Leadership Practices and Issues in Woolworths: A Deep Outlook

This report provides a deep outlook about Leadership and its various aspects of the organisation. A discussion the leadership practices and the issues faced by Woolworths is made clearly. The report covers the background of the selected organization, leadership practices in Woolworths, identified leadership issues, recommended solutions, and implementing leadership, vision and followership.

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Running head: LEADERSHIP
Leadership
Name of the student
Name of the university
Authors note

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Executive summary
This report has provided a deep outlook about Leadership and its various aspects of the
organisation. A discussion the leadership practices and the issues faced by Woolworths is
made clearly. In the first part of this report provides the sense of leadership of a reputed
organization Woolworths. After that relation between leadership and followership also
discussed. Significant leadership theories denote how leadership is working. Two different
kinds of leadership distributed and shared leadership shows the differences in the process of
leadership. At the end, the entire relation of vision, leadership and followership is well
discussed.

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Background of selected organization.........................................................................................3
Leadership practices in Woolworths..........................................................................................4
Identified Leadership Issues.......................................................................................................5
Recommended solutions............................................................................................................8
Leadership changes................................................................................................................8
Applying Distributed Leadership.........................................................................................10
Implementing Leadership, Vision and Followership...........................................................10
Conclusion................................................................................................................................11
References................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction
Leadership is a practical skill and research encircling the abilities of individuals and
organizations to lead and display other individuals or the whole organization. In the first part,
there is a discussion about the definition of the leadership of the Woolworths supermarket
Company. An executive is developing the company's strategy to compete with rival
companies. Leaders of Woolworths Company have abilities to create an inspiring atmosphere
that can fulfil the vision of a better future. Expert coaching and management techniques of
leaders deliver motivations and inspire other individuals to engage with their vision. In the
next part discussion about the leadership issues that may affect the entire company is
beautifully mentioned. In this report, the leadership theories are holding a significant role in
the entire discussion of recommended solution leadership issues. On the other hand, the other
side of leadership that is called followership is also discussed in this report. Followership is
also important along with leadership. Distributed shows the culture of leadership and requires
paying animus to methods of sharing beliefs, commitments and values.
Background of the selected organization
Woolworths Supermarket Company is one of the largest Supermarket Company in
Australia. This reputed company is situated in Bella Vista and founded 5th December 1924.
There are near about 115000 employees are working every day. this is a retail shop that
provides best quality grocery items like vegetables, fruits, packaged food, meats etc. apart
from this company has published its own magazine, health and beauty products, household
products, stationery items, pet and baby supplements and DVD (Mendenhall et al., 2017).
Woolworths has operated currently 1000 stores across Australia. This company has also
handled online business and provided products by home shopping delivery system. But this

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company has faced some leadership issues for a few days. As a result, this supermarket
company is getting effected gradually. Coles is another retail company who has the same
base just as Woolworths has. Therefore this rival company can give a tough challenge to this
company (Turner & Haslam, 2014).
Leadership practices in Woolworths Creating an inspiring vision of a better future:
In every business vision is an objective, attractive and convincing depiction of
where an individual wants to reach in future. Prospect, set priorities, provide direction
and marker. Therefore an individual of Woolworths can achieve their individual as
well as organisational targets. To coin a vision, leaders of Woolworths focus on
strength by using elements such as UPS analysis, PEST analysis, Poter’s Five Forces,
Core Competence analysis and SWOT analysis. These all are done for analysing
current situations in the context of the market (Cameron et al., 2014). Motivating and inspiring people
A coercive people provides a foothold for leadership. At the time of the
beginning of any project of Woolworth's lots of enthusiasm is necessary. After this,
win becomes very easy. Leader of Woolworths Group always tries to motivate the
entire team with recognition and reward system. This system motivates an individual
to work hard for achieving success throughout their hard work. Managing the delivery of the vision
The great management system can provide a good result in the way of
reaching the goals of individuals. It is necessary for a leader to understand team
dynamics. The performance management system of Woolworths can help those
people to reach their goal of success. Leaders of this company have to need to make

