Analyzing Leadership and Management Styles in Global Business

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Business Report On Approaches To Leadership And
Management In A Global Context
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Table of Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................................................ 3
LO1........................................................................................................................................................ 4
LO2........................................................................................................................................................ 6
LO3........................................................................................................................................................ 7
LO4........................................................................................................................................................ 9
Conclusion........................................................................................................................................... 11
Reference List...................................................................................................................................... 12
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Introduction
For the proper functioning of a business organisation, it is important for it to be organised
systematically. It is for this reasonthat it has become necessary for companies to have leaders and
employees under them. These leaders give the employees tasks to perform, which upon completion
affects the performance of the business and its revenue.However, if there is no distinction of tasks
among the employees, unsystematic practices take place, and this causes a drop in productivity of the
organisation. Thus, it is necessary for business organisations to be systematically divided into multiple
departments. Each of these departments caters to specific tasks as set by the leaders. This allows for
the smoother and efficient functioning of the organisation.
In this report, we will take Eat Natural, an organisation specialising in producing and selling nuts and
cereals in the UK as an example to explain all the ways one can approach leadership and the
concepts of management in a business organisation. Eat Natural was founded by Praveen Vijh and
PreetVijh in Epping, UK (Eat Natural, 2019). Their goal is to sell bars and cereals made with nuts,
seeds, and dried fruits. This report will focus on the various departments of Eat Natural and the
hierarchy management in the organisation. The importance of communication in this organisation will
also be elaborated on, along with the impact of globalisation on this business and what style of
leadership is best suited for this company.
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LO1
Describe the functional areas of one chosen business and its hierarchy of management.
Each organisation is divided into multiple functional areas or departments for an efficient workflow.
Each area is responsible for a field of work and study that they specialise in managing. Though
business organisations can have as many departments as they want, most organisations have a few
main departments which in the case of Eat Natural is as follows:
Administration Department
The administration department consists of the managers of the company and the chief executive
officer (CEO). In the case of Eat Natural, they must make managerial and strategic decisions for the
company. The department also oversees the employees of the company. They implement company
directive policies as issued by CEO Praveen Vijh. The Human Resource Department also falls under
this area, their job being to conduct interviews and hire new employees (Miggiano, 2019).
Accounting And Finance Department
The department of accounts and finace oversees all the accounting and book-keeping work of the
organisation during a financial year. In the case of Eat Natural, the expenditures, revenues, and the
equity of the company are recorded by this department and reported to the administration department
at the end of a fiscal year. The department also records all the payable accounts so that all the
products and services given by clients are paid in full. The accountants of the organisation will also
prepare statements of cash flow, statements of income, ledger accounts, and balance sheets of the
company (Marquis, 2019).
Marketing And Advertisement Department
This department of Eat Natural is responsible for developing the packaging, pricing, and creating
innovative/creative materials for the company’s products and services. This department also
researches about the needs of the customers and make product and service advertisements as per
the customers wishes to attract more of them(Feng et al., 2015).
Sales Department
The sales department of Eat Natural has a duty to oversee its sales team to build good relationships
with the customers. They are also responsible for creating the concept of new products and to meet
specific revenue goals. The job of this department is to apply various methods to efficiently sell their
products by applying the proper distribution channels. They workin tandem with the marketing
department to attract morecustomers (Kundu, 2018).
Not only are the managers and employees of Eat Natural are segmented into various departments,
but they also follow a system of hierarchy in management in their organisation. The hierarchy of
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management refers to the levels of authority each manager and employers have according to their
position in the organisation. Hierarchy is important for establishing relations between seniors and
juniors in various levels of authorities so that a chain of command is created. These levels of
hierarchy are:
Top Level Managers
The president of Eat Natural, their vice president, Chief Executive Officer, and the board of directors
are all examples of seniormost top-level managers. They are responsible for strategising all
organisational operations and controlling all the departments. The manager’s job is to develop all the
strategies, policies, and the goals of the company. The board of directors make all the necessary
decisions for the betterment of the company. These managers also help in gathering all the outside
resources. They have the most authority in the hierarchy chain and are responsible to all
stakeeholders and the general masses.
