Management Accounting: Research & Trends

This assignment delves into the current landscape of management accounting research. It examines various research approaches, highlights key findings on topics like corporate social responsibility, environmental management, and the role of psychology in management accounting. The analysis also explores the convergence between management and financial accounting, influenced by advancements in information technology. Finally, the assignment discusses the practical implications of management accounting research for practitioners in both public and private sectors.

Management and
Operations

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Roles & characteristics of leader and manager......................................................................1
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................3
P2 Role of leader and function of manager apply in different situations....................................3
P3 Application of leadership and management theories.............................................................5
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................7
P4 Key approaches to operations management & role that managers and leaders play.............7
P5 Significance & value of operations management in attaining business objectives................8
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................9
P6 Impact of business environment factors on operation management & decision making......9
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION
Operations management is an important function of every organisation that deals in
transformation of raw materials in finished goods. It is related with manufacturing of goods and
services. Its main purpose is to run operations of business smoothly and successfully by using
minimum resources (Introduction to Operations Management, 2018). It is a crucial factor that
enhance profitability of company in effective manner. This department ensures optimum
utilization of resources as well as controls cost of production process without compromising in
quality. In the present assignment, given organisation is Toyota Motor Company which deals in
automobile sector and manufacture cars with high quality features. The report includes roles and
functions of managers and leaders and its application in different situations. It also defines
various leadership theories as well as approaches to operations management. Value and
importance of operations management in attaining business objectives and influence of business
environment factors on decision making process and operations of firm is defined in this project.
TASK 1
P1 Roles & characteristics of leader and manager
Leadership refers to the ability of Firm's management to set and attain challenging goals,
take decisive action, outperform competition as well as inspires other people to perform well. It
is an art of motivating individuals to work towards accomplishment of common goal. Leaders
are the individuals who leads group of people or organisation. They establish clear vision,
sharing it with others, provide information and knowledge to realize that vision. Leaders are the
person who holds dominant position in its field and have ability to exercise high control or
influence on others (Angelakis, Theriou and Floropoulos, 2010).
Management consist of activities of setting strategy for firm and coordinating efforts of
workforce to attain objectives by application of financial, technological, physical and human
resources. It consist interlocking functions of developing corporate policy, organising, planning,
directing and controlling resources of company to attain objectives effectively. Manager is a
person who is responsible for administering or controlling a group of staff or an organisation.
Manager is an individual who manage people, activities and resources within firm. They
formulate policies, motivate employees, supervise activities, coordinate teams for directing the
firm's progress.
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Managers and leaders, both are key personnels of an organisation. They play crucial role
growth and success of an organisation. Various roles and responsibilities are performed by them
in order to attain predetermined objectives and targets of company (Baldvinsdottir, Mitchell and
Nørreklit, 2010). They apply their knowledge and skills to enhance functions and operations of
firm. In Toyota Motor Company, managers and leaders motivate their staff members and
encourage them to take participation in activities of firm. They take various decisions regarding
issues and operations of company so that business activities can run smoothly.
Characteristics and roles of leaders and manager:
Similarities:
There are many similarities among leaders and manager like:
Motivators: They are good motivators and motivates their staff members to work in more
better way towards attainment of goals and objectives Toyota Motor Company.
Positive attitude: Manager and Leader of refereed organisation carry positive attitude that
helps them in performing their duties in more better manner. By their positive attitude, they
inspire others.
Decision makers: They both have good decision making ability and take various
decisions so that operations and functions of Toyota Motor Company can be run smoothly and
successfully.
Good communication skills: Leader and manager have excellent communication skills
which facilitates them in interacting with employees and conveying important information
effectively (Chenhall and Smith, 2011).
Differences:
Apart from above mentioned similarities, there are some differences between managers
and leaders which are defined below:
Manager Leader
 In Toyota Motor Company, manager
manage all the functions and activities
of firm in structured & systematic
manner.
 Manager frame strategies and develop
plans in order to formulate teams and
 Leaders of Toyota Motor Company
influence their staff members and
administer them direction to attain
goals of firm.
 Leaders look on issues that takes place
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attain objectives of Toyota.
 Managers of Toyota takes decisions
regarding activities and functions of
company so that these can be
performed in well manner.
 In Toyota, managers mainly emphasize
of managing work and derive effective
results.
in Toyota and draw effective solutions.
 Toyota leaders takes decisions related
with timely completion of tasks &
activities so that goals can be attained.
 In Toyota, leaders mainly emphasize on
influencing people, leading teams and
gain achievements.
A very crucial role is played by managers and leaders in Toyota Motor Company towards
attainment of defined objectives and targets of firm (Cinquini and Tenucci, 2010). They
identify and understand needs of their team members & fulfil those in order to keep them
motivated and satisfied. All the employees collectively work towards attainment of common
goal. They provide appropriate training to their staff members so that their skills and knowledge
can be enhanced in an effective manner.
