Contemporary Management Issues in the 21st Century

Learn about Shackleton's leadership style and Ryanair's leadership approach in this article on contemporary management issues in the 21st century. Discover important lessons on motivation, teamwork, and analysis of employee strengths and weaknesses. Get recommendations for improving performance and enhancing value.

Contemporary Management
Issues in the 21st Century

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.......................................................................................................................................................3
Shackleton’s leadership style.......................................................................................................3
The important lessons learnt from this article.............................................................................4
2.......................................................................................................................................................5
Critically analysing an organisational situation by drawing on the schools of leadership..........5
Recommendations for improving performance and enhancing value.........................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

1.
Shackleton’s leadership style
The case study highlights the several hardships that Shackleton and his men had to face during
their expedition. The journey that was supposed to be completed in some days took months for
them. Survival in such harsh situations does not really seem possible but they made it happen.
Shackleton had a natural grasp of management and leadership(Grochowicz, 2021). Even to this
date, he and his style has been used as an example for management students and entrepreneurs
that shows them how a crisis should be handled.
Shackle ton and his men were caught for months and could not do anything to return. Even after
trying all the ways possible to break off the ice around their ship, nothing worked and there was
no hope of help from others as nobody had a clear idea as to where they were stuck. Everyone
knew that survival would nearly be impossible in such situations. Gloominess started
surrounding them. But Shackleton knew that if his crew became disheartened and lost their
hopes, they would lose even without trying. Hence, he encouraged them for skits, games and
other fun activities in the evenings. Birthdays and other occasions were also celebrated. He also
made sure that the conflicts and his other negative emotions like demoralisation or losing hopes,
etc. does not show on his face in front of his men(What made Shackleton a great leader, 2022).
This helped in keeping their spirits high.
He tried to analyse their strengths and weaknesses and ways that can keep his men motivated. He
encouraged them to cross train and learn various tasks to make them ready for any situation that
can arise later. He also ensured equal treatment for everybody on the crew. They might not have
left with enough ration for so many months, but he tried to feed them well so that they have
enough energy and motivation to continue trying. He used to listened to his men and their
opinions and encouraged them to share ideas as he knew multiple minds are definitely better than
a single mind and not every problem can be solved alone.
He had an instinctive approach to leadership as he used to alter his plans according to the needs
of the time and also followed his instincts as to what will be the best for him and his men during
several problems. He never stuck onto a plan if the plan was not as effective for the current
situation and kept on changing the plans as per the needs and circumstances. This was proven to

be effective as at last all of them could return alive. He led and managed his team very cautiously
and always cared for the well-being of his crew. He never let them do anything that could harm
them. He always tried to build trust and unity among the team members and used a systems
approach to handle difficult situations and never gave up.
He also acted as an inspiration for all his men as he never let the ordeal and crisis take the best of
him and tried to be patient and rational at all times to think of solutions and keep everyone
motivated as it was said that his optimism was contagious. The trust and loyalty that he gained
from people was a result of his efforts to save them and also to act in the best interest of them.
The important lessons learnt from this article
There are many lessons that can be learnt from the article and Shackleton’s leadership style.
Some of which are-
 No matter how difficult the situation seems, one should never lose hope and continue to
make efforts to find an effective solution to the problem.
 Organisations should also understand that no plan can ensure 100% results in all
circumstances, hence the plans should be adjusted and readjusted according to the
situation and problem in hand. The organisation should always have a back-up plan.
 Motivation and teamwork can help to overcome even difficult crisis.
 Analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the employees should be done to help them
to enhance their performance(Lathrop, 2020).
 The leaders should act as role-models by displaying good traits during hard times and
inspire the employees to make extra efforts.
 The well being of the employees should also be given due importance under all
circumstances as with they are equal contributors for overcoming the crisis.
 The organisations should also encourage employees and personnel to have a feeling of
“sharing your milk” so that better relationships and trust can be formed.
 Cross training is also very helpful as all the employees get to prepare for all the situations
and can carry on almost all the tasks.

2.
Critically analysing an organisational situation by drawing on the schools of leadership
Taking an example of Ryanair, this is the largest low-cost carrier company or airline in Europe
and goes to around 165 cities. Leadership is the core element in managing the human resource
of the company. Ryanair usually follows an autocratic style of leadership in which all the
authority and decision making power lies with one person and suggestions or advices from
others are not taken. The workforce and the employees receive commands and guidelines from
the managers and have to work accordingly. The company has a strict flow of information both
upward and downward and the communication is done using fax, email, team meetings, etc.
The Chairman of the company manages the communication among the stakeholders(Ryanair’s
leadership approach, 2022). This approach allows quick decision making as decisions are
taken by the management and no involvement of others is there which might lead to confusion
or delay in decisions.

The organisation had a dynamic and strict approach that helped the company to expand so
rapidly in a short period of time. This was possible even when the company had a low price
business model and incurred low cost. However, this style is criticised as the employees
become demotivated as they only have to follow orders because they are not allowed to
participate in decision making or problem solving, and this also reduces their efficiency.
Recommendations for improving performance and enhancing value.
The company is seen to be using autocratic approach to leadership which decreases the
efficiency of the employees and demotivates them as they do not have a sense of belongingness
because they simply have to follow orders. Employees are motivated enough to work harder
when they have this sense of ownership or belongingness and are encouraged to do creative
thinking and provide suggestions and ideas. They are also motivated to perform better when
they are a part of the decision making about the work(Gandolfi and Stone 2018). Flow of
communication should also not be very rigid and strict as the employees may not be able to
share their problems effectively which might disturb their performance too. Hence, the
company should follow a combination of autocratic and democratic leadership approach where
the major decisions could be taken by the management with few suggestions and ideas from
the employees and should also give employees freedom to express their problems and ideas as
so many minds can think of better solutions than the limited personnel of the management.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Gandolfi, F. and Stone, S., 2018. Leadership, leadership styles, and servant leadership. Journal
of Management Research. 18(4). pp.261-269.
Grochowicz, J., 2021. Shackleton's Endurance: An Antarctic Survival Story. Allen & Unwin.
Lathrop, G. C., 2020. An Analysis of Leadership Through Crisis. Crisis, Stress, and Human
Resilience: An International Journal. 2(1). pp.10-28.
Online
What made Shackleton a great leader. 2022. Available through:<
https://shackleton.com/blogs/articles/shackleton-great-leader#:~:text=Shackleton
%20was%20a%20cautious%20leader,if%20they%20were%20not%20working.>
Ryanair’s leadership approach. 2022. Available through:<
https://www.locusassignments.com/solution/ryanair-developing-manager-
assignment#:~:text=The%20highly%20rigid%20and%20autocratic,board%2C%20team
%20meetings%2C%20etc.>