Contemporary Management Issues in the 21st Century: M&S Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of contemporary management issues, specifically within the context of Marks & Spencer. It begins by examining the role and impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on workforce management, utilizing models like the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and Schramm's model of communication. The report then delves into Marks & Spencer's existing policies on talent acquisition, learning and development, and change management, particularly in the competitive landscape shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic. It also explores the crucial role of leaders in implementing new initiatives and provides recommendations for how the organization can adapt and thrive in the 'new normal,' emphasizing the need for combining stability with speed and leveraging digitalization and technology. The report concludes by summarizing the key findings and emphasizing the importance of ICT and strategic policies for organizational success and adaptability. The report uses Marks and Spencer as a case study to illustrate the application of management theories and practices in a real-world scenario.

Contemporary
Management Issues In
21st Century

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Models and Theories for identifying impact of information and communication technology on
the management of workforces..............................................................................................1
Existing policies of talent acquisition, learning and development and change management
process in the COVID-19 competitive landscape..................................................................2
Role of leaders for implementing new initiatives...................................................................4
Recommendations on new initiatives that this organisation should adopt in order to survive
and thrive in the new normal..................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Information technology is broadly known as information and communication technology
that is helpful in managing the processes of communication with the help of the latest technology
like mobile devices, social media, telecommunication, branding media, etc. Information in
communication technology can be simply defined as exchanging, creating, receiving, storing and
circulating information from one place to another with the use of electronic medium (Kalitanyi,
2019). With the help of information communication technology the companies and people in
today's world can interact more conveniently and faster. In this report, Marks and Spencer has
been chosen and is a British multinational retailer headquartered in London, England and was
established in the year 1884. This report will cover the use of various theories and models for
critically evaluating the role and impact of information and communication technology on the
workforce management activities within an organisation. Along with this, it will discuss the
existing policies of the organisation for change management process, learning development and
talent acquisition that can be helpful for the organisation in situations like Covid-19. In the end it
will discuss the role of leaders for implementing these initiatives and recommendations for
implementing these initiatives to survive during the pandemic.
MAIN BODY
Models and Theories for identifying impact of information and communication technology on
the management of workforces
Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology
There are many theories and frameworks that support the concept of using technology
within the organisation so that impact of information in communication technology can be
understood on the business (Alkatheeri and et. al., 2021). Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use
of Technology (TUAUT) explains the role of information communication technology in
organisations like Marks and Spencer. The role and impact of using information and
communication technology on the employee management activities of Marks and Spencer is
given below.
 Improve organisational communication: During the phase of covid-19 the organisations
throughout the world have faced problems in maintaining effective communication
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among the employees, stakeholders and organisation. Marks and Spencer used
information in communication technology that provided assistance with the help of
various digital tools like video conferencing, electronic mail, social media etc. So that the
organisation can interact with its stakeholders and improve its marketing activities.
 Better customer experience: Covid-19 has affected the ability of organisations to interact
with customers and respond to their problems and queries (Ernst and Haar, 2019). The
use of information in communication technology by retail organisations like Marks and
Spencer, the customers were provided online services like product ordering and tracking,
customer services, order booking and many other services. This helped to improve the
experience of customers with the organisation and the interaction of customers through
the company’s website and social media also helped it to generate greater brand image
and customer loyalty.
Schramm's model of communication technology
This model explains a process for the activities of communication where centre and
receiver are involved who interact with each other. This model helps to encrypt the data or
message end to end so that sender and receiver can only have the access, which includes the
encoder or sender, decoder or receiver who writes and interprets the message. The sender or
encoder sends the message to the receiver and receiver or decoder gets the message. In the case
when the sender or receiver sends a message back then the role reversal takes place in the
communication activity (Charidimou and Gouloudis, 2022). Therefore, encoding and decoding
are considered the most vital important elements for effective communication at the workplace.
With the help of information in communication technology the employees are able to interact
effectively and efficiently with each other.
Existing policies of talent acquisition, learning and development and change management
process in the COVID-19 competitive landscape
Policies of talent acquisition
Talent acquisition refers to the acquiring of employees who have adequate skills and
knowledge to fulfil the requirement of a given job role. Talent acquisition activities of Marks and
Spencer are elaborated below.
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 Monitoring competition: Marks and Spencer improve their talent acquisition by
examining the talent acquisition process and policies of rivals so that competitive
methods can be used for acquiring the best talent.
 Building the brand image: Marks and Spencer has a strong brand image that helps to
attract skilled candidates towards the organisation because they have better opportunities
for growth, career advancements and many other benefits.
Marks and Spencer uses these strategies for acquiring best and talented employees within the
organisation so that greater profit generation and performance can be achieved.
Policies for Learning and Development
Providing learning and development to the employees within an organisation is very
important for enhancing their performance productivity at all levels of work. Marks and Spencer
employs millions of people throughout the world within their retail shops which makes it
important for the organisation to continuously improve the performance of employees through
training and development. Organisation identifies the need for training and development of the
worker and arranges learning and development programmes so that they can adapt to the changes
and their skill gaps can be fulfilled. The main learning and development activity within Marks
and Spencer includes continuous learning and development programs by the organisation.