TASK 2
P2 Role of leader and function of manager apply in different situations
In Toyota Motor Company, leader and manager play vital role in its growth and success.
They take major decisions regarding functions and operations of firm. Toyota is one of the
largest automobile manufacturing company which is known for its high quality cars. Due to its
effective management and leadership abilities, firm attain high growth and capture large market
share. Its operational excellence depicts by its business success. Manager and leader of firm
formulate various strategies in order to gain competitive advantage in market. For attaining
predetermined objectives of company, they apply their skills and competencies. There are many
situations that takes place in organisation in which both managers and leaders play vital role.
Some of the situations are defined below:
Vision, mission and goals setting: Manager set goals, vision and mission of company
and discuss it with top management (Contrafatto and Burns, 2013). They analyse market trends
and competitors and according to that formulate goals of company. Leaders relate these to
organisational culture. They play important role in reconciling personal goals with company
goals. Leaders work towards attainment of these vision, mission and goals. They coordinate
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efforts of workforce towards common purpose for attainment of these. This can only be done by
working with cooperation and urge to attain goals. In Toyota Motor Company, goals, vision and
mission are clearly defined by manager and leader put their whole efforts in integrating these
goals with personal goals. This assists them in successful attainment of goals and objectives of
company (Figge and Hahn, 2013).
Goals and objectives achievements: In this situation, manager assigned tasks and
elaborate all the activities and functions that needs to be performed by employees for attainment
of predefined goals and objectives of company. A proper plan is formulated by manager that
provides them direction for future course of action. Leaders motivate their team members to
work towards attainment of defined goals. They encourage their team to perform their
responsibilities in more effective manner and work hard towards attainment of firm's objectives.
In Toyota Motor Company, manager define goals and objectives and leaders work towards
attainment to these. They motivate their staff and encourage them to perform their duties in more
effective manner for successful attainment of these.
Strategy formulation: Manager play crucial role in formulation of strategies. At times,
there are many issues and challenges that are face by company. In these situations, managers
formulate effective strategies in order to effectively deal with them. Here, role that leaders play
is proper implementation of these strategies. This is done by coordinating efforts of team as well
as resources. Effective execution of strategies ensures timely completion of activities. The
managers of Toyota Motor Company frame effective strategies and leaders ensures their proper
implementation. It is the major reason behind growth and success of Toyota.
Dealing with change management: In the process of change management, both leaders
and manager play vital role. Managers react to change that takes place in market. They identify
them, refine systems, processes and structures in order to make them better whereas leaders
create change. They embrace these changes & know that if things are working, it could be better
to move forward. They understand the fact that modifications to system often times create waves
but they accept it (Fullerton, Kennedy and Widener, 2013). By adopting change, they bring
innovation in firm. In Toyota Motor Company, manager as well as leader accept change and
adopt them. This assists them in manufacturing cars with innovative features.
Improve organisational culture: Both manager and leader work to improve culture of
organisation. They provide positive work surroundings to their workforce which helps them in
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increasing motivation of employees. It assist in introducing good organisational culture and
ethical working can be done in company. In Toyota, good culture of workplace fosters ethical
working among employees (Fullerton, Kennedy and Widener, 2014).
Enhance organisational performance: In order to improve performance of firm,
managers plan various activities and programmes for employees and leader ensure their
effective implementation. They identify skill needs of manpower and administer them
appropriate training. This helps in improving their skills and competencies which ultimately
improves their morale. All this put positive impact on performance of Toyota as well as its
employees.
Deal with uncertainty: At times when uncertainty happens at workplace, it becomes very
difficult for organisation to manage things. So, in order to effectively deal with such
uncertainties, a contingency plan is formulated by manager which helps them in effectively deal
with situation of uncertainty. Leaders play crucial role in effective implementation of this plan.
In Toyota Motor Company, manager formulate effective strategies that assists them in handling
uncertainties in effective and efficient manner.
P3 Application of leadership and management theories
Management and leadership is an important concept that assists in making an
organisation successful by maximizing its efficiency. In Toyota Motor Company, various
theories are applied by manager and leader in order to motivate their workforce. These
approaches helps in developing positive environment within workplace. Some approaches of
leadership are defined below:
Situational leadership theory: This approach states that if leadership is effective then
individual can be able to deal with any situation. They are able to analyse the factors and deal
with them effectively by adopting his own style (Giovannoni, Maraghini and Riccaboni, 2011).
It is necessary for manager and leader to have good skills and knowledge that are required to
handle different situations effectively.
Advantages:
 Major advantage of this theory is its adaptability. It can be applied in various situations
as it is easily understandable, practical and intuitively sensible. This approach put emphasis on flexibility of leader. It reminds them to treat their
subordinates equally and provide them equal opportunities to grow.
