Ferdinand Anton Ernst

Porsche

The purpose of this essay is to critically analyse and review a leader from Austria. The
chosen leader who shall be discussed is Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche.
Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche (mainly known as Ferry) was born on 19 September
1909 in Neustatdt, Austria. His parents were Ferdinand and Aloisia Johanna Porsche. He
lived in Austria until he was 14 years old and his father acquired a new job in Germany
and they relocated. (Weber , 2012). In 1948 he created a Porsche car model 356 which
led to the Porsche Company becoming known globally as a company that creates
successful sports and racing cars. His invention propelled the company to fame (Bio,
2015).
Olivares (2011) defines crucible events as trials or tests which confront people and
pushes them to answer questions about who they are and what it truly important to
them. Thomas (2009, p.21) talks about three types of crucible events with the first one
being new territory which is when the person encounters new or unknown situations.
The second is reversal which deals with loss or impairment. The last type is suspension
which is a period of contemplation and deliberation which challenges the leader about
his/her life.
Ferry Porsche experienced a reversal crucible. After World War 2 Ferrys father was
thrown into prison in France accused for war crimes. A trial was not held and the courts
demanded a large sum for both of them but only bail was made for Ferry. When he was
released he worked hard to acquire contracts with his sister until he finally scourged
enough money to release his father from his 20 month imprisonment. However due to
harsh conditions he had suffered while in prison Ferdinand Porsche senior died later at
the age of 75(Weber, 2012). After his fathers death Ferry Porsche became the chairman
of the board of management. He decided to fulfil his fathers dream of wanting to create
a compact race car which was not yet available at the time.
Kantabutra and Vimolratana (2009) explain that a leader develops a vision in his/her
own way and a leaders actual vision guides his/her behaviour. Ferrys vision was to
create reliable, high-quality sports car of high utilitarian value. This made him become a
visionary leader who was managed to articulate his vision to his employees and get
them motivated.

Key Success factors

There have been instances when the relationship leaders have with their parents impacts
them strongly throughout their lives. Keller and Cacioppe (2001, p.70) state that first
experiences with caregivers during infancy and early childhood results in internal
working models of plans which lead to expectations regarding self and others. Ferry
Porsche had a very close relationship with his father and when he was 1 year old his
father gave him a toy care. His father, Ferdinand Porsche senior, was an automobile
engineer who worked on the Volkswagen during the time of Adolf Hitler. Ferrys father
taught him all the knowledge he had about automobiles and they worked together from
the time he was young. His father supported him and they started a company together in
1931.
Another factor which has made him successful is his love and passion for cars. Since as
a child he had a love embodied in him for automobiles and how they worked and this
also made him want to experiment and lead innovation. An example of this is when
Porsche was 12 years old he witnessed a horrific car crash however as everyone else
around him was turning their eyes away from the sight he on the other hand
concentrated on the crash. He came up with a theory as to what had caused the crash
and after investigation his theory proved to be correct. According to him this had a
major impact on his scientific thinking as he knew that he had talent (Bio, 2015).
In addition to this another aspect which has led to the success of Porsche was the core
ideology Ferry had for his company. Porsches values of quality and hard work led to
the release of the famous Porsche Type 911 (Weber, 2012). According to () Ferry
Porsche believed on focusing in quality and thus their cars were more detailed than
American and British cars and this positioned Porsche cars as premium, quality cars
which in turn gained market share and resulted in them being market leaders.
Another factor which made them successful was the joint alliance that was formed in
1949 between the Volkswagen and Porsche. The contract details of the contract were
that for Porsches designing services for a vehicle Volkswagen would give Porsche a
share from each of the designed vehicle sold, would provide the raw materials needed to
build Porsches vehicles, Porsche would use Volkswagens world structures of retailers.

This contract made it possible for Porsche to cut down a huge amount of costs and focus
on creating quality products (Bio, 2015).

Key Learnings
One of the messages left by Ferry Porsche is that if one does not fail at times then one
has not challenged himself. Porsche believed in building cars to satisfy people. He
projected his love of cars in his work and until the very end he was still making designs
for cars. He left and impression on his employees as some defined him as a modest and
soft spoken man who had passion for what he did.
However Ferry Porsche had been involved in a controversy during their stay in
Germany. While Ferdinand Porsche senior was working on the initial Volkswagen at
the request of Hitler they did not oppose anything that Hitler said and it was alleged that
workers. The Porsche Company that his father had established in Germany flourished
under the Nazi regime. They had about 15000 to 20000 Russian workers who were
prisoners of war working in their factories. Ferry Porsche was also working along his
father during this time.
This goes against the theory of authentic leadership particularly the aspect of values.
George, Sims, McLean and Mayer (2007) say that the values which create the
foundation for authentic leadership are derived from your beliefs and convictions and
will not know what they really are until they are tested. The Porsche family wanted to
be Pacifist and did not agree with Hitlers methods however they did not do anything
about the situation.

Reference List
Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche. (2015). Bio. A&E Television Networks. Retrieved
from:
George, B., Sims, P., McLean, A. N. & Mayer, D. (2007). Managing Yourself. Harvard
Business Review. 129 139.
Kantabutra, S. & Vimolratana, P. (2009). Vision-based leadership: relationships and
consequences in Thai and Australian retail stores. Asia-Pacific Journal of
Business Administration. 1(2): 165 -188.
Keller, T. & Cacioppe, R. (2001). Leader-follower attachments: understanding parental
images at work. Leadership & Organization Development Journal. 22 (2): 70
75.
Olivares, O. J. (2011). The formative capacity of momentous events and leadership
development. Leadership & Organization Development Journal. 32 (8): 837
853.
Thomas, R. J. (2009). The leadership lessons of crucible experiences. Journal of
Business Strategy. 30(1): 21 26.
Weber, B. (2012). Ferdinand A Porsche, Designer of 611 Model, Dies at 76. The New
York Times. Retrieved from:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/06/automobiles/ferdinand-a-porsche-76-diesdesigned-celebrated-911.html?_r=0