Roles and Characteristics of a Leader and a Manager in Operations Management

This document discusses the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager in operations management. It explores the key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers play in achieving business objectives. The document also explains the importance and value of operations management in business.

Management &
Operations

Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
TASK 1 ...................................................................................................................................3
P1 Define and compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager.........3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................6
P2 Role of leader and function of manager in various situations................................................6
P3 Different Theories & Models of Leadership..........................................................................8
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................9
P4 Explain the key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and
managers play. ............................................................................................................................9
P5 Explain the importance and value of operations management in achieving business
objectives...................................................................................................................................10
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................12
P6 Assess the factors within the business environment that impact upon operational
management and decision-making by leaders and managers....................................................12
Conclusion......................................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................14

Introduction
Operations management basically refers to an area in which controlling, designing, development
of business operations in its production procedure are considered. There is also inclusion of
redesigning of various activities which are associated with development of goods as well as
different services taking place in operations management (de Melo Vasco and et.al., 2020).
When taking the following report into consideration Aston Martin is the organisation on which
the report is conducted. It is an auto mobile company which is offering its customers with luxury
and quality vehicles in the market place. The company was established in 1913 and head office
for the company is located in England United Kingdom. The following report discusses about
various roles of managers as well as leaders in different situations in organisation. Also different
operation management approaches are used in order to increase the profitability for business.
Various ways in which this affects decision-making in organisation or also discussed.
TASK 1
P1 Define and compare the different roles and characteristics of a leader and a manager
Background of the organisation
Aston Martin is a company which produces and sales automobiles which are luxurious
goods and services. The company has its business operating in more than nine countries and
headquarter of it is situated in United Kingdom. Hierarchical nature of organisational structure is
followed by Aston Martin effectively. There are a number of different departments which are
controlled by different people. The company is affectively managing talented employees who are
providing quality as well as services to customers on time.
Managers in an organisation are those people who are responsible to administer and
control employees in an organisation. Managers are also looking for working in different teams
in different situations in organisation (Batalha and et. al., 2020). On the other hand, leaders are
those people who are motivating as well as encouraging employees in order to increase their
productivity up to a certain level in order to achieve objectives of the organisation. Leaders are

effectively directing and instructing all the employs in an organisation in a systematic manner in
order to implement different operations in the business (Walker and Reichard, 2020) . Various
roles of managers as well as leaders are mentioned below.
Roles of manager:
 It is the duty of managers in an organisation to effectively allocate all the resources to
different activities and operations. They help in making the optimum use of resources and
earning higher profits with them along with increasing performance level of business. All
the resources are actively allocated to different activities in order to assist and
maintaining a balance between demand and supply of business. Aston Martin authorities
are putting appropriate resources into appropriate places to increase productivity.
 Another role of managers in an organisation is to effectively monitor the performance of
employs and also assist them in bringing improvements as Willis development in their
performances. Managers are also evaluating performance as per the standards which is set
for the employs in order to attain objectives in a given time period (Upadhyay and et. al.,
2020). When taking Aston Martin into context all the authorities are continuously
checking their performances of employs which will help them in enhancing productivity
as well as profitability of the business in stipulated time period.
Roles of leaders:
 One of the major role of leaders in an organisation is to set a vision for all the employees
which will help them in obtaining the objective of organisation. It is necessary for a
leader to instruct all the employs in order to attain a vision in the given time period for
organisation.
 One other major role of a leader is to take decisions in given market situation which will
benefit both employees as well as organisation as a whole. It is necessary for leaders to
have good communication skills so that they can effectively inform the employees and
organisation about all the decisions which they are taking.
Characteristic of manager:

 One of the major characteristic of a manager is to manage time which will help them in
effectively managing all the activities and operations in the business which is to be
completed in a given time period.
 It is also the duty of manager to delegate authority as well as responsibility among
various employees in organisation. This will help them in gaining competency,
knowledge as well as skills in business organisation. With the help of this company can
effectively carry out all the activities in given time period.
Characteristic of leader:
 It is necessary for a leader to have good communication skills so that they can interact
with all the employees and encourage them. It is necessary for them to create a
connection with employees and motivate them to their fullest potential in order to achieve
all the objectives of organisation.
 It is also necessary that leaders are having self-control in order to distinguish between
right and wrong taking place in an organisation (Puri and et. al., 2020). When they have
self-control it will help them in motivating and encouraging others to words objectives
and vision of the organisation.
Differences among leaders and managers
 Leaders are using their skills in order to create a vision and mission for the company
whereas managers perform their duties and task which is given to them by the superiors
of company. When taking Aston Martin into context leaders are motivating and bringing
creativity in staff of organisation whereas managers are focused on achieving the
objectives of business.
 Leaders in an organisation are aligning all the employs according to skills and capabilities
so that target of organisation can be made on the other hand the managers are only
focusing on carrying out all the activities of organisation in a well-defined manner.
 Leaders are not delegating the responsibilities on the other hand they are carrying out
activities in a proper manner and managers are delegating responsibilities between all the

