Management and Operations Assignment : Marks and Spencer group plc

MANAGEMENT AND
OPERATIONS

Table of Content
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
P 1 Characteristics and roles of leader and manager..............................................................3
P 2 Roles of leader and manager in different situations.........................................................6
P 3 Application of different models and theories...................................................................8
P 4 Key approaches of operation management and role of leader and manager....................9
P 5 Importance of operation management in accomplishing objectives of company..........11
P 6 Factors of environment impacting operational management and decision-making.......12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................15
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................16

INTRODUCTION
Management and operations is a practise of business for creating the highest efficiency
level which is possible in an organization or business entity (Paras, Pal and Ekwall, 2018). Here
in this report, Marks and Spencer group plc will be taken to identify management and operations
of company. The company is a retail multinational company which is operating in Britain. The
company deals in selling of home products, clothing of high quality and food products. The
company was founded in 1884 in Westminster, London. Marks and Spencer group plc is
operating in many brands like Classic, Limited edition, M & S collection, Blue harbour, M & S
energy, Per Una, etc (About Marks and Spencer group plc, 2019).
This report will also focus on application of various situational context for examining the
role of leader as well as function of manager. Along with this, the different theories and models
such as situational leadership, contingency leadership and system leadership. The strength and
weaknesses of different approaches in situational context will also be determined in this report.
Key approaches for operation management and role of managers and leaders under this report
will also be emphasized. Also, the importance and value of operation management will be
determined in order to attain business objectives. This report will focus on certain factors within
business environment which impact on operation management and decision- making of different
leaders and managers working in the company.
P 1 Characteristics and roles of leader and manager
Leadership can be referred to as an activity or a process through which a person leads a
group of a person or an individual. A leader is a person who directs and leads the employees
within the company and outside as well (Akalin, Huang and Willems, 2016). The main aim of
leader is to influence and attract employees to follow and abide by their rules and regulations.
On the flip side a manager is an individual who is responsible for administering and
controlling the company and its working. A manger is responsible for planning and controlling
all the operations of the business (Hitt, Xu and Carnes, 2016).
The different characteristics of a good leader are as follows-

Honesty- A leader must be honest in its working with its peers and colleagues so that the
organizational goals and objectives are achieved. The relationship are based on reliability,
honesty and trust. The leader for an efficient working needs to be very honest in its approach of
working.
Confidence- A good and efficient leader needs to show and outline proper confidence
because of the reason that if the leader will not be enough confident in its approach then how it
will lead the group or individuals under him.
Optimistic- The leader needs to be very optimistic in its nature. This is because of the
reason that if the leader will be having negative thoughts in mind then it will create the same
environment for its followers and peers as well. So it is very necessary for the leader to be
optimistic in its thoughts and way of working.
Similarly there are many characteristics of the manager which are distinct and different
from that of the leader. Some characteristic of manager are discussed in the following points-
Knowledge- The manager is the one who manages each and every task within the
company. So it is of utmost importance that the manager must have complete knowledge relating
to the basic concepts with which it relates to. The manager must have basic knowledge of
managing and dealing with the employees and their coordination, must be efficient in team
managing and developing the employees.
Communication- The manager is the liaison authority between the company and outside
world and also within the company. So the manager must have the skill of effective and efficient
communication that is it must have ability to do clear, free and understandable communication
with one another.
Basis Leader Manager
Characteristics Honesty- A leader must be
honest in its working with its
peers and colleagues so that
the organizational goals and
objectives are achieved. The
relationship are based on
reliability, honesty and trust.
The leader for an efficient
Coordinator- this is the
essential characteristic of
manager. This is because of
the reason that the manager
has to maintain coordination
among all the business
activities. Also, it has to
coordinate the work that is

working needs to be very
honest in its approach of
working.
Confidence- A good and
efficient leader needs to show
and outline proper confidence
because of the reason that if
the leader will not be enough
confident in its approach then
how it will lead the group or
individuals under him.
Optimistic- The leader needs
to be very optimistic in its
nature. This is because of the
reason that if the leader will be
having negative thoughts in
mind then it will create the
same environment for its
followers and peers as well. So
it is very necessary for the
leader to be optimistic in its
thoughts and way of working.
going within the company with
the goals and objectives of the
business. This is important
characteristic of manager
because it works for the
fulfilment of business
objectives.
Communication- The manager
is the liaison authority between
the company and outside
world and also within the
company. So the manager
must have the skill of effective
and efficient communication
that is it must have ability to
do clear, free and
understandable communication
with one another.
Role Develop vision- it is the crucial
role of for leader to set a vision
and goal for the existence of
the company. All the working
of the company are related and
based on these visions and
goals established by the leader.
Defining objectives- it is the
role of manager to breakdown
the goals made by the leader in
smaller parts like objectives in
such a way that fulfilment of
objectives leads to
accomplishment of the goals
set by leader. These objectives
help in overall development

