Smart Grid Operation and Management

This assignment delves into the crucial aspects of smart grid operation and management. It examines various optimization strategies for enhancing efficiency and reliability in distribution networks, incorporating renewable energy sources and fuel cell power plants. The importance of safety management in depot operations and sustainable construction practices is also discussed, highlighting the role of intelligent energy management systems in microgrids. The study emphasizes the challenges and advancements in managing complex power systems and real-time operation scenarios within smart grids.

MANGEMENT
&
OPERATIONS

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK1.............................................................................................................................................4
P1- Define and compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager with
special reference to M& S...........................................................................................................4
P2 Examination of how the role of a leader and the function of a manager apply in different
situational contexts in Marks and Spencer.................................................................................5
P3 Different theories and models of approach, including situational leadership, systems
leadership and contingency with referencing the situations of conflict in M & S......................6
TASK2.............................................................................................................................................8
P4 Key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers play in
solving the conflicts. ..................................................................................................................8
P5 Importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives ............9
P6 Assessment of factors within the business environment that impact upon operational
management and decision-making by leaders and managers...................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
Management of operations is an activity which is used for managing and coordinating the
available resources which are used for production of goods and services. All the decisions
including tactics ones and the one with the making of strategies are to be taken by the
operational management. It is the process through which inputs are transformed into output. In
the present report, case study of M&S has been analysed with concepts in a detailed manner.
Marks and Spencer is a British multinational retailer with a wide variety of products such as
women's wear & lingerie to menswear, beauty, kids, food, wine, flowers & gifts. This report has
been made to study the impact of Leaders and Managers on the operations of M&S. Through the
thorough analysing the report we will get to know the concepts relating to the various roles and
responsibilities of leaders and mangers(White2016), various approaches and theories and the
impact of all these on operations of M&S.
TASK1
P1- Define and compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager with
special reference to M& S
Leadership is an art of getting things done and Management is the art of getting things
right. It involves the process of dealing with people and things and coordinating them.
Leadership is an art of influencing people and motivating them to achieve the targeted goals .
They show the path where they have to go and by encouraging them takes them there, while
managers show how to go there.
Roles and responsibilities of a manager:
 Planning: The plan is made for achieving the objectives and what resources are to be used
and how to get those resources to use(Chenet and .al., 2010). Along with that plan for
worst case scenarios is also to be made.
 Budgeting: The budget is set for the plan and it has been fixed with the approval of top
management of M&S .
 Organising: After the plan has been made, the stage for its execution has come and for
that it has to be organise beforehand and the manager has to check whether his team and
resources are ready to put to use.

 Staffing: Team members are divided into various departments and tasks has been allotted
to them according to their calibre.
 Guiding: Proper guidelines must be provided for performing those specific tasks.
 Resourcing: all the resources must be arranged like financial resources(Mingand et.al
2013), human resources etc.
 Monitoring: Once the project is working it has to be monitored continuously and closely.
 Controlling:it must be controlled and evaluated as to check whether it is going into right
direction or not.
Roles and responsibilities of Leaders:
 Visioning: Role of a leader is visionary. He makes a vision and people follow him . He
takes them together along that path.
 Strategising: The plan that is made by the manager is to be strategised by the leaders.
 Risking: The leaders are the risk takers, they take risk with the people to check their
potential and push them to achieve more targets.
 Inspiring: They inspire people and set the examples by doing thing right themselves.
 Delegating: They delegate the responsibilities to the employees and make them feel
responsible and valuable(Casolinoand et.al 2012).
Characteristics:
Basis Leader Manger
Essence Always Change : leaders are
known to bring change in the
organisation.
Favours stability: the manager
does not like to change , he
likes stability in his work.
Focus People: whole focus of leaders
is on people, they think only
about the people
Work: they need the work to
be done anyhow.
Horizon Long term: they are visionary
so there horizon is never
ending.
Short term: they are task
specific.
Direction New roads: love to find new Existing roads: wants to go on

ways for doing the same things the same method
Concern What is right: more ethical Being right: never wants to be
wrong.
P2 Examination of how the role of a leader and the function of a manager apply in different
situational contexts in Marks and Spencer
When the M&S was going through the internal conflicts the working culture of them got
really bad as the employees were not supportive, they went on strikes and was creating nuisance,
and things went out of control from the hand of top level management, then the leaders and
managers step in to the situation and helps them handle the conflict. They are in direct contact
with them regularly. They are the people who need to mange the conflict as for the working of
the business again and that too smoothly(Portela2012). The role of the leader in these kind of
situations are :
 Collaborative: By implementing the participative style , leaders can foster an
environment where the employees are collaborated together and work as an effective
team. The leader finds out the issue and problem behind the conflict and resolves them.
 Compromising: They make both the parties compromise in which both parties give
something to gain something. They help them in overcoming interpersonal issues and
make them think about the team and work.
 Accommodating: For meeting the needs of the team(Wu 2012), team member surrender
his position to accommodate the other member for promoting harmony.
 Avoiding: Best way to avoid a conflict is to avoid the the things which can instigate the
conflicts . Root cause of the problem can be identified and solved asap.
Functions of a manager in resolving the conflict:
 Expecting disagreements: Conflicts arises because of disagreement and to identify it
before it becomes very big is the responsibility of manager.
 Roles & Responsibility: clarity is very essential in roles and responsibilities. As if the
role is unclear you(Liuet.al, 2011) ,may get into conflict.

