Leading Lean Projects: Optimizing Efficiency at SINTEF

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Leading Lean Projects
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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Compare and distinguish various leadership styles that could potentially be adopted by the
selected project manager..................................................................................................................4
Select one (1) leadership style and explain in detail why you think it will be the best option given
SINTEF's organizational structure and context...............................................................................7
Determine characteristics that will be required to become a valuable team member of "THE A-
TEAM"............................................................................................................................................9
Propose tools/techniques that could be implemented in various departments of SINTEF that will
improve their efficiency. Provide specific examples of how the tools will be implemented........11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................14
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Introduction
The main purpose of this report is to show the importance of several leadership styles in the
development of any business. SINTEF Ltd is the company which deals in several sectors such as
marketing, finance, production, information technology, development of new product and human
capital management. SINTEF Ltd can adopt a different leadership style in their firm in order to
expand the growth of their business more. SINTEF can implement several tools and techniques
in their different departments in order to improve the efficiency of the organization.
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Compare and distinguish various leadership styles that could potentially be adopted by the
selected project manager.
There are several leadership styles that can be adopted by the project manager of SINTEF Ltd in
order to implement the lean principles in the organization. A good leader will always back
motivate their team members in order to work hard so that the organization will be able to
accomplish its objectives. The success of the team mostly depends on its leader and the way a
leader handle its team. There is a huge role of leadership style in the success of the team
(Skinner, 2018). Comparison of factors of different leadership styles are as follows:
Leadership styles related to tasks and members
Factors Democratic Autocratic Transformational
Quick decision
making in completing
any task.
In democratic
leadership styles,
quick decision
making is not
possible in order to
complete any task
because, in this
leadership style, the
leader generally
discuss with the team
members in order to
make any decision.
This will consume
lots of time and as a
result, quick decision
making is not
possible in this
leadership style
(Pierro, et. al., 2013)
This leadership style
is known for its quick
decision making. A
leader will make a
quick and direct
decision in order to
complete any tasks.
There is no
participation of any
team member in the
decision making and
the leader is
responsible for all the
decisions. Due to
which quick decision
can be taken and
implement in this
leadership style.
In transformational
leadership, a leader
will encourage its
team member to
complete the task on
time. In this
leadership style, it is
difficult to take quick
decisions regarding
the completion of any
task. In this
leadership style, the
leader can motivate
the team members in
order to improve their
performance.
Sometimes this may
not happen in case of
urgent completion of
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the task (Lean Keng
& AlQudah, 2017).
Benefits The biggest benefit of
a democratic
leadership style is
that the leader will be
able to get a different
solution to any
problem. By
discussing the
problems with the
team members will
allow the leader to
get a different
solution from
different team
members. This will
assess the leader to
get the best solution
to the problem and
also asses the leader
in order to overcome
any problem in a
shorter span of time.
Participation of all
the employees also
builds a good
relationship between
the team leader and
the team members.
The major benefit of
this leadership style
that the leader will be
able to take a quick
decision in a critical
time. This will allow
the team member to
perform their work
without getting any
other delay. A leader
is responsible for all
the decision which
will lower down any
extra pressure from
the employees and
assess them to focus
on their work.
The major advantage
of these leadership
styles is that the team
member will be able
to perform better
because of the
amount of motivation
they get from their
team leaders. Leaders
support their team
members and
encourage them to
put more efforts into
their work. This will
enhance the
performance of the
team members and
the team will be able
to accomplish their
goals.
Disadvantages The major In this leadership In these leadership
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disadvantage of this
leadership style is the
time consumed by the
leader in making a
decision. Sometimes,
it needs to take a
quick decision in
order to implement
some changes in the
work. But in this
leadership style, the
leader generally
discusses with the
team members before
taking any decision.
This consumes lots of
time and sometimes
effects the
performance of the
team.
style, there is no
participation of team
members in decision
making and the
leader is the only one
who is responsible
for taking the
decision. This creates
a negative impact on
the employees as they
feel demotivated
which will affect
their performance. A
team member will
also get frustrated by
receiving the
continuous orders
from the leader which
can create conflicts in
the team
styles, the leader
motivates the
employees to perform
a particular task. The
major disadvantage in
this leadership style
that the goal and
objective a leader
want to achieve is not
always beneficial for
the organization.
Team members are
continuously
performing the task
but there is no such
progress but still, the
leader is motivating
them to put more
efforts. This will
affects the
performance of the
team members
(Hornáčková, et. al.,
2013).
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Select one (1) leadership style and explain in detail why you think it will be the best option
given SINTEF's organizational structure and context.
An effective leadership style will provide direction to the team members so that they can work
according to the plan. It is an approach through which a leader can motivate its team members,
execute the desired plans in the team. This will assess the team member in improving their
performance which will help the company more in the expansion of their business (Grzesik &
Piwowar-Sulej, 2018). Leadership styles help the leader in solving various issues which can
occur while working in a team. SINTEF organization can adopt the democratic leadership style
in their organization in order to expand the business more. As the company deals with the many
departments and the success of the company mainly depend on its employees. Democratic
leadership style will provide job satisfaction to its employees and will enhance the performance
of the workforce.
