Report on Developing Personal and Management Skills for M&S

This report delves into the development of personal and management skills, essential for professional growth, using M&S as a case study. The introduction defines personal and management skills, emphasizing their importance and outlining the report's structure, which includes two main tasks. Task 1 focuses on management and leadership skills, including a skill audit, SWOT analysis, and a personal development plan. Task 2 explores different types of skills such as supportive communication, motivation, empowerment, conflict management, and team effectiveness. The report provides a comprehensive overview of how to enhance leadership, communication, and motivation skills, offering practical strategies and theoretical frameworks to improve individual performance and organizational success. The Gibbs reflective model and Kolb’s reflective learning are also discussed to aid in understanding the learning process and developing skills.

Developing Personal and
Management skills
1

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 1 Management and leadership skills.....................................................................................3
Sub section 1....................................................................................................................................3
Management and leadership 3
Development of management and leadership skills 3
Learning style 4
Skill audit and SWOT analysis 4
Sub section 2....................................................................................................................................6
Personal development plan 6
TASK 2 Types of skills....................................................................................................................9
Supportive Communication 9
Motivation 9
Empowerment 10
Conflict Management 10
Team Effectiveness 11
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13
2

INTRODUCTION
Personal skills are known as soft skills which are not easy and impossible to teach. There are
different examples of personal skills such as dependability, motivation, adaptability, analytical
skills and problem solving. Management skills is another type of skill that can be defined as
several abilities or attributes that an executive should have in order to complete particular tasks
and activities within an organisation. There are certain examples of management skills such as
communication skill, team management, organisational skill, and planning and strategy skills
(Cook, 2018). These are considering effective types of skills that should posses by executive.
Therefore, development of personal and management skills is essential for personal and
professional development of an individual. For this report, M&S is a chosen multinational retail
organisation that is specialise in selling of high quality clothing, food and home products.
This report divided into two tasks, first task would recognize areas in reflect on own
leadership and management skills and significance of the PPD (personal development plan) for
effective leadership and management. Second part of this assignment will be explained several
theory and uses of the transferable skills by applying best practices of the enterprise.
TASK 1 Management and leadership skills
Sub section 1
Management and leadership
Management: This introduces as coordination and organisation of the business activities in
order to attain defined goals and objectives (Ritter and et. al., 2018). Management includes
different functions such as creating corporate policy and planning, organising, controlling and
leading a business’s resources to attain the objectives of that type of policy (Doll, 2018)..
Leadership: This refers as an art of encouraging and motivating an individual or group of
person to act towards attaining common objectives. They are an individual in the team that have
the combination of leadership skills and personality to make other desire to go behind their
direction (Kenan, 2019).
Development of management and leadership skills
Creation of leadership and management skill are important in my personal and professional
development in the organisation. In order to develop my management skills, I need to focus on
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8P’s which are purpose, processes, projects, people, performance, places, profit and personal
development. These are main P’s that support me in development of my management skills.
Under management skills different number of skills has been included which is planning,
communication, decision-making, problem solving, motivating and many others. These are main
skills that are need to posses in development of management skills. These skills support me in
my career growth and progress (Khojasteh Pour, 2018).
Development of leadership skills in the organisation is important for me as well as an
organisational performance. In order to develop leadership skills, I need discipline, take on more
responsibility, developing situational awareness, inspire others, keep learning, empower my team
teammates, and resolve conflict and many others.
Therefore, above mentioned all these are effective ways that I will be used in developing
of management and leadership skills at workplace of M&S. as this support me in my personal
and professional development and also in my progress and success within an organisation.
On the basis of my own experience, I have developed understanding on the Gibbs
reflective model which is acknowledged as the appropriate model of reflection. This framework
includes total 5 stages that is description, feeling, analysis, conclusion and action. It can be said
that usage of this framework allows individuals in expressing each and every stage of the
particular situation over which they are reflecting in order to develop their own understanding
over their own enhanced knowledge as well as skills (Poston and Richardson, 2019). Apart from
this, I have also learnt about Kolb’s reflective learning. Here, learning developed from both the
theories have helped me out in reflecting on my own experience in adequate manner which leads
to developing my own command over myself as well as the skills which have been developed by
me on the same.
Learning style
Here, I personally make use of Assimilators type of learning style belongs to Kolb’s
learning theory. This learning style simply means that learning takes place putting any kind of
information in the logical as well as concise manner. The main reason behind making use of this
learning style is to develop learning by reflective on the overall situation in the abstract manner
which only highlights the main areas of the learning (Proctor, 2018).
