Roles and Characteristics of a Leader and a Manager in Operations Management

This document discusses the roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager in operations management. It explores how these roles apply in different situational contexts and discusses various theories and models of approach. It also highlights the importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives. The document is based on Soft Company, a mobile units manufacturing company.

Management and
Operations
Contents

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1. Define and Compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager........1
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................4
P2.Roles of a leader and the function of a manager apply in different situational context.........4
P3.Application of different theories and models of approach.....................................................5
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................7
P4. Key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers play....7
P5. The importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives......8
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................9
P6.The factor within the business environment that impact upon operational management and
decision making...........................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Operations and management refers to an activity of a business that assists in accomplishing
higher extent of effectiveness in the company. It is a procedure where raw material is converted
in to final product a services within the firm with purpose of increasing profit and productivity. It
assist in maintain the balance among cost and revenue of specific action in the administration an
enterprise (Gibson and Parkman, 2018). It mention as a managerial action that consist different
things like planning organising, directing and controlling diverse things in the administration.
This written document is based in Soft Company which is a mobile units manufacturing
company. This document will discuss about the roles and responsibilities of leader and the
manager in term of attaining set goals and objectives of the firm by serving the target market.
TASK 1
P1. Define and Compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager
Definition of leader- A leader indicates to an individual who encourage a team an d a group of
people so that they can feel motivated and work for accomplishing their designed aims n granted
time duration. They set a vision when employees of the company do work in group and influence
them by using their motivation skills so that people can effectively attain their goals.
Definition of manager- A manager is a person who is the incharge of a unit of individual to
execute a particular task of the firm. An administrator provides required resources and
information about strategies so that employees can according them or attain the business golas of
the company timely.
Roles of a leader- There are different roles that play by a leader within a firm, some of them are
mentioned as under:
Setting vision and mission- It is main role and responsibility of a leader. In Soft company, when
the firm set any business goal then leader set vision and mission to the employees who perform
in a team so that they can have clear information regarding business objective and help in
achieving in set time duration (Saucedo-Martínez and et. Al., 2018).
Motivation- When workforce of a company performs in a task then they require
encouragement and empowerment so that they can do their work with more effectiveness. Here,
by using the quality and skill of motivation leader pay an crucial role in term of motivating
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employees by conducting sessions etc. So that they can feel encourages and do their work in
proper manner.
Roles(Function) of manger- There are diverse roles that are performed by a manager, in context
of Soft Company, some roles of manager are defined as below:
Planning- In it, the manager of the respective company, make and devise plan and policies
regarding particular task and work so that the objective of that work can meet in crucial manner
by fulfilling task needs (Slack and Brandon-Jones, 2018).
Organising- It is another function, in it manager play and crucial role by organising training and
development sessions so the employees who are supporting in the work, can make improvement
in their skills and knowledge or do their work with more effectiveness.
Controlling- In this management function of Soft Company, the administration make control o
the task and business activities and operations by framing of developing strategies and tactics so
that it maintain the quality of work and do not impacted unfavourably.
Directing- By formulating plans and policies, the manger of Soft Company directing employees
of the company so that they can do their work in effective and systematic manner by considering
all the requirement of the task.
Characteristics of a leader- In context of Soft Company, the characteristics that a good leader
has, re defined as under:
Ability to face challenges- It is the main quality and trait of leader that an effective leader is
always ready to face challenges with the confidence in its approaches so that it can utilise of such
changes in the marketplace. They do not have kind of fear of the coming challenges in the
company.
Leadership skill and positive attitude- A good leader always encourages and direct its team
members so that they can execute in effective manner in the task and work regarding which they
are performing in for of attaining its aims and objectives.
Characteristics of a manager- In context of Soft Company, the attributes of an administrator
are explained as below:
Effective communication- A good manager is a one who have an effective communication skill
so that the person and communicate its employees regarding their roles and responsibilities,
strategies and way of working proper manner (Reid and Sanders, 2019). Apart from it, having
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this trait, the individual can make interaction with seniors and inform them about the working
procedure etc.
