Detailed Report: Management and Operations at Marks & Spencer

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of management and operations, focusing on Marks & Spencer as a case study. It examines the roles of leaders and managers, highlighting their responsibilities in achieving business objectives. The report differentiates between leadership and management styles, exploring key leadership theories such as situational leadership and contingency leadership. It also addresses critical operational aspects like staff turnover and conflict management, and analyzes the impact of various business environment factors, including government policies, customer satisfaction, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and stakeholder influence on decision-making. The report emphasizes the importance of effective coordination between leaders and managers to ensure organizational success.

Management &
Operations

1

INTRODUCTION
Management and Operation is an important administration of business related practices
which helps in establishing highest level of efficiency achievable within a company. It is
primarily concerned with effectively converting raw materials into finished goods and services as
efficiently as possible in order to gain maximum amount of financial benefits. Moreover,
operation management effectively aims to balance out costs with revenue so that overflowing net
operating profit is attained (Deihimi, Zahed and Iravani, 2016). This report is based on Marks &
Spencer which is a multinational business operation. The respective organisation provides food
products, home products as well as high quality of clothing. The outcome this report will cover
several aspects relating to operation management. It will cover functions as well as role of
manager and leader within an organisation in order to accomplish desired business objective.
Key approaches to operation management and several leadership theories will be analysed.
Lastly consideration with regard to business environment factors which impacts operation
management as well as decision-making of leaders and managers is done effectively.
TASK 1
P1
Leader is a basically a individual who shapes a particular business organisation so that
desired business objective can be accomplished.
Manager is a person is significantly accountable for carrying out several function of
management so that business tend to gain competitive business advantage.
Role of Leaders: Within business organisation there are several role which are essentially
carried by leaders through efficiency within business is witnessed. Following are some of the
most dimensions which are carried out by leader:
 Vision: Leaders primarily tends to define the purpose of an organisation. A vision
basically includes next feature which an organisation is going to implement in order to
capture new market share (Hyde and et.al., 2015).
 Strategy: After initiation for a particular vision a leader is primarily responsible for
setting several strategies through which desired vision can be achieved.
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 People: This is regarding identifying the workforce who can carry out the the allocate
task with full potential.
Characteristics of Leaders:
 Honest: This is must have characteristic that a leader must posses so as to achieve
organisational goals effectively. Through leaders tend to create trustworthiness work
relations.
 Confident: Leader within an organisation shall be confident in nature so that consistency
within business can be witnessed. However, confidence is considered as key trait of
personality.
Role of Manager: Variety of activities within an organisation are primarily performed by
manager which aids to increase competitive business advantage and carry out business related
activities effectively.
 Planning: This is one of the most important role which a manager performs in order to
accomplish desired business objective (Ichinose and et.al., 2015). Manager is responsible
for developing a proper plan and blueprint so that employees tends to work accordingly.
 Monitor: Manager is also responsible for monitoring business related aspects in such a
way that each and every business related activities is identified and measurements are
taken in order implement further improvements.
Characteristics of Manager:
 Effective Communication: This is very essential characteristic which essentially helps
in accomplish business objective. Proper communication within business organisation
access in create positive working environment.
 Creative: Manager within an organisation shall have ability to formulate several creative
ideas through which consistency within respective organisation can be witnessed.
Difference between leaders and managers
Basis Manager Leaders
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Approach Manager of a particular
organisation is responsible for
planning details of business
related activities.
Whereas leaders primarily
aims to set direction on the
basis of which overall business
operations are carried out.
Style Manager inherits transactional
style of leadership so that all
major activities of organisation
are performed effectively.
Moreover, leader essentially
follows transformational
leadership style in order to
deal with organisational
activities.
Decision Manager within an
organisation is entitled to
make major decisions.
Leader usually tend to
facilitate decision.
Focus Manager primarily focuses on
process and procedure.
Whereas leaders effectively
focuses on the people who are
connected to a particular
business organisation.
However, it can be summarised from above analysis that effective management as well as
appropriate leadership style is very necessary so that business objectives are achieved and
consistency is witnessed.
TASK 2
P2
Managers as well as Leaders within an organisation are indivisible in nature who
fundamentally helps a business in accomplishing objectives with full potential. Moreover,
leaders and managers aids to provide several strategies through which different situations within
a company are solved effectively (Kiehtreiberand et.al., 2018). Effective coordination as well as
cooperation among leaders as well as manager is must in order to carry out business activities
effectively. Common situation wherein manager as well as leaders play a very important role are
mentioned:
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 Staff Turnover: Staff Turnover is defined as particular ratio of employees who leave a
business organisation and are essentially replaced by new employees. However,
management of employee turnover rate significantly helps in examining reason behind
this turnover. However, it the responsibility of manager to introduce several strategies
through which employees are motivated and tends to get satisfied. Employees shall be
provided with training and development schemes, incentives, promotion, encouragement
and several other such methods through employees within business organisation feels
safe and secure. Apart from this leader under staff turnover is plays a very vital role, they
are primarily responsible for allocating right task to right individual so that they tend to
work with full consistency and achieve desired business objective. Leaders must also
make sure that each days workers tend to learn something new. With respective to Marks
& Spencer company have adopted several ways through which they tend to deal with
staff turnover effectively. Manager of respective organisation significantly implements