Skill audit and SWOT analysis
Skill Audit
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A personal skills audit is an effective good way for me to recognize my strengths and
weakness and must create in a healthy atmosphere (KORZENIECKA-BONDAR and
BORAWSKA-KALBARCZYK, 2018). There are my personal skill audit plan which are:
SKILL TYPICAL DESCRIPTORS SKILL
LEVEL
Low High
SPECIFIC
COMMENTS
Decision
making and
problem solving
Ability to make better decisions,
choosing suitable solutions, study
of appropriateness.
5 Facing critical and
complex situation
Oral
communications
Structure and format, tools for
effective presentations, following
the telephone, meetings etc.
3 Applying different
types of
communication
model
Motivation Following different types of
motivational tools, understanding
individual motives, making
business tasks challenging;
promoting creativity, giving team
support, engendering trust as well
as openness.
2 Following
motivational
theories and
techniques.
Organisation
and time
management
Prioritising, using time
management strategies. Dealing
with paperwork; interruptions and
many other.
4 Following time
management
techniques
SWOT analysis
This is an effective framework for identifying as well as analyzing the internal as well
as external factors that can have direct impact on the viability of me. With the help of this
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framework I can easily understand about my strength, weakness, opportunities and Threats.
These are shown as below:
Strength Weakness
 I am good in managing time and
business activities in effective manner.
As it support me by improving my
growth and success within an
organisation.
 I have excellent decision making and
problem solving skill in the workplace
of M&S.
 I am lack in communicating
information to my team members and
top management. As it impact on my
confidence and performance level.
 I am not able to motivate other staff
members which are a biggest weakness
in my career growth and success.
Opportunities Threats
 My time management skill is a biggest
opportunity in my career growth and
progress.
 In order to solve any kind of issue I use
creativity as it helps me by providing
opportunity in my professional
development.
 Communication is my weakness that is
also a biggest threat in my personal and
professional life. As impact on mine
while I require communicating
information to my team member in
effective manner.
 Lack of motivation is biggest threat in
my life as it impact on my job
productivity and performance in the
workplace of Waitrose.
Sub section 2
Personal development plan
What are my
skills-related
development
objectives?
What activities do I
need to undertake to
achieve my
objectives?
What support/
resources do I need to
achieve my
objectives?
Target
date for
achieving
my
Interim
dates to
review
progress
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objectives
Oral
communications
In order to develop
these skills it is
highly important for
me to develop my
understanding on the
several
communication
models that will
support me out in
improvising my
communication level.
Along with this, it is
highly important for
me engage into
several
communication
activities which will
open up my hitch and
also support me in
improvising my
verbal
communication in
adequate manner.
For improvising oral
communication skill I
will be requiring
support from the mates
as well as mentors who
will support me in
applying the decided
model in appropriate
manner and provide its
own contribution in
development of oral
communication skill.
28 July
2020
25 August
2020
Motivation It is highly important
for me to develop my
own knowledge
towards the ways
through which I can
easily myself as well
as team mates who
In order to attain this
objective that is
development of
motivation level, I will
be requiring to attend
some session related to
motivational
25 June
2020
29 June
2020
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will effectively
perform the assigned
work in adequate
manner. For
enhancing motivation
level it is highly
important for me to
develop
understanding over
each and every
requirement of team
members thus I can
easily motivate these
team members by
fulfilling their
requirements at
timely manner which
will ultimately
motivate them and
boost up their
performance in
positive direction.
enhancement which is
highly important for me
to develop my
understanding towards
the ways through which
motivation can be
enhanced effectively.
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TASK 2 Types of skills
Supportive Communication
It is an effective style of communicating that has a particular set of techniques and goals.
Main goal of this skill is to resolve misunderstanding or accomplish change in a specific
situation. This type of skill is needed by M&S in their management team because it helps
research team member to resolve their own identified issue. Along with this, communication is
important in daily life of an individual as it support in reducing miscommunication in the
workplace. Expectation of each person is that all people act, think, behave, move, response and
communicate now they made off because of dissimilarities of an individual nature, none of the
persons could act same as each other (Liu and Babchuk, 2018). Therefore, supportive
communication can define non-verbal and verbal behaviour that produce with the aim of giving
support to others supposed as needing that assistance. It is an interpersonal and effective
communication that cheers business managers for properly communicates to customers in
challenging situations. There is need for M&S to always encourage supportive communication at
workplace. It will help them to drive the higher level of productivity, generate higher quality
output, speedy problem solving, fewer misunderstanding between workers and creating strong or
long lasting relation among the group members (Schmitt, 2018). As example: If Marks &
Spencer always encourage their workforces for supportive communication, they have a moral on
their conversation to prop up supportive communication.