and growth of company.
But then also there are some difference in the role of the leader and the manager which is
discussed in the adjoining points-
Difference in role of leader and manager
Though both manager and leader work for betterment of the company but then also there are
some differences between the role of leader and manager.
Role of leader- A leader is a person who leads, directs and influences the person or a group of
person with the aim of achieving and accomplishing the goal for which the group if formed
(Slack and Brandon - Jones, 2018). The following are the role of a leader-
Evaluation- this is the another role which is performed by the leader. In this role, the
leader evaluates all the employees and checks that which employee is capable of doing which
kind of work. Then it accordingly delegates the work to the manager who in turn further informs
to the employees.
Role of manager- A manager is an individual who is hired in order to manage the whole
company and its operations and working with the aim of earning profits. The following role is
performed by the manager.
Track of work- it is yet another role of manager within which the manager tries to keep a
track of the activities which are performed by the employees that whether it is in alignment with
the goals of the company or not. If they are not in accordance with the goals then it is the
responsibility of manager to match the work with goals of business.
Similarities between leader and manager
 Both the leader and manager works to influence other employees in order to work
efficiently and productively and if anyone does not perform work better than they both
try to influence them so that it work effectively.
 Both manager and leader works in the direction of accomplishment of goals and
objectives of business.
P 2 Roles of leader and manager in different situations
As seen in the above discussion it was evident that both the leader and a manager are
very different in their thinking, perception and attitude towards anything or any situation. Even it
might be possible that in same situation both leader and manager reacts differently. In business

there arises many situations where in both of them react and do action differently. Some business
situations wherein the leader and manager of Marks and Spencer group plc reacts in different
ways are as follows-
Technological advancement- It is a situation in which the technologies used by the
company are upgraded because in market there are advancement in the technological sector.
Therefore to be in competition the company needs to update its technology (Gillen, Jacquillat
and Odoni, 2016). So now in this situation both the manager and leader will be different in their
approach of dealing with this situation.
The leader in this situation will just follow the instructions provided by the manager and
will ensure that all the employees get trained and acquainted with the technology installed. The
manager will try to develop new strategies to implement the new technology within the
company. It will make all the budgets and directions for installing the technology within the
company.
Employee turnover- It is a situation where in the employees leaves the job and go
somewhere else. This situation may arise due to many reasons such as employee not liking the
working culture of the company, the superiors of the company, or they might be biased and
partial with some employees, and many other related factors. Now in this situation also both the
leaders and manager deals in different ways.
In the situation of increasing employee turnover the leader will first try to find the main
reason behind this increase. That is it will try to ask the employees who are leaving and who are
thinking to leave that why they want to leave the company and go (Grant, Trautrims and Wong,
2017). After analysing and evaluating the problem of the employees and then try to find some
solutions to those problems so that other employees do not suffer with the same problems again
and again. In contrast, the manager on the other hand will try to motivate employees not to leave
the company and will make some strategies and will provide them some benefits and perks so
that these employees can be retained within the company.
Low employee engagement- It is a situation wherein the employee is less connected or
interactive with the company and its working and operations It is a situation in which the
employee does not feel happy working with the company and in its culture. In this type of
situation both the manager and leader reacts differently.