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sure about effective manage change. It helps to ensure that those significant changes
needed to provide an implementation of the vision are done thoroughly and smoothly
with the support of team leaders of Woolworths (Chemers, 2014). Coaching and building a team to achieve the vision
Coaching and team build is a very important part to achieve the vision of an
individual. Throughout this, a leader can build a strong team and also gain the abilities
to perform best in the job field of Woolworths Supermarket Company.
By growing leadership skill within the entire team, a leader can create an atmosphere
where the leader can continue success for a long time period.
Identified Leadership Issues
Vision, leadership and followership these three aspects are connected to each other.
Without leadership vision and followership is incomplete. Every individual has his or her
own vision. To fulfil those vision they have to need a great leader who can guide them
properly. With the help of that guidance that people can fulfil their vision easily. But they
have to maintain the way that a leader has selected for them. On the other hand, a leader
always trying to do the best for followers. Woolworths as a reputed organisation must
understand the binary of leadership and followership first to avoid complications in
management. After they have to choose the path that they have selected after that they have
to find out the correct people who can give them advice on how to reach towards their goals.
With those people, an individual can fulfil his or her target that is called vision.
Followership is the other side of leadership. In a reputed organization, just only follower
does not do a ‘followership’ and ‘leadership’ does not do just only by a leader (Grint et al,
2016). This aspect suggests that followership and leadership do not manage on the same
continuum with one increasing while other decreases. Followership is the concept where

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everything is done straightforwardly. It has the abilities to give the right direction to an
individual to achieve the goal of success. On the other hand, it is the ability to get in the line
of a program and to be part of the entire team. An individual can get the ability that what
wants to be. With good followership, individuals can fulfil their vision (McCleskey, 2014).
For that, they have to turn themselves into a good follower. Apart from this, there are various
issues identified in the Woolworths Company.
 Judgemental issues
This issue has faced by Woolworths Company badly. This company has faced
a lack of judgemental appearances. The decisions of keeping the company off from
online marketing for long is one such issue. Making the right decisions at the right
point is necessary for success. It turns out that experiences bring the ability of good
judgement while experiences grew up from bad judgement (Rosenbach, 2018).
Performances of these followers are getting weak for this.
 Ethical work issues
It is observed that in times employees of Woolworths have shown fewer
interests during their work. Good followers are always diligent and good worker.
They are motivated, pay attention and committed to their work. Leader of an
organization has responsibilities to create a positive environment that permits the
qualities at their workplace (Priest & Gass, 2017). There are constant complaints that
the employees do not give enough time to the customers attending or product
explanation. As a result, this reputed company is getting effected. Competence issues
Competence is an essential characteristic of the organisation employees and the
management. Woolworths was once the sole operator in the Australian market. It is for
the lack of competence in managing competition, the company is losing its market share

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constantly. For that the result of those works being wrong that is not good for Woolworth
Supermarket Company. This company has lost the power to compete with its rival
company Coles Supermarket.
 Honesty issues
The follower has a concern with the leader an honest assessment of what that
leader had trying to achieve and how. Politeness and respect are important. In the
present day, the communication management system of Woolworths is getting hurt
for lack of honesty. For this, the number of customers is getting less gradually.
 Courage management issue
Good followers have to be honest with their leaders. For that, they need the
courage to be veridical. Real courage is necessary to be a good follower from time to
time. This is another vital issue that Woolworths has faced. Decreasing courage
among the leaders and other employees is restraining the company to deliver the best
at their workplace.
 Ego management issue
Good employees have to keep their egos under control. These followers are
the team players in full sense of the concept. Success comes to followers by
performance and achievement, not for self-promotion and self-recognition system
(Komives, 2016). But in Woolworths Company ego management process is not done
in a particular way. Therefore performances are going weak day by day.
It can be said that followership always presents itself as the shadow of
leadership. But it is also true that no good leader can grow without any good follower.

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Recommended solutions
A charismatic and motivational lead transforms the followers. In this section here is a
discussion about three notable leadership theories that could be followed by Woolworths to
solve those issues of Woolworths Supermarket Company. Some of the others are situational,
participative, transactional and contingency.
According to The trait theory Great leaders are born, not made. If there is an ability to
lead that, that person is born with that ability. There is no learning skill for adopt this thing.
This theory denote the process of Great Man Theory what makes great leaders ‘Great’
(Northouse, 2014). Woolworth Supermarket Company has adopted this theory to improve the
communication skill that is more important to attract customers.
Woolworths Supermarket Company can adopted following characteristics of
leadership for their betterment-
Leadership changes Honesty: Reflect integrity, sincerity in all actions of a leader. Bad behaviour will not
able to inspire trust. Competent: Base leader actions on cause and moral principles. It is not acceptable that
a leader can behave like child with emotional desire and feelings. Forward looking: An individual have to set goals. They have to imitate their leaders
to achieve success. The aim of Woolworths leaders must be directed towards the
welfare of the company. Effective leaders give the correct way to reach the goals.
They also give the priorities and send the followers to the pick of success (Hoch &
Kozlowski, 2014). Inspiring: Display confidences that are very important to achieve the goals. A good
leader can suggest some interesting ways by which followers can applied in their job.

