Exploring the Roles of Leaders and Managers: A Comparative Analysis

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MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................2
LO1........................................................................................................................................... 3
P1 DIFFERENT ROLES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A LEADER AND MANAGER......................3
M1 ROLE OF A LEADER AND FUNCTION OF A MANAGER BY EFFECTIVELY APPLYING A
RANGE OF THEORIES AND CONCEPTS..................................................................................5
LO2........................................................................................................................................... 7
P2 EXAMINE THE ROLE OF A LEADER AND THE FUNCTION OF A MANAGER........................7
P3 THEORIES AND MODELS OF APPROACH, INCLUDING SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP,
SYSTEMS LEADERSHIP, AND CONTINGENCY.........................................................................8
M2 THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO SITUATIONS.......9
CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................... 11
REFERENCES........................................................................................................................... 12
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INTRODUCTION
The report discussed the role and importance of leaders and manager in an organization.
The difference between the functions and responsibilities of leaders and managers are
explained in the report. Leaders and managers play an essential role in the growth and
development of a business organization. The goals and objectives of a business can be
achieved easily with the help of leadership and proper management. While leaders do not
fear to take any risk, the manager control or minimizes the risk of the business. Various
theories and models related to leadership are explored in the report. Further, the
improvement measure is suggested for the managers and leaders to improve their
efficiencies for attaining goals of the organization. There is a different factor which affect the
operational management and decision making of a leader or manager. These factors are
reviewed in the report appropriately that affect the business environment as well.
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LO1
P1 DIFFERENT ROLES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A
LEADER AND MANAGER
Leader
A leader is an individual who motivates and encourages the employees of an organization
for achieving its goals and objectives. He is the one who has the authority to make the
people work by utilizing their full efficiency (Business Dictionary, 2019).
Manager
A manager is a person who manages the people, departments, processes, operations and
other functions of an organization. He is an authority of a business organization who acts as
a bridge between senior management and employees. He translates the goals and
objectives of a business to its employees (Reh, 2018).
The difference between the roles of leader and manager are as follows:
ROLES LEADER MANAGER
A leader is a person who
connects the personal goals
of employees with
organizational goals.
Manager directs and
controls the activities of
human resources for
attaining the objectives of
the organization
(Heathfield, 2018).
A leader guides his team to
utilize their full potential to
ensure their co-operation
for attaining objectives of
the organization (Oberg,
2017).
The manager monitors the
performances of the
employees to ensure that
the plan to achieve the
objectives is being carried
out in such a way that its
accomplishment is assured.
A leader does not make
plans but makes the plans
A manager makes plans for
the area he is assigned and
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accomplish by soliciting his
support to the subordinates
and employees of the
company.
he is responsible for
achieving what was planned
by him for the organization.
The managers and leaders generally used two types of management theories and concept in
order to manage and control different activities of an organization successfully. These are
the behavioral theory of management and scientific theory of management. Behavioral
theory is useful for both the managers and leaders while the scientific theory is helpful for
only the managers to conduct different operations of an enterprise efficiently. The roles and
responsibilities of leaders and manager differ from one organization to another depending
upon their operations and code of conduct. Following are some of the responsibilities of
leaders and managers:
 Planning
A manager makes plans and strategies for taking appropriate actions for the
accomplishment of the desired goals and objectives of KPMG. A leader makes plans
for solving problems and creating a healthy work environment by focusing on
specific things (Leonard, 2019).
 Co-ordinating
Managers of KPMG ensure coordination among various departments of the company
such as the finance department, marketing department, production department, R &
D department, etc. The leader of KPMG co-ordinates the activities and functions of
these departments with the help of his leadership skills.
 Directing
The managers provide direction to the employees the work that should be
performed within a given time period. The leader guides and provides his assistance
to the team so that the operations can be well performed.
 Organizing
The manager of KPMG is responsible for the organization and effective utilization of
the limited resources of the company. The leader is responsible for motivating the
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employees to work with their full potential so that organizational resources can be
well be utilized.
 Staffing
The manager is responsible for recruiting capable employees in the organization and
the leaders encourage employees to work proficiently and help them with his
effective communication and problem-solving mechanism.
 Controlling
The managers guide the performance of employees by monitoring and evaluating
the outcomes of their performance. The leaders make sure that the strategies
formulated by the managers are accomplished within the given time by the
employees of the company.
M1 ROLE OF A LEADER AND FUNCTION OF A MANAGER
BY EFFECTIVELY APPLYING A RANGE OF THEORIES AND
CONCEPTS
It is the function of every manager and leader of a company to assist and lead their
employees in order to achieve the organization's goals and objectives. A good leader
possesses his own leadership style which he uses for the results of the organization
(Leonard, 2018). The manager oversees every department of the company and his efficiency
is reflected in the company profits, organization, and overall workplace morale. Following
are the distinction between leaders and managers:
 Function
The manager has the main function of organizing and controlling the operations of
the company for achieving its success but the leader does not have any specific
function to be carried on.
 Accountability
The managers are primarily accountable for achieving an organization's objectives by
making them clear to the employees and motivating them to achieve these
objectives. The leader is accountable for achieving the vision and mission set by
managers of the company (Mccarthy, 2018).
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 Working Manner
The manager works in a well-defined manner of the company with the main motive
of success and growth of the organization. The leader works in a collaborative
manner by making new innovation in their working manner to achieve efficiency
(Foley, 2019).
