Leading Change: Analyzing Strategy, Operations at Marks & Spencer PLC

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of understanding and leading change within organizations, using Marks and Spencer as a case study. It begins by comparing organizational examples, focusing on the impact of change on strategy and operations, and then measures the drivers of change, differentiating between internal and external factors. The report assesses how these change drivers affect individual, team, and leadership behavior, and proposes measures to mitigate the negative impacts of changes on organizational behavior. It evaluates organizational responses to change by applying relevant theories and models and defines barriers to change and their impacts on leadership decision-making. The report also utilizes force field analysis to evaluate driving forces and critically evaluates the force field model's effectiveness in meeting organizational objectives. Furthermore, it explores the application of leadership approaches to deal with organizational changes, examines these approaches using appropriate methods and theories, and critically evaluates their effectiveness for change management. The report concludes with recommendations and justifications for effectively leading change within organizations like Marks and Spencer.

Unit 17 Understanding
and Leading Change

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK...............................................................................................................................................3
P1 Comparison among distinct organisational examples in which there have been an impact of
change in strategy and operation.................................................................................................3
M1 Measures the drivers of the change.......................................................................................6
P2 Assess the ways of change drivers which effect individual, team and leadership behaviour.
.....................................................................................................................................................7
P3 Measures to understate the negative impacts of changes on the organizational behaviour.. .8
M2 Evaluate the response of organizational change by applying the theories and models.......10
D1 Conclusion and recommendations with valid justification..................................................10
P4 Define the barriers for change and their impacts on leadership decision making................11
M3 Use force field analysis to evaluate the driving forces.......................................................11
D2 Critically evaluate the forcefield model in meeting the objectives of organization............12
P5 Application of leadership approaches to deal with the organizational changes...................12
M4 Examine the leadership approach by using appropriate methods and theories...................12
D3 Critically evaluate the effectiveness of leadership approaches and models for change
management...............................................................................................................................13
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................13
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................14

INTRODUCTION
Understanding and leading change can be referred to the process of overcoming from barriers
that comes across at initial stage and in implementing change (Nelson‐Brantley and Ford, 2017).
It is imperative for company to assess those barriers and takes corrective actions so as to
overcome form those obstacles. The issues may relate to various external factors such as
technological, psychological, economical or structural. The term leading change is a form of
leadership skills that allows organisation to successfully implement change so that it can achieve
higher success in target market. The core aim for every company is to generate higher revenue
and for that it is needed to effectively change which brings efficiency to company’s operations.
In order to effectively understand concept of understanding and leading change, Marks and
Spencer is taken into consideration. It is a British multinational retailer having headquartered in
London. Company is engaging in business of selling high quality clothing, home and food
products. This project report will cover various changes and its impact on organisation along
with identification of change drivers. In addition to that, it will cover barriers and issues of
changed faced by organisation. At last, it will depict leadership theories and models which can
be applied for managing change.
TASK
P1 Comparison among distinct organisational examples in which there have been an impact of
change in strategy and operation
Change may be termed as a general transition of various things as well as aspects into other
condition. In simple words, it can be depicted as a program in which establishment undertakes
disruption in day to day functioning. Organisational change can be referred as a practice in which
a company modifies or alters essential elements which are associated with organisation such as
technology, infrastructure, policies, rules and culture. Whereas organisational strategy can be
defined as set of activities that can be used for attaining short term and long term objectives of
firm. In addition to that, it also facilitates in framing of strategic planning which contributes in
fulfilment of objectives, With organisational strategy, company can gain competitive advantage
in target market. Marks and Spencer is a British retailer which deals in selling of clothing, home
and food products. In order to successfully implement change, management of company have
opted Kurt Lewin model which consist of three stages that are named as unfreeze, change and

refreeze. Changes that are associated with various factors contributes company in framing of
strategies so as to provide clear direction to generate higher revenue. Along with profit making,
it also helps in satisfying needs and wants of customers in an effective manner. In context to
Marks and Spencer and Tesco, understand changes in strategies and operations are discussed
below.
Basis Marks and Spencer Tesco PLC
Technological modification This factor majorly impacts on
every industry. From the
analysis, it was observed that
company is facing issues
related to profitability due to
technological issues.
Company is trying to
overcome from this issue in
upcoming one to two years. In
order to bring efficiency,
company have decided to alter
its existing strategy by
implementing five-year
change management plan.
Impact on strategies- In order
to attain optimistic out,
company has carried out
various changes in its
strategies. Organisation is
planning to swift up digital
transformation strategic plan
in order to get positive results
which relates to financial
performance of company. It is
trying to bring modification in
It has been analysed that
Tesco was facing issues
related to poor customer
service experience. This will
negatively impact on brand
equity of company. In order to
rebuild trust among customers,
company has to opt latest
technology so that it can
provide seamless experience
to its customers. To adopt and
implement effective changes,
company plans to modify its
strategy so that competitive
advantage can be taken
(Bason, 2017).
Impact on strategies- In order
to enhance customer service
experience, company has
introduced RFID application.
This application assists in
counting of stock level and
gets rid of after sales service
automatically. This detail can
be utilised at time of placing