Motivation
It can be defined as strategies or actions that bring out a desired behaviour and response
from main stakeholders of an organisation. It is an effective type of skill that are requiring by
M&S in their managers because it will support them in retention of employees for long time.
This skill will also assist an enterprise to attract large number of customers by providing number
of benefits to them. In addition, motivation is an essential factor for growth and development of
an organisation (Mendoza, 2018). Today, most of the enterprise would like to have extremely
motivated staff members at their workplace but they do not have any idea about the factors that
really motivate their workers. Management of M&S is primarily liable to see the job roles or
activities are completed through their workers in an accurate manner. In order to motivate
employees, M&S should apply different types of motivation theory such as Maslow’s hierarchy
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of needs, McClelland’s achievement-affiliation-power model, Herzberg’s two-factor model, and
McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y Model. These are considering major types of motivation
theory and help an organisation to motivate their worker towards its job role. Additionally, there
are some effective techniques of motivation that must be use by M&S for motivating their
employees. These are financial and non-financial techniques. Under non-financial technique,
company must motivate their employees in different ways such as job enlargement, offer
leadership opportunities, job rotation, and team work and employee recognition. These are
consider more effective techniques that will be beneficial for M&S to retain employees for long
time and accomplish their long term goals within predetermined time period.
Empowerment
Empowering management introduces as an art of developing an effective environment
within which a specified manager’s or leader’s personnel can learn, grow, take responsibilities
and initiatives, feel empowered adequate to make appropriate decision, tale professional and
personal risks, expand their autonomy, and experiment innovative performance solutions. In
addition, empowerment is a systematic process in which an organisation provides power to their
employees to make any kind of decision related to the business. It is considering most effective
and essential tool that is used by M&S to enhance performance and productivity level of their
workers (Nofsinger, 2019). With the empowerment, employee of an organisation has provided
more ability to use her or him skills, in that way facilitating more decision making faster to the
point of impact. There are different benefits and advantages of employee empowerment such as
increased productivity, enhance employee motivation, improved teamwork, improved creativity
and moral, and higher quality of service and products. Apart from this, there are certain
disadvantage of empowerment including increased business risks i.e. security and confidentiality
risk, develop a blurred chain of command etc. These are drawbacks have negative impact on
business performance and growth of company. M&S is a United based retailer, they calling their
workforce as main asset of the business and they have to share the role of the organisational
growth and development. As it turn to support company to collaborate with their employees and
management and enhance their success at marketplace.
Conflict Management
It refers to the process of limiting the bad aspects of conflict or misunderstanding while
raising the good aspects of conflict. Main aim of this type of skill in management team is to
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increase learning as well as group outcomes, considering performance or effectiveness in setting
of an organisation. There are number of causes that may impact on creating conflicts in an
organisation such as common resources, goal differences, roles and expectations, authority and
specialisation relationship. In context of M&S, there are several disadvantages as well as
advantages in conflict (Núñez and et. al., 2018). Drawbacks of conflicts are, lead to work
shortage, waste time of management and employees, affect on organisational performance,
employee’s demotivation and dissatisfaction towards job and many other. These are major
impacts of conflict that have negative impact on business as well as an organisational
performance. Along with this, there are several advantages of conflict at workplace of M&S
including, improve team cohesiveness, facilitates an understanding of the worker struggle,
improving analytical thinking and gives creative and new ideas. In order to set up a better
conflict management system and process will support business to drive workforce in a common
direction. For example: M&S should adopt whistle bowing policy and provide authority to their
employees to explain their issues effectively. As it will assist them to reduce conflict or
misunderstanding among the workers. Along with this, management of conflict at workplace is
more essential and beneficial for M&S in retention of talent for longer time and accomplishment
of competitive advantages easily.
