Roles and Functions of Leaders and Managers in Different Situational Context

This document discusses the roles and functions of leaders and managers in different situational contexts. It explores various leadership theories and key approaches to operations management. The importance and value of operations management, as well as the key factors influencing the business, are also discussed.

MANAGMENT
OPERATIONS

TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................3
Roles and functions of a leader and manager in different situational context..........................3
Leadership theories...................................................................................................................4
Key approaches to operations management..............................................................................6
Importance and value of operations management....................................................................8
Key factors influencing the business........................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
To be able to have effective management and operations the company has to be making
sure that they are having good operating functions. There is going to be effective working and
planning which the company is going to have so that there is going to be higher inputs which is
going to be present so that the objectives can be matched. Primark is an Ireland company which
is belonging from the retailing industry which is having 392 stores in different location as of
2020. The company has been able to expand themselves in different countries by using different
operations management strategies and makes revenue of £7.76 billion as of 2019. The further
report is going to discuss the functions of managers and leaders in different situations and
approaches are going to be used in the company to be able to have higher operations. Company
is going to make the right decisions for themselves which is going to be good for the competitive
advantage and value of the company.
TASK 2
Roles and functions of a leader and manager in different situational context
Leaders and managers have a very different role and functions which are present in the
organization to make sure that the company is running smoothly effectively and efficiently. A lot
of situations arise in an organization which needs monitoring and controlling by both the leaders
and the managers. Primark have faced a lot of situations being conflict and labour turnover
which have to be solved so that the company would be able to have higher operations and
working in the future which is going to make the standards of the company is higher (Sannö and
et.al., 2019). These situations need to be addressed by the leaders and managers on time so that
the company would not be facing any major challenge in the future. Primark is having a stable
economic and brand value in the market which must be maintained for higher functioning and
operations for the company to be able to operate effectively in the market.
Changes in Primark are coming rapidly to fulfil the needs and demands of the customers
which are going to make the market value of the company increase. This factor is addressed and
monitored by the manager but the decision making for the employees is done by the leaders of

the company. Leaders play a very important role in the decision-making for the managers and act
like a bridge between the employees and the management (Nereu and et.al., 2019). Leaders have
to keep motivating the employees and fulfilling their expectations which they have from the
organization. The conflicts which arising have to be addressed and actions like more training and
healthy environment should be created by the leaders for the workforce. Conflicts are going to
reduce when the employees are going to be aware of all the factors which are impacting and
changing in the organization from time to time which is why Primark will have to create a
transparent environment and working for everyone in the company. Understanding the
employees and making decisions according to them is going to make the internal working of the
company be higher and make more sales and revenue throughout the year. Internal environment
of the company has to be strong of the company in order to be able to make sure that there are
right actions and improvement which are taking place so that the company will be able to make
sure that there are right actions which are taking place (Patrinley and et.al., 2020).
Leadership theories
To make the working of the organization be more effective the leaders use effective theories.
With experience the leader would be able to select the right theory to be able to match the
objectives and aims of the company. Leaders have to make sure that they are taking the right
working and functioning to be able to make the company be able to have higher functioning and
operations which is good for the branding and value of the portfolio. There are a lot of leadership
and management styles and theories which are present in the market which are going to be
discussed in the further report.
 Situational Leadership
The competition in the market is increasing which are why there are different kinds of
situations which are going to rise and make the effective working of the company be affected. To
be able to have a strong competitive positioning in the market the smaller problems must be
addressed in order to make sure that they are not creating a bigger issue in the future. Managers
must take the right measures to solve them and take out the right decision for the leaders to
follow them (Lu and et.al., 2018). Leaders make sure that the employees are going to follow