Delegation- It is another characteristic of a good administrator. If the manager of the respective
company has this trait then the person can do their work with more delegation and responsibility
then the work can be completed timely and appropriate manner (Meredith and Shafer, 2019).
Management style- There several management style like visionary, democratic,
transformational and coaching and these are adopt by the manager as per the situation so that the
person can effectively manage the business operation and workforce of the company in proper
way. In Soft Company by adopting democratic management style the manager can effectively
manage the firm.
Leadership style- There are different leadership styles such as autocratic, democratic,
participative and many others that are adopt by leader of a firm to motivate and encourage of the
employees. In respective firm, Joan Person have autocratic leadership style within which, the
person is responsible to take decision and all teammates follow that decision either they are
effective and ineffective.
Difference between leader and manager
Basis Manager Leader
Meaning It mention to a person who is
responsible to administrate
diverse activities and
operations of the company.
It refers to an individual who
make concentrate on
encouraging the team mates to
execute their work in better
manner within the firm.
Subordinates They have a team of workers
and managers to perform a
specific task and work.
Leader has workforce as
subordinates (Slack, 2018).
Risk taker Administrator take less risk
when they performing in a
task or project.
They take risk to accomplish
the objective of the task and
project in adequate way.
There are different theories and conceptions in the management like classical
management theory, management by objective etc. and leadership such as transactional theory of
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leadership, trait theory and transformational theory etc. In context of Soft Company, following
conceptions are applied in the firm for better execution.
Transformational theory of leadership- Within this leadership, a favourable change is seen in
people and in societal system (Choi, Walla and Wang, 2018). In it, followers are converted in to
leaders by making valuable and favourable changes in the followers. This system of leadership is
best suitable in the firm that aims for growth planning in the company so that there is no shortage
of leadership skills in the firm in upcoming time.
Classical theory of management- this concept is supported to the beliefs and values of the
workers in the company that only have physical and economic requirements and it does not take
in to account the societal needs of the employees. This concept is effective to those companies
where administration is only concerned about the productivity and not on the other requirements
of workforce.
Hard management skills- It mention that skills which are teachable abilities or skill sets that are
easily quantify. It can be describe to those competencies that have strong and certain control in
the work. Knowledge of computer, software, corporate training ad budget etc. is considered as
hard management skills.
Soft leadership skills- it mention to that skills that are easily adopt by a person in term of
development of the company. Communication, teamwork, problem solving, decision making and
motivation etc. Consider as soft leadership skills that are used by a leader for effective running of
a company.
TASK 2
P2.Roles of a leader and the function of a manager apply in different situational context
There are different roles and functions are played and executed by leaders and managers in
different situations. The explanation of some situation in context of Soft Company is defined as
below:
Rapid change- In current dynamic business environment, changes are occurred and generated in
consumer high basis. The respective company operate in mobile sector so there are different kind
of technical changes are occurred in trend of mobile industry (Fettermann and et. al., 2018). For
example, Soft Company manufactures mobile items. Now this different kind if technologies arise
in business atmosphere such as artificial intelligence, advance technology and many more. So
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deal with the situation of fast change, the management of respective company can adopt different
technologies and using them in mobile phones in form of features and implementing in
production process which help in making manufacturing activity easy and minimise cost of
production. In this situation both leader and manager play an effective role in term of supporting
origination. The manager can frame plans and strategies so that technologies could be implement
in effective manner (Mou, Robb and DeHoratius, 2018). The administrator also designs an
appropriate budget that helps in reducing production cost. Apart from it, the leader can conduct
training and learning sessions so the manufacturing team and other employees can make
development in their skills and do their work by implementing new technologies in proper
manner.
Conflict resolution- When this situation arises in a company, conflicts and
misunderstanding are occurred among employees, teammates and management due to ineffective
interaction and communication. This situation affects the company in unfavourable manner and
business operations of it. In context of Soft Company, if this kind of condition occurs in the
respective firm, the leader and manager play an effective role by making effective
communication like open communication. So that employees can share their issues and problems
with their senior and top management. Within this situation, the manger can use problem solving
skill and work for resolving issue in the administration for having better execution and
developing profit and productivity of the company.
