Leadership

Leadership Qualities – Style, Traits, and Skills of James Sinegal

by Fahmina Ahmed Papia

Costco Wholesale is one of the leading companies in the retails industry around the world. And James Sinegal, the founder, and CEO of this industry giant, is considered the Sam Walton of the twenty-first century because of his low-key personality and apparent resistance. He has also known as the father of the “distribution center club” concept. He may not be quite popular among the investors; still, the world admires him for his discount strategies. Sinegal has built 400 retail centers worth of $40 million. His progressive management practices are mainly what he is recognized for. And this leadership style has helped Costco to achieve both low employee turnover and high productivity.

Leadership Qualities – Styles and Skills of James Sinegal

Powerful business lessons we can learn from James Sinegal.

James Sinegal Leadership Qualites

Each leader has his distinct leadership qualities, which gives him the spotlight among other team members. And the qualities must be in a way that gets accepted by the followers. So, let’s get to know the leadership qualities of James Sinegal.

He always focused on inward.

James Sinegal always put high importance on the viewpoints of the member that are connected to their business. He maintained excellent customer service with top-quality products and effective return policies. He always took every misunderstanding or complications going around the company seriously. And the employees were always fairly paid. All he thought about maintain a stable environment around the business.

He values culture as the only thing.

Sinegal values culture, not like one of the most important things; it the only thing matter matters according to him. He believed that culture represents what you are, and this is what can develop integrity, passion, motivation, ownership, etc. among the employees. And when the employees act like that, customers tend to have trust in the organization no matter what.

He leads from the floor.

James Sinegal never believed in sitting in the office and ordering people over a phone call or meeting. He made sure to visit Costco’s warehouses at least 200 times a year. He believes that it’s both essential and crucial to know what is happening in the front line to ensure maximum out both by the workers and overall business.

He always listens to others.

James Sinegal was always there to hear out his employees. Even if there was a store opening across the globe, he never shows any disinterest not to go there. He was always present in every situation without anyone calling him and listened to the employees and workers to get an in-depth idea of the current situation.

He is always available for his company.

A leader is one who is responsible, and you can always count on him no matter what time of day it is. James Sinegal was exactly like that. His office was in the middle of the headquarters’ hallway with no glass, no door. Anyone can enter, talk to him at any time. He didn’t create any obstacles even though he was the CEO.

A humble man

James Sinegal was a down-earth man, and as a leader, he didn’t change this personality of his. He neither did any show-off nor there any expensive decoration at his office. His primary focus was on being a leader and make everything stable. No other material things ever matter to him.

Leadership Style of James Sinegal

If you observe the leadership style of James Sinegal, he was mostly a Bureaucratic Leader. Because he always listened to his employees regarding any issues and tried his best to solve them, whenever there were any issues regarding company operations, he prioritized the well-being of the business. He was never seen to do anything that creates a conflict with the business policies or might harm the company’s interest. His stand was quite strong on this matter. He maintained a democracy within the organization but took many steps that may not be accepted by the fellow members enthusiastically, but he took anyway for the betterment of Costco Wholesale.

Leadership Traits of James Sinegal

Leadership traits are qualities that a person has built-in himself. It makes a person step forward and takes things in charge. As a leader James Sinegal has some leadership traits too. They are:

  • Long-term vision- He always had a long-term vision and planning for the socio-economic and monetary better of his company, employees, and customers. He faced many challenges during his tenure but never accepted any defeat. He knew where he wants to take Costco, and he did that.
  • Integrity- The integrity of James Sinegal leaves no doubt. He never spent an extra penny from the business for his personal expenses. He was always focusing on giving the highest value to the customers for what they pay for. He even refused to increase his profit margin of more than 14%, so that people can get Costco’s products at a low price.
  • Innovation- Sinegal made sure that Costco Wholesale gets adopted with the technologies and new strategies regularly. He knew it’s quite competitive in the market to survive. And that’s why he consistently brought innovation to this company whenever it needed.

Other traits and leadership characteristics of James Sinegal are:

  • Strong core values
  • Confidence
  • Learning capacity
  • Recognizing opportunities
  • Dealing with challenges
  • Creating a lasting relationship
  • Consistency

Leadership Skills of James Sinegal

A leader must have some skills which distinct himself/herself from the fellow members. It’s the skills that help to implement a leader’s goal. And here’re some leadership skills of James Sinegal.

Good Communication

James Sinegal always kept information, no matter how small the issue is. He even answered his own phone call, also though he was the CEO of Costco Wholesale. He makes sure that the workers and employees always get a clear message about the company’s future plan and strategies and the reason behind his steps.

Situation Analysis

Sinegal took every decision after analyzing the situation carefully, no matter how much backlashes he received. Costco didn’t have health-care premiums for nine years! He was quite criticized for this situation, but he only did that to balance the operation’s rising cost. Although later, he changed his mind and gave the benefits his employees deserve. And Costco’s employee turnover is the lowest than other retail companies only because of James.

Efficiency

Costco Wholesale doesn’t have a broad product range like other retail companies. But still, its customer base is growing day by day. Costco also doesn’t do any traditional marketing. Because James believes they have scarce resources, but they have to make the best out of it. With his efficiency skill, Sinegal showed the world how a proper direction and strategic mind could be a game change even with scarce resources.

Bottom Line

The study on the leadership quality of James Sinegal says that he loved his lifestyle and everything he did as a business leader. He made his work his passion. Even though he is retired now, Sinegal still visits the office, store, and warehouses of Costco Wholesale. During his tenure, he put high importance on the code of ethics and simplicity, and he valued the opinion of workers and customers. That’s why James is still treated like the celebrity whenever he enters Costco.

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References

  • http://mastersinvest.com/newblog/2019/7/5/learning-from-costcos-jim-sinegal
  • https://newscenter.sdsu.edu/sdsu_newscenter/news_story.aspx?sid=77625
  • https://www.mytotalretail.com/post/a-few-thoughts-from-costcos-jim-sinegal/
  • https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220772