those solutions in order to make the internal environment of the company to be stronger. All
situations have a different solution and the same strategies are not going to be used in different
situations. Leaders and managers have to be experienced enough to make sure that there is a
stability in the internal working so that the demands and needs of the clients are being matched
from time to time which is going to make sure that the company is having a stable working.
 Contingency Leadership
To have clarity and one sense of direction in the organization in order to make sure that
the productivity and operation of the company is higher this style is used by the managers. Due
to the experience which Primark is having in the market they would be able to use this theory
effectively and make the company have a higher brand value. Leaders are going to make sure
that the profit margin and training for the employees to get in new changes is going to be
balanced. Technological changes have taken place immensely in the market which is why the
leaders have a higher responsibility towards the company to be able to make sure that the aims
are being achieved (Koleva and Andreev, 2018). Ineffective leadership is not going to be helpful
for the company to be able to have the right working and functioning for a long run which has to
be well addressed. Special kind of approaches have to be used by the leaders to make sure that
there are right actions and measures which are being taken by the organization.
 System Leadership
All of the individuals are going to have a different kind of skill and capabilities which
have to be understood by the leader in order to use them effectively. Systematic leadership would
make sure that the organization is being able to run in One Direction which makes the company
be able to have higher success. The responsibilities of the manager from making decisions are
higher but so is the role of a leader to implement them in the organization so that the working is
according to this theory (Ferdows, 2018). Leaders have to make sure that the employees know
the purpose of working, realistic approaches have to be used by the leader and humility has to be
shown to the workforce which is going to make sure that there are right actions and improvement
which the business is going to have.

Key approaches to operations management
Use of right approach to operation management by the leaders and managers is very
essential so that the company would be able to improve. The competition in the market is already
increasing and if there are no actions which the company is going to take with time then the
company would lose their importance and loyal customers. The further report is going to discuss
the three approaches which are used by Primark to be able to have a successful operation
management.
 Six sigma
The wastage which is being done of the raw material and introduction needs to be
reduced by the company so that the economic factor would be stable. Primark has made huge
investments to get in zero carbon footprints in the company which is going to help them be able
to maintain the portfolio reputation in the market. There are eco-friendly disposal and method
which are being implemented by the leaders in the organization which would help in achieving
the targets the organization is setting for them to be able to have a long run in the market.
Reduction and improvement of the profit margins and employee morale have to be supported by
the company to be able to make sure that there are going to be better quality of products and
services which are going to be present (Ivanov, Tsipoulanidis and Schönberger, 2017).
Performance of the employees has to be increased but waste in the company or unnecessary steps
have to be removed in order to make sure that there are right actions and improvement which the
company is having in the market.
 Just in time
Tracking of the inventory which is coming in the organization by the leaders and
managers is very essential so that there is no extra raw material which is coming in the
organization. It is very important for the leaders to make a list of raw material which is required
for the production and this list must be approved by the manager after checking the inventory
thoroughly. Extra inventory is only going to get expired and be wasted in the organization which
is not going to be cost friendly and this approach is going to make the company have a major
loss, slowly and eventually. There is a lot of supply which can be cut off in Primark and that is
only going to get wasted and make the company be able to have better future plans with that

saved amount. There is already a lot of investment which is required by the businesses to be able
to make sure that they are having the right customers and promotions and other expenses which
the company has to make so that there are higher functioning (Manikas, Patel and Oghazi, 2019).
Production process has to be better and make the orders be matched so that the reduction of goals
is going to be stronger which is good for the reputation and brand image of the company which is
a very essential factor for the company to have.
 Total quality management
It is very important to focus on the quality of the product and this approach is going to
help the managers and leaders are able to do so. Satisfaction of the customers is very essential
which the managers are going to understand and take feedback so that they can make decisions
accordingly and attract the right customers. These decisions are going to be implemented by the
employees to make sure that the company is having higher customer base and also motivate the
employees to be able to achieve the goals and targets which are set. The competition in the
market is high therefore this approach is going to be very effective for Primark though the
company is considering a lot of approaches in order to make sure that they have a strong
portfolio and brand value in the market so that the customers are going to be highly satisfied and
their demands and expectations can be matched. Satisfaction of the customers has to be present
which is going to make sure that there is going to be better functioning which is going to make
the processing be higher and improvement has to be done with time (Roth and Rosenzweig,
2020). Products and services of the company are going to get impacted with culture and other
factors and it is important for the company to make sure that there are better decisions and
planning which is going to be present.
Importance and value of operations management
To be able to match the demand and need of the customers the organization needs to have
an effective operation management so that the reputation of the company can be maintained. The
company would be able to have a higher competitive positioning for them in the market for a
long run which is going to be discussed in the further report.
 Raising Employee Motivation

