Leadership: Theory and Practice in the Post-Pandemic Period

This report discusses the changing perspectives and challenges faced by leadership in the post-pandemic period. It analyzes the importance of demonstrating responsible leadership during this time, using the case study of Primark. The report also covers Lewin's change model and the role of leaders in facilitating changes.

Leadership theory and
practice
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
The changingperspectives and challenges faced by leadership for the post-pandemic period.. .3
Analyse the importance of demonstrating responsibleleadership during the post pandemic
period...........................................................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFRENCES ..................................................................................................................................9
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INTRODUCTION
Leadership theories are those models which is used in order to develop various
perspectives that leads towards improving abilities of leaders present in an organization. These
theories are responsible for guiding leaders in order to make organization develop its
perspectives more effectively. Further, the theory has helped in making leaders more effective
while performing there functions (Beirne, 2017). Leadership is an important aspects from, view
point of management as both leaders and management work in order to enhance working of an
organization as per market conditions. Scope of leadership is wider as it makes business
organization operate more effectively. The organization that has been taken is Primark which is
an international clothing brand operating within UK and has been established within the years
1969. The report deals upon pandemic situation and its impact over leadership in relation to
workforce and digital environment.
MAIN BODY
The changing perspectives and challenges faced by leadership for the post-pandemic
period.
Leadership leads towards making skills influence with capabilities of employees so as to
perform task and activities more effectively. An organization using these aspects of leadership in
order to provide appropriate guidelines to employees(Angelle, 2019). As per this leaders of
respective organization requires over participating with employees as well as willingness
developed over listening view point. Through this organization is able to develop strong
relationship with employees making task to be conducted over organizational values and ethics.
Effective leadership makes cooperation encourage in order to perform task effectively. The
COVID 19 pandemic has been one of the most drastic situation which has affected leadership
styles and patterns for an organization. The pandemic made leadership grow more digital and
complex. Also it has made decision making more broaden that brought challenges to be faced
within effective decisions. Further, the pandemic has made leaders re think over traditional
strategies and advance them as per modern market capacity. This leads over usage of digital
platforms in order to conduct business. This pandemic situation made leaders develop new skills
and abilities. In relation to Primark certain challenges were faced by its leaders during the post-
pandemic time which has been discussed as follows:
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 Rapid reskilling: In modern world pandemic situation for organization to shift towards
online methods which were required to be learned by employees. This made reskilling
come into existence and emerged as challenge for an organization. As per this leaders are
required to conduct training sessions making employees understand about online mode of
working. Such practice at time leads over allocation of resource for an organization like
Primark making quality of products reduced(Kaso and et. al., 2021). This made leaders of
Primark work upon digital rescaling of skills within employees which leads upon making
better and effective product circulation method developed within Primark. It made
resources available easily and stick count maintained effectively.
 Changing leadership and management competences: The COVID 19 crisis has
brought shock wave within industries and there economic conditions which created
uncertainty and fear within employees. The pandemic lead upon making organization
shift to work from home that become another challenge for them. This made working
patterns changed completely. Work from home has brought lot of difficulties in terms of
operations required to be conducted by an organization (Aas and Paulsen,, 2019 ). As at
time meeting were been hindered due to lack of network and employees were not
professionally dressed. Also the discussion were interrupted due to unprofessional
surroundings. The organization like Primark tried dealing with this problem by
conducting online meeting and developing system which makes product available for
being sold online. This made Primark survive during COVID 19 post time.
 A culture of trust, transparency and openness: The COVID 19 pandemic has brought
change within work culture as it made professional ethics changed due to lock down and
social working. These situation were adopted by all organizations and there employees
but it make trust over employee lost as at time coordination was not done properly. Lock
down made employee work according to there will making deadlines of project missed
by organizations. In relation to Primark innovative sessions were confuted which made
employee achieve satisfaction over the job. Then working hours were decided for
completing important tasks without any delay. Digital platform provided strong mode of
communication which made coordination developed more effectively.
Individual and social well-being: The pandemic and lock down is putting pressure on
employees in ways that not only test their well being and private lives, but also that of our
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society as a whole. The World Health Organization recently found that 45% of health workers in
China are suffering from anxiety, while the prevalence of depression in Ethiopia trebled in April
alone Purwaditaa and et. al., 2018).
These are those challenges that has been faced by Primark during post COVID 19 period
which impacted the organizations abilities to grow within an organization. In the time of COVID
19 various kinds of new changes were brought within working patterns which made Primark
adopt new and innovative method for dealing with challenges(Islam, Tariq and Usman, 2018).
Leaders of Primark used various kinds of techniques which made employees motivation
maintained with positive perspective. Through enhancing leadership qualities by dealing with
challenges has helped leaders to improve employees working capacities during the time of
COVID 19 (Angelle and Torrance eds., 2019). Leaders introduced rewards system with the help
of managers which made employee of Primark earn more money while working from home. The
COVID pandemic made leaders of Primark analyse new opportunities which made leaders
achieve more dynamic workforce. Thus in the time of COVID 19 Primark was able to dealing
with challenges.
Analyse the importance of demonstrating responsibleleadership during the post pandemic
period
Effectiveness of leaders during the pandemic situation is able to motivate and guide an
organization towards its vision and mission. Leaders has encouraged various kinds of values that
is important for an organization's success(Davids and Waghid, 2019). The aspect that has been
covered through leadership is based upon various kinds perspective that is related to honesty and
punctuality which makes leaders become role model of team members. This makes emulation of
behaviour in more effective way. Through this leaders are able to make behaviour of employees
enhanced more effectively. This makes employees more effective within there working and
leaders during the time of COVID 19 has played important role for development of organization.
