Operations Management: Theories and Applications

This assignment delves into the field of operations management, focusing on contemporary research trends. It encourages students to analyze scholarly works that investigate different theoretical perspectives within operations management, such as contingency theory and service-dominant logic. Furthermore, the assignment prompts a critical evaluation of how these theories are applied in real-world scenarios across diverse industries.

MANAGEMENT
AND
OPERATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
LO 1.................................................................................................................................................1
P1 Differentiating between the roles of a leader and the functions of a manager..................1
M1 Analysis and differentiation of roles of leaders and managers........................................3
D1 Critical analysis of theories of leadership.........................................................................3
LO 2.................................................................................................................................................3
P2 and P3 Application of role of leader and manager in the organisation.............................3
M2 Evaluation of strengths and weakness of approaches......................................................5
LO 3.................................................................................................................................................6
P4 and P5 Role leaders and managers play in the operations function of an organization....6
M3 Operational management importance in acquiring objectives of businesses...................7
LO 4.................................................................................................................................................8
P6 Assessment of factors within the business environment that impact upon operational
management and decision-making.........................................................................................8
M4 Relationship between leadership and management affects the business environment....9
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Objective of the report is to study management and operations within an organisation. It
is a process of managing and administering business operations in order to produce quality
products and services for the customers. It is essential to organize business activities efficiently
so that objective set by the company could be attained. When functions of the firm are well
structured and organised, it helps in improving its performance as well. Therefore, managers and
leaders play an important role in management of business operations (Arora, 2013). To study
management and operations within a corporation Tesco company has been selected. Roles of
leaders and mangers in carrying out various tasks of the firm will be studied in the report. Tesco
basically deals in providing food products in United Kingdom. Factors affecting business
environment will also be covered.
LO 1
P1 Differentiating between the roles of a leader and the functions of a manager
Tesco is a multinational company headquartered at England in United Kingdom. They
basically produce grocery items and it is third largest company in context of profit generation.
Management of the company is very efficient which has contributed in its success and growth
across the world. Good communication skills possessed by leaders helped in motivating
employees which ultimately increased work efficiency. Managers have clear vision about the
goal of the company and accordingly work is organised by them so that maximum profits could
be generated. Difference between roles of manager and a leader is discussed below:
Leaders
It is the job of leaders to ensure that employees complete their assigned task within given
time period . They also look upon the efforts given by team members in acquiring objectives of
the company (Anderson and et.al., 2015). Work could be enhanced by leadership skills which
helps workers in motivating them to put more efforts so that best possible outcomes could be
attained. They inspire people in turning their vision into reality. They engage people in various
activities so that they can learn new things and their creativity gets increased.
Manager
They are basically involved in the designing and management of various activities of the
firm. They manage work and employees with the aim of fulfilment of set targets. Strategies are
designed by them so that accordingly functioning of the organisation could be carried out.
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Company policies and regulations are framed by them. Within any venture, there are several
departments such as finance, production, manufacturing, etc. for which managers are assigned
who carry out managing work. They also keep track on the performance of the staff members
and accordingly appraisals are given which helps in motivating them. It is the responsibility of
manger to formulate plans for improving performance of the employees.
Table 1: Comparison between a leader and a manager
Leaders Managers
Leaders are engaged in managing work and
communicating with the employees so that
employees could be told about the goals of the
company (Berenguer and et.al.,2015).
Managers are basically involved in the
organizing and managing work and employees
of the company. They communicate with high
level authorities and set objectives are
communicated to the team leaders and even to
the employees directly according to the
situational demand.
Set targets and goals are communicated to the
employees by leaders.
They are responsible in planning objectives of
the venture.
Managers provide direction to the leaders in
which business operations should be carried
out in order to attain maximum profits.
The direction in which organizational work
should be carried out is set by managers. They
direct leaders.
They motivate employees to give the best
possible inputs in their work so that work
efficiency increases.
They encourage employees and leaders to work
harder. It helps in improving performance of
the organization.
