Foundations of Business Management Report: COVID-19 and LTR Analysis

This report examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on organizations, specifically focusing on the Luton Town Residencies (LTR) housing association. It analyzes the challenges posed by the pandemic, including the shift to remote working, technological adaptations, and employee motivation. The report identifies issues arising from remote work, such as isolation, loneliness, communication breakdowns, and data privacy concerns. It also provides recommendations for LTR to improve its operations, including training, communication strategies, and data protection measures. The report also includes a reflective theory component and concludes with an overview of the findings and suggestions for future action. The report uses various sources to support its findings, including books and journals, to provide a comprehensive analysis of the topic.

Foundations of
Business
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................................4
MAIN BODY.............................................................................................................................................4
TASK1........................................................................................................................................................4
Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on organizations...................................................................................4
Issues appear at LTR which are related to remote working situations.....................................................5
Recommendations to make adjustments or changes in the LTR organization.........................................7
TASK2........................................................................................................................................................8
Reflective theory.....................................................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION........................................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES........................................................................................................................................11
Books and Journals:...............................................................................................................................11

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Managing business includes knowledge and training relating to planning, executions,
supervision, and analysis of a business enterprise. They includes some business principles which
strengthening the business practices and they have a dynamic curriculum that allows to pursue in
any situation. Such principles teach the skills of fundamental that are need to run the business in
an effective way even in COVID-19 pandemic. This situation has shaken up the whole world and
impacts negatively where everything is restricted by government. Companies are shut-down their
gates as per the new norms and policies and to prevent everyone from spreading of such virus.
Proper training and motivation is provided by the managers to work remotely but some might it
stressful whiles other are happy as they get time to spend with their families and loved ones.

INTRODUCTION
Every business must have one or more owners whose main role is to invest time and
money in the business. When a business is built, it is only the founder who sparkle the ideas of
business and bring together the resources which are needed to turn the business idea into
practical (Cho, H. S., Lee, J. S. and Moon, H. C., 2018). Overall meaning of foundation of
business management is to understand the proficiencies and attributes of manager and leaders.
The aim of this report is to consider on the Luton Town Residencies (LTR) which is a housing
association company established in Luton. The goal of the association is to serve suitable
housing to the susceptible individuals. LTR possesses and manages various housing blocks,
divided into general purpose housing and supported purpose housing (Shonkoff, J. P., Slopen, N.
and Williams, D. R., 2021).
MAIN BODY
TASK1
Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on organizations.
With COVID-19, the whole world is fighting a health pandemic and economic pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought fast-moving and unforeseen variables some which
existing crises plans and team members were not prepare to handle such situation (Galavotti, I.,
2019). Many of the companies including LTR are currently dealing with the distressing effects of
such virus. From 2020, it has changed the whole game plans for business from manufacturing to
marketing in the wake of the deadly virus.
Remote Working: With the restrictions of government in place and lockdown of non-
essential services, LTR has shifted towards remote working to ensure that such disease does not
spread among team members and within the LTR association so that operations can be continue
as usual. It has been studied that many of the executives responded to shift their business
operations into fully remote working environments while others have decided to postpone
business activities or operations to reduce social contacts.
Use of Technologies: Technologies cannot prevent the effects of this disease but it
provides safeguard and prevention from spread; it can educate, warn and empower those on the
ground to be aware of the position. But such outbreaks provides a new way of learning,
managing and fighting such unexpected diseases that can actually kill millions of people in the
whole world. In current times, technologies cover lot of things such as mobile phones, robotics,
analytics, artificial intelligence, cloud, 4G/5G or high speed internet browsing. It has make the
organizations to use and test the various innovative approaches to COVID-19 pandemic response
(Gehringer, T., 2020). It helps to fight misinformation between members of the organization
about the fatalities, medicines, vaccines, treatment options, diagnosis, government policies and
many more that creates anxiety and panic. In order to reduce such type of mishappening
companies like Facebook, Google and many more are working hard to guide people with verified
information such as published by WHO or government or by local authorities.