In this situation the leader will try to know the reason for which the engagement of
employee is low and after evaluating the reasons it will discuss some activities and measures
through which the employee engagement can be increased. In this situation the manager will try
to influence the employees and try to interact with the employees so that they feel themselves as
part of company. It will also try to develop some motivating strategies so that it grabs attention
of the employees, and they will feel more engaged with the company.
P 3 Application of different models and theories
There are many types of theories which guides the leadership pattern of the leader. These
theories are pre- defined guidelines which the leader can use in order to lead its group and
followers. Some leadership styles and theories which Marks and Spencer group plc can use are
discussed in the connected points-
Leadership theory
Situational leadership- It is a type of leadership in which the leadership pattern and style
depends totally on the situation prevailing in the market. As the business exists in the
environment which is ever- changing and dynamic in nature. So it is not at all possible that in
every situation the leader will react in the same manner (Hitt, Carnes and Xu, 2016). This theory
is applicable in the situation where the business exist in such an environment which is very
dynamic and changing.
Strengths
 This type of leadership style promotes flexibility in leading the whole group of
employees or followers. These are also flexible in terms of the way of working because it
depends upon the situation that how the person works. So situational leadership provides
this flexibility. Since the leader is very flexible so all its followers and subordinates are very so this
creates a very comfortable working environment for the employees and workers.
Weakness As this leadership style works on the immediate situation prevailing so it ignores the
value of long term requirements of the company.
Contingency leadership- it is a style of leadership in which the leadership style may or
may not apply to a particular situation depending upon the situation which will occur in the
future. This is because of the major reason that the future is unpredictable, and we can't guess

correctly what will happen in future so it is very necessary to follow contingent leadership. This
leadership style is applied in every organization and every situation because the business and its
situation are very incompetent and the future is unpredictable.
Strengths As the business environment is dynamic in nature so this type of leadership helps in
dealing with contingent situations.
Weakness Some times in future the situations in future can be the worst so at that time this style of
leadership will also be not prevalent.
Leadership models
System leadership- It is a type of leadership in which the company creates its own system within
the company what they like. And the company develops and makes some conditions and system
that encourages employees to work in accordance to that system only. The company by
analysing the needs of the employees creates an environment or a system in which the employees
have to work according to the guidelines provided by leader. This type of leadership is mostly
suitable and applied in those organizations which strictly follows the principles and rules and
regulations within the business.
Strengths
 As this type of leadership is carried on with a system so it always leads to productive and
efficient working by the employees. Maintaining a proper system of working clearly defines the roles of each and every
employee beforehand.
Weaknesses
 As this is based on certain rules and system developed so it takes time to comply and
abide by such rules and regulations.
P 4 Key approaches of operation management and role of leader and manager
Operation management involves controlling the process of production so that the goods
and services are produced with superior quality (Ivanov, Tsipoulanidis and Schönberger, 2017).
Some approaches of operations management which helps Marks and Spencer group plc in
simplifying there work is as follows-

Total quality management- this approach is applied in M&S as this approach focuses on
the quality of the product and services including the fact that how good was the planning and the
leadership behind the whole operational and production process. This technique is applied in
M&S by focusing on the total quality of the business including the employees, customer
satisfaction, investor satisfaction and quality of goods and services. The focus is on quality
because the company wants to retain its customer for a longer time period. If the quality of the
products will be good and customers will be satisfied then, the satisfied customers will bring
more customers in the company. It is applied for increasing the quality of the products and
services of the company. The leader make strategies to check the quality of the work and
products and services and the manager ensures that these strategies are implemented properly.
Lean manufacturing- it is another approach of operation management which is applied
by Marks and Spencer group plc. Under this technique M&S mainly focuses on minimizing or
reducing the waste which is caused by the production system. For this the company keeps a
check on the production system and reviews all the raw material brought in and how much is
used. The main aim behind use of lean manufacturing by M&S is increasing value for consumers
by reducing the waste within the manufacturing process and the company. The lean
manufacturing constantly keeps a check and review on all the activities of the business to ensure
that there are no wastes in the production process and if there are any then corrective measures
must be taken to avoid such wastes. Here the manager plays important role because the manager
is closer to the operation and production department so it knows better.
Just in time- it is a system wherein M&S mainly focuses on accomplishing the work on
time or before time but not in any case after the time. This approach is applied by M&S for
managing the time of raw materials coming from the suppliers and there conversion time into the
final product and the time involved in making the final products made available to the
consumers. Just in time production increases the goodwill of the company within the market and
builds faith of consumers within the company because there is no delay in the product that is
why it is employed within M&S. This type of approach helps in reducing the storage cost
because if the raw material will be on time then there will be no need of storing them so there is
no cost needed for storing it (Schwarz, Hall and Shibli, 2015). The leader here ensures that all
the employees get their work beforehand only so that they can easily understand their work.
Contrary the role of manager is make sure that the employees clearly understands their work and