P3.Application of different theories and models of approach
There are several approaches and concepts that help in having effective leadership in the
firm to accomplish the set goals and aims of the organisation. The description of different
leadership conceptions that can be implemented by Soft Company to get effective outcomes.
Situational leadership- in this leadership theory, a leader cannot rely on the administrative form
to fit in all condition. Here, leader and administrator should be flexible in their leadership forms
to gain effective outcome in the market. This concept consist leadership style like telling, selling,
participating and delegating (Hazen and et. al., 2018). All these styles can be adopted by the
individual as per the situation so that the set business goals can be achieved in effective manner.
Soft Company can use this theory because it is flexible in nature; make improvement as per
different situations and form an effective cooperation among group members and determining
diverse extent f maturity of people in the firm.
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Strengths- This theory is beneficial because it encourage leaders and employees to be
accountable for their work and decision. The person who delegate its responsibilities, have time
to concentrate on other matters.
Weaknesses- The main drawback of this concept is that this kind of leadership is open to abuse
the power (Lee and Tang, 2018). Apart from it, the person who delegate the wok but responsible
still lies with the leader.
System leadership theory- It enables that leader in a company can arise a situation where
all the employees can perform at their full productivity extents. In reference to Soft Company,
this concept assist in offering safe, healthy and friendly workplace where employees of the firm
can perform their roles and responsibility in effective manner. This concept can be effective for
respective company because it utilises the principle about the human behaviour to generate
models of good leadership, organisational plan of action, system design and social activity. It
also assists in predicting the individual’s behaviour in the firm. This conception is effective for
building and framing effective system that offers productive behaviour. It is crucial for
organisation as it concentrates on attaining the workers and business objectives of the enterprise.
Strengths- The major advantage of this concept is that it maximise the company business
atmosphere. It concentrates on accomplishing individual and organisational goals.
Weaknesses- The main disadvantage of this theory is that it directs to delay in determination
devising. Apart from it, nature of inter dependence is not fixed.
Contingency leadership theory- In this leadership, there is a special form of approach that
mentions that development of leader does not based on their abilities. There are several
components like culture and working environment etc. of an enterprise that influence the success
of the individual (Zurich, Instruction and Documentation, 2018). This concept can be
implemented by the management of Soft Company because it modifies as per the condition and
changes policies of the company. It states that effectiveness of a leader is contingent over
leadership forms to the situation and can be flexible cause of alteration in situation.
Strengths- This conception is effective because it assists leader to improve their leadership
abilities. It also helps in framing the organisational framework.
Weaknesses- It is reactive in nature which is different to handle the situations. Another
disadvantage is that it have complex advance when it come to practical things
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Applications of Chaos Theory and management s- It is a scientific principle that defined the
erratically of systems such as weather patterns, eco systems and water flows. It looks at certain
system that is very sensitive (Lee, 2018). In Soft Company, if the administration of the firm will
implement this concept then they can accept the changes in easy manner and able to manage
different situation that are arise cause of flexibility of the firm.
TASK 3
P4. Key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers play
Total quality management- It explain as a customer oriented process and aims for
continuous development of business activities and operations. TQM is an ongoing activity that
helps in reducing issue and complexities in the manufacturing activity, streamlining supply chin
administration and improving consumer experiences. Apart from it, it also make sure that
employees are speed up with the training and learning. With the application of this method, the
administration do Soft Company can develop its production process and reducing those
complexities that are occurring within it.
Roles of leader- The individuals play an effective role in term of assuring effective
engagement and utilisation of workforce in performing organisation’s activities. They are also
responsible to frame execution measurement for the actions and activities.
Roles of manager- The managers play an efficient role by making sure ongoing
improvement of the business and production process. They also concentrate on intrinsic as well s
extrinsic consumers so that needs and necessities can be determined and development can be
devising accordant their requirement.
Just in time- It indicates as a tool and technique that can be implemented by the
management of the company to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the organisation. In
Soft Company, the management can apply it in firm with the purpose of reduction in wastage to
acquire commodities when they are needed to produce from material activity.