Motivation: Motivation is very important in the LTR organization especially to struggle
with COVID-19 situation where employees feel demotivated towards their work, they are afraid
to come in organization, worried to make contacts with each other as it spreads from one to
another and many more things that get affected to accomplish the goals for LTR organization
(Gómez-Cruz, N. A., Saa, I. L. and Hurtado, F. F. O., 2017). A good manager always find ways
to motivate their employees, understand their concerns and issues, make appropriate solutions to
resolve them, make plans how to overcome changes that occurs due to this pandemic, guide and
train employees how to work digitally at home, make them to adapt technologies that will work
for both employee and organization.
HR practices to motivate employees in LTR:
 Providing securities to employees: Life is unpredictable and work is stable factor that is
very important for the employees and employers both. Having a good manager who
motivates their employee and provides number of reasons why they work with LTR and
why they should continue even in this pandemic. Employment security defines the
security of them and when they go home their family will also be safe. It helps to retain
employees in the organization.
 Self-managed and effective team works: Managing team work is crucial in the
company. Team provides value as it consists members who think different but work and
join hand together to accomplish goals for the LTR. Even in this pandemic situation,
managing team work is difficult sometimes as they do work from their home, control on
work is difficult, managing coordination can be difficult and many more things that have
to managed and controlled by the managers.
 Training in relevant skills: HR practices involves heavy investment in providing
relevant training to their employees as everything goes digital and online. Many
employees are there who are not aware about the technologies and work with their
traditional concepts; so as the things have changed now, communication goes online
through email, video call through Zoom app and many more (Imgrund, F. and Et.al.,
2018).
Issues appear at LTR which are related to remote working situations.
It is not deniable that coronavirus has negatively impacted businesses all over the world.
Due to COVID-19 pandemic, LTR companies send their employees home to work virtually;
doing work remotely is big change in the business operations for the LTR associations. It has
now become the new norm and policies of the LTR where employees are interested and love the
idea of doing work from their home as they can spend time with their families and also the work
environment over there is flexible. But if it is no longer a choice, employees might struggle to
stay sharp and some of them also struggling in maintaining the sanity.
Issues in managing the sudden change to remote work:
 Effects of Isolation: Workplace isolation is a form of social isolation that arises exactly
at the workplace as a result of factors such as generational gaps, culture of company that
claims that silence is golden. It has suggestively increased a person’s risk of premature

mishappening from all grounds; a risk that may rival those of smoking, physical
inactivity or obesity (Jakob, D., 2020). It has been studied that when a person is isolated,
loneliness impacts productivity, retention, creativity and many more. Isolation is
sometimes problematic as it increases depression, stress, anxiety, lack of motivation and
ultimately burnout are all possible moments of isolation. Other effects includes and
experiencing fears of missing out on crucial actions and decisions are made by someone
else- colloquially known as the feeling of out of mind.
 Loneliness: It is expected that loneliness has a negative impact on work on employee
attitudes, a desire not to stay in the LTR or instigating low organizational commitment. It
cause individuals to feel empty, unwanted and alone (Koskinen, K., Bonina, C. and
Eaton, B., 2019). People who feel loneliness often crave for human contacts but their
state of mind makes it more problematic to make connections with other people. It has a
wide range of negative effects on both mental and physical health which might include
use of drugs and alcohol, anti-social behavior, altered brain function, decreased memory
and learning, depression and anxiety, increased stress level, poor decision-making and
more. It is not just that areas but a lonely employees get less exercise than those who does
not feel loneliness.
 Lack of communication: Communication is the key especially in the LTR, where people
need to be on the same page and come all together to accomplish ultimate goals of the
organization. When communication lacks in the organization it can lead to a whole host
of problems at workplace (Rynes, S. L. and Bartunek, J. M., 2017). It can leads to
mistrust in the workplace in whole range of situations. Poor communication amongst
workers also limits the close interaction of their relationships and also the way has been
changes in which employees engage with other employee.
 Issue of broadband access: Some of the employees in the organization in the general
administration team has no internet access over their places; so that they have to purchase
especially to do work at their own expense (Laracy, J. R. and Marlowe, T., 2018). It has
been cost taking process of doing work remotely without any delay due to low-internet
speed.
 Increased workplace monitoring: This situation raised the concerns over a change to
increased monitoring at workplace. It causes unhappiness amongst the employees that
they think that there is no trust in a remote working procedures. Employees working in
the LTR would not be happy if there will be use of remote surveillance and monitoring
tools by the company.
 Struggling with motivation: One of the employee experience their struggle with
motivation since they move their work digitally due to this pandemic. Employees over
their feel that they were motivated better at the workplace since the manager or leader
physically was there. Now employees have no strict boundation to complete their task
with quality and on time.
 Lack of data protection and data privacy: There is an issue to protect data when
employee have an access at their personal level. But if they work at office, managers does
not have to worry about data confidentiality and privacy, as employees work on office
systems.