employees in an organisation to perform the activities properly.
Various similarities among leaders and managers
There are a number of different similarities between leaders and managers. Both are focusing on
objective of organisation and emphasizing on development of employs in order to fulfil the
objectives of business and increase its productivity.
Contingency theory: The contingency style of leadership states that a particular leadership can
only be suitable for a particular condition in business. It is necessary for the leader to understand
the major cause of the situation and also communicated throughout the organisation (Queiroz and
et. al., 2020). It is necessary for company to deal with different uncertainties and issues in
according to time.
There are different leadership styles used by leaders in Aston Martin which are mentioned below:
Transactional style: Transactional style is a leadership style in which strategies are developed by
staff members in order to achieve all the organizational objectives. In Aston Martin the
employees are rewarded as per their performance in order to motivate them and fulfil the
requirement of organisation.
Transformational style: transformational style of leadership is where new are you know weight
of ideas are brought in by leaders in order to bring success to business. When taking Aston
Martin into consideration leaders are providing positive and healthy working environment to all
the employs which will help in increasing the productivity and enhancing performance. This also
helps in motivating employees and asking them to bring changes into business
TASK 2
P2 Role of leader and function of manager in various situations.
Over the years, business industry is carrying are rapidly changing nature where it has been
found that different range of situations takes place from time to time. In context with Aston
Martin, a few of situations are being discussed where role of leader and functions of manager
will be indulging in them and these situations are presented underneath:

New car launch: Launching of a new car is considered to be a crucial situation where viewpoint
of customers plays an important role. Basically, Aston Martin has decided to manufacturing a
whole new innovative car which runs on both fuel and electricity and delivers the best quality
touch of luxury (Müller and Birkel, 2020). the reason behind launching of this new car is to grab
the attention of consumers from all over the world who are looking forward to go for something
new and innovative. Considering the situation role of a leader and functions of manager are
specifically being discussed underneath:
Role of leader: In this situation the role of leader will be to set the vision for the company
towards the new product that Aston Martin is looking forward to launch. Also, it is pretty much
needed by leader to clarify the vision in front of staff belonging to Aston Martin and develop
motivation among them show that desire of launching an innovative car may effectively become
achievable in set time frame.
Function of manager: Proper planning is considered to be a primary function of a manager
which manager of Aston Martin will be taking into consideration in the situation of Aston Martin
where it is looking forward to launch the new car that runs on electricity and fuel. Planning like
what will be the time of giving training sessions to staff members along with delegating the work
among staff based on their capabilities and so on will be performed by the manager of Aston
Martin.
Considering the above mentioned information where launching of a whole new car, discussed
role of leader and functions of managers will be helpful to Aston Martin in effectively achieving
the of launching new car in the international market in determined time frame.
Crisis Management: This is another situation, which may break an organisation and lead it to go
through difficult is like lower productivity and profit ratios and so on. In context with Aston
Martin crisis management like in case of COVID-19, where the whole world is dealing with
financial crisis there are a range of roles that readers that are important for company and
functions as well of the manager. Just because of this particular situation it is may be possible
that Aston Martin might reach to a position where they would have to reduce the pay scale of
staff members because of increasing absenteeism rate and turnover (Garcia-Palao, Oltra-Mestre
and Coughlan, 2019). The decision will directly affect both profitability and productivity of

Aston Martin and will take it to the declining competitive position within the international
market. In present context, the role of leader and function of the manager has been presented
underneath:
 Role of Leader: Under this type of crisis, role of leader within Aston Martin will be to
develop a motivational speech and call for a meeting where he or she might can
effectively deliver the information about the overall condition that the company is facing
and front of the staff members and then try his or her level best to effectively motivate
them.
 Function of manager: Including this, manager's another primal function is to coordinate
with staff and top level management. The managers at Aston martin are specifically
focusing on improving the employee engagement because they may feel important to the
company if there’s a given suggestions are discussed with upper level management. On
the other hand, organising the meeting about the discussion of reduction within salaries
and so on is also considered to be the important function of manager of Aston Martin.
P3 Different Theories & Models of Leadership.
Over the years, it has been found that there are various theories and models of leadership that are
being taken into consideration by organisations dealing in both domestic and international
market. In context with Aston Martin, leadership models and theories are described underneath:
 Situational approach – Leaders and managers belonging to Aston Martin are ready to
create appropriate choice as per circumstance which they are right now encountering at
the working environment. Under this type of approach, it is needed for managers of Aston
Martin to understand the requirement and develop an effective methodology in order to
achieve the particular goal considering the situation. The quality of situational approach
may effectively become helpful on leaders and managers to improve the existing
situation.
 System approach – System approach helps in reducing the chances of pulling out any sort
of negative aspect and aid in focusing on positive ones. This particular type of approach
is distinctive but one of the oldest in nature which includes inspiration, arranging,