Leadership skills helps in inspiring people to
work harder.
Managers are responsible in designing
strategies for the company which is utilized in
execution of organizational work (Brown,
Bessant and Lamming, 2013).
They are responsible in putting targets and
objectives into action. Strategies and plan
framed by manager are implemented by
They formulate various ideas and concepts for
betterment and advancement of company.
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leaders.
Their focus is on employees of the firm. They are focused on acquiring objectives of the
organisation.
M1 Analysis and differentiation of roles of leaders and managers
Leaders and mangers are basically involved in carrying out various business activities
with the aim of acquiring success. They manage work and motivates employees to give the best
possible efforts to achieve profits for the organization. Various leadership theories are available
such as transformational, cognitive, behavioural that could be utilized to motivate employees.
These theories help in forming strong relationships by gaining trust of the employees. Several
management styles are available which is used by the manager for organising work such as
participative, affiliative, directive, etc.
D1 Critical analysis of theories of leadership
Long term organisational success depends on the leadership styles and theories used by
the company. Growth within an organisation could only be achieved when an organisation have
effectual leader (Clarke, 2013). They motivate workers to enhance their skills which would be
beneficial increasing productivity of the venture as well.
LO 2
P2 and P3 Application of role of leader and manager in the organisation
Leaders and mangers re involved in various activities of the company in order to enhance
productivity and performance. Their roles in different situations of the venture could be
discussed as : Organizing: Managers of the Tesco company are engaged in the process of managing
work and organising them so that objectives of the company set by them could be met.
They are responsible in structuring activities for the betterment of company (Graham and
Potter, 2015). Resources required to accomplish tasks is allocated by leaders. They also
motivate employees to work better and increase their creativity through brainstorming
and participating in various activities such as group discussions, role plays etc. Planning: Strategy to achieve targets of the company is planned by managers. They
communicate it to the team leaders so that they can further pass on to the workers. They
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consider various factors while designing of plan such as financial stability of the firm,
availability of resources and equipments etc. (Dixon, J. L., and et.al., 2014) Mission of
the Tesco is to develop such products that could be demanded by everybody around the
world. It is also aimed in acquiring business opportunities for its expansion in several
regions in varied sectors. They try to incorporate innovative approach in their work to
come up with distinctive products in the marketplace. Leaders have job responsibility to
mange employees of the organisation.
 Guiding: managers guide work to the leaders and they communicate it to the team
members. Leaders identify potential of every member and considering their skills work is
allotted to them. They also provide direction in which work is required to be carried out. Employees are recruited in the company through interview process, several rounds are
designed which are needed to be cleared by the applicants. People who posses relevant
skills according to the job description are selected (Du, Lindgreen and Sen, 2013). Now,
it is the duty of manager to assign work to the workers according to their penitential and
capabilities. Newly recruited employee requires more motivation which is fulfilled by
leaders. They involve themselves in solving queries and issues of the employees so that
they could give their maximum efforts by utilizing their potential. Performance of the
staff members is evaluated by leader and managers thus provide appraisals and rewards
for their work. Controlling: Strategies are formulated by mangers. They also design and develop
business plan according to which business operations and activities are carried out. Work
performance is monitored by leaders considering standards of the firm. Leaders provide
assistance in guiding employees to solve their queries. Managers have responsibility of
controlling all the activities of the business and they act as a mediator between top level
management and employees of the company. Coordinating: For better functioning of the organisation it is required to have
coordination of work between employees to produce effective outcomes (Fernie and
Sparks, 2014). Departments of the organisation are coordinated with each other for
effectual working of the venture. Profitability increases when work is properly structured
and implemented. It is the responsibility of leaders to develop some methods by which
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functioning of the organisation could be managed and synchronized by using various
management styles and leadership theories.
Situational leadership
This is a leadership style in which to complete any project with high efficiency skills and
qualities of the team members is taken into consideration and accordingly work allocation is
achieved (Zaleznik, 2003). Any company and its working operations is affected by the type of
leadership style implemented within it. Situational leadership seems to be beneficiary for the
company because Tesco has currently cost issues which has direct impact on the working of it. It
is advantageous for the venture in situations when leaders have rights to take decisions as per the
demand of situation.