Middle-Level Managers
The department managers, general managers, and the branch managers constitute this level of
authority in Eat Natural. They are generally accountable to the higher management of their
departmental functions. They help in executing organizational plans (with respect to company
policies). They help the top level managers with their planning of strategies and guide the low-level
managers for effectively improving their performance (Jago, 2017).
Low-Level Managers
Supervisors, foremen, and section heads of Eat Natural constitute this level of the hierarchy. Their job
is to assign employee tasks, supervising and guiding the employees daily, maintaining quantity and
quality of production, making recommendations and to other managers, and to bring forth employee
grievances and performance feedback (Anderson, 2010).
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LO2
Why is communication central to leadership and management? Within your answer, provide
examples of effective interdepartmental communication within an organisation.
Communication between leaders and their subordinates is necessary for proper functioning and
smooth operations of a business organisation. Communication also enables the managers and
administrators to stay up to date with the operations of an organisation. But communication of an
organisation is not only limited to members of the organisation. Communication is of two types:
Internal communication refers to the activity of communication between groups or individuals of an
organisation. Vertical movement of communication is the exchange of information between the
various hierarchy levels of the organisation. Horizontal communication is the exchange of information
between employees and managers of the same level (Vora and Patra, 2017).
External communication is to be the exchange of messages between members of the organisation
and people who are not a part of the organisation (Luthra and Dahiya, 2015).
Communication is important for leaders and members of Eat Natural because good communication
between the departments and leaders leads to more productivity. For example, if the sales
department of Eat Natural does not disclose sales figures to the marketing department, the marketing
manager might not be able to properly assess the market value of Eat Natural. This will cause the
marketing department to make less effective marketing strategies. It is necessary for information flow
to be present between each department so that each department is updated on the activities of the
other departments. This flow of information also needs to be present in the hierarchy system of Eat
Natural. For example, the decisions of the leaders need to be passed down to all the managers of
each of the departments. This will help the employees of each department to work according to the
decisions of the leader. This flow of information also works up the vertical ladder of hierarchy. For
example, the employees need to keep the managers of their departments updated on the progress of
their work. The managers here, in turn, will keep the leaders updated about all the departmental
activities so that they can take necessary decisions and actions accordingly. Thus, it is necessary for
Eat Natural to have a good communication system to develop and execute strategies perfectly.
Figure: Flow of information in communication
Source: As created by the learner
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LEADERS MANAGERS EMPLOYEES

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LO3
What are the current drivers of globalisation? In your answer, include an explanation of how
the drivers of globalisation impact businesses
Globalisation is the spread of technology, people, products and other resources across national
cultures and borders. Current drivers of globalisation and their impact on the business are discussed
below.
Integration of global economy: It refers to an arrangement between different countries that may
include coordination of fiscal and monetary policies (Boddy, 2017). This has made consumers to get
access over the local and global brand. It reduces the cost for producers and consumers and thereby,
Eat Natural can take advantage of offering products at reasonable priced. With an increase in trade
among nations, the organisation may acquire political cooperation and employment support from a
foreign nation. However, members of international unions are required to comply with policies and
rules of trade, and this can be much expensive for Eat Natural.
International Trade: It drives globalisation, as it strengthens and encourages interdependence
among nations. It is challenging fulfil demands of consumers and become self-sufficient in trade.
Therefore, all national governments import services, capitals and goods to ensure a certain level of
standard of living. Governments and international companies enacted policies that drive globalisation.
Reduction of trade restrictions and the elimination of barriers are common approaches carried out to
fuel globalisation (Cantle, 2012). Such policies are enabling firms to expand business across the
globe, but SMEs are facing immense competition to match their services with large firms. This
competition is putting pressure to improve product quality and posing financial burdens of small
businesses like Eat Natural.
Technological advancement: It fuels globalisation by enabling simpler for goods, ideas and people
to move around national boundaries (Boddy, 2017). For instance, growth and transportation have
made it possible to transfer products and people in bulk amount. Improvement in telecommunication
and information technology is enabling Eat Natural to send information in a few seconds. Additionally,
it can target the international market and trace new trends in the industry. Automation has increased
the production of goods, and this has made it possible to meet consumers’ demand timely. However,
some advanced technologies are not accessible to small business because of the inadequate fund.
This, in turn, creates a competitive environment enabling the business to struggle for sustainability.
International advancement: It drives globalisation with development in economic integration.