if they do not understand the work then they have to make them understand the work which is to
be done by them.
Kaizen- this basically means improvement. In this dynamic, competitive and ever-
changing world there is major requirement of improving. This is majorly because of the reason
that the business environment keeps on changing and if Marks and Spencer group plc does not
follow these changes then it will become obsolete and outdates. So M&S applies Kaizen into
business because it helps in researching for the latest trends going on in the market and make
necessary changes according to the trends to be in competition. The leader plays a crucial role in
doing the continuous research for the development and then it conveys it to the manager. The
manager further ensures that these changes are being implemented in the company.
Six sigma- this approach was proposed by Bill Smith and Motorola in the year 1980. It is
a technique applied by M&S which is based on data and statistics which works for continuously
eliminating the defects which may come in the product and services due to many reasons. This
techniques increase the loyalty of the consumers as this technique aims at removing the defects
and problems from the product or service so it increases the trust of the consumers within the
company and its products. The leader tries to analyse the production process so that it can find
the defects which can decrease the goodwill of the business. Manager makes sure that these
defects are being found out and strategies must be developed to minimize these defects.
P 5 Importance of operation management in accomplishing objectives of company
The operations ' management is important for Marks and Spencer group plc. The
operation management is essential for company to attain business objectives such as growth,
customer satisfaction and efficiency. The most important factor in which it depicts their
importance will be as follows :
Quality of products – The operations' management is responsible for ensuring quality of
management. This enables improvising quality of products and services. Operations management
is important within an organization such as Marks and Spencer group plc because it enhances
production capability and quality of product. For this Total quality management is applied and it
assists company in attaining their business goals like efficient production with excellent product
quality (Burt, Johansson and Dawson, 2017). The process of quality management which can
efficiently deliver products and render services for ensuring products which are durable and
customers can easily rely on them.

Customer satisfaction – The key importance of operations management is to attain goal
of customer satisfaction within a business entity. The company along with managing their quality
of products ensures to met need of customers (Jones, Comfort and Hillier, 2015) . M&S here
applies Six Sigma because it ensures that the customer is loyal with the company and all its
needs are satisfied by the products and services of the company. This system of operations
management is vital for growth of an organization and also enables customer satisfaction which
is associated with the product of company Marks and Spencer.
Increase in revenue – The profitability of company Marks and Spencer group also
increases with enhances quality and customer satisfaction. Here M&S applies operation
management approach of Just In Time. It is used because of the reason that if production will be
completed before time so more can produced and it will increase the capacity of producing more
products with same time limit. So it will increase the revenue of the compan. This builds
goodwill of Marks and Spencer group among customers and directly they able to expand their
market share. Revenue of company will also increase by proper management within their
operations and the company able to attain growth and customer base by operation management.
Reduction of wastage – One of the most important element of management of operations
is waste reduction. The company Marks and Spencer group by enabling proper management
could include manufacturing system which is not only efficient but also operates effectively.
Such techniques include lean management approach which enables company to manage the
wastages within the company. This in turn reduces the cost for the company as unnecessary wast
e is managed and minimized (Voropaev, Gelrud and Klimenko, 2015). The elimination of
wastage in operation will safeguard overall cost of corporate and in turn improves the production
within functioning of business. For this the approach of Lean Manufacturing is used.
Motivation of employees – Marks and Spencer group plc by enabling operations'
management within their companies while executing their operations able to measure
performance of employees. The employees working in Marks and Spencer able to identify their
key strengths and weaknesses (Mustafee, Katsaliaki Fishwick, 2015). Along with this, they get
proper guidance to perform their desired task which aid them in accomplishing not only goal of
organisation but also individual goals. The operation management is important for employees as
they build motivation among them.

