Approaches to Operations Management and Role of Leaders and Managers

This document discusses the key approaches to operations management and the role played by leaders and managers in an organization. It covers topics such as continuous improvement and total quality management.

Management and
Operations

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1) Defining and Comparing the Role and Characteristics of Leaders and Managers...............1
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................3
P2) Application of the Role of Leader and Functions of Manager in Organisational Context...3
P3) Different Theories and Models of Approach Such as Situational Leadership Style, System
Leadership and Contingency Leadership....................................................................................4
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................6
P4) Key Approaches to Operations Management and Role Played by Leaders and Managers..6
P5) Importance and Value of Operations Management in Achieving Business Objectives.......7
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................7
P6) Factors Impacting Upon the Operational Management and Decision Making of Leaders
and Managers..............................................................................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Management refers to the process of managing different tasks which are performed in an
organisation in an efficient and effective manner so that the company's working could be
continued in a coordinated way and achievement of goals and objectives of the organisation
could be made successful (Bromiley and Rau, 2016). With the help of proper management of
resources in an organisation, it will be possible to make improvement in the working and
processes of an organisation. Along with this, it will also help the company to make optimum
utilisation of resources with the help of which it will be possible to lower down the cost of
production of the organisation as well. The company chosen for the completion of this
assignment is Marks and Spencer which was founded in the year 1884 and is headquartered in
London. The company was founded by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer and on their name,
the company was given with the name of Marks and Spencer. The assignment will start with
making its focus on comparison in between the role of leader and manager along with doing
appreciation of role of managers and leaders in the organisation in operation function within the
firm. Lastly, the discussion in this assignment will be made on understanding the relationship in
between management and leadership within business environment will get covered.
TASK 1
P1) Defining and Comparing the Role and Characteristics of Leaders and Managers
Leaders are the individuals who have the power to impact upon the mindset and thinking
of other individuals in the way in which they want from them. In other words, these individuals
know how to influence other people. So with the help of this power, the leader encourages the
employees to make improvement in their working and also for the achievement of the goals and
objectives of the organisation in an efficient and effective manner (Chevalier and et. al., 2015).
There are different characteristics of leader which are important and differentiates it from other
individuals. These have been provided as under:
Hard worker: The first and foremost important characteristic of a leader is to be a hard worker.
In order to make others to work the same, it is important for the leader to be the first example for
them so that the followers could also follow the way on which the leader wants from them to
move on.
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Positive Attitude: It is also important for the leader to have positive attitude as with the help of
this, the followers morale will be kept up and this positive attitude makes impossible things to be
completed. So this attitude is important in leaders to have so as to accomplish different tasks in
an effective manner.
Role of Leader:
 The leader is provided with the role of motivating the employees as with the help of this,
it will be possible to make improvement in the level of performance of employees related
to the work provided to them (Chiarini and Vagnoni, 2015).
 In addition to this, it is also the role of leader to take into consideration the goals and
objectives of both the company and the employees as well so that there should be no one
whose interest is violated.
Managers: These are those individuals who are assigned with the working managing different
tasks which are performed in an organisation as for their effective accomplishment and
achievement of the goals and objectives of their organisation.
Characteristics of Manager: There are many important and different characteristics of manager
which are important for efficient working of an organisation such as Marks and Spencer which
have been provided as under:
 Communication is an important characteristic of manager in which the mangers are
required to make transfer of important information to the employees and also tell them
about their roles and responsibilities so that they could do their work in the best possible
way.
 Managers delegate authority and responsibility to their employees so that they could also
be motivated to improve their working accomplish their tasks in the organisation.
Role of Managers:
 Managers are required to assess and guide employees so that they could complete the
work provided to them in an efficient way (Gibson and Parkman, 2018).
 Resources required to employees for completing their tasks are covered in the
responsibility of managers.
 They are also required to monitor the work progress and performance of employees and
take actions to make improvement in the overall performance of their employees.
Similarities and Differences in Between Leader and Manager:
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Basis Leader Manager
Meaning Leaders are the person who considers
the interest of organisation as well as of
the employees as well.
Managers works for the achievement
of goals and objectives of their
respective organisation only.