several strategies through which employees are motivated and their thought of leaving
respective organisation is changed. Apart from this leader of M&S have effectively
focuses of creating positive work environment so that employees does not feel dejected.
 Conflict: Conflicts is defined as a disagreement between individuals at workplace due to
overall business productivity is negatively hampered. Within business organisation when
two or more person interacts occurrence of conflict is very normal. Manager as well as
leader of business organisation under the situation of conflicts plays a very curial role
(Nakamura and et.al., 2015). Within M&S communication gap is observed due to which
situation of conflict is seen effectively. However, herein manager of M&S is responsible
for formulating a proper plan so that proper mode of communication shall be followed by
employee and effective bridge up communication gap. Leaders are responsible
maintaining proper flow of command through which communication between top and
bottom management team is done effectively.
There are several other situations within an organisation wherein function of manager and role of
leader plays a very curial in solving business relating situation. Both manager and leader play a
very effective role in carrying out business related activities with full efficiency.
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P3
Leadership is an art of motivating a group of people towards achieving a common goal.
Within business organisation leaders aims to direct colleagues and workers with several
strategies through desired objective of a particular firm can be achieved. However, there are
variety of different leadership theories which a leader adopts so that business activities are
performed effectively. These theory critically helps in managing business related activities with
full efficiency. Following are different leadership style which leaders adopts in order to carry
business operation with full efficiency:
 Situational Leadership: It is essentially a type of leadership style wherein leaders tends
to deal with business related problem according to condition. This is essentially
considered as effective way of leadership because every business related situation are
handled and through organisation tends to balance whole organisation. Furthermore this
leadership style states that no leadership style is best. However, decision-making of
leader under this leadership style is delegating and flexible in nature (Parisio, Rikos and
Glielmo, 2016). With regard to M&S leaders can adopt this leadership style in order to
carry out business operation according to working environment.
 System Leadership Approach: System Leadership basically aids a leader in a business
organisation to establish a particular premise wherein people at different level can
effectively work with full potential to achieve company's objective. This leadership
approach was developed by Dr Ian Macdonald. This theory essentially make use of
dependable principles with regard to human behaviour in order to create framework of
business scheme, effective leadership as well as system of rules design. It helps a leader
to predict people's behaviour. This leadership style can be adopted by Marks & Spencer
so that proper predication with regard to employee's behaviour shall be made in order to
identification organisation's future.
 Contingency Leadership: Contingency Leadership theory is considered as a
extraordinary type style of leadership which typically focuses on success of a particular
leader is not dependent on his abilities. However, a contingent leader effectively tends to
apply their own style so as to trade with enterprise related problem effectively. This
leadership style can be adopted by leaders of Marks & Spencer in order to appropriately
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focus on behaviour balancing so that consistency within respective organisation can be
witnessed.
However, there many other leadership approaches and theories which a leader can adopt in order
to carry out organisational objective with full potential. Therefore, accurate analysis shall be
conducted so that most appropriate style of leadership style can be adopted.
TASK 3
(covered in PPT)
TASK 4
P6
Variety of factors essentially impacts the business environment as well as decision of
managers and leaders which tends to influence the working environment. However, a proper
analysis by managers as well as leaders is conducted to know the exact reason due to which
functioning of business organisation is hampered. Following are some of major factors which
influences business environment:
 Government: Policies and regulations made by government enormously impacts the
overall business environment. This is essentially because all the major decisions within
an organisation are made keeping in mind the policies which are implemented by
government (Propa, Banwetv and Goswami2015). However, with respect to Marks &
Spencer manager and leaders regularly conducts proper analysis in order to formulate
new strategies keeping in mind the government rules and regulations.
 Customers: Satisfaction of customers is the prime goal of every business organisation.
However, a customer is a individual who pays money for the organisation's products and
services. Overall business environment is highly influence are customers because they are
the prime reason for conducting all the business related activities. Managers are
responsible for paying a close attention towards customer's dimension whereas leaders
intends to implement several policies.
 CSR: It is essentially a self regulating business framework that assist an organisation to
become socially accountable. Leaders and managers are primarily accountable for
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formulating different policies through which welfare of society as a whole is witnessed.
With respect to M&S, company have right balance between its CSR.
 Stakeholders: They are group of individuals who enormously influences the objectives
as well as actions of business. It includes directors, owners, creditors and many others.
Each and every major business related decisions are made after consideration company's
stakeholders. With respect to M&S all the business related decisions are made keeping in
mind the guidelines given by company's stakeholders.
There are many other business environment factors which impacts the overall process of
operation management and decision making of managers and leaders enormously to a great
extent. However, a proper analysis is conducted through which identification all these factors
shall be made.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be summarised that effective administration of all enterprise
related operation is very essential in order to accomplish desired business objective. However,
management and leadership are different in nature whereas role of manger as well as leaders are
also different but both of them work in same direction in order to attain goals and objectives of a
company by following different theories and style of management and leadership. Decision-
making process of managers and leaders essentially helps an organisation in improving
production process and sustainability within can be witnessed significantly. Identification of key
approaches of operation management is done in order effectively eliminate waste and improve
overall business performance.
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