 Rights
The rights of managers are generally formal which is given by the company for the
accomplishment of his work with authority. The leaders have no formal rights but he
has other legitimate rights which he can exercise at the workplace.
 Concern
The manager is concerned with organizing and managing all the operations of the
company. The leader is concerned with achieving long terms goals and objectives of
the organization.
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LO2
P2 EXAMINE THE ROLE OF A LEADER AND THE FUNCTION
OF A MANAGER
For carrying out the business of KPMG, the leaders and managers of the company play a
crucial role. The responsibilities and functions of leader and manager are different from
each other but they combine and contribute to the success of KPMG. There are many
challenges and issues faced by the company over the past few years which can be solved
with the help of leaders and managers of KPMG.
The leaders of KPMG play the role of motivators for encouraging the employees of the
company in order to serve it in the best possible manner. The managers and leaders act as a
director who monitors the functions of various department and activities of KPMG
Company. KPMG is currently facing an issue related to employees’ turnover. The leaders and
managers of KPMG help the company in recruiting capable employees with new talent in
order to give cut throat competition to its rivals. The problem of employee turnover can be
solved by the leaders and managers through their disturbance handler role in the company.
When the training and development programmes are held for the employees, it increases
their retention in the company. The leaders and manager can play a role of disseminator for
providing training to the employees of KPMG which will make them update with the latest
technologies. The leaders and manager of KPMG act as resource allocator by allocating
various resources of the organization productively. The best resource that manager or
leader can provide to their employees is time. Communication is very important for KPMG
through its managers and leaders which is done internally as well as externally. As a
spokesperson, the employee retention rate can be increased by the managers and leaders
of KPMG.
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P3 THEORIES AND MODELS OF APPROACH, INCLUDING
SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP, SYSTEMS LEADERSHIP, AND
CONTINGENCY
Various theories and concept of leadership are applied in KPMG for resolving different
issues of the company as and when they arise. By using these theories and models, leaders
and managers can control the functioning of KPMG easily without any difficulty. Following
are some of the theories and models which are used by the managers and leaders of KPMG:
 Situational Leadership
Situational leadership is the leadership style where the leader adjust his ways of
working according to the leaning and development of his followers (Anthony, 2019).
The managers and leaders of KPMG can achieve the business objective by adopting
any changes continually to meet the changing requirements of his team and
followers.
 Management of Objective
Management of objective is a leadership style where the managers align the
objectives of employees with the objectives of the company. The productivity of
employees is subsequently increased when they work with a motivation factor.
Effective communication helps the manager to make the employees understand the
goals and objectives of the company and the methods for reaching that goal
(Business Dictionary, 2019).
 Transactional leadership
Transactional leadership style focuses on creating a relationship between the
employer and employee for completing required tasks. There is an incentive system
in this style which is in the form of monetary compensation for the work
performance which motivates the follower to complete the required task on time
(Cherry, 2018). KPMG adopt this style of management which has positively affected
the performance of its employees (Mi and Ramsay, 2015).
 Behavioral theory
The behavioral theory of leadership focuses on the behavior of leaders which help in
analyzing the impact of his leadership on his followers. Authoritarian Leadership
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(Autocratic), Participative Leadership (Democratic) and Delegative Leadership
(Laissez-Faire) are the types of behavioral theories of leadership. KPMG
 System Theory
One of the dominant theory of the management today is system theory which treats
the organization as either an open or closed system. The leaders and managers
define the work patterns of employees and create a healthy work system which
leads to efficiency in work performance.
M2 THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF DIFFERENT
APPROACHES TO SITUATIONS
The theories and models of management have various strengths and weaknesses which are
discussed below:
 Situational Leadership
Situational leadership style has given great advantages to the company by managing
the employees by applying modification according to changed conditions and
situations. In KPMG, situational leadership is very useful for providing proper training
to their employees which reduces the turnover rate. The flexibility provided by this
management style to the leaders helps them to work at their best. But there are
some limitations as well with the situational leadership that is it creates confusion
among the employees that which type of response is wanted by the manager
(Shonhiwa, 2016).
 System Theory
System theory is very helpful for the leaders and manager for managing the
employees of the company. A healthy work environment is created by this theory
which increases the efficiency of the employees which help in achieving
organizational goals. Through system theory, effective communication is built
between the employees and the employer which benefits the whole organization.
There are certain weaknesses of this theory that through this theory, changes occur
slow and steadily. Any situation which requires radical changes in the work processes
cannot be developed by system theory management.
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 Contingency Theory
The contingency theory of leadership has worked successfully over the decades in
various organizations. It is a reliable approach of leadership which has broaden the
scope of management in an organization. The theory helps the leaders in effective
human resource planning which contribute to the success of the company. It is a
flexible theory which can be used in different situations and fits with the company's
demand. However, there are some limitations of the contingency theory which
adversely affect the operations of the company. The contingency approach is
proactive and not reactive which suggests the management about what can be done
but the ultimate responsibility lies with the managers. The theory is complex and has
difficult empirical testing.
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CONCLUSION
The report successfully analyzed the role of leaders and managers of the organization which
are very different from the other. The functions of leaders and managers are distinctive but
both are crucial for the business. They help the company in the development of the
production efficiency and enhancement of high-quality products. The report included
different theories and styles of management and leadership. These theories help managers
and leaders to improve their work performances. These improvements help the company in
achieving its objectives without wastages and by minimizing cost.
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