 Long term usage of personal devices: Many employees at the LTR are unhappy as there
is longer usage of personal devices to access email or documentation or video-
conferencing (Lorig, F., 2019). When employees were not work remotely that spend
lesser amount of time on their personal devices or in emergency they could use their
devices. Now they have to use their personal devices for official purposes, make calls to
suppliers, contractors, their internet is used for email or attachments and many more
things that get affected due to such pandemic.
 Lack of management: There is a lack of management when people work from their
home not from office premises. When they work at LTR office, there was a control by
management that everything is on right place, right time; but not due to such remote
working it lacks the management, employees do their work according to their own time
and convenience. It may also affect the productivity of the organization and services to
the customers.
Recommendations to make adjustments or changes in the LTR organization.
 Sufficient training and support: As everything was new due to this pandemic situation,
the process of communication, way of doing work, systems and many more things was
completely changed. Employees in LTR requested managers that to allow permission to
use mobile phones rather than using laptop or computer systems; mobile phones gives
convenience to the employees and they are easy to use anytime and anywhere (Koedijk,
K., Slager, A. and Van Dam, J., 2019). Manager provides training and appropriate
support to understand the new system process of new communication and collaboration
platforms.
 Proper communication: Communication must be there at the LTR association.
Managers should communicate with their employees and make them feel involved in the
LTR organization. They should make conversation with other employees if there is any
issue arise or not and if it is arise between employees; employers should take appropriate
actions to resolve them and make employees that are not lonely and their issues are
taking seriously in the organization. It may also help to cure loneliness, anxiety,
depression and many more.
 Motivation: Employees feel demotivated towards their work. As all employees doing
work remotely, they won’t feel like to work at home. Many of them see their mails and
information in early morning not on the same day. Managers should keep motivating
their employees by making conversations with them, they should recognize their work
and make clear appreciation amongst other employees (Lungeanu, R., Paruchuri, S. and
Tsai, W., 2018). They should not let their employees down even in this critical time
where everyone is struggling.
 Degree of Trust: As employees work under surveillance and employers monitor their
work through various tools. They feel like distrusted in the organization and do not work
in an appropriate manner. But employers should make them understand that it is
necessary to make every employee sincere as they are working in the organization; they
do not take their work lightly that might impact on accomplishing goals.

 Provide laptops or computers: Everyone in the organization work remotely at their
home. Not every employee has internet access at their homes or have computer systems
and laptops so that company should provide laptop or computers to work and make a
share amount of bill of internet; so it will be not taking as burden in work.
 Make stress-relief efforts: Increasing isolation creates mental stress related issues such
as depression, anxiety, loneliness, feeling of self-isolated and no longer social contacts
make any person anti-social. Managers can contact their employees through video-calling
via Zoom app; make them feel like they are appreciated and they are not forgettable
whether there is no social contact right now. They should email their employees; make
wishes on their birthdays or some achievements. They should also conduct mental
support health programs or session through such platforms (Pereira, N. P. and Machado,
C. F., 2019).
 Proper filing and documentation: Employees should delete the old ways of
communication and make modes of communication which is safe and does not leak
information which has to keep secret for the LTR or have to keep it confidential. They
should use tools and methods to protect data and maintain documentation through email
on daily basis.
 Use of technologies: Now a days there are various technologies available and that can be
used by the organization to make work easier whether it is remote working or not.
Everything goes online and digitally that makes every single thing advanced and
technological. There are various platforms available for the LTR to make work done, or
to make conversation with their employees such video-conferencing through Zoom,
contacts via email and many more. They can use it to call suppliers or contractors through
personal mobile phones, landlines or internet calling (Popkova, E. G., 2017).
 Spend time and make cost effective strategies: Employees who work at home have to
focus on their budget as internet access takes cost and they have to pay with their own
accordance. Employees should make strategies that company can bear some expenses and
there should be no burden in employee’s shoulder. So that they can work with free mind
and it helps to make themselves stress free. Employers also must not put pressure of work
on them as they are spend their time with families. If they do so, their family will also get
stressed and affected.
 Continue till situation is under control: The work from home should continue until the
situation is under control. People suffer from such virus since 2019, and still many people
get into contact of such virus and dying daily. It takes years to get into control so that if
LTR can continue their remote working they should do and if they cannot they cover and
follow the guidelines which is ruled by government or local authorities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has proven that employees can work remotely and can do it in an
effective manner without losing their confidence, productivity and will power to accomplish
company’s goal even in this crucial time where everyone is suffering from such disease. The
future of remote work will need many changes and modifications including high investment in
digital infrastructure and freeing office space. Companies like LTR having staff who is working
outside from office premises will need to update their processes and policies according to the
new government guidelines.