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 Intelligent: Collecting knowledge is the main abject to gain success and fulfil the
vision of a follower. A good leader always tries to make intelligent followers who are
going to be a good leader (Northouse, 2017). They have to read, study and very
important part is to seek challenging assignments. Fair-minded: The leaders in Woolworths have to show fair treatment to all. On the
other hand a good leader have to be more sensitive, and have to be well being of
others. With this a good leader can contribute the best with entire team
(Nanjundeswaraswamy & Swamy, 2014). Broad minded: Great leader seek out verities. They have to think about the innovative
ideas and thought that can be deliverable to among team. With this great leader can
win the heart of followers that is more needed. Courageous: Great leader always try to put confidence in the mind of followers. This
can help those followers to overcome from their bad situation when they are under
stress. It can also develop encouragement among the people. Straight forward: Woolworths leaders need to be ready with sound judgement to
provide a good decision at the right time. Therefore followers can follow this aspects
and able to collect confidence. They are able to make their own decisions. Decision
making power is most important to all people.
Making appropriate changes in time is the significant way to denote the best from a great
leader. Apart from this thinking different plans and methods help to achieve success. They
show creativity in their work and with new thoughts they can achieve goals, provide ideas
and solutions of problems. Some of the steps that the company could take to change the
leadership practices are discussed below-

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Applying Distributed Leadership
Distributed leadership is concerned with practice of leadership. This is rather that
responsibilities and leadership roles. These practices are for bringing changes and the process
to developing entire project of Woolworths Company. In the time of being practiced an
individual can face so many problems. But with the help of great leaders they can overcome
from those bad situation. For that the followers are always under the monitoring process. The
defects that are already in those followers may fulfil by the help of a good leader. Great
leaders always try to share their story with the followers and show them the right path to do.
If an individual can follow that path then there must be reflect positive ways to achieve their
goals. Since a great leader is distributing his or her entire though process and skills with the
followers that it is called the distributed leadership in the business literature.
Implementing Leadership, Vision and Followership
Implementation of the larger vision of leadership and followership in the work
process could prove effective in solving the leadership issues of Woolworths. Great leaders
have responsibilities to provide best to their followers. Their expert treatment towards their
followers can fulfil the requirements. A great leader creates a positive environment to give
the comfort to his followers in their workplace. On the other hand leaders are always trying to
provide encouragement throughout the reward and recognition system. With this leaders can
grow the confidence in the mind of their followers.
Followership is the process where people are following their leader to be a good
leader. In this step followers are duplicating the path that a leader had gone. A trust factors is
main aspects between leaders and the followers. Respects, those followers must have to give
to their leader. With this the leader can get courage to provide more comfort and innovative
thought by which followers can go to their peak of success. Interesting ways also delivered
but the leader that is the other way to attract followers to their crossed way. As a result not

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only the success but also followers can collect the experiences and knowledge in their entire
life. Skills are developed among followers if they maintain the process that a leader has
decided for the better future of an individual (Glatthorn et al, 2018).
Conclusion
The entire report has delivered the clear idea of the term Leadership. Leadership is
well maintained by an expert and great leader. The followers are also important to maintain a
good leadership. In this report there are clear discussion about the entire meaning of
leadership. The importance of leadership is clearly discussed from the first to last.
Followership is the shadow of leadership. For that leadership and followership is incomplete
without each other. On the other hand in this report there is a discussion about some
significant theory which implementation gives a new image to a good leadership that can
provide a proper solution for Woolworths Supermarket Company. It can be said that with a
great leadership Woolworths also gain the profits from business market. Leaders are always
tried to put from requirement. For that innovation is needed hugely. These leaders guide and
find out those people who have enough potentiality to provide best to their organization. With
this not only just this reputed company but the people who are engage in this entire project
can fulfil their vision easily.

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McCleskey, J. A. (2014). Situational, transformational, and transactional leadership and
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