Leadership and Management Development Report: BRS Director Analysis

This leadership and management development report focuses on the newly created position of Director of Strategy, Marketing, and Public Relations at Blue Ribbon Snacks (BRS), a company facing declining sales in the UK and Ireland. The report identifies the key Knowledge, Skills, and Attributes (KSAs) necessary for the role, which involves developing and implementing integrated marketing and communication strategies to expand BRS into new international markets. It analyzes the role's significance in improving sales, expanding the customer base, and managing internal and external public relations. The report outlines essential technical, managerial, and leadership requirements, including ethical business practices, communication skills, and the ability to secure media coverage. It details the assessment criteria, scoring candidates based on their KSAs, and provides a detailed scoring analysis of three candidates, considering their education and work experience. The report also emphasizes the importance of leadership qualities, such as multiple intelligences and various leadership approaches, to meet BRS's expansion goals. Finally, it identifies elements to be disregarded during the candidate selection process, adhering to equality legislation.

LEADERSHIP AND
MANAGEMENT
DEVELOPMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................3
Key criteria demonstrating analysis of the knowledge, skills and attributes required for the
Director of Strategy Marketing and Public Relations......................................................................1
Elements not to be taken into consideration....................................................................................4
Scoring of each candidate with explanation....................................................................................5
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................16

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Report on Leadership and Management Development will be discussing the key
importance of the newly developed job position of director of strategy, Marketing and Public
relations in Blue Ribbon Snacks that is experiencing a decline over sales of its products in UK
and Ireland. The assessment will list the major criteria of KSAs (Knowledge, Skills and
Attributes) that are necessary for the director of strategy, Marketing and Public relations position
job which is a newly created job role by Blue Ribbon Snacks to spearhead its expansion
strategies seeking new international markets. The report will also explain the various
considerable and disregarded elements in the profiles of identified candidates applied for the new
director job position and will clearly state the best candidate who is fit for the position of director
of strategy, Marketing and Public relations. A personal and leadership development plan for the
recommended candidate is also being provided in the assessment.