Democratic Leadership styles- This is the most important leadership style in the context of the
job satisfaction of the team members. In these leadership styles, the leader makes the decision by
taking suggestions from its team members. Team members play an important role in the decision
making of the leader. The leader will concern their members before making any decision.
Decision making in this style mainly depends on the perception and suggestions of the team
members. All the team members can present their views and ideas in a particular matter. A leader
will listen to the views of its team members and take any decision (Miloloža Ivan, 2018). This
leadership styles also know as a participative leadership style because of the participation of all
the team members in the decision making of a leader. This leadership style enhances the
performance of the employee more because there is an involvement of the team members in the
decision making which motivates them more to perform better. As a result, this leadership style
can assess the SINTEF Company in order to develop the business more. There will be many
benefits for the company by adopting this leadership style and these benefits are mention below:
 Solving complex problems- Company has many departments and deals in many sectors,
due to which there will be many complex problems which will need extra assistance. This
leadership style assists the leaders in order to solve those complex problems. With the
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help of a democratic leadership style, the leader can determine innovative methods in
order to make decisions.
 Enhance the knowledge of the team- Democratic leadership style involves the
participation of every employee. This will assess the workforce in order to enhance their
performance and learn new skills from each other. Every new opportunity will assess the
employees to learn new things and help them to assess their knowledge more which will
be beneficial for the growth of the company (Rubin, 2013).
 Job Satisfaction. This leadership style will provide job satisfaction to the employees, as
the employees will be able to participate in the discussions and share their views
regarding the important decisions. This will give more personal satisfaction to the
workforce and improve their work quality.
 Team relationship- This leadership style will assess the team leaders in building a
relationship amongst them. Employees will be able to interact with each more with the
help of team meetings and discussions. This will assess the employees in building a good
relationship with each other and also assess them in enhancing their performance.
 Clear picture- This leadership style provides a clear picture of the workforce about the
ongoing process in the team. With the number of team discussions, employees will be
able to know each and everything about the progress of their work. This will encourage
the employee to do more efforts in order to accomplish their goals (Beyan, et. al., 2018).
By adopting the democratic leadership style, SINTEF Company will be able to accomplish its
goals and objectives.
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Determine characteristics that will be required to become a valuable team member of
"THE A-TEAM".
Every company needs the best team which can solve all the complex problems of the company
and put extra efforts in order to accomplish the objectives of the organization. These teams can
be formed with the inclusion of skilled and talented employees. In order to become a valuable
team member of “THE A TEAM, an individual should possess these characteristics:
Reliable: Reliability is the most important characteristics a person should possess in order to
become a valuable part of the team (Courtright, et. al., 2017). A good team will always want to
prefer a reliable employee over a skillful employee who is not reliable. Reliability of any
employees depends mostly on environmental factors. These factors have a big impact on the
reliability of any employees. Reliability of any person can be improved with the help of several
working practices. Reliability of an employee mostly depends on the behavior of the
organization towards them. The company needs to understand the contribution of the employees
and respect their work. This will improve the reliability of that person towards their team and
assess the team in order to accomplish the goals.
Good communication skills: In order to become a part of a valuable team, it is important for the
employee to possess good communication skills. This skills will assess the employee to
communicate with other members of the team effectively. A good communication skill assesses
the individual in maintaining the working environment of the team (Courtright, et. al., 2017). A
good communication skill will assess the employees in interacting with each other more. Due to
which they will be able to learn from each other skills. A good communicator will always know
when to talk and when to remain silent. This will help the team in maintaining a positive
framework which results in a positive outcome.
Confident: An individual should be confident in order to perform better in a team. Confident of
an employee plays an important role in enhancing their performance (Li, et. al., 2014). A
confident team member will always find a way to work according to the worst scenarios. This
characteristics of a person help the team in achieving success. A confident individual will not
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give up in a tough situation rather the person will give the best performance in order to achieve
success.
Adaptable: With the increase in the competition and an increase in the number of challenges an
organization have to face on a daily basis, it is important for the individual to possess
adaptability in their work. This skill will assess the employees to learn new things and to gain
new skills. Every company wants a flexible worker in today's era where the competition is
increasing rapidly. In some scenarios where the team needs the extra efforts from their members
(Li, et. al., 2014). It is important for the person to remain flexible towards their work so that they
can work according to the company needs in the case of urgency. An individual should be able to
do extra work when needed in order to complete the work on time.
Multitask- With the increase in the competition, it is necessary for the person to perform
multitask, this will assess the organization in gaining a competitive advantage in the market. In
order to become a member of "THE A-TEAM", a person should be able to perform multitasks.
By doing multitask in the team will encourage other team members to put extra efforts in order
to complete the project. This will assess the team in their development and also help the
company in the growth of their business (Müller, et. al., 2018).
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