P 6 Factors of environment impacting operational management and decision-making
Business environment refers to the summation of all the internal and the external factors
which influences and impacts the working and operation of the company. The business exists in
a very dynamic and ever -changing business world so there is possibility that many changes
takes place during the business working. So it is of utmost priority to study the factors so that its
impact can be identified on the business. So for this Marks and Spencer group plc takes help of
PESTEL analysis which helps in identifying all the macro environmental factor which are as
follows-
Political factor- it includes the changes taking place in political or governmental factor.
There may be changes in political parties, political instability, changes in governmental rules and
regulations and many other related things. The gocernemnt of UK raised the taxed by 15 % so
this will create a negative impact on the business. It is so because of the reason that now M&S
have to pay more taxes on the income earned. If Marks and Spencer group plc does not comply
with all these rules and regulations then it will cause a problem in decision- making and also
operation management (Adebanjo, Laosirihongthong and Samaranayake, 2016). Like in above
case of increase in tax rate the company now has to revisit its operation management and again
has to take the decision that how much quantity of material is to be produced. This is because of
the reason that if production is more than it has to pay more taxes as it will earn more profits and
vice versa.
Economic factor- This includes all the factors relating to the economy like period of
growth and depression, changes in interest rate, changes in exchange rate, inflation, taxation and
many other related factors. It also impacts the working of Marks and Spencer group plc because
the company exist in the economy only. The economic condition presently in the economy of
UK is of inflation. Then it is obvious that more people will not spend much amount because of
high prices. So the company will be in losses as more people will not purchase the high quality
and high priced products of M&S. It will impact decision-making and operation management as
if inflation will be high then it has to decrease its production and this decision will be taken by
analysing the impact of inflation on the operation management of M&S.
Social factor- it comprises the cultural factors including the attitude, values, beliefs,
behaviour of the people living in society towards the company and there products and services.
These factors include the age distribution, population, health consciousness and many other

connected factors. The recent trends prevalent in UK is that the people of UK promote eco
friendly products which does not harm the society. If M&S does not follow this trend and go for
products which harms the health of people as well as environment then they will not have faith in
the product and the company. This will impact the decision-making and operation management
because if the trend will be followed by company then it will have to take decision like in what
quantity the products are to be produced.
Technological factor- it is also a main factor impacting operation management and
decision-making. This is so because of the reason that most of the operations are carried on with
the help of machines only (Krishnaiyer, Chen and Bouzary, 2018). The recent technological
advancement announced by M&S in UK is that iit plan a new Technology Transformation
Program which will help the company In becoming a digital- first business and to deliver an
improvement in customer experience. Also, it plans to appoint Tata Consultancy Services to help
in technological advancement (Marks and Spencer announces technology tranformation
programme, 2019). This will influence decision-making and operation management because if
the company has to adapt to new technology then it has to decide to what extent the technology
has to be employed in business and how employees of operations department will be given
training.
Environmental factor- these are the major factor which impact the decision- making. It is
because of the major reason that if Marks and Spencer group plc does not pay attention towards
the environment then the society will not favour the company's products and services and this
will impact the production and operational capacity of the company (Slack and Brandon - Jones,
2018). In recent trends, in UK more preference is being given on environmental protection and
safety. So now M&S also needs to properly address the Corporate Social Responsibility so that it
gains popularity among the residents of the UK. This will impact decision-making as if the
environment is not taken care of then the society will not accept the products and this will impact
the operations and productions estimates. As the products will not be much sold in larger
quantitiy.
Legal factor- it comprises the laws and regulations which governs the operations and
working of the company. The company operates in different countries all over the globe. So for
this the company has to abide by different laws relating to health, safety, employment, consumer
rights and many other different types of laws. It is very difficult to comply because all countries

have their own legal system which is different from other countries. So it affects the decision-
making because every country has its own regulations. These difference in law makes a great
impact on decision-making and operations management because if M&S tries to go to another
country than it will have problem in adapting to other laws and operation management
techniques. These laws affects the business as if these laws are not complied than it has to pay
fees and penalties and even its operations may be cancelled. Therefore, the company has to take
frequent decision regarding the changes in the laws.
CONCLUSION
This report was all about Marks and Spencer group plc in which it depicted about
comparison of different roles of leader and manager. Then comes different roles of managers and
leaders which were applicable in different situational context. Also, different theories like
situational leadership, contingency leadership and system leadership were also discussed in this
report. After this the report analysed the key approaches which is applicable in context of
operations management. Also, the role of leader and function of managers were explained under
this key approaches. The report were also lay focus on importance and operation management
value which helps the company in attaining objectives and goals of business entity such as Marks
and Spencer group plc. At last the report comprises various factors within environment of
business in which it were also determined to enable the understanding of impact on operation
management and decision-making of managers as well as leaders working in Marks and Spencer
group.

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Online
About Marks and Spencer group plc. 2019. [Online]. Available through :
<https://corporate.marksandspencer.com/aboutus>.
Marks and Spencer announces technology tranformation programme. 2019. [Online]. Available
through: <https://corporate.marksandspencer.com/media/press-releases/2018/marks-
and-spencer-announces-technology-transformation-programme>