Team Effectiveness
This refers as a capacity a group has to attain the objectives or goals administrated by the
certified organisation or the personnel. There are number of skills that are required to take on –
task-focused group roles such as decision-making, communication, problem solving, feedback
skills, conflict resolution, organising and planning skills etc. These are considering main types of
skills that help an individual in making of team effectiveness. As it support an organisation in
accomplishment of their long term goals and objectives within predetermined time period. In
addition, team effectiveness introduces as a capacity of team to attain the objectives and targets
administered by the organisation or management team (Parmer, 2019). For this,
Bruce Tuckman's model is used as it helps an organisation in development of effective team in
the workplace. This model has four stages of team building i.e. forming, storming, norming and
performing. Most of the organisations are using team concept with aim to improve their
organisational performance. In order to identify team effectiveness, there are different models
that should use M&S such as Lencioni Model, GRPI Model of team effectiveness, Hackman
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Model, T7 Model, Katzenbach and Smith Model. LaFasto and Larson Model. These are
considering more effective and useful models for M&S to use and measure team effectiveness.
As it will support them in their growth and development at marketplace. There are certain
benefits of effective team such as development of leadership merits, division of work, gaining
new viewpoint, collective responsibility and advance communication skills. These benefits
support M&S in improvement of its productivity and performance level. If team supervision not
effective, consequences or issues may face by the M&S as imbalanced participation and
contribution of members, conflict of information will make for a clash, one group members need
to outshine the rest.
CONCLUSION
From the above mentioned report, it has been concluded that management and personal
skills are important for personal as well as professional growth of an individual. Different
number of models has been used for reflecting about an individual management and leadership
skills. Kolb's experiential learning theory and, Honey and Mumford styles are useful models that
are used for explaining learning behaviour of an individual. Along with this, Skill audit, SWOT
analysis and Personal development plan have been used for identifying weak and strong point
and also several ways for overcoming those weak points. At last, different types of skills such as
conflict management, communication, team effectiveness, motivation and empowerment with
their useful models were explained in this project. These skills needed by an organisation in their
managers or leaders because it will help them in growth and success of company.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Cook, T. A., 2018. Developing Masterful Management Skills for International Business. Crc
Press.
Doll, J. L., 2018. Structured interviews: Developing interviewing skills in human resource
management courses. Management Teaching Review. 3(1). pp.46-61.
Kenan, B. A. Ş., 2019. The Relationship between Classroom Management Skills and Self-
confidence of Social Studies Teachers. International Journal of Education and
Literacy Studies. 7(4). pp.62-68.
Khojasteh Pour, A., 2018. Managerial skills and Globalization in Automotive
Industry. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences: Proceedings, 7(1
(s)), pp.pp-12.
KORZENIECKA-BONDAR, A.L.I.C.J.A. and BORAWSKA-KALBARCZYK,
K.A.T.A.R.Z.Y.N.A., 2018. CHAPTER EIGHT BENEFITS OF TIME
MANAGEMENT SKILLS, TEAMWORK SKILLS AND PERSONAL
INFORMATION MANAGEMENT PERCEIVED BY STUDENTS FROM THE
POLISH-BELARUSIAN. Innovations, Technologies and Research in Education,
p.91.
Liu, X. and Babchuk, W., 2018. Developing Classroom Management Skills in Non-Native
Culture: A Single Case Study. The Qualitative Report. 23(4). pp.779-800.
Mendoza, D. J., 2018. Updating in management skills for the gastronomy career. IJASSH.
Nofsinger, M. M., 2019. Time management skills: A checklist. College & research libraries
news. 57(10). pp.648-651.
Núñez, M.T.D.V. and et. al., 2018. Developing management skills through experiential learning:
the effectiveness of outdoor training and mindfulness. European Journal of
International Management. 12(5-6). pp.676-694.
Parmer, L. L., 2019. The Relationship between Eliminating Stressors, Developing Resiliency,
Short-Term Coping Skills, and Team Development Behaviors. Journal of
Organizational Psychology. 19(5).
Poston, R. S. and Richardson, S.M., 2019. Designing an academic project management program:
A collaboration between a university and a PMI chapter. Journal of Information
Systems Education. 22(1). p.6.
Proctor, T., 2018. Creative problem solving for managers: developing skills for decision making
and innovation. Routledge.
Ritter, B. A. and et. al., 2018. Designing management curriculum for workplace readiness:
Developing students’ soft skills. Journal of Management Education. 42(1). pp.80-
103.
Schmitt, U., 2018. Supporting the sustainable growth of SMEs with content-and collaboration-
based personal knowledge management systems. Journal of Entrepreneurship and
Innovation in Emerging Economies. 4(1). pp.1-21.
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