Leadership Research Paper

Leadership Research Paper

As television networks struggle to stay relevant in the ecommerce society of the 21st century, Nancy Tellum president of CBS Paramount Network Television has offered a bold approach to the challenge. Tellum is heading up the company's new approach into expanding it's content into emerging platforms. Tellum is overseeing new development and production of original content for CBS.com. She is also moving CBS into the wireless arena demonstrating relationship building and influence with key partners by securing agreements with Amp'd mobile and Verizon wireless V-Cast as well as developing the company's broadband channel innertube as demonstrated in the XtendSport simulation (CBS, 2006).

Other networks are following suit along similar lines. CNN has created a subscription service called Pipeline bringing their cable TV products into the broadband and wireless arenas. This strategy has the added bonus of reaching new and younger demographics hopefully winning over a new generation of viewers (AP, 2006). According to Tellem this vision gives CBS the creativity to experiment with various business models and see which ones consumers gravitate towards (AP, 2006).

The move to online video on demand websites is growing as traditional networks fight to remain relevant. The rise of websites such as iTunes may find themselves in fierce competition with websites offering free streaming like CBS's intertube. iTunes may become less attractive to online consumers who can get the same content elsewhere for free. It would seem the name of the game is market share the more hits to the websites the more beneficial to the parent company. Only time will tell which business model will resonate with the general public. CBS believes that the free streaming model is better than the pay download model.

Although CBS is more that 60 years old and has been well established in the network television industry it must continue to evolve in order to remain relevant. CBS hopes that innertube will be the tool that will help achieve that goal. Tellem is a transformational leader in a time of great transformation. She is fostering strategic planning and innovation within CBS (Boerner, 2007). This transitional leadership approach will allow CBS to reach a diverse audience which was never accessible to them in large numbers before.

In today's ever changing and evolving market, relevancy is essential for the development, assessment, and commercialization of new technologies. Apple Computer Inc. CEO Steve Jobs returned to the company in the summer of 1997. At that time Apple found itself in a beleaguered state. Jobs has spent the last decade remaking the company and its image by bringing unique and innovative products to the market (Snell & Cohen, 2007). Some of these products include next generation Apple computers, the iPod and the iTunes digital music download service. Apple is also moving into the video on demand and wireless arenas with Apple TV and the Apple iPhone.

According to James McQuivey, an analyst at Forrester Research in Cambridge, Mass., revenues from video and music downloads at iTunes and other online outlets will nearly triple this year, from $98 million to $279 million (Keizer, 2007). Despite this, McQuivey states Apple's strategy is unsound because consumers can get free access to high quality streaming videos from ABC, CBS and NBC. CBS launched its broadband channel, innertube, allowing consumers to log on to the site and watch CBS's entire line up online free of charge.

Steve Jobs has demonstrated relationship building and influence with key partners by creating and fostering strategic alliances with