Operations Management: Leadership, Management, and Business Environment

MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS

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INTRODUCTION
The core functions for the survival of any business organisation are the business operations
and business management. They are interconnected and interdependent on each other as
such the management of the company is responsible for formulating strategies and policies
for the future actions and operations of the business unit. The operations management is
just one part of the overall organisational management and like other functional
management, it also plays a significant role in the accomplishment of overall business
objectives of the organisation (Krajewski, et al., 2015).This assignment report will help in
providing a better understanding of the leadership and management and their importance
and roles & responsibilities in the operations management of the business organisation. This
report will help in assessing the functions and roles of leaders and managers in the business
organisation and the different concepts and approaches of operational management and
leadership for growth and development of the business organisation.
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TASK 1
INTRODUCTION-
The management and leadership are the major parts of the business organisation. The
success, survival and growth of the company are dependent upon efficient management
and leadership. If the management or leadership fails it will result in the failure of the
organisation(Schein, 2010). The leaders and managers play a significant role in shaping the
organisation and both are different from each other in terms of their roles, responsibilities
and functions. The H&M Company should adopt relevant approaches and concepts of
leadership for achieving the overall organisational objectives and goals.
P1 DEFINITION AND COMPARISON OF THE ROLES AND CHARACTERISTICS
OF A LEADER AND MANAGER
The management and leadership are like the two sides of one coin. The leadership is a skill
and ability of an individual whereas; management is a discipline according to which
individual acts. The leaders and managers play an essential role in the development of the
company. A leader and a manager are defined below:
LEADERS
A leader is the one who influences other towards the attainment of specific goals and
objectives of the company. A leader has a clear vision and objectives and he motivates and
inspires his subordinates in such a way that his vision becomes their common vision
(Bolden, 2016). The H&M Company requires leaders at several levels and departments of
the organisation for successfully accomplishing the organisational tasks and operations.
MANAGERS
The manager is an individual responsible for managing several activities of the organisation
with proper planning and decision-making to ensure the achievement of the organisational
objectives. The managers should get the work done by the employees and staff of the
organisation with the help of the several tactics and ways (Bolden, 2016). In H&M various
types of managers at different levels are presented such as top-level managers, project
managers, functional managers and general managers. The top-level managers are
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responsible for formulating vision, mission and strategies of the organisation. The functional
managers are accountable for the accomplishing the functional objectives such as
marketing, finance, human resource, sales etc. the project managers are responsible for
successful completion of the particular project and the general manager performs several
activities for managing the business.
COMPARISON BETWEEN THE ROLES OF LEADERS AND MANAGERS
BASIS LEADER MANAGER
Approach The leaders set directions for the
plans.
The manager plans the details.
Attribute The leaders are required to have
foresightedness to ensure the
success of the plan.
The managers are required to
have a proper mindset to
perform the plan.
Subordinate The leaders have followers. The managers have employees.
Style The leaders follow a
transformational style of
leadership.
The managers follow
transactional style.
Conflict The leaders can use conflicts as
an asset and tool for
improvisation (Surbhi, 2014).
The manager tries for avoiding
conflicts as more as possible.
Decision The leader facilitates the
decisions.
The managers formulate
decisions.
Aim The leaders aim towards the
growth and development of the
organisation.
The managers aim towards the
attainment of the pre-
determined goals and required
results.
Focus The leaders focus on the people. The manager focuses on the
procedure and process (Surbhi,
2014).
Risk Leaders tend to minimize risks. Managers tend to take risks.
Change The leaders promote changes. The managers react to the
changes.
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The different characteristics traits and qualities of leaders and managers of H&M are stated
below:
CHARACTERISTICS OF A LEADER
 Vision
 Positive attitude
 Open –minded
 Ability to inspire
 Self-assurance
 Social boldness
 Enthusiasm
 Emotional stability
 Conscientiousness
 Dominance (Giltinane, 2013)
CHARACTERISTICS OF A MANAGER
 Patience
 Accountability
 Competence and warmth
 Positive attitude
 Cultural affinity
 Etiquette
 Discipline
 Work commitment
 Decision-making
 Flexibility
The leaders play a positive role in figuring out the hidden talent of his followers and provide
proper guidance to them (Lunenburg, 2011). On the other hand, managers play a little
negative role where he has to criticize employees to bring best out of them without
demoralizing the employees.
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