its e-shopping method.
Impact on operations-
Company has decided to
implement changes in their
functioning by opting
widespread techniques based
on “Consumers are Omni
channel in nature”. The
supermarket chain aforesaid to
accelerate changes so as to
deliver better customer service
experience. In addition to that,
company is planning to
improve its IT system by
partnership technology with a
digital tech firm so as to
become more efficient.
order.
Impact om operations-
Company have its own mobile
payment application known as
PayQwid. Customer can
download the app and link
with NFC so as to make hassle
free payment. By this,
customers also get loyalty
points whenever they shop.
Along with this, company has
introduced “scan as you shop”
which makes it easier for
customer who are fond of
convenient buying. It
facilitates in saving time and
cost of company.
Environmental changes Environment is corrupting
rapidly. Marks and Spencer
have opted some changes so
as to mitigates its negative
impact of operations on
environment (Brook, 2016).
Impact on strategies- Moving
towards positive, company has
altered its strategies. To
minimise deforestation,
company emphasise on
cashless payment as an action
plan. Along with this,
company has prohibited use of
Environmental factors impacts
on retail business in a great
extent. Many companies are
facing issue of being
pressurised by government to
take initiative towards
sustainable environment
(Crosby, 2020). Company
tries to bring changes in its
strategies so that it can
mitigate negative impact of
operations.
Impact on strategies- In order
to minimise adverse impact,

plastic bags which are
hazardous to planet.
Impact on operations-
Company tries to make its
production process more
effective by minimising
wastage. This will positively
impact on company’s brand
equity. By opting
sustainability activities,
company can reduce carbon
footprints by 30% and
effectively use waste
management techniques.
company have taken initiative
to collect discarded plastic and
recycle them for reuse. This
will keep nature keep and
clean.
Impact on operations-
Company has opted waste
management technique in
which it recycles plastic for
reuse. It will minimise cost of
virgin material.
M1 Measures the drivers of the change.
There are two types of major driver that assist in change and contributes in altering plans,
technologies, product, design and service. Internal drivers of change involves capabilities, rules,
culture that are complex but organisation have control over its alteration (Van Nistelrooij, 2018).
Whereas external drivers may involve government laws and legislations, political instability and
customers on which organisation have no or few control over.
Types of organisational change Development change- This type of changes takes place when a company needs to make
alteration in existing situation. In relation to Marks and Spencer, it can bring innovation
to existing software so as to provide hassle free experience. Transitional change- This type of change takes place when a company tries to
implement a new course of action. In relation to Marks and Spencer, it can opt latest
technology and cut down overall production cost and profit can be invested in execution
and implementation of strategy.

P2 Assess the ways of change drivers which effect individual, team and leadership behaviour.
In relation to Marks and Spencer, there are two types of drivers which are internal and
external that may influence behaviour of individual, team as well as of leadership.
Internal drivers
Capabilities- If the workforce of an organisation is ready to adopt changes then it will
yield positive results but if not, it would negatively effect on company’s performance. In
context to Marks and Spencer, it hires knowledgeable and skilful personnel who can
work in an effective and efficient manner and contribute their efforts towards attainment
of goals. Leaders play an important role in change management as they have ability to
influence workforce to implement and adopt change.
Resources- It may involve various resources such as technological, human or financial
resources which are crucial for every business organisation (Upchurch, 2020). In relation
to Marks and Spencer, it fails to allocate its resources in a well manner and that
negatively impacts on performance and behaviour of workforce. It is important for
company to utilise its precious resources optimally which yields higher profit. Without
having resources, it becomes difficult for company to apply leadership skills at
workplace. By guiding and motivating employees, changes can be implemented
successfully.
External drivers
Customers- They are considered as heart of company and king of market. Market is
completely depend on customer’s needs and wants and every company tries to fulfil their
expectation by providing quality products at low price (Doppelt and McDonough, 2017).
In context to Marks and Spencer, employees and teams regularly renders different variety
of products in order to satisfy their needs of end customers. There are various approaches
of leadership that leaders can implement and can initiate change management in an
effective manner.
Government policies- Rules, regulations practice and policies of government can either
positively or negatively impact on company’s performance. In context to Marks and
Spencer, it may face huge penalties in case of non-compliance of these government
policies. Due to this, behaviour of individual and team may affect. In order to analyse