Approach The main focus of leader is on setting
goals and objectives for their
organisation (Heizer, Render and
Munson, 2017).
While, managers assign strategies and
policies for the organisation.
Subordinate The multitudes are considered as the
subordinates.
Here, employees are said as the
subordinates.
Style The leadership style followed is
Transformational Leadership Style.
The style chosen by managers is
Transactional Leadership Style.
Decision These are held responsible for
facilitating decisions.
On the other hand, these are held
responsible for making decisions.
Aim Their aim is to achievement of
individual and organisational goals as
well.
Here, the outcomes are related to
achievement of organisational goals
only.
TASK 2
P2) Application of the Role of Leader and Functions of Manager in Organisational Context
The main purpose of managers and leaders in an organisation to make improvement in
the working ways of their organisation and clearing the path of organisation towards the way of
its goals and objectives as required to be achieved in an effective and efficient way. There are
different management styles and leadership styles with the help of which it will be possible to
make sure about the effective running of an organisation. Marks and Spencer could make use of
different management and leadership styles that could be used in order to make improvement in
the overall level of working of an organisation and to make effective achievement of the results
of their organisations' working (Hitt, Xu and Carnes, 2016). So the examples where the role of
leader and manager will suit best in different situations in the organisation are provided as under:
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Change Management: In marketplace there are different sort of changes happened because of
progress in taste and inclination of clients. For instance, to screen the change and necessity of the
individuals, Marks and Spencer create Slack, a group informing application to give fulfilment to
the requirements of people and organisation. There are different applications which are useful to
share data however they are utilized for their typical communication so the possibility of
imparting data to others are high. Because of which a circumstance made leakage of information.
With the assistance of initiative and the executives aptitudes Marks and Spencer help individuals
and organizations b y building up this application.
Conflict Management: It is another circumstance which is exceptionally influence the matter of
organizations and individual too. On the off chance that the managers and leader of an
organization share any data to colleagues and any individual from the group was not get data
then there are high possibility of raising issues and concerns. So by utilizing their management
and the leadership, Marks and Spencer configuration group informing application. Which is
useful to defeat conflicting situations (Mahadevan, 2015).
To make improvement in these situations, it is important for Marks and Spencer to make
use of Classical Management Theory. With its help, they can oversee data in regards to
colleagues and offer with the assistance of it which help in limiting clashes and spillage of the
information. With the assistance of Transformational Leadership Theory, the individual can
conquer fast change circumstance. With the help of this managers Marks and Spencer can screen
the circumstance of progress and satisfy the need of people and supervisors by offering this
application.
P3) Different Theories and Models of Approach Such as Situational Leadership Style, System
Leadership and Contingency Leadership
There are different ideas that can be use by Marks and Spencer to oversee and impact
workers of the organization with the goal that they can feel inspired and utilize their efforts and
viability for the development and improvement of their organisation. Various theories and
models to circumstances inside to workplace are as following:
Situational Leadership Style: This theory is defined by Paul Hersey to manage various
circumstances. It notices to an approach of leadership in which capacities and activities perform
by managers as per the circumstance. This approach include four driving structure, for example,
telling, selling, participating and delegating. With its help, Marks and Spencer can create plans
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and approaches as per the circumstance and give an organized work wherein representatives can
perform viably according to the circumstance.
Leadership Role: In this leadership theory, managers assume a viable job by creating and
planning plans and approaches as indicated by the circumstance with the goal that they can
perform appropriately to achieve goal of the organization.
Management Role: In this managers, supervisor of the organization likewise help in estimating
the circumstance and creating plans and strategies as indicated by the circumstance which is
gainful for associations development and advancement.
System Leadership Theory: It is an authority style and approach which is utilized by the
organization to work in a suitable way with the goal that set objectives of the organization can
accomplished in appropriate manner (Meindl, 2016). With the assistance of this initiative
managers, Marks and Spencer can build up a solid, protected and secure workplace where
representative of the organization can play out their obligations and help Marks and Spencer to
achieve points which are set by the individual in regards to business. In the event that the
managers pursue this managers, at that point the individual can configuration plans, techniques
and arrangements with the goal that allocated assignment can be performed in methodical
manner according to the circumstance.