Key criteria demonstrating analysis of the knowledge, skills and attributes
required for the Director of Strategy Marketing and Public Relations
The director of strategy, Marketing and Public relations serves as the Chief public
relations officer for Blue Ribbon Snacks (BRS), UK and are responsible for managing the
marketing, manufacturing and distribution of products in Ireland and UK. The responsibilities of
director of strategy, marketing and public relations in BRS involves developing, managing and
implementing integrated marketing and communications strategies on behalf of the snack food
company. The director is responsible for all aspects of public relations, advertising,
communications and strategic planning in BRS that involves rendering market investigation
analysis, designing strategies to develop product lines to exceed customer expectations, increase
declined sale of BRS’s products in Ireland and UK and force organization to seek into new
markets. The responsible position required to maintain internal and external public relations to
enhance employee engagement and create positive impressions in public and serve as the
principle head for internet and social media advertising and promotion of BRS.
Main technical, managerial and leadership requirements for the director of strategy,
Marketing and Public relations position
 Represent BRS in a positive and professional manner at all times
 Comply organizational policies and standards regarding ethical business practices
 Maintain regulatory requirements including state, federal and local government
regulations(McCaffery, 2018)
 Communicate mission, ethics, values and goals of BRS
 Ability to develop relationships and communicate with all levels of management
 Capable of securing media coverage in various outlet types and able to develop effective
working relationships with media Excellent writing skills and high level of attention to details and able to work closely with
senior level executives.
Knowledge, skills and attributes required of candidates for the director of strategy, Marketing
and Public relations
 Knowledge of marketing and public relations services with strong organizational and
interpersonal skills
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 Ability to use good judgement in determining work assignments and appropriate courses
of action in complex situations
 Ability to effectively communicate both orally and written
 Ability to handle difficult situations that may include customers, stakeholders and media
 Aptitude to work independently, must be creative and attentive to detail and must have a
positive attitude
 Ability to complete work assignments accurately and in a timely manner Ability to maintain confidentiality of all personnel, financial and information
Analysing the role of the director of strategy, marketing and public relations
The new job position of Director of strategy, marketing and public relations in BRS is a
responsible position that is developed to improvise the decreased sale of organisation’s offerings
in UK and Ireland. This position hold a significant importance as the individual need to be
working with the CEO and senior management team to implement the strategy of BRS; expand
into new markets through two phases, develop existing products and services and also improve
the product lines by adding new range of offerings and to maintain existing distribution channels
while examining the possibility of developing BRS’s own channel of products and services
rendering by moving into retailing and cafes(West and et.al., 2015).
As BRS is planning to establish a stronger customer base in EU and to expand into
Germany, Austria, Nordic Countries, Spain and Portugal the organization is recruiting talented
individuals to meet the required workforce that is expected to rise from 400. The director of
strategy, marketing and public relations will be the change manager in the respective branch of
operation in each market where the firm is planning to expand. The director will be responsible
for raising the morale of the organization and its employees as this position will be handling the
major operations and strategic decision makings required to conduct the business activities of
BRS.
Being an established brand in UK and Ireland BRS hold a fair reputation in the existing
markets where the decreased sale of offerings can be developed with the implementation of
BRS’s new strategy and individual who meets the required skills, knowledge and attribute for the
position of Director of strategy, marketing and public relations can bring success to the
organization. Candidate who possess technical, managerial and leadership characteristics will be
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selected and placed to reverse the decline of sales of BRS and render growth for the organization
by implementing strategies and conducting operations effectively.
The main expectations for the role of Director of strategy, marketing and public relations
and the score for each criterion are considered as the selection criteria for the right candidate
which is 10 points for each characteristic or requirement. Criteria of 10 skills, knowledge and
attributes are being taken as the parameter to select the best candidate by evaluating scores out of
100 as each traits will be assigned with 10 score and the criterion for the Director of strategy,
marketing and public relations position in BRS are as follows:
Key Criteria Score
Knowledge:
 Good understanding of marketing,
advertising, public relations, retailing,
and strategies.
10
 Understanding of BRS’s market,
products and services, mission, vision,
ethics, morale and value
10
 Appropriate qualifications and
experience
10
Skills:
 Good networking or have networks 10
 Communication; both verbal and
written
10
 Leadership and decision making skills 10
Attributes:
 Open minded and candid 10
 Client oriented, risk tolerant and
inspirational
10
 Potential to become CEO, pathfinder
and adaptable
10
 Empower delegates and colleagues 10
Total: 100
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The best candidate for the new director must have the appropriate educational
qualification, knowledge of management and organizational behaviour and must possess relevant
work experience. The individual would be capable of acting or deputising for the CEO.
General expectation of a leader
Director of strategy, marketing and public relations I a leadership involved job position
that would require the candidate or individual to have intelligence trait to become a successful
leader. Having multiple intelligences including cognitive, social, emotional and overall
intelligence is the mandatory possession required for the director job in BRS. Various leadership
approaches like systematic, autocratic, contingency and transformational or transactional models
or theories would be devised for managing the operations, employees, subordinates and deploy
strategies of BRS by the Director of strategy, marketing and public relations.
Authentic leadership has been regarded as the essential requirement of strategic business
leaders which Director of strategy, marketing and public relations will be possessing and
candidates who possess these leadership qualities and knowledge will be expected to be placed
for this position (Gold and Thorpe, 2016). These leadership approaches are relevant to meet the
expansion requirements and improvement of deemed market value of BRS’s offerings. It will
help to analyse and understand the followers of Director of strategy, marketing and public
relations that puts the requirement of a transformational leader who will be able to devise the
strategies of organization by applying a directive or facilitative approach.
Elements not to be taken into consideration
For establishing a criteria for the selection of new Director of strategy, marketing and
public relations certain requirements like educational qualifications, work experience,
knowledge, skills and attributes are to be considered from the identified candidates for the
position(Bolden, 2016). Similar levels of leadership and managerial experiences and strong
credentials of the shortlisted eligible applicants are being identified out of which certain elements
are to be disregarded by considering the essential requirements.
Elements in candidates’ profile to be ignored and why?
For the position of Director of strategy, marketing and public relations certain mandatory
traits, skills and knowledge are required to place the accurate and desirable candidate for the job
position. While considering the candidate for the position of Director of strategy, marketing and
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public relations several elements are to be ignored which does not form much basis for the
selection criteria such as age, gender, background, marital status, physical abilities or disabilities
and having children or not etc. According to the Ireland’s equality legislations prohibits
employment discrimination on basis of these grounds. The act protects the employees in both
public and private sector and applicants for employment and training in UK. As per the Equality
Legislation in the Republic of Ireland the Employment Equality Act 1998, outlaws
discrimination in employment on nine distinct grounds:
 Gender
 Family status
 Age
 Marital status
 Disability
 Race
 Religion
 Membership of traveller community
 Sexual orientation
Scoring of each candidate with explanation
Selecting the new Director of strategy, marketing and public relations or BRS, identifies
three candidates after careful scrutiny of their profiles, Knowledge, skills and attributes (KSAs)
match to the KSAs required for the position of new director. The selection of new director is
based on criterion that are based on KSAs required for the job role and identified candidates have
been given scores on the basis of their KSAs matching with the position of Director of strategy,
marketing and public relations. The scoring for three identified candidates for matching the
position of Director of strategy, marketing and public relations in BRS are as follows:
Candidate 1
Angus Magee
Key Criteria Points Score Explanation Justification
Knowledge:
Education:
 M.Sc. in
international
15 13 Angus Magee
holds a first
class Hons
degree in B.Sc.
The required
education for
the position of
Director of
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business from
Griffith College
 B.Sc. in
marketing from
University of
Strathclyde
in marketing at
the University
of Strathclyde in
Glasgow. He
completed his
post graduation
or masters in
M.Sc. in
international
business from
Griffith College
strategy,
marketing and
public relations
is being
possessed by
Angus Magee as
he holds a
graduation in
marketing and
an international
business
master’s degree
for which he is
being given a
score of
Work Experience:
 Worked for
BRS Foods
as Assistant
Brand
Manager
with 5 years
of
experience
 Assistant
Brand
manager for
Diageo with
5 years of
experience
Director of Marketing
12 12 Angus Magee
joined the
graduate
programme of
Diageo where
he worked as an
Assistant Brand
manager for five
years. He left
Diageo in 2011
to pursue his
full time master
degree at
Griffith college
at the same time
joined
Angus Magee
has a good
performance in
his work
experience and
have won the
internal
competition in
2015 to rebrand
BRS for which
he is being
given a full
score on this
criteria.
6

