The Impact of the Leader/CEO on the Survival of the Managed Organisation

A Case Study from the 20th Century

Abstract

There are many cases in the scientific literature and in various publications that declare a leader/CEO of a historical or a contemporary political or economic organization a “hero” or “cursed” in front of the “tribunal of history” based on his/her deed(s). This case study analyses the example of Miklós Horthy, not a well-known business leader, but a politician who is still a sharp divider in Hungarian public life, from the point of view of whether his activities were a success or a failure for the organisation he led, for the Hungarian state. I examine his decisions in a non-“business as usual” situation from the aspect if they have helped or jeopardized the chances of survival of the state he led in the short and in the long run In a special situation the decision must be made by the leader there and then, and is it unsure if this decision can be modified later.