Further, leaders has important role to be played within fashion and clothing period in pandemic
time by creating growth chances of business that leads upon increasing productivity of business
within market for making goals achieved over business that leads upon increasing productivity
within market. In relation to organization like Primark training of employees were conducted as
per the new methods emerged during COVID 19. This leads over making operations conducted
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with the helps of digital platforms making process run more effectively. This is based upon
services which is related to selling of clothes within market through online platform. It lead upon
increasing over all performance of an organization. Through this organization is able to maintain
its goodwill within market helped in improving business. The responsibility of leaders helping
upon maintaining business stability within market. Also leaders makes development done with
growth of business for Primark with profit and revenue generation. Leaders of an organization
like Primark has helped in fostering atmosphere over creative within an organization. They made
vision developed by providing flexibility over employees making work to be completed(Butt and
et. al. 2019). Through creativity various kinds of tasks were completed which makes
productivity introduced within working of an organization. In order to improve Primark
leadership both hard and soft skills were used which has been discussed as follows:
 Hard skills of the leaders:Leaders are required to fulfil technical responsibility within
business for maintaining profit of business in marketplace. They are required to identify
talent of employees on technical basis (Imam and Zaheer, 2021). These skills has been
improved during the time of COVID 19 by introducing digital technology which made
technology improvement possible within leadership styles.
 Soft skills of the leaders: Leaders requires to make influence formed over employees by
providing them proper guidance in order to avoid any kind of issue within business
required to be performed. This made leaders of Primark develop dispute solving
mechanism which has helped in solving dispute during the time of COVID 19.
In order to make importance of leadership increased various changes has been implied
according to requirements of market. Changes has lead upon creating positive and negative
impact upon performance of leaders of an organization. The leaders of Primark has played
important role over facilitating changes within an organization. This is supportive as it helps in
managing organizational change with better effectiveness.
Lewin's change model
The model is based upon three steps which is included over helping respective organization for
managing changes in effective way(Lewis, 2019). The steps of model has been given as follows:
Unfreezing
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This is first stage within which an organization is spreading awareness over changes
taking place within an organization. The step helps upon accepting changes within an
organization in effective way.
Changing
The actual change that has taken place has been affecting behaviour of employees, process with
performance.
Refreezing
At this stage organization has been focusing upon refreezing changes over each and every
employees makes success achieved by an organization.
Leaders in facilitating changes
Leaders of Primark with the helps of manages has communicated changed in effective
way which has lead upon making information over changes with benefits(Aravena, 2019). Also,
have been motivating employees working in Primark for accepting changes and working as per
required changes within an organization making task performed in more effectively.
Leaders of Primark has helped in improving various kinds perspective during the time of
COVID 19 which made upliftment possible of working patterns within an organization. This
leads upon improving various aspects which has leads over developing new and innovative
practices for an organization like Primark. This leads upon various kinds of aspects to be
imporve more effectively which leads towards enhancing operation of business.
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CONCLUSION
In the above report it has been analysed that leadership and management helps in
increasing the profit of the business. Leaders help in providing guidance to the employees so that
perform effectively in the business and can helps in developing the services of the business.
Leader helps in maintaining proper management in the business will helps in reducing the
pressure of work in the business which will also helps in increasing the will power of the
business in the marketplace. there are various leadership style which is used by the leaders in the
business which helps in motivating the employees towards the assigned task and will also helps
in increasing the efficiency of the employees in the business so that growth chances of the
company can take place. Leaders also use their various skills so that innovation in the business
can be developed. If the leaders will increase the performance of the employees by analyzing
their performance then it will helps in developing various growth opportunities of the business in
the marketplace.
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REFRENCES
Books and Journals
Beirne, M., 2017. The reforming appeal of distributed leadership. British Journal of Healthcare
Management, 23(6), pp.262-270.
Lewis, J.S., 2019. An empirical study of the role of student employment in leadership
learning. New directions for student leadership, 2019(162), pp.37-47.
Imam, H. and Zaheer, M.K., 2021. Shared leadership and project success: The roles of
knowledge sharing, cohesion and trust in the team. International Journal of Project
Management.
Purwadita, C.P., Sudiro, A., Mugiono, M. and Idris, I., 2018. Innovation in leadership and team
performance: Evidence from indonesia property agent industry. MEC-J (Management
and Economics Journal), 2(2), pp.117-132.
Aas, M. and Paulsen, J.M., 2019. National strategy for supporting school principal’s instructional
leadership. Journal of Educational Administration.
Angelle, P.S. and Torrance, D. eds., 2019. Cultures of Social Justice Leadership: An
Intercultural Context of Schools. Springer.
Kaso, N and et. al., 2021. The Principal's Leadership: How to Improve the Quality of Teaching
and Learning Process in State Junior High School of Luwu. JurnalAd'ministrare, 8(1),
pp.49-58.
Islam, T., Tariq, J. and Usman, B., 2018. Transformational leadership and four-dimensional
commitment: mediating role of job characteristics and moderating role of participative
and directive leadership styles. Journal of Management Development.
Davids, N. and Waghid, Y., 2019. Educational Leadership Reconsidered: Re-Invoking Authority
in Schools. Africa Education Review, 16(2), pp.36-49.
Butt, R.S and et. al. 2019. Assessing the Impact of Leadership and Quality of Work Life on
Employees Job Satisfaction: Evidence from Jiangsu University.
Aravena, F., 2019. Destructive leadership behavior: An exploratory study in Chile. Leadership
and policy in schools, 18(1), pp.83-96. Journal of Management, Accounting and
Economics, 6(9), pp.655-671.
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