Running head: STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
“Superhuman”, “management genius”, and “incredible”. These were words used to describe Charles Rossotti by executives and professionals that worked with him. Robert Tobias, former president of the National Treasury Employee Union, stated, “How often do you think you will hear such sincere praise, from every group or authority with which he dealt, for an agency head who led a major, challenging reorganization of that agency” (Rainey & Thompson, 2006). Approved in 1997 by a Senate vote of 92-0, Rossotti agreed to what many people called a possible “suicide mission” when he became the 45th commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Rossotti would be in charge of implementing major reforms as defined by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (RRA 98).
Rossotti definitely had his work cut out for him when he accepted the challenge attached to the position of IRS Commissioner. "I was attracted by the challenge of turning around a huge institution that affects everybody in the country," says Rossotti. "It wasn't acceptable to have an agency like the IRS held in such low esteem. This was an opportunity for me to bring about fundamental change." (HBS, 2003). And change he did--- the entire organizational structure and design, that is. The principle of organizational design requires a change in strategy that endorses a new set of capabilities and a realignment of core elements and values of the organization. This is where he began to implement his changes and “organizational design”.
Rossotti’s vision leaned more toward IRS customers than ever before. In order to achieve this vision, he knew he had to get all of his 100,000 employees “on board”. Therefore, he developed a strategic plan. He and his colleagues compiled a report called Modernizing America’s Tax Agency, which would detail the mission according to RRA 98 propositions. He accomplished the involvement of...