TASK2
Reflective theory
According to my point of view I have never seen such a crucial time in my entire life
where whole world is suffering the disease of COVID-19 which is spread when affected person
gets into contact with another. The disease examined in the December 19, had already spread
into many countries where people feel sick. This disease causes a risk of death where people are
instructed to maintain self-isolation which involved social distancing, avoidance of social
contact, closure of schools, shopping malls, theaters, non-essential services, business companies
to prevent the spread of Corona Virus on large scale and the over load of health systems with the
treatment of more critical cases. The situation of pandemic where everybody is dealing with
health and mental problems; many companies like LTR association locks their gates of office
and many other non-essential services follows the rules of government and shutdown their
offices until the next guidelines has been introduced by the government. This situation is affected
many business permanently in which company owners shut down their business for a life time as
they suffer losses and not able to pay rents of their business space, salary to their staff, they were
not able to invest more money to use advanced technologies in the work premises. Business
owners, employees, families or children everybody is suffering from this pandemic situation. As
we are discussing on LTR association; it is also suffering from the situation since the virus has
introduced in the world. The company also get impacted negatively where everything gets locked
down and move to the situation where employees and employers both face the unforgettable
change. Due to the virus, the company find a way of remote working where everybody have to
do their work or task from their home where they living or staying. Many employees were happy
as they get quality time to spend with their loved ones and with families but some of them were
not happy as it disturbs their personal and family lives. But in most of the cases as I experienced
impact of the pandemic situation is negative as it increase the stress level, disturbs personal life,
feeling of anxiety and depression and many more. When the work is remotely start of the LTR
association everybody is relaxed and comfortable as they can work freely and there is no strict
boundation like they work from office. But situation flips as workload is increased, there were no
presence of managers or leaders who can guide them physically as they could do in office
premises. If they do work at offices they obviously follow the discipline and rules but now
everybody has wake up late that has changed their daily routine which impact their work also.
When senior management decided to work remotely many of the employees were not agreed to
the decision which results they get frustrated, communication was lacking, internal support is
missed out and many more things which get affected due such virus. The cost is increase as the
company had to provide systems and laptops to their employees so that can work on them if they
were having their own. The work is impacted as employees work according to their convenience
and comfort zone, the work quality also get affected. Many of the issues has raised due to remote
working such as; the expenses has increased employees has to purchased broadband connections
to access to internet otherwise the mobile data is not enough and also they won’t be able to work
on low speed of internet data. Many of the employees were not happy as there will be no
guidance and support of their mentors or leaders even though they are connected through digital
or social platforms. When communication is not done in a proper manner whether it is written or
verbal; it affects the work if the email was not replied, calls were not answered, not able to

present in a conference meeting through video calls and many more things get suffered. I
experienced that remote work is affected if there is no checking method or tool used by the
companies; securing data is also important what if the secrets of the company is no longer a
secret. The competition might get advantage due to the lack of confidentiality. When work from
home is avail to the employees, they spend more time on updating their documentation but if
they work from office they won’t take that much time or there will be no delay in their work to
serve customers; now it takes a lot time to find information from excel, word or plain text files
and did not work in a productive manner and customers are not satisfied with the services. It has
also experienced that when work is not doing from office premises finance team of LTR also get
problems of no replying emails or they won’t be handle to collect information which they
needed. The studies has also shown that many employees were unhappy as they have to use new
communication platforms; many of them argued that they can prefer mobile phone or telephonic
calls as they could do in the office but what to say if situation is harder to control; managers have
to managed the things and make everyone agree to work remotely as it is safe and secure
otherwise if anyone is affected by the disease, there are chances that everyone will be suffered.
CONCLUSION
As per the above mentioned report it has been concluded that there is no control over
happenings or mishappenings in the environment whether it is personal, professional or
environmental such as COVID-19 pandemic. Everything is changed due this pandemic and shut
down situations operations for business goes remotely and digitally. Employees are trained and
supported by managers or leaders so that they can work smoothly even in this crucial time.
Technologies are adopted by the companies so business functions can be performed and monitor
the performance of employees even they do work from their home.

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