drivers of change, managers of company have opted SWOT analysis so as to make
further improvement in its operations
.
Strengths Weaknesses
 Company have a diverse product
portfolio,
 Company regularly brings new
designs in its clothing which is not
revealed by any of its competitors.
 Company have also opted bricks
and mortar along with online stores.
 Company lacks in market
penetration and this negatively
affects in profitability.
 The supply chain of company is
poorly scalable.
 It does not emphasise on customer
value and offers low customer
satisfaction level that adverse
impact on its brand equity.
Opportunities Threats
 Marks and Spencer can enter into a
new market segment by opting
market development strategy.
 It can modify its e-commerce
website which makes convenient
for customer to make order.
 There can be seen cut-throat
competition in retail industry which
may create threat for Marks and
Spencer.
 Change in political power, tariff
barriers and rise in inflation rate
may found threat to company.
P3 Measures to understate the negative impacts of changes on the organizational behaviour.
In order to minimise negative impact of changes within organisation, following are some
measures that can be taken by managers of Marks and Spencer.
 Participative management- If the workforce of M&S is highly involved in
operational and strategic change, then they will take change in a competent and in
positive manner. In facilitates in building good relationship between management
and workforce and creates a positive culture within organisation.
 Learning culture- It may be considered as a long term as well as permanent
change in a person’s behaviour. If company creates a learning culture at

workplace, it will assist in future growth and success of company. In addition to
that, acquisition behaviour is helpful in making organisation better as leaders and
employees are ready to face new challenges and can overcome with their
learnings.
 Creating effective communication channel- Communication and interaction is
vital to implement changes within company (Ramage and Shipp, 2020). It acts as
a blueprint for how to communicate changes, channels and methods. It is
important for company to effectively communicate change so that it can achieve
success in market.
Burke Litwin Model
It may be referred as performance addition to change model and was propounded
in 1992 in order to deeply understand business components along with their ways
that relates to other when time change (Couturier, 2019). It involves various
elements that may negatively impact on leadership, teams and individual. In
relation to Marks and Spencer.
 External environment- It affects the behaviour and leadership as this element
represents situations and conditions that are outside a business but can directly or
indirectly affects functioning of business.
 Performance- It can be referred to overall output of organisation. Performance of
individual as well as of organisation effects on leader’s actions and teamwork as
they can be measured on the basis of quality requirement, customer satisfaction
and turnover of company.
 Mission and strategy- This element relates to purpose of existence of company
along with its processes opted in order to achieve objectives (Muldoon, 2020).
When mission and strategy of company are well communicated and aligned then
it helps in motivating workforce that positively impacts on leadership as well as
other aspects.
 Organisational culture- It involves value addition to norms of company. In
relation to Marks and Spencer, it has a positive organisational culture in which all

employees work with peak potential and contribute their efforts towards
attainment of goals within given time period.
 Leadership- This element helps in giving direction to the company. Managers of
company guides and directs its workforce in an effective manner which
contributes in fulfilment of personal and organisational goal (Quenga, 2022).
M2 Evaluate the response of organizational change by applying the theories and models.
In order to identify various consequences of change management, company have
opted situational leadership as a strategic method. This models allows leaders in
setting up of theories which are based on their followers. It is quite different from
change management that tackles with changes of large scale. Whereas, situational
leadership emphasise on guiding and directing individuals in their day to day
work. This splits the change process into four categories such as delegating,
selling, telling and participating. Managers can delegate their task to their
subordinates when it needs to make direct reports in order to take decision
regarding change management. Mangers provides clear and cut direction about
rules and regulations, procedure but support workers in accomplishing objectives.
Selling style of leadership helps leaders in supervising their subordinates while
supply ongoing encouragement. At telling stage, leaders role is to provide clear
direction and instruction regarding change. It also assist in creating a foster
environment in which employees can feel valued part of organisation. The major
drawback of this model is that it only focus on immediate needs and not on long
term needs and that may create confusion within organisation.
D1 Conclusion and recommendations with valid justification.
In order to plan for change in an effective manner along with analysing impacts of
implementing change, company have to examine internal and external drivers.
Internal change drivers contribute in managing internal resources as well as
capital in order to enhance profitability of company. Whereas external drivers
help in determining external environment so as to take competitive advantage. It
is recommended to managers of company to forecast impact of implement change
so that corrective action can be taken to minimise its negative impact. In addition

