concern in knowing who are its target customers, and then make plans on the basis of these customers. The range of customers can be large or small, but there must never be any compromise on quality of the product. Small business companies have to target only single market with limited range of customers, while multinational companies have to work hard to articulate strategies according to the geography, culture, socioeconomic situation and political scenario of different countries. The company should know how much it costs to serve each type of customer and the amount the customer must buy if its business is to yield a profit to the company. (Newman & Logan 1973) The final principle of da Vinci is the strong inter-connection of all phenomena. Since one step leads the persons and companies towards success or failure, so every step should be considered and revised minutely in order to escape failure and collapse for the future years to come. Moreover, Microsoft Corporation applies added strategy, where the extra qualities of their products are highlighted to make a difference with the competitors. Here once again, the Microsoft Corporation is not dependent of such campaigns. Conclusion: To conclude, it is crystal clear that application of da Vinci principles are highly beneficial and supportive for the rapid growth of Microsoft Corporation, which shows exceptional intellect of Leonard on the one hand, and broad vision of Bill Gates on the other. Leonardo was so intelligent and dynamic that his approach is as valid for the greatest corporations as they had been effective in the fields of arts and science over six centuries ago. His principles serve as the guiding star for the organizations, their strategic planning, marketing, communication methodology and corporate culture. The same is the case with Microsoft Corporation. By dint of its unique strategy of communicating with the consumers before and after the launching of the products and remaining in-touch with the market persons to calculate the pros and cons of manufactured item serves as the regulatory force for the corporation. With the help of latest information, continuous use of latest technology and methodological working like human nervous system as well as at the speed of thought successfully regulate the quality of product and communication system with the customers. Application of sales force automation (SFA) and advertising campaign through all the available channels distinguishes the Microsoft Corporation from rivals and competitors. The highly committed team and the right person at the right place policy make the unique corporate culture of Microsoft Corporation. REFERENCES: Gates, Bill. The Road Ahead. Viking Penguin Books USA. 1995 231 Gates, Bill. Business at the Speed of Thought. The Warner Book Company New York 1999 2 Gelb, Michael J. How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci. New York: Dell, 1998. Johnson, Gerry & Scholes, Kevan. Exploring Corporate Strategy. Text and Cases. Third Edition. Prentice Hall New York. 1993 49 Logan, Newman. Strategy, Policy and Central Management, 7th Edition. South Western Publishing Company, Ohio. 1976 123 Newman, William H and Logan, James P. Strategy, Policy, and Central Management Seventh Edition, South-Western Publishing Company, West Chicago. 1973 98 Helfat, 1999:339 http://sixdisciplines.blogspot.com/2006/03/da-vincis-7-principles.html http://my.opera.com/wickedlizard/blog/the-7-leonardo-da-vinci-principles Academia-Research is the leading research writing organization of the world, which has earned great name and fame in the writing industry. Though there exist many research-writing organizations at the Internet, which help the students, from all corners of the globe, in the completion of their academic qualifications, assignments and educational tasks relevant to their course outline and syllabus, Academia Research maintains unique place in this regards. It strictly lays stress on high quality of products and binds its employees to keep in touch with the students and customers and to read and reply to their messages. Since Academia Research is working day-in and day-out, it serves it customers twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week. Its writers and management does not have holiday even on Christmas, Yom-e-Kippur, Eid and Easter. Hence, it is always ready to offer its services 365 days of the year. The management of the Academia-Research strictly adheres to the noble da Vinci principles and follows them in real spirit, which is extremely supportive in respect of its expansion and rapid growth. The company believes in the second da Vinci principle of experience and hard work. It assigns the orders to the most experienced and expert writers and does not take any risk of handing over the important orders and assignments to the inexperienced and incompetent employees. The company binds its employees and writers to prepare the research papers to the entire satisfaction of the customers, and is curious about the performances of the writers. It strictly asks the writers make revision to the entire satisfaction of the clients. The company is always ready to bring improvement and reviews the employees’ performances time and again. It also seeks the opinion of the customers as soon as a paper is completed. It sticks to the principle that experience and practice are vital for the progress, improvement and expansion of an organization. The third da Vinci principle i.e. application of senses is of pivotal significance for Academia-Research. It makes analyses whether or not the employees, administration and management are amicable to the customers and are in continuous communication with them. It does not close its eyes after assigning of the orders; rather, it strives its utmost for the quality assurance of its products. The company announces rewards to the writers on the basis of their performance and also acknowledges the imperative significance of their talent. It has introduces examination system, without passing of which no writer can get employment at the forum of the company. The fourth da Vinci principle describes balance in everything presented before the public. It also applies in paintings, where the color combination and use of sketches must be pleasant, attractive and eye-catching. Since a product, after its completion, publication or sale turns out to be a public property, it is liable to be criticized by the end users. The same is applied in research writing organization. It makes review of the papers whether the writing style required by the customers has been followed or not. The grades and marks obtained by the customers are estimated, and on the basis of which the company announces rewards and bonuses for the writers. Read More