Businesses are getting the opportunity from international investment, including foreign portfolio
investment, commercial loans, and foreign direct investment (Martin, 2013). They are encouraged to
create more jobs and sources of revenue by grabbing investment opportunities. Eat Natural can utilise
such funds to increase production capabilities.
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Increased population and demand: Consumer demands are increasing with a high population rate.
As more individuals are exposed to international media coverage, their exposure to products and
desires are increasing. New target markets are evolving across the globe. This excellent opportunity
allows business organisations to identify a target market with greater scope and serve consumers with
many product variants.
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LO4
Compare and contrast two chosen styles of leadership or management. In your opinion, which
one style is most suitable for the modern global organisation and why?
Leadership style refers to the methods and ways the leaders use their authority and power to lead all
their subordinates. In the context of a business organisation, the style of leadership refers to the way
leaders of a company execute business strategies by commanding others to follow the tasks he or
she has given. Leaders enforce their authority on the employees of the company so that they follow
certain rules and follow company principles set by the leaders. In this report, we are going to focus on
two types of leaderships - Autocratic and Democratic.
Autocratic Leadership
Autocratic leadership, as the name suggests, is a style of leadership that is focused on the leader. In
this type of leadership, the centre of all authority is the leader, who commands over all other
employees. Some features of this style of leadership are:
 One and only leader: All the power and authority of the company is vested in the hands of
the leader. No one can oppose his or her decisions. The decision made by the leader is
absolute and final (Amanchukwu and Ololube, 2015).
 Only one course of action: Since all power is vested on the leader, he or she develops all
the necessary marketing strategies, without any kind of advice from any managers or
employees. Thus the only final strategy is developed, which becomes the course of action for
all the employees (Nanjundeswaraswamy and Swamy, 2014).
 A singular bearer of responsibility: Due to the immense power the leader holds in this style
of leadership, all responsibility subsequently rests in the shoulders of the leader. The leader is
held responsible for all the actions he or she enforces over the employees (De Hooghet al.,
2015).
Democratic Leadership
Democratic leadership is said to bethe opposite of autocratic leadership. It a type of leadership where
all employees take part in the strategy development process. The leader may be the centre of power
in the organisation, but he or she is aided by the collective efforts of all the employees of the various
departments and the managers of the organisation. Some features of this style of leadership are:
 Collective Process: Democratic leadership focuses on the concept of collective contribution
by all the members of the organization. The operations of the organization are divided into
various departments, each having their respective leaders. Thus, authority is divided amongst
all the departments of the organisation (Nanjundeswaraswamy and Swamy, 2014).
 Multiple courses of action: Since the leader is not the only one making strategic decisions,
each department formulates multiple courses of action upon extensive research and
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discussion. This creates the opportunity for creating multiple solutions for one problem, which
can be of great help to the leaders.
 Responsibility is shared: Since many employees and managers take part in the process of
developing strategies, each person can be accountable for their contributions towards
creating strategies. If a strategy backfires, the person who came up with the strategy can be
held responsible for it, taking a huge load of responsibility off from the leader's shoulders
(Fiazet al., 2017).
In the case of Eat Natural and other global organisations, it is better for them to follow the democratic
style of leadership. This style allows many advantages, some of which are:
 Since the style is a collectivemanagement process, it allows for greater flexibility in making
strategic decisions since many heads are involved, each with their ideas and strategies. This
allows for a broader spectrum of managerial decisions.
 The democratic style of leadership divides the responsibility of work among everyone. This
takes a lot of work pressure onthe shoulders of the leaders, so that he or she can work more
efficiently,
Due to the division of work and responsibility, everyone works to their fullest potential as they know
the fact that if a plan is poorly strategized, everyone knows who is responsible for it. The fear of such
an outcome will make the employees and managers work harder, increasing overall organisational
productivity.
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Conclusion
Business organisations require a sound interdepartmental communication system and an efficient and
fair hierarchy chain to effectively coordinate all operations of the business. The systems of
communications signified in this report should be followed by Eat Natural for greater productivity.
Since Eat Natural is a global brand, it is beneficial for them to understand the drivers of
globalisationand its impact. It is also necessary for the organisation to have a fair style of leadership,
which will improve employee relations and boost their morale and productivity.in order to Eat Natural
to develop and grow as a global brand, it should follow all these steps.
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