to that, it has to opt proper communication channel in order to effectively
communicate change with its workforce.
P4 Define the barriers for change and their impacts on leadership decision making.
There are various obstacles faced by company whenever it tries to implement
change. It may affect leadership decision making in a well manner. In relation to
Marks and Spencer, following are some barriers that company may face while
implementing change.
 Government rules and regulations- There are various rules and
regulations framed by UK government which may acts as a barrier at time
of implementing change. It reduces potentiality of workforce along with
profit margins of company. In order to meet objectives of company, it has
to comply with all laws and legislations or government may impose
penalties in case of non-compliance. This barrier affects decision making
process of company and may negatively impact on its operations.
 Poor employee engagement- It is one of the most common barrier that
companies may face while implementing change. Sometimes, employees
are afraid to adopt and implement change and this negatively impacts on
company’s performance. It is important for company to have high
engagement of employees at time of change implementation so that it can
benefit company as well as employees. Without engagement of
employees, it becomes complex for company to successfully implement
change. So it is needed to provide essential information to its employees
regarding change implementation so that they can make themselves
prepared for change.
M3 Use force field analysis to evaluate the driving forces.
Forcefield analysis can be referred as a strategic framework which assist in determining
various factors that may influence situations. In relation to Marks and Spencer, this
framework can be used to place and implement changes in an adequate manner. This will
help managers of company in analysing and implementation change. Majorly, there are
two type of forces in which when a company is unable to manipulate technology in near

future and driving factors are those which benefits company in adoption of change in an
effective manner along with achievement of organisational goals.
D2 Critically evaluate the forcefield model in meeting the objectives of organization.
Forcefield technique is simple and easy to analyse initiation and implementation of change.
This will help company in dealing with complex situations in an effective manner. In motive
condition, it would be less impactful as resisting forces can increase stress level. It also assists in
meeting organisational goals effectively and efficiently.
P5 Application of leadership approaches to deal with the organizational changes.
Leadership is very crucial for manager ad leaders of Marks and Spencer choose various
leadership approaches so as to motivate and guide employees towards attainment of goals.
In plays an important role in adopting and implementing change. Following are some
leadership approaches that managers may opt.
 Situational leadership- Business is full of uncertainties and they may arise anytime
and negatively impacts on performance of employees and organisation. Thus
leadership approach can be opted by managers of M&S so as to adopt changes in an
immediate situation. It is flexible in nature and can be applied in every situation. But
it is not effective in task oriented environment as it majorly deals in immediate
situation rather than in meeting long term needs.
 Autocratic leadership- Leaders who possess this leadership approach deals in
controlling in one hand. All the power remains in one hand and accept little
suggestions from its subordinates. It does not entertain thoughts and opinions given
by employees. Company may opt this leadership as it facilitates in fast decision
making and employees are bound to follow instruction of their leader. All the work
pressure remains on one person which may lead to health and mental issue.
 Democratic leadership- This type of approach enhances participative management
and employees are allowed to take participate in decision making process. In relation
to Marks and Spencer, it can opt so as to solve problems in an innovative and
creative manner. Along with this, it would also help in building healthy relationship
with their team mates.

M4 Examine the leadership approach by using appropriate methods and theories.
In order to assess leadership style, managers of company can opt Kurt Lewin change
management model which helps in adopting change within organisation. This
management is used by management so as to understand changes which relates to
organisation and its structure. Company can unfreeze to initiate change process by
motivating their workforce. In the second phase, company can opt appropriate
leadership style so that change can be communicated in an effective manner. In the
last stage, refreeze employees so as to make them comfortable with changes. It is
time consuming process and may negatively impact on company’s performance.
D3 Critically evaluate the effectiveness of leadership approaches and models for change
management.
From the above analysis of information, it has been evaluated that company should
opt for situational leadership approach as it helps in dealing with various
uncertainties which may negatively impact on company’s performance. It will also
assist in motivating employees and makes them participative at workplace. There are
various issues that may arise among employees and this issue can be addressed by
opting this leadership approach. In addition to that, it may not found effective in
some cases where this leadership style would not work.

CONCLUSION
From the above project report, it was concluded that changes are crucial for company and it is
important for bring changes to policies, culture and in technology so that competitive advantage
can be taken. There are various drivers that may impact while implementing change. Along with
this, government rules and regulations, poor employee engagement are some barriers which
came across in implementing change. There are various rules and regulations framed by UK
government and needs to be comply with in order to avoid penalties. Forcefield analysis is used
to analyse initiating and implementing change as it would help company in dealing with complex
situations.

REFERENCES
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