Systems leadership
Work of the organisation and working members could be controlled by using this
leadership style (Francis, M., and et.al., 2014). Tesco uses it for handling various organisational
operations. Leaders are responsible in communicating goals of the company and present situation
to the employees. The also have responsibility to ensure that work gets completed according to
the designed business plan. Whenever situation demands improvement, accordingly changes are
implemented.
Contingency Theory
The theory is focused on executing change into designed plan for business activities as
per requirements. It is utilized by Tesco in various situations such as when the profits made by
venture is not as per expectation and the production cost is higher (Chand, 2016). These kinds of
situations demand modifications in existing strategies so that profitability could be enhanced.
Business plan could be analysed according to the current market trends which are creating
challenges for the company. Managers are responsible in identifying reasons behind increased
cost and also contributes in decision making procedures so that cost reduction techniques could
be formulated.
M2 Evaluation of strengths and weakness of approaches
Contingency theory suggests managers to implement change as per the demand of
situation but its practical implementation is complex (Giuliani, Castelletti and Reed, 2015). This
theory is beneficial in predicting which kind of leadership style would be effective in particular
situation. Situational leadership is a kind of management style rather than leadership.
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LO 3
P4 and P5 Role leaders and managers play in the operations function of an organization
Operational management is associated with management and administering of business
operations. It is useful in enhancing quality of the services and products provided by the firm.
Operation managers have responsibility of controlling various processes of the organisation
related to the production and manufacturing department with the objective of making profits.
Managers and leaders have various responsibilities assigned to them. Major role is to acquire
customer satisfaction by providing quality commodities by using limited resources which are
currently available within organisation (Mintchell, 2013). To manage work effectively it is
needed to consider skills possess by the workers and their creative approach towards
accomplishment of task. Technical knowledge is also considered. For betterment of venture it is
always advised to make use the latest technology in innovations. Quality of work could be also
be enhanced by allotting work to the employees according to their capabilities and skills.
Approaches to operations management
Some approaches are discussed below:
 Total quality management
It could be utilized by Tesco in order to bring efficiency in the organisation. Total quality
management basically focuses on maintaining quality by introducing improvements in the
existing products. There are several principles of this approach. Few of them are: Continuous
enhancements in the products, Team work, designing of strategic plan, Consumer orientation and
ensuring quality of the work. Six Sigma
It is used within organisation with the objective of making improvements in production
procedures and output generation as well as attaining work efficiency (Hendricks, Hora and
Singhal, 2014). Six sigma comprises six components that illustrates six different kinds of wastes
of the company. These are required to be removed to increase performance of the Tesco and
enhancing quality as well of the products. In any venture, when people work as teams, it helps
them to produce productive and innovative outcomes which would ultimately benefit
organisation's market position in the competitive world. Six types of wastes that are required to
be eliminated are discussed below:
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 Wait: In grocery shops, when there is long queue or product is unavailable, then
customers have to wait which is a kind of waste. It could be eliminated by estimating
product demand in the market so that it could be made available to them on time. New
grocery stores could also be introduced so that buyers can purchase items easily. Motion Waste: Many times it has been seen that customers look for around products and
related details which is not useful for them (Hoyos, Morales and Akhavan-Tabatabaei,
2015). Unnecessary movement is done by them. Over production waste: When product demand is not estimated and huge amount of
production is carried out, then it leads to wastage. Over processing waste: Work which could be accomplished with minimum number of
processing but more than required processing is performed then it causes wastage. Un-utilized employees: Hired employees when do not put efforts according to the
potential they posses then they could be a waste for the venture. These kinds of issues
could be solved by conducting interactions where workers could be asked actual problem.
 Transportation: Finished products are needed to be delivered at destined location from
manufacturing unit (Hübner, Holzapfel and Kuhn, 2015). Several times situations arose
when products have to transported in slots because production is not up to the demand
which increases transportation overhead.
