Roles and Characteristics of a Leader and Manager in Operations Management

Management & Operations

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................4
P1. Define and compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and manager...........4
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................4
P2. How the roles of a leader and the function of a manager apply in a different situational
context.........................................................................................................................................4
P3. Application different theories and models of approach........................................................4
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................4
P4. Key approaches to operations management and the roles that managers and leaders play. .4
P5. The importance and value of operations management in attaining business objectives.......5
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................6
P6. Factors within the business environment that impact upon operational management and
decision making..........................................................................................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Operation management refers to the process of managing the actions and activities of a
company which are conducted by the administration of the a firm to run and operate the
business. It can be the management of the resources like workforce, material and others which
are essential to operate the business (Addo-Tenkorang and Helo, 2016). It is a vital component in
business firm because it help in using the resources of the company to accomplish the goals and
aims by implementing different plan of actions and concepts. This assignment is based on
Unilever which is a British-Dutch international consumer goods organisation. This firm was
founded in 1929 by William Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme, James Darcy lever and Samuel van
den Bergh. It headquartered in London UK and operated its business in around 129 nations with
owns over 400 brands. This report will discuss about differentiation between the role of a leader
and function of a manager, application of different theories and models and key approaches of
operation management. Further, will discuss about the importance and value of operations
management and factors in business environment that effect operation management.

TASK 1
P1. Define and compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and manager
Definition of leader:
According to Marry Parker, a leader is the one who motivates the group and help them to
achieve and stay on a common goal. He is the one who supports, guide and direct and team
members by making some good strategies to fulfill the objectives of the company.
Characteristics of leader:
A leader possess many qualities and these traits make him/her a good leader:
Communication skills: A leader is very clear while communicating with the team. He
possess great interpersonal skills with which he delivers the vision to the team, sets the direction
and convey the tasks properly.
Optimistic: A leader is very positive and look for opportunities and positivity in every
kind of situation. Other people also gets motivated by working with a optimist leader (Grant,
Trautrims and Wong, 2017).
Roles of leader
 They envision the future of the organization and sets vision and mission for the company
and dream that how will it look after 5-10 years.
 Leaders align the team members with the vision as well as mission of the organization
and creates a charisma of himself among the top management (He, Liang and Fang,
2016).
Definition of manager:
According to Henri Fayol, a manager is the one who manages and control various
functions and departments in the organizations. Managers do planning, involves in organizing
and coordinating the activities and finally control each and everything which is his department.
Characteristics of manager:
Responsible and reliable: A manager has the quality of taking the responsibility of the
things going under his/her department and is always available for the members of the
organization. He supports the team and do the things that are promised by him.
Delegation: Manager is an expert in delegating the tasks to the team members. He knows
the strengths and weaknesses of the employees working under him and delegate the work
accordingly.