Leaders have to make sure that they are providing the employees with the right
motivation factor. Employees are the backbones that helped in making the organization are able
to achieve their targets and goals which they have set therefore the personal and professional
benefits of the employees needs to be addressed (Holmström and et.al., 2019). Managers are
going to support the decisions of the leaders so that the employees can be well motivated making
the company has a higher outcome.
 Reduce Wastage
Waste outlet of the organization has to reduce to be able to have effective operation
management which is going to be very helpful for the company to be able to have a stable
economic factor. Leaders have to adapt to the management decisions so that that is going to be
effective working. Cost friendly methods an environment has to be created in Primark which is
going to be very beneficial for the organization to be able to operate and have higher productivity
for a long term (Maylor and et.al., 2018). Company has to make sure that they are following the
guidelines which are prepared by the government to make sure that there are right actions and
improvement which are being done for the benefit of the environment. Environment has to be
strong of the company which is going to make sure that the company is being able to have higher
operations.
 Raise Sales
It is very important to match the demand of the customers by maintaining the quality of
the end product which is being served to them. The standards of the customers and demands of
the clients are changing effectively therefore Primark needs to adapt to these changes to make
sure that they are being able to sustain then effectively (Ren and Huang, 2018). Since the
competition is increasing the clients have got more options and variety of products and by
maintaining the quality the company would be able to gain the loyalty and trust impacting the
profitability of Primark.
Key factors influencing the business
Operation and productivity have a huge influence of different factors which are present in an

organization. External factors are not in control of the organization which is why it is very
important to make sure that they are working according to them so that the company is not going
to find it difficult to be able to gain the right competitive positioning. There are external and
internal factors which are going to make the productivity be impacted of Primark which is going
to be discussed in the further report.
 Ethics
There are set ethics and code of conduct which are present in an organization which
needs to be followed so that there is going to be higher discipline which the organization would
be able to have. Leaders and managers of Primark are making sure that these factors are being
followed in order to be able to hire match of the expectations of clients. Planning and decision
making of the managers is also according to the ethics which have been provided to the
employees so that the internal working is going to be stronger. Leaders make sure that these
ethics are being implemented so that the demand of the customers is going to be matched to
when the employees are going to put in their personal and professional efforts for the company to
be able to benefit from this factor (Rangarajan and et.al., 2018). Ethics have to make sure that
there are right working environment which is going to make the working of the organization be
higher.
 Culture
Culture has played an immense role in Primark and this has been understood by the
company over the years of experience which it is holding in this industry. The internal working
of the organization is going to get impacted because of the culture differences which are present
between the employees (Wilson, 2018). Then our chances of having high conflict and problems
which are going to rise regarding this factor impacting the objectives to be matched by the
company. Managers and leaders make sure that there is a common base between all the
employees which is set so that the company would be able to have a higher competitive
advantage in the market. Employees are the backbone which is why the leaders and manager
have to make sure that there are decisions which are being taken according to them so that there
are going to be better performance.
 Corporate Social Responsibilities

The employees of the organization and the customers lifestyle has to be matched by the
company. There are a lot of social factors which Primark is working upon so that they can have a
better reputation and loyalty of the customers which is going to be present (Chahal and et.al.,
2020). The company has not been setting their prices too high and making sure that the
customer’s lifestyle is being matched so that the organization would be able to have higher sales
and profit margins for themselves for a long period of time in the market.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be concluded that businesses in the market are taking the
right decisions in order to make sure that the company is being able to have better operations.
Operation management is very important for the company to make sure that there is going to be
higher functioning and unnecessary working which is important for the company to have so that
there is going to be higher functioning which the company is going to have. Decisions and good
planning is very important for the organization to have so that there are right working and
functioning which is going to follow and the brand image of the organization is not going to get
affected. it is important to work according to the clients and make the branding of the company
be strong throughout which is going to make the standards of the company be higher.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
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Wilson, J.M., 2018. Deconstructing the reinvention of operations management. Journal of
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