M3 Operational management importance in acquiring objectives of businesses
Operational management is concerned with utilization of available resources efficiently
with the objective of fulfilling company targets. No business could achieve success in absence of
it. It is always to needed to improve and enhance product quality so that market position of the
venture could be retained. Management of the company is needed to be flexible enough to
incorporate change with the time. It is also ensured that processing cost of the product is low.
Operational management eliminates unnecessary wastes from the corporation (Narasimhan,
2014). Tesco have certain objectives which are mentioned below:
 To hold strong position into market by rendering quality products and services to the
customers. To acquire customer satisfaction by satisfying them with the good services and
commodities.
Transformational Leadership
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It takes into consideration challengesfaced by the company in order to implement change
within it. This leadership style is beneficial in acquiring competitive profitability in the market.
Leaders ensure that people work within teams so that collectively maximum benefits could be
made. Thus, Tesco would achieve superior position.
To achieve business objectives corporate administration also plays significant role. Few
principles are needed to be taken into cerebration which are stake-holder's interest and
environmental factors (Natarajan and Swaminathan, 2014). It is necessary to considers
environmental factors because they it is needed to be ensured that activities of your firm should
not have adverse affects and resources should be used in such a way that sustainability could be
ensured. Few objectives used for performance measure are listed below: Dependability: Customers will depend on particular company if they are satisfied with
the products and services rendered by it. They will possess loyalty towards brand. Flexibility: Any organisation should be flexible enough to incorporate change within it.
 Quality: When services offered to the consumers is of optimum quality, it increases
reliableness on the corporation.
D2 Critical Evaluation of application management
Operational management is beneficial in functioning of organization as they help in
managing work effectively. It is the responsibility of mangers and leader to ensure employees
and customers satisfaction. Operational management of the venture is engaged in managing
availability of human resources and raw materials for the product development.
LO 4
P6 Assessment of factors within the business environment that impact upon operational
management and decision-making
Tesco is focused on maintaining good relations with its consumers considering values
and ethics. Factors affecting business environment are mentioned below: Structure: Operations of any venture is affected by the design structure. It constitutes
collaboration and cooperation between employees, ways by which they are assigned to
the project (Simpson, Meredith and Leong, 2015). Employee risk: In success of any organisation, employees are the key factors. Risk factor
is also incorporated with them because many times situations arise when they go on
strikes and leave job without any prior notice.
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 Innovation: For business growth it is required to introduce innovations in the work.
Continuous improvements in the product increases their efficiency and demand in the
market.
 Communication:Culture within an organisation is formed by the employees and company
policies (Smith, Beech and Bowley, 2015). Workers feel motivated when their work is
valued and appreciated by others. The Way in which venture interacts with customers
directly affects its brand image.
All the above stated factors affects decision making processes as well. Tesco made use of
sustainability approach so that competitive benefits could be attained by the firm. Social
responsibilities are impacted by management styles and leadership techniques. Business plan is
prepared by the manager by considering organisational policies and social obligations towards
society are also considered (Smith, Maull and CL Ng, 2014). Managers communicate these
designed policies and plan to the leaders and they utilize skills of the individuals for fulfilment of
work.
M4 Relationship between leadership and management affects the business environment
Managers and leaders are responsible in designing and managing business operations.
They prepare plans by considering various factors that may affect business environment such as
resource availability, manpower, skilled employees etc. (Swink, M., and et.al., 2014) Various
kind of wastes are needed to be eliminated to achieve growth. Economic factors such as interest
rates, foreign exchange rates etc., also impacts business activities.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be concluded that management and leadership styles
adopted by the organization greatly impacts working procedures and operations of the Tesco
company. Availability of human and financial resources along with equipments affects business
activities. Operation management of the organisation is its backbone that manages and organise
work and changes are introduced with the objective of making maximum profits. Innovation is
essential to grow and hold competitive position into market. Performance of the venture could be
improved by using Six Sigma and Total Quality Management techniques.
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