relationship fabricating, etc. The quality of this approach which is experienced by Aston
Martin's managers and leaders while manufacturing cars and confronting basic
circumstances achieving the goal in much effective and efficient manner. It additionally
helps in zeroing in on tasks appropriately. While shortcoming identified with same
circumstance is that it required enormous time, which Aston Martin cannot afford due to
rapid increase in competitive environment in automotive industry.
 Contingency approach – When considering contingency approach, the progression of
business not just identified with different capabilities but it also helps in focusing on
different fundamental variables on which Aston Martin would require to completely keep
its focus. need to centre for example circumstance and range of abilities. Administrative
functions include in this approach are coordinating, collaboration, etc. With the help of
this, Aston Martin can effectively reach to a position where it can become a leader within
the automotive industry of United Kingdom.
All these theories and concept of leadership are effectively helping Aston Martin to deal
with various problems that are arising in marketplace. Systematic approach is used by leaders of
Aston Martin while providing feedbacks to employees. On the other hand they also make
effective use of situational approach in order to deal with conflicts and grievances between
employees. In this way different concepts are used in Aston Martin to manage barriers arising
between its goals and objectives.
TASK 3
P4 Explain the key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers
play.
Operation management can be said to be an activity in a company which helps to attain various
goals. When taking Aston Martin into context below mentioned are various key operation
functions management company:
Transformation of raw materials into finished goods: Operation function of Aston Martin is
majorly the production and development of various auto mobile in the business. They are
transforming the raw materials into finished goods which are automobiles in order to fulfill
various needs and requirements of the customers (Pekkanen and et.al, 2020). Leaders and

managers are responsible to manage the design, resources and involvement of human resource in
production of goods. It is also necessary for managers and leaders to ensure that the quality of
product produced is at its best. They are required to look over all the activities and then make
changes to improve quality and reduce wastage in production processes.
Logistics and inventory management: When taking logistics and inventory management into
consideration it is an important operation in Aston Martin. In this the delivery of produced auto
mobiles throughout the market worldwide is conducted. It is the role and duty of leaders and
managers to affectively avail cars to their customers wherever they need it. They need to manage
and create personal relations with senior managers and ensure that they are effectively fulfilling
demand of market.
Various operational management approaches which can be adopted by Aston Martin are
mentioned below:
Lean production: When taking Aston Martin into context it is necessary for company to
minimize the wastage which is developed during production process. They need to make sure
that they are developing such strategies which will help in minimizing the waste and also
reconstructing the waste which is produced. Leaders are continuously extracting activities that
may lead to excess wastage in organization. In order to do so they are critically analysing all the
works done by employees.
Total quality management: Total quality management is an approach which is used by
organization which will help in motivating employees in order to perform the work in best
manner. It also helps to develop the best quality of sports car by the organization (Schönsleben,
2020). In Aston Martin leaders and managers are required to make strategies so that the concept
of TQM could be applied on the organisation.
Just-in-time: Just-in-time is an approach which will help organisation to reduce its wastage of
time. When taking Aston Martin into context it is necessary for leaders and managers of
organisation to focus on various factors such as what product is needed, when are they need it,
amount in which they are needed. Leaders and managers we develop strategies which will help in
reduction of wastage as per time