Roles of leader- In this, leader pay an effective role by making assurance that workforce are
effectively have information about their roles and responsibilities that will perform (Kapadia,
Dong and Yang, 2018).
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Roles of manager- Business administrators play a crucial role by maintain and building
effective relation with suppliers so that they can offer needed material on time and the
production process can be run in proper way.
Continuous improvement or Kizen- This approach can be implemented by the firm with the
motive of making improvement in the functions and business of the venture (Rumble, 2019). In
Soft Company thus method can be implemented by the administration to reduce the waste in all
systems by improving standardised actions and activities. With the assistance of it, they can
empower development of teamwork so that the firm can accomplish high extents of quality and
innovation.
Roles of leader- Leader play a crucial role by performing their duties in term of finding out
that which worker will be in the team for a specific task and work.
Roles of manage- In this approach, the administrator pay n essential role in identifying the
scope of task and determine the growth of Kizen team.
P5. The importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives
Operation management states to the activity of administrating the business companies
functions, actions and their operations that are performing by the management of the company to
run the business. In context of Soft Company, the administration of firm assess in monitoring the
actions of manufacturing and program business firm actions in the production of the
commodities and services. The importance and value of operations management in
accomplishing business aims can be defined by diverse operation management functions that are
described as below:
Control and distribution system- It is crucial substitute in operation management that help
to make efficiency on production activity of the firm. This function is crucial for the
organisations because it is accountable to make control on manufacturing action and ensuring
appropriate distribution of the commodities with the purpose of fulfilling the goals and aims of
the enterprise (Ivanov, 2018). The effectiveness of this function can be improved by adopting a
strong and effective control system and to improve the logistics infrastructural of the company in
reference to accomplishment of the goals of the enterprise. By implementing this function, the
management of Soft Company can properly manage its resources and minimise the waste in
production of goods.
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Logistic and inventory- It is another important function of operation management. When the
organisation will not have proper support of logistic then commodities cannot be supply in the
market at the time when the level of requirement is high due to its number of consumers. In Soft
Company, with the implementation of this function, the firm can concentrate on administration
of goods to stock the worthless product of manufacturing (Gibson and Parkman, 2018). It is
crucial for the company because it assist in devising the efficacious management of commodities
and services that are needed in the marketplace. So that the venture can efficiently provide
satisfaction to consumers needs and demand timely.
Process design- This function is effective for the firm as it can help in conducting and
generating manufacturing activities of the enterprise. It is crucial for Soft Company because with
the help of it administration of respective organisation can make development in the production
actions according to consumer’s needs and demands. It is important for the firm as it enable to
attain the business goals and aims in form of offering products and services to potential clients as
per their necessities.
In context of Soft Company, leader and administrator of this firm concentrate on
improving profit and enhancing productivity by making control on the waste with the help of
different functions of operation management. By implementing different approaches like TQM,
JIT and continuous improvement, they can make development in the production process and
manage its resources in effective way.
TASK 4
P6.The factor within the business environment that impact upon operational management and
decision making
Corporate Social Responsibility- It is defined as a business function that contributes to the
sustainable improvement by delivering economical, social and environmental advantages to all
its stakeholders. In Soft Company, the management of the firm can frame short term goals and
aims so that employees can attain them in less time duration or set time frame (Saucedo-
Martínez and et. Al., 2018). This motivates employees and they execute their tasks and assigned
work by utilising their all efficaciousness. It fix the business company environment and the
decision making of eth company as the management consider determination accordant it and
formulate plan and strategies accordingly. The company also ensure that a specific portion of its
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profit of their corporate social responsibility policy that is framed for providing benefits to local
community. If the administration of the firm develops CSR policy of the enterprise in favourable
manner then it affect the decision making that accurate in existence and can be effective for the
growth and development o society.
Culture- It is defined as beliefs, values, thoughts and social demeanour of the people of a
particular area. The culture of a specific place is created impact over the business environment of
a company in positive and negative manner. It also plays an important role in operation
management at time of performing activities and operation in manufacturing of gods and
services (Slack and Brandon-Jones, 2018). In Soft Company, by considering the working
environment culture in performing business activities and operation, the management of the
company can create a favourable impact over the profit and productivity of the organisation.