 Decide what's significant: the manager should let go of things that are irrelevant and
have little significance(Song YunKwon2013). He should focus on really important things
so as to resolve the conflict and this may avoid the conflict as well.
 Positive Intent: M&S managers give the benefit of doubt to employees, half of the
problems are resolved when you give a person chance to explain themselves.
 Never socialise conflicts: while the conflicts are discussed it leads to gossiping and
instigating the matter as more people will be involved and they will add on to things.
 Accept Responsibility: Best way that the manager can adopt to avoid conflict is to take
the responsibility on himself, this will make him gain the trust of employees again and
solve the matter immediately.
P3 Different theories and models of approach, including situational leadership, systems
leadership and contingency with referencing the situations of conflict in M & S.
For solving the conflicts of the cited organisation the leaders and managers of the
organisation solve the problems by various ways and they learn it by practising various theories
of leadership and approaches of management. The various approaches of management are:
 Scientific Management Theory: This theory focuses on improving the efficiency in an
organisation through systematic manner by utilising scientific ways and mathematical
techniques. The planning, process design(Niknam Meymand and Mojarrad2011), quality
control, costing and waste management is influenced by this theory. Quantitative analysis
is done in this theory
 Administrative Theory: It is the study in which the techniques to create a efficient and
effective working environment is studied.
 Behavioural Management Theory: this theory suggests that how an manager should
behave personally so that the employees can also behave in that manner and to encourage
and motivate them.
 Theory of X and Y: Theory X assumes that the employees are not interested in work
and they should closely supervise them and proper systems of reward and punishment
must be there so as to control the employees(Nongand et.al, 2013). Whereas on the other
hand theory Y suggests that employees are not lazy, if the chance is given to them they
will work wonders for the organisation. For this proper opportunities must be given to
employees and they should be given the responsibilities and the work must be delegated.

Theories of leadership that are practised in M&S are:
 Trait Theories: Leaders are loaded with certain types of traits that
are helpful in making them a successful leader and managing the
conflicts within M&S . these trait includes empathy,integrity, positive
attitude, problem solver, trustworthy (RushtonCroucheand Baker2014).
These are personal qualities of a leader which make them different
and helps in solving the problems of people as well as of organisation.
 Behavioural Theory: The personal behaviour of a leader is observed in this theory. It
helps in managing people;e having distinctive behaviours. Some are autocratic , some are
democratic and others are laissez faire leaders .
▪ Autocratic : They take decisions by themselves like in M&S the problem of
conflicts is not solved after discussing it with everyone, these types of decisions
are imposed on employees and are helpful when instant decisions are needed to be
taken.
▪ Democratic: These leaders adopt participative approach . This is required when
the agreement of team is necessary but is very difficult to manage when conflicts
of ideas arises. In the case of M&S democratic style of leadership cant be
adopted.
▪ Laissez Faire Leaders: This style is adopted when the leaders don't need to
supervise much and the team is self sufficient in managing the work and is self
motivated(Kim2010).
 Contingency Theory: This is the situational theory in which no style is best style,
leaders have to work on the basis of their instincts. According to the situation that arises
they take decisions.
TASK2
P4 Key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers play in
solving the conflicts.
Approaches that the operational management uses in solving the conflicts of Marks and
Spencer and that have really helped the leaders and managers while solving the issues are:

 Lean Systems: this is the approach in which the motive is to eliminate wastage by trying
to achieve zero defect, zero paper,no accidents,zero delays, zero inventory. Usage of just
in time techniques. Helps in reducing storage cost (Hongand et.al, 2015). Helps educating
the supplier
 Just in Time: The concept of just in time is no inventory that supports lean system. It
demand continuous improvement and total quality management.
Leaders and managers plays a important role in solving the conflicts that has happened in the
cited organisation. They solve these issues by taking care of the following points in advance ,
these are:
 Resource Management: Role of the operation manager is to manage all the things that
are required in managing daily operations of M&S like managing raw material and
handling employees, they have to take care of the process of inputs and outputs.
 Financial Management: For doing any work or project basic thing is to have money and
ability to manage it properly. They both manage the supply chain and all the other
resources that helps in minimising cost of production(Chaouachiand et.al, 2013).
 Goal Setting: The goals are set for the employees to attain the objectives. They also
forecast sales and plan sales promotions with the help of other departments.
 Communications: They need good communication skills as they have to maintain
relations with everyone , from the top level to the lower level management. Leaders have
to resolve the conflicts among the employees.
 Quality: Managers and leaders of Marks and Spencer has maintained quality in their
operations and products and services and leaders motivate them to do quality work and
attain objectives(Lahouand et.al, 2012). Quality among the relationships between the
employee and the management is also to be maintained.
 Realistic: The leaders and managers remain realistic with them and they tell them where
they are doing wrong and where they themselves are wrong.
The approaches motivate them to handle employees in a positive manner and work
systematically and diligently. These approaches give the framework to handling conflicts. It
serves as a guidelines for conflict management. By following these approaches and abiding by
the roles , leaders and managers can achieve the desired results, and helps solving all the issues.