With the help of continuous learning and development activity the organisation identifies
the skill gaps and required improvement needs of the employees at the workplace (Novikov and
Tikhonov, 2021). The company provides continuous learning and development opportunities to
the employees so their still gap can be filled and their growth opportunities can be enhanced. For
this purpose the companies conduct workshops, seminars, refresher courses, training and
development, etc. through digital as well as physical sources. This helps the organisation to
conduct effective learning and development activities even at the time of situations like Covid-
19.
Policy of change management process
Change is a very integral process within every organisation throughout the world because
without constant changes an organisation cannot survive for long in the highly dynamic world.
Change management process refers to the activity of an organisation to identify the needs of
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change and implementing changes within the organisation. Covid-19 has affected many areas of
business and Marks and Spencer has identified the requirement for change so that the business
can run effectively and efficiently. Marks and Spencer have understood the reason for change
and determined the scope for making changes within the organisation. The company uses various
strategies to communicate changes to employees, make or implement changes and make the
changes permanent within the organisation.
Role of leaders for implementing new initiatives
The leaders within an organisation play an important role for implementing the initiative
for improvement (Popkova and Gulzat, 2019). There are various roles of leader in Marks and
Spencer for implementing new initiatives so that better performance within the organisation can
be achieved.
 Set a clear vision: Leaders within an organisation responsible for setting a path and
vision so that the employees can achieve a clear statement of mission and vision of the
organisation to pursue their activities to achieve them. Leaders in Marks and Spencer
price to perform their duties by aligning the goals of individuals with the organisation
goal. A leader has the ability to articulate and create a vision for impacting the
performance of team members.
 Motivating employees: Leaders are responsible for motivating the employees within an
organisation so that the performance can be improved for achieving effective and
efficient results. The managers and leaders within Marks and Spencer enhance the
performance of employees within the organisation by proper employee engagement and
timely motivation. The leaders can enhance the performance of employees by motivating
them because the employees become more dedicated and responsible towards their work.
 Create an environment for success: It is the responsibility of leaders within an
organisation to create a positive environment that encourages the employees to achieve
success (Dumas and Beinecke, 2018). The leaders and managers within Marks and
Spencer are responsible for enhancing the performance of team members and supporting
the activity of employees so that their performance can be improved and they have a
greater motivation to achieve success.
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Recommendations on new initiatives that this organisation should adopt in order to survive and
thrive in the new normal
It can be recommended from the above discussion that covid-19 pandemic as affected the
organisations throughout the world in a very negative manner due to which they has to face
various challenges like reduction in profit and sometime losses, lower employee performance,
supply chain ineffectiveness, adverse impacts on traditional marketing and communication
activities, etc. Therefore, several recommendations have been provided so that organisations can
take effective measures for combating such situations.
 Combining stability and speed: The organisations must combine their speedy changes
and make policies that are highly flexible and enables the organisation to implement
changes effectively and efficiently (Coaffee and et. al., 2018). Therefore, an organisation
should prepare for rapid changes and develop methods for continuing their activities to
survive in the new normal.
 Using digitalisation and technology: The organisations throughout the world must have
witnessed the increasing use of technology and digitalisation during the covid-19
situation. Therefore, it is important that organisations throughout the world should adopt
the digital tools and technologies for enhancing their business operations even in the
times of catastrophic situations.
CONCLUSION
It has been concluded from the above report that information and communication technology
have a very important role in the activities of a business so that the employees within the
organisation can interact effectively and efficiently as well as the communication of the
organisation with its stakeholders can improve. It has been identified that the organisation should
utilise information and communication technology for improving organisational communication
and providing better customer experience. Moreover, it has been explained that an organisation
can utilize various policies for talent acquisition, learning and development and change
management so that it can compete effectively during catastrophic conditions like Covid-19.
Furthermore, it has been explained that the leaders within an organisation should set clear vision,
motivate employees and create an environment for success to advise organisational success.
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Finally, it has been recommended that an organisation should be ready prepared for changes and
use digital tools and technology for improving performance.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Alkatheeri, H. B. and et. al., 2021. Elucidating the effect of information technology capabilities
on organizational performance in UAE: a three-wave moderated-mediation
model. International Journal of Emerging Markets.
Charidimou, D. S. and Gouloudis, S. E., 2022. Media and Human Resource Management.
In Research Anthology on Human Resource Practices for the Modern Workforce (pp.
1491-1523). IGI Global.
Coaffee, J. and et. al., 2018. Urban resilience implementation: A policy challenge and research
agenda for the 21st century. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 26(3).
pp.403-410.
Dumas, C. and Beinecke, R.H., 2018. Change leadership in the 21st century. Journal of
Organizational Change Management.
Ernst, R. and Haar, J., 2019. Globalization, competitiveness, and governability: The three
disruptive forces of business in the 21st century. Springer.
Kalitanyi, V., 2019. Global Business Environment. In Contemporary Multicultural Orientations
and Practices for Global Leadership (pp. 1-24). IGI Global.
Novikov, S. and Tikhonov, G., 2021. Innovation Technology Center as an Element of
Infrastructure Providing Innovative Activity. Quality-Access to Success, 22(183).
Popkova, E. G. and Gulzat, K., 2019, May. Technological revolution in the 21 st century: digital
society vs. artificial intelligence. In Institute of Scientific Communications
Conference (pp. 339-345). Springer, Cham.
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