Institute of Ireland marketing
institute of
Ireland
representing
Ireland on the
board of the
European
federation of
marketing
associations.
After the
completion of
his M.Sc. he
joined BRS
food as an
Assistant Brand
manager and
within a year
promoted to
Brand manager
responsible for
the company’s
premier brand.
Understanding of
BRS’s morale,
ethics, value,
mission and
objectives
10 9 Being an
employee
holding a better
position in the
organization
Angus Magee is
having a good
understanding
Good
understanding of
marketing,
advertising,
public relations,
retailing, and
strategies are
expressed by
7

of the BRS’s
market,
products and
services,
mission, vision,
ethics, morale
and value.
Angus Magee.
Skills:
Good networking or
have networks
10 9 People talk
about Angus as
being the type
of person who
will either make
CEO or become
Managing
Director of his
own company
someday. In all
his performance
reviews Angus
Magee has been
rated very
highly on social
ability and
human relations
and there is
hardly a person
in the company
who has a bad
word to say
about him.
Angus Magee
has a good
network and
followers in the
BRS and has
been given a
score of 9
Languages 10 8 Angus Magee is Necessary
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proficient in
both written and
oral
communication
that involves
English, Irish
and Swedish
communication
skill are being
possessed by
Angus Magee
which are
essential for the
new director
position
Managerial skills 10 8 Angus Magee
has a reputation
for achieving
goal and is liked
by all staff,
peers and
reports. Angus
Magee follows a
people oriented
approach to
attain objectives
and is expert in
marketing.
Angus Magee
possess a fair
managerial
ability required
or the new
director position
in BRS.
Attributes:
Strong intelligences
10 7 Angus Magee
possess an IQ
level of 126
which is a better
intelligence
ratio
Angus Magee is
considerable
with the
effective level
of IQ that is
matching the
need for new
director
position.
Mental strengths 10 8 Angus Magee Angus Magee
9