A business environment has an incredible influence on the success or failure of startups; however, individual characteristics of leaders and their management styles are even more predictive of entrepreneurial outcomes. A story of Todd McFarlane, who founded several successful companies such as McFarlane Entertainment, McFarlane Production, and Image Comics, holds many underlying lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs. This year, Image Comics, an independent comics company, celebrates its 25th anniversary; therefore, is especially important to decipher its founder’s key character traits and personal beliefs that have led the company to prosperity (Betancourt, 2017). The aim of this paper is to analyze a case study on the entrepreneur and discuss what distinguishes him from other individuals. The paper will also discuss leadership challenges associated with the recent shift in the global business landscape.
Analysis
Leadership and Character Traits
Persistence is a key trait of successful entrepreneurs who in the process of establishing and growing their business face numerous obstacles and problems. Taking into consideration tenacity in the pursuit of his career as a comics artist, it can be argued that McFarlane is characterized by a high level of persistence. In order to secure a position in Marvel Comics, the aspiring artist had to send his sketches to more than 300 employers (Case Study, n.d.). The man’s unwillingness to abandon the effort shows that he had a high control over adversity, which is known to facilitate success not only in entrepreneurial activities but all fields of human endeavor (Holland & Shepherd, 2013). In addition, McFarlane decided to start his own comics company in the face of substantial opposing forces, which also shows his ability to overcome adversity.
Passion is one of the key mediators of entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Taking into consideration the fact that McFarlane left Marvel Comics because he wanted to “control his destiny” and believed that he “could provide a better product on his own” (Case Study, n.d., p. 65), it can be stated that the artist was driven by a passion that fueled his self-efficacy. An individual’s belief in their ability to perform a task or self-efficacy is a critical component of entrepreneurship (Cardon & Kirk, 2013). Therefore, there is no surprise that being confident in his ability to deliver a superior product, McFarlane succeeded where others failed.
A study conducted by Cardon and Kirk (2013) provides valuable insights into the role of self-efficacy and passion in helping entrepreneurs to persevere. The scholars suggest that self-confidence and passion can initiate a positive feedback loop in which one element reinforces the intensity of another (Cardon & Kirk, 2013). Even though these personality traits are important for explaining one’s willingness to overcome difficulties, it is clear that passion and self-efficacy alone were not sufficient for the businessman’s success.
Locus of control is a relatively new concept in entrepreneurship research. The construct refers to a degree to which an individual believes in their ability to influence their environment (Schjoedt & Shaver, 2012). There is ample evidence suggesting that individuals who score high on the locus of control scale tend to be more successful in an entrepreneurship context (Schjoedt & Shaver, 2012). Since the businessman was not afraid of taking risks and was willing to shape his immediate environment by creating the McFarlane Collection, it is reasonable to maintain that he is capable of assessing outcomes of his actions with a high degree of accuracy. It is a valuable personal trait that distinguishes mediocre from outstanding leaders.
Leadership Challenges
In the recent years, a global economy has been substantially influenced by changes in consumer behavior precipitated by technological advances (Francisca, 2012; Metcalf & Benn, 2013). As a result, the business environment became more competitive and complex, thereby posing new challenges for modern leaders. Therefore, leaders willing to gain and retain a competitive edge for their companies have to be constantly open to new strategic orientations. In addition, it is also necessary to regularly reevaluate managerial and technical capabilities of a business, in order to make sure that its rivals’ distinctive competencies do not allow them to take advantage of rapidly-changing environmental factors.
The technological advances have facilitated the creation of virtual teams, thereby creating new talent management challenges for leaders. A person responsible for managing virtual teams has to develop and implement new leading strategies to engender trust among team members whose communication is mediated by technology. Gazor (2012) argues that “virtual teamwork is more complex than working face-to-face and site-specific cultures and lack of familiarity are reported to be sources of conflict” (p. 137). It follows that modern leaders should develop new skills, knowledge, and abilities in order to ensure the effective functioning of team members who cannot travel to meetings.
Conclusion
The paper has analyzed the case study on McFarlane and outlined the man’s key personal traits that distinguish him from other entrepreneurs. It has been argued that the businessman scores high on the locus of control and self-efficacy, has an enormous passion for his work, and tends to persist in the face of difficulty. The paper has also discussed key challenges associated with the modern business environment. The global competition that has completely transformed the economic landscape of the world calls for responsible leadership practices. Therefore, leaders must be able to address a wide range of public concerns and make sure that they function as servants of society as a whole. Such extension of a leadership role may pose conceptual challenges for managers who are not guided by the principle of sustainability.
References
Betancourt, D. (2017). After 25 years with Image Comics, Todd McFarlane and ‘Spawn’ are still going strong. The Washington Post. Web.
Cardon, M., & Kirk, C. (2013). Entrepreneurial passion as mediator of the self-efficacy to persistence relationship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 13(1), 1-24.
Case Study. (n.d.).
Francisca, A. (2012). Competitive success: Ambition or necessity. International Journal of Academic Research in Economics and Management Sciences, 1(6), 36-40.
Gazor, H. (2012). A literature review on challenges of virtual team leadership. Journal of Sociological Research, 3(2), 134-142.
Holland, D., & Shepherd, D. (2013). Deciding to persist: Adversity, values, and entrepreneurs’ decision policies. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 12(1), 331-358.
Metcalf, L., & Benn, S. (2013). Leadership for sustainability: An evolution of leadership. Journal of Business Ethics, 112(1), 369-384.
Schjoedt, L., & Shaver, K. (2012). Development and validation of a locus of control scale for the entrepreneurship domain. Small Business Economics, 39(1), 713-726.