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Disadvantages:
It is unclear that how this model match style of leader with subordinate development.
It fails to address the way to deal with certain demographic characteristics that impacts on
leaders subordinates prescriptions (Haiza Muhammad Zawawi and Hoque, 2010).
Application:
This approach is applied by manager of Toyota Motor Company in initial stage of their
project. It can be apply at the time when subordinates move forward in different project. This
theory can be implement in every situation when any change takes place in organisation.
System theory: This approach includes several systems and policies of internal business
environment and deal with distinct situations. It gives a set of rules and guidelines regarding
management principles and disciplines that ensures right understanding of system. It assist in
maintaining harmony and improve coordination among workforce with effective communication.
It facilitates in creating ethical work environment by norms and regulations of company. It gives
structured framework to manager for developing innovative theories and ideas & clarify thought
process in dynamic and complex environment.
Advantages:
 It increase adaptability of organisation to environmental change.
 Emphasize on attaining individual as well as organisational goals. This theory emphasize on multiple dimensions of management.
Disadvantages:
 It doesn't cater to contingency or specific style of functioning in firm.
 Interdependence nature is not defined. It may not be practical always & lead to delay in decisions (Lambert and Sponem, 2012).
Application:
This theory is applied by manager of Toyota in order to ensure quality of products that
meets requirement of user. It integrates all the functions systematically into interrelated team
effort. A structured framework is administered by this approach to manager that assists in
development process.
Contingency theory: It is a theory that relates with managerial control utilized in
organisations. This approach states that no single system can implement in all situations.
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Managers work to identify solutions to deal with workplace issues & satisfy requirements of
clients.
Advantages
 It enables managers to change roles of employee to meet needs of individual. This approach is highly tailored in nature (Lee, 2011).
Disadvantages:
 When this approach is put into practice, it becomes very complex. This approach is reactive in nature rather than proactive.
Application:
Application of this theory empowers management to develop integrated solutions in order to
resolve workplace problems and meet requirement of clients.
TASK 3
P4 Key approaches to operations management & role that managers and leaders play
Just in Time: It is an inventory strategy that is used by Toyota Motor Company for the
purpose of reducing waste and improving efficiency by obtaining good whenever required. In
this, company manufacture products according to its demand. It means, firm start production
when product is highly demanded. With assistance of this approach, Toyota maintain its
minimum stock level. It lowers down the chances of storing or carrying extra inventory and
reduce unnecessary cost of company in storing that inventory (Luft and Shields, 2010).
Continuous improvement: It is also known by the name of Kaizen approach which
focuses on the constant efforts made by an organisation for enhancing their productivity,
processes and services. It assists in stimulating the interest of consumers which ultimately
contributes in increasing profitability and revenues of firm. Application of continuous
improvement approach enables the administrator of Toyota Motor Company to seek constant
improvement in products of company. By identifying changing needs of customers, cars are
modify and manufacture by Toyota accordingly. Individuals who buy such products are mostly
specific & choosy in nature. So, it is required by manager and leader to determine & understand
their choices and develop products accordingly. This gives competitive edge to firm in market
and assists in increasing its profitability (Lukka and Modell, 2010).
Total Quality Management: By satisfying large number of customers, this approach
administer long term success to firm. Total quality management mainly emphasize on enhancing
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quality as well as performance of products and services that meets expectations of customers
effectively. Toyota Motor Company mainly deals in automobile sector and provides different
kinds of cars to customers. Application of this approach by managers and leaders makes them
liable to offer high quality products to their target audience (Nandan, 2010). Normally buyers
prefers to purchase a good looking car with having different new and innovative features. So, it
is necessary for manager and leader to motivate their workforce and encourage them to work in
effective manner so that good quality products can be offered to customers. Manager needs to
determine needs of potential customers so that cars can be manufactured according to their
expectations.
Lean production: Major aim behind application of this approach is to reduce waste that
occurs in production of goods without compromising productivity. Uneven workload and
overburden are the main reason behind generating waste. So, it is necessary for managers to
divide work among all staff members as per their skills and abilities. This enables workforce to
perform their duties in well manner and increase productivity of firm.
Six sigma: Capability of business process can be increase by application of this approach.
Any change in process and performance of organisation may influence their quality, profitability
and morale of workforce (Parker, 2012). It is used by firm to lower down chances of defects and
eliminate waste from manufacturing process. Managers and leaders of Toyota Motor Company
adopt this approach so as to enhance its quality of car. It assists them in satisfying customers
more, maximise their profits and reduce unnecessary costs related to process of production.