Leadership Role: In this leadership approach, managers give a sound and safe workplace so
representatives can work successfully without out confronting any issue and accomplish set
targets in given time period. The managers give a structure to the employees with the goal that
they can work in efficient way.
Management Role: Here, the manager of Marks and Spencer keeps an eye on the rules and
regulations of the organisation along with providing the employees with right to make the
completion of their work in an effective way. Also the managers help leaders to formulate
suitable plans and policies for the effective completion of different tasks of the organisation.
Fiedler's Contingency Model-This model and approach of authority is created by Fred Edward
Fielder to estimated the skills and empowering the representatives of the firm. Marks and
Spencer can utilize this managers for the inspiration of the labourers of the association with the
goal that they can make their investment to achieve set targets suitably. This methodology of
authority can be utilized by the managers according to the circumstance and abilities of the
labourers.
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Leadership Role: In this initiative model, managers work to rouse representatives with the goal
that they can finish their work on schedule. The managers likewise screen the aptitudes and
abilities of representatives and dispense or dole out work as indicated by it (Reid and Sanders,
2015).
Management Role: Managers define task as indicated by employees' abilities and circumstance.
So they can play out their allocated obligations in appropriate manner.
TASK 3
P4) Key Approaches to Operations Management and Role Played by Leaders and Managers
Different approaches that are covered in Operations Management that can be used to
control and measure operations working of the organisation such as Marks and Spencer. The
explanation has been provided as under:
Continuous Improvement: In order to stand in a market, it is important for the companies to
make improvement in the level of their products and services on regular basis with the help of
which it could become possible to provide them with something special and new which are other
competitors are not able to provide them. So due to this reason, it has been said to Marks and
Spencer to make application of this analysis in the working of their organisation so that the
organisational goals and objectives could be achieved in an efficient and effective manner. For
this, market analysis is also important on regular basis because with the help of market analysis,
it will be possible for Marks and Spencer to provide their customers with their own new needs
and demands for providing satisfaction to their customers and gaining market share as much as
possible. The role of leader in this approach is to measure the performance and monitor as well
of their employees (Saucedo-Martínez and et. al., 2018). On the other hand, the managers looks
out on the production process of the organisation whether it is working properly or not.
Total quality management – This is a method used for maintaining the quality of
offerings provided to customers. The primary objective of this approach is to manage and
improve the quality of products or services offered by the company. In relation to M&S Total
quality management is defined as a process of describing and managing the long term success. It
helps in improving the process, services and products within the organisation. Their is
requirement to develop and maintain good reputation in the market by providing standard quality
apparels to the customers. M&S deals in retail chain and therefore, its important for company to
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focus on improving the quality of products that are offered to customers. In order to improve its
brand image in terms of quality the company conducted various feedback and surveys from the
customers. As from the name of this approach, it has been made clear that the following
approach does not focuses on any single aspect but this approach covers the overall processes of
the organisation. It focuses on making use of that strategy or policy with the help of which it will
be possible to cover all the processes of the organisation so that the improvement could be made
in the overall working of the organisation and their goals and objectives could also be achieved.
The application of this analysis in the working of Marks and Spencer will also be beneficial for
the company as it will provide the company with the chances to make improvement in the overall
level of working of the organisation and along with this the quality of their products and services
will also tend to improve which directly impact in positive way on the satisfaction level of their
customers. Due to this reason, the following approach has been said to be adopted by Marks and
Spencer.
Six Sigma – This is consider as a statistical approach for identifying and implementing
the improvement in the products and services of the company. The primary objective of six
sigma is to make changes in the process in order to improve the quality of output. This tool is
used by Marks & Spencer for enhancing the quality of products and services that they are
offering. The company need to update its technology in order to improve the efficiency of
working which will lead into time and cost reduction. As a result, they are able to address and
solve customer problems and improved its customer experience by using six sigma principles.
Lean production – This method is used in order to minimise wastage without
compromising in the quality of products and services. Marks & Spencer by cutting down its extra
production cost has reduced the wastage and able to maintain its quality of products. This
method has helped in improving the efficiency of workforce within the company.