P5 Explain the importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives.
Operation management can be said to be a business activity which is helping in creating
high state of efficiency and also conducting it in organisation. Operation management also
helps in determining how conversion of raw materials into goods can be done with the help
of various resources present in organisation. There are a number of functions in Aston Martin
with the help of which value of operation management can be assessed which are mentioned
below:
Fulfilling demands of customers: With the help of operation management organisation can
effectively deliver luxury sports cars in all the market worldwide to fulfil demand of customers.
This will add value to business and the firm can easily acquire customers and also retain them for
a longer period of time (Reis, Pinelas and Melão, 2019). Management as well as leadership of
company is helping to take decisions in different situations to fulfil customer demands.
Maintaining product quality: It is necessary for organisation to maintain the quality of
product which will help in fulfilling the needs and requirements of customer. It is necessary
that along with profit margin companies also providing best quality of products and services.
When taking Aston Martin into context the leaders and managers of company are
encouraging employees to create best quality products to fulfil the requirements of
consumers.
Improving production process: When taking help of operational function and organisation
can easily conduct and improve their production design. When taking Aston Martin into
context it is seen that company is effectively developing best sports car and minimizing the
wastage which will help in increasing their profits of organisation. It is effectively done by
use of operational management by leadership and management approaches in organisation.
Minimising operational cost: Minimising the operational cost is an essential function of
operation management which will help in increasing profits for the organisation and also reduce
excessive use of resources which is a waste of resource. It is necessary for employees to focus on
work as well as quality of production. It is an important function which will help in bringing
success to the company and also minimise all the expenses of company which will again
contribute to increase their profits. The behaviour management and leadership approach can be

used which will help in ensuring that employs only focuses on quality of production effectively
(Thomas and et.al, 2019). These are various ways in which leaders as well as managers in
organisation or enhancing their operational management. It also helps them in developing best
products for the customers and fulfilling all their needs better than that of their competitors.
TASK 4
P6 Assess the factors within the business environment that impact upon operational management
and decision-making by leaders and managers.
Business environment refers to approach in which it comprises of both internal and
external elements affecting the organisation functions/operations. The forces which constitute the
business environment are its suppliers, competitors, media, government, customers, economic
conditions, investors and multiple other institutions working externally. A business environment is a
vast concept. But each of its aspects is equally important towards the success of a business. It
allows for the growth of businesses and also their downfall (Hill, Korczak and Wang, 2019). So,
every business must be highly critical about the environment they create and how it affects their
process and overall structure. The factors that affect a business both positively and negatively
comprise its environment. These include factors such as management quality to human resources,
political climate to environmental concerns. The range of factors that can potentially affect a
business is huge. At times, the internal and external factors may affect each other as well. They
may also affect the business together in some aspects. It is crucial for company to be aware
about business environment factors so that problems are identified in proper way. As important
as in context to selected corporation, these elements are identified and are discussed as follows-
Culture- It is defined as group of people with different religions, moral values, etc. These
have effect on operational management because subordinates in corporate world are from
different cultures or religions. Moreover, productions procedures are processed by overviewing
culture of that group or area. Further, this business environment element impact upon decision
making of both leaders/ managers because they have to use practices or theories according in
such a way that problem do not occur in culture.
Corporate Social Responsibility- It refers to procedure in which company is entitled
towards both socially and economically. Rationale for its impact upon OM is that CSR has

changing polices & procedures which require approval from superior authorities. CSR approach
has the potential to impact many different areas within business internal structures and also in the
way the outer workforce and society are organized.
To engage in CSR means that, in the ordinary course of business, a company is operating
in ways that enhances society and the environment, instead of contributing negatively to them.
CSR is for the community; it is equally valuable for a company. CSR activities can help forge a
stronger bond between employees and corporations, boost morale and help both employees and
employers feel more connected with the world around them.
Furthermore operations have to be maintain quality without affecting environment. Then,
it impact upon decision making because they both have to adopt ECO- friendly business
practices.
It is the duty of managers and leaders in Aston Martin to focus upon requirements of
CSR. They are required to communicate the information regarding CSR activities that is to be
fulfilled by employees in organisation. They are also responsible for reviewing the CSR that are
been conducted and also take responsive steps if they aims of corporate social responsibility
within organisation are not achieved successfully in stipulated time period.
Ethics- It is also business environment element which impact upon OM because ethics
which are related with quality and standards are required to maintained. It is difficult to follow
all ethics related to work because it cost is high when ethics are focused. Accordingly, it has
effect upon leaders/managers as ethics are needed to adopted while choosing business practices
during procedures.
Hence, stated paragraph shows that elements of business environment are required to
identify so that everything is done accordingly. The discussed elements states that they have
impact on operation management. Furthermore, it also affects leaders & manager decision-
making which disrupts the overall functioning of business at deeper scale.
Conclusion
On the basis of given report, it has been operations management is now
a multidisciplinary functional area in a company, along with finance and marketing. It makes

sure the materials and labour, or any other input, is used in the most effective and efficient way
possible within an organization, thus maximizing the output. It involves government,
subordinate, user as well as technology and so on that affect business organisation so that it is
vital to maintain alteration according to necessity. Organisation in taking correct decision,
executing that decision and strategy chosen for accomplishing the objective. The management
and leadership are different and the role of managers and leaders are also different but both
works in the same direction of the accomplishment of the goals and objectives of the
organization following different theories and styles of management and leadership

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