P5 Significance & value of operations management in attaining business objectives
Operations management plays important role in managing and running firms
successfully. It provides essential role in providing high quality products and services to
customers. No firm can hope for success without this department. Its main responsibility is to
keep strong relationship with suppliers in order to ensure that all the inputs are being supplied at
the time when require. Value and importance of operations management in attaining business
objectives can be understand by following points:
Capacity management: It is the ability of firm to perform task to needed quantity and
quality standards (Qian, Burritt and Monroe, 2011). Operations allow to gauge and assess the
production & technical capacity of resources. It is concerned with understanding the demand of
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products and future plans for growth. This concept is used by manager of Toyota Motor
Company to design production son that machinery can operate in relevant range.
Transformation of inputs into outputs: Operations management is concerned with
converting raw materials into finished goods. It is very important for an organisation to
manufacture high quality goods in order to meet demand of customers. It is an essential function
of operations management that assists the business in attaining objectives of company. In Toyota
Motor Company, high end processes are used for converting raw material in finished goods. It
assists firm in manufacturing car with innovative features that better satisfy the needs and
requirements of customers (Taipaleenmäki and Ikäheimo, 2013).
Process design: It is related with creating and structuring workflow or new processes
from scratch. A design process for any product first needs a clear understanding about functions
and expected performance of products. It is an approach for break down large project in
manageable chunks. It refers to the designing of processes for needed chemical and physical
transformation of materials. In this, firm design its processes for manufacturing a product. It
includes layout, technology, location and skills. It assists inn attaining high customer satisfaction.
TASK 4
P6 Impact of business environment factors on operation management & decision making
Different styles of leadership styles:
There are different types of leadership styles which is applied by company. If leader
motivates all employees then only manager can manages the organization and resource in firm.
As they are encouraged and then they can follow rules and regulations of manager so that they
can accomplish the objectives. Leadership styles followed by leader in Toyota are- Democratic leadership style: In his all employees can take all decision related to any
matter. Leader can take suggestions and feedback from all workers so that they can take
decision regarding any situation or matter (Vaivio and Sirén, 2010). As employees
decision and views are considered by manager so hence it creates good culture,positive
values among all employees. They can also achieve their objectives as they performs
better than previous time. Transformational leadership: In this changes can there in objectives,goals in firm.
Leader motivates all employees so that they can give good results. They set high goals for
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all workers. Through this they are motivated and out more efforts and their full potentials
so that they can accomplish their goals. Hence it creates positive culture in firm as there
are positive changes in company (Van Helden and Northcott, 2010). It creates good and
positive values among all employees as they had accomplish higher goals. By setting
higher goals fort employees it can create peace among all employees as they pout more
potential and efforts to achieve them.
 Cross culture leadership: In this style there are various culture. There are various culture
in team in firm. So in this leadership leader can motivate all employees who belong ton
different culture. Due to this it can promote good culture in firm. Hence it creates positive
values,good ethics and positive environment in company. Thus employees of various
background are happy and satisfied as they can all participate in decision making.
In order to maintain relationship with internal and external stakeholders for meeting
different desires like promoting, developing as well as sustaining entrepreneurship &
intrapreneurship , it is important for leaders of Toyota to determine about the demands and
requests of their shareholders. Front runners should adopt below mentioned ways :
 Internal stakeholders comprises of workers, board of members,volunteers and many
more. Needs of these members have to be full-filled by leaders. On the other hand,
extrinsic shareholders are customers, government, community partners and so on
(Internal and External factor, 2018).
 Leaders should determine the desires of their above mentioned key stakeholders. For this
they have to arrange meetings wherein discussion should be carried on same thing.
 After getting familiar about such prospects, they ought to make strategies so that their
expectations could be full – filled in effective manner. For example, leaders of Toyota
should conduct surveys for finding out current demands and necessities of their users.
They can take interviews of people and have to act accordingly. This will help them in
satisfying their possible clients. The information and facts which are accumulated from
those programmes have to communicated with each members so that work can be started
for the same.
 In order to maintain the soul of entrepreneurship or innovation in their company, they
should give proper guidance to their work – forces (Weißenberger and Angelkort, 2011).
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 Training and development sessions should be arranged by them for their workers so as
design creative deliverables. This will encourage as well as promote continuing
entrepreneurship & intrapreneurship (Van Helden, and et. al., 2010).
 These all actions would help a lot to the leaders or chiefs of Toyota in attaining their aims
and objectives.
CONCLUSION
As per the above mentioned report, it has been concluded that operations management
plays a very significant role in growth and success of firm. There are various roles and functions
that are played by manager as well as leaders. They both with their effective skills and
knowledge, attain objectives of company. They play essential role in motivating employees and
encouraging them to work efficiently so that productivity and profitability can be increased.
Along with this, various theories and approaches are applied by manager such as contingency,
situational leadership etc. that helps in increasing morale of employees and attaining targets of
company. In order to enhance quality of product and meet demands of customers, some
approaches are used like Just in time, total quality management, lean production etc.
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