P5) Importance and Value of Operations Management in Achieving Business Objectives
Operations Management refers to the term in which business concerns are managed in
order to achieve efficiency in the business operations for the achievement of goals and objectives
of their organisation. The value and effectiveness of the operations management is provided as
under:
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Control and Design System: It is a basic utility in activity the board and useful to control
operation management and protecting appropriate course of action of the products so as to
execute the goals of the organization. In Marks and Spencer, with the assistance of this capacity,
the organization can build up a solid control framework. With its help, the management of the
firm can make control on the wastage and circulation of assets as indicated by the various
methods of wastage minimization and assembling products (Song and Parola, 2015).
Process Design: It is an another capacity of activity the executives which is useful to structure
and create generation or assembling system of the organization. It is significant for Marks and
Spencer in light of the fact that with its assistance, the management of separate organization can
make improvement in its generation procedure and assembling products as indicated by
customers needs and demands. It will be useful to satisfy the set targets of the firm and give
fulfilment to customers needs. The effectiveness of this procedure is useful to the organisation to
acquire efficiency and productivity by utilizing and executing precise process.
TASK 4
P6) Factors Impacting Upon the Operational Management and Decision Making of Leaders and
Managers
There are different elements which impacts upon the decision making process of the
management of an organisation such as Marks and Spencer. So it is also important for Marks and
Spencer to make reduction in the level of interference of these factors or elements in the working
of their organisation for its effective functioning. These elements are being provided as under:
Factor Affecting Operations Management:
International Competition: The products and services in which Marks and Spencer deals in are
also provided by different companies or competitors and who are also making their operations at
the international level. So in order to gain competitive advantage over their competitors, it is
important for the company to make changes in their strategies and policies and hence, the
operations management in influenced.
Factor Impacting Upon Decision Making Decision Making Process:
Political: Here, the consideration is related to the political stability, governmental policies, rules
and regulations, consumer laws, tax policy, foreign policy which impacts upon the strategies and
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policies of an organisation such as Marks and Spencer (Uhl and Gollenia, 2016). Hence, the
decision making process of the company has been impacted.
CONCLUSION
From the above provided data, it has been concluded that organization is a fundamental
perspective which is useful to deal with the association's tasks and exercises. Activity the board
is additionally significant for the improvement and development of the association provided that
the tasks and activities of a firm with respect to any assignment are performed in proper way
then the organization can achieve the business goals in set time frame. Leaders and managers
play strong character to spurring and empowering employees of the organization with the goal
that they can make support in organisational development. Various parts, for example,
civilisation, CSR, morals and others are make impact upon useful organization and assurance
concocting of managers and leaders.
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REFERENCES
Books & Journals
Bromiley, P. and Rau, D., 2016. Operations management and the resource based view: Another
view. Journal of Operations Management. 41. pp.95-106.
Chevalier, P. and et. al., 2015. Revenue management for operations with urgent
orders. European Journal of Operational Research. 240(2). pp.476-487.
Chiarini, A. and Vagnoni, E., 2015. World-class manufacturing by Fiat. Comparison with
Toyota production system from a strategic management, management accounting,
operations management and performance measurement dimension. International
Journal of Production Research. 53(2). pp.590-606.
Gibson, P. and Parkman, R., 2018. Cruise operations management: Hospitality perspectives.
Routledge.
Heizer, J., Render, B. and Munson, C., 2017. Operations management. Pearson Education
Limited.
Hitt, M. A., Xu, K. and Carnes, C. M., 2016. Resource based theory in operations management
research. Journal of Operations Management. 41. pp.77-94.
Mahadevan, B., 2015. Operations management: Theory and practice. Pearson Education India.
Meindl, S. C. P., 2016. Supply Chain Management--Strategy, Planning and Operation. Tsinghua
University Press. wheat soybean others land for no use.
Reid, R. D. and Sanders, N. R., 2015. Operations Management, Binder Ready Version: An
Integrated Approach. John Wiley & Sons.
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.
Song, D. W. and Parola, F., 2015. Strategising port logistics management and operations for
value creation in global supply chains.
Uhl, A. and Gollenia, L. A. eds., 2016. A handbook of business transformation management
methodology. Routledge.
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