P5 Importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives
The importance and value of the operations manager in achieving business objectives is
very essential. They lead the workforce and help them to do the work effectively and in
achieving targets(Logenthiranand et.al 2012). The without the operational management the team
has no direction no plan to work on. For achieving any kind of objective they are needed. They
help in increasing profitability and the optimum resources are used by them. The resources
transformation in M&S is managed by the operational management. They deals in maintaining
cost, quality, speed, and flexibility of the product or service. The operations managers performs
specific functions so as to achieve organisational goals and strategies. These functions are:
 Planning: Adequate plans are made so as to achieve the targets He has set the objectives
that an employee needs to achieve. Planning is done so as to see where to get the
resources from, what are the resources that are requires to attain the business objectives.
 Organize : All the resources which are selected are then organised in a systematic
manner so as to move according to the plan(PengHou,andWu2015). The tasks should be
given according to their calibre. And they should be moved to various departments so as
to do systematic work .
 Motivate : Managers in this case has motivated employees a lot to keep working as a
team, irrespective of several conflicts that were happening ij M&S. They are told to keep
the firm's objective above their personal ones.
 Set targets: Targets are set and they are constantly monitored so as to keep a check on
the organisation that they are moving in the right direction.
 Controlling: Proper check should be kept upon the employees and their workings , so as
to abide by the plan and check whether they are deviating from the plan or not, if
deviating corrective actions must be taken.
The Operation management contains so much importance in the achievement of business
objectives because the main objective of any business is profit maximisation and to satisfy its
customers(Ma,SerranoMohammed2014), and operations manager helps them achieving both. It
provides value to the customer as well as to the organisation. They do the following task by :
 Identifying the needs of the customer and converting them into products and services that
they required.

 Do all the backward calculations for identifying the needs of raw material so that there is
no problem in procuring goods.
 Supply chain is maintained by him, he keeps a proper check on when the goods are
delivered, raw materials are purchased, work in progress cycle, working capital etc.
It also gives contribution to society by increasing standard of living(lower cost of goods and
services), better quality of goods and services(due to competition,quality increases.), concerned
for environment(recycling) and improved working conditions(improved job design and
participation of employees).
P6 Assessment of factors within the business environment that impact upon operational
management and decision-making by leaders and managers.
Business environment is affected by two types of factors viz., internal as well as
external , external factors are not in control of the businesses. Internal factors comprises of
strengths and weaknesses of the company. The strengths of the business are the factors that
contribute to its success and weaknesses stop it from getting successful. Internal factors include:
 Financial resources like funding, sources of income, and investment opportunities.
 Physical resources which includes all the physical evidence like building, land etc.
 Human resources including employees(Trojnarska and Ciepłucha, 2011), targeted
customers.
The factors that have the impact on the decision making of an operational manager in resolving
the conflicts are:
 Organisational Issues : Employee in the organisation may face several issue and these
are generally :
 Procedures and policies: The procedural policies of the organisation affect the decisions
of managers and leaders as they are bound by these procedures. These are included in
operational and administrative procedures.
 Office politics: Office politics sometimes influence the decisions. This may hinder the
decision of the manager if he is biases or get influenced by one of the parties involved in
conflicts.
 Hierarchy of organisation: immediate bosses sometimes affect the decision of managers
and leaders.

 Strategic Risks: it has the power and influence to affect the firm's ability to achieve
goals. These impacts can be because of the change in technologies or the change in
demand of customers. These can badly impact the brand name of the firm in the eyes of
customers.
 Financial Risks: The financial risk depends on the financial system of the organisation.
The decision can be impacted by it as if depending on one customer for large business.
 Perception issues: These are the ways in which one interprets the situation around them.
These are impacted by :
 Perceiver: The state of mind of the perceiver impacts the decisions. Whether he is in good
mood or bad affects its decisions.
 Object: The decision depends on the object as about what decision has to be taken,
likewise in this case the nature of conflict is to be kept in mind.
 Situation: The situation that arises, decisions are impacted because of them also.
Decisions change according to the circumstances.
These are the issues which needed to b e taken care while taking any decision. Decisions must be
taken by a non biased person.
CONCLUSION
According to the present report it has been concluded that the role of leaders and
managers has a strong influence on the decisions of Marks and Spencer as they rely on their
leaders and managers for operational decisions and handling conflicts of employees. They have
been practising various approaches like behavioural, contingency, trait theories, just in time
approach, Lean system and many other. They have did justice to their role and functions have
been properly performed by them. In the case of conflicts solving they have shown very
impressive performance.

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