Because by offering an effective workplace culture where employees can do their in proper way
that will help in developing production process.
Value- They is defined as the standards and principle of people’s behaviour. In Soft
Company, values play a crucial role because by improving and modifying the products and
service after determining the values of target audiences of a particular region. In determination
devising activity if the mangers take decision of manufacturing products by considering the
values consumers then they positively impact the business operations and activities of enterprise.
Ethics- If the administration of respective firm follows the CSR then it must analyse the
ethical business and ensure that the actions of the company do not influence the stakeholder of
the businesses and also the business environment. In Soft Company, the administration of the
firm should execute its CSR activities by consisting the ethics so that they cannot harm the
society. It also produce commodities effectively in order to fulfil individuals need or by
including their ethical and cultural requirements.
Sustainability- It is described as a system that focuses on satisfying the necessities of customers.
It is an essential approach for each business as the goal of it saving the resource that will be
required by the company in future(Reid and Sanders, 2019). In Soft Company, sustainability
form an effective impact in the operation administration in form of sustainably assure that the
resources and origins of the firm are utilised in an proper way in the company without
misutilising is so that it help in developing the effectiveness of the operation management.
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CONCLUSION
This has been concluded from the above mentioned information that operation management
is an activity of administrating operation and actions of a business function so that the business
of the firm can run and operate in effective manner. By making control, manage, direct motivate
and empower employees, manager and leader play a crucial role in growth and development of
the company. Different operation management approaches help in administrating production
process and several functions of operation management help in minimising the wastage from the
manufacturing activity. Different leadership and management concepts are effective to direct and
guide the workforce so that they can execute their roles and responsibility in crucial manner.
There are several business environment factors that affect the business and decision making of
leaders and managers in several ways.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Gibson, P. and Parkman, R., 2018. Cruise operations management: hospitality perspectives.
Routledge.
Saucedo-Martínez, J.A. and et. Al., 2018. Industry 4.0 framework for management and
operations: a review. Journal of ambient intelligence and humanized computing. 9(3).
pp.789-801.
Slack, N. and Brandon-Jones, A., 2018. Operations and process management: principles and
practice for strategic impact. Pearson UK.
Reid, R.D. and Sanders, N.R., 2019. Operations management: an integrated approach. John
Wiley & Sons.
Meredith, J.R. and Shafer, S.M., 2019. Operations and supply chain management for MBAs.
Wiley.
Slack, N., 2018. Essentials of operations management. Pearson UK.
Choi, T.M., Wallace, S.W. and Wang, Y., 2018. Big data analytics in operations
management. Production and Operations Management. 27(10). pp.1868-1883.
Fettermann, D.C. and et. al., 2018. How does Industry 4.0 contribute to operations
management?. Journal of Industrial and Production Engineering. 35(4). pp.255-268.
Mou, S., Robb, D.J. and DeHoratius, N., 2018. Retail store operations: Literature review and
research directions. European Journal of Operational Research. 265(2). pp.399-422.
Hazen, B.T. and et. al., 2018. Back in business: Operations research in support of big data
analytics for operations and supply chain management. Annals of Operations
Research, 270(1-2). pp.201-211.
Lee, H.L. and Tang, C.S., 2018. Socially and environmentally responsible value chain
innovations: New operations management research opportunities. Management
Science. 64(3). pp.983-996.
Zurich, B.L.L., Instruction, X. and Documentation, X., 2018. Service operations and
management. Master of Science in Engineering, p.380.
Lee, C.K.H., 2018. A review of applications of genetic algorithms in operations
management. Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence. 76. pp.1-12.
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Kapadia, S., Dong, L. and Yang, Y., Cisco Technology Inc, 2018. Operations, administration
and management (OAM) in overlay data center environments. U.S. Patent 10,116,559.
Rumble, G., 2019. The planning and management of distance education. Routledge.
Ivanov, D., 2018. Structural dynamics and resilience in supply chain risk management (Vol.
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