Leadership and Management in TATA Motors: A Comparative Analysis

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Management and Operation

Contents
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 2
COMPANY PROFILE................................................................................................................4
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE..............................................................................................4
LO1.................................................................................................................................................5
P1ROLES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A LEADER.........................................................................5
M1............................................................................................................................................. 8
LEADERSHIP THEORIES...........................................................................................................8
LO2............................................................................................................................................... 12
P2............................................................................................................................................. 12
Types of Leadership Styles in TATA Motors.........................................................................12
P3............................................................................................................................................. 15
THEORIES AND MODELS OF LEADERSHIP APPROACH..........................................................15
M2............................................................................................................................................18
THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF DIFFERENT LEADERSHIP APPROACHES..................18
LO3............................................................................................................................................... 20
P4............................................................................................................................................. 20
P5............................................................................................................................................. 22
M3............................................................................................................................................23
LO4............................................................................................................................................... 25
P6............................................................................................................................................. 25
M4............................................................................................................................................27
CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................... 28
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REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................29
INTRODUCTION
The objective of this study is to understand the differences in the roles of a Leader and a
Manager within an organization. This is highlighted with the help of various leadership and
management theories and concepts. TATA Motors Ltd is taken as an example to analyse the
impact and influence of leadership and management on overall operations of a Company in
terms of various organizational contexts. This is achieved by using practical applications of
established approaches and theories in management and leadership.
Another field of this study is the key operational functions of an organization and the role of the
manager and their responsibilities within these functions. The importance of key operational
approaches to operations management and improvement in operational efficiency through
leadership and management approaches is also studied. The study covers the steps that can be
taken by managers and leaders for improving the operational efficiency of the organization. The
study also covers the external factors that affect the decision-making process of management
and overall operations management.
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COMPANY PROFILE
TATA Motors is India’s largest and Worlds leading automobile manufacturer. TATA Motors has a
worth of $45 billion and it’s a major part of $100 billion TATA Group. It was founded in the year
1945. The company manufactures defence vehicles, buses, trucks, cars, and sports utility
vehicles. The company has employee strength of 81090 and operates under three primary
verticals that are passenger vehicles division, commercial vehicles division, and defence vehicles
division. TATA group and TATA Motors are recognised for its welfare activities and corporate
social responsibility program.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
Organizational climate and knowledge management are keys to the organizational structure of
an organization. An efficient organization requires efficient and smooth interaction between
the management and the employees. TATA Motors is a prime example of this methodology.
This approach has made the TATA employees loyal to the organization by making them a part of
the decision making process. TATA Motors have adopted a flat organizational structure thereby
facilitating easy communication between different organizational levels. This allows for the
delegation of responsibility to lower managerial levels making them a part of the basic decision-
making process (Balcet et al., 2013).
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LO1
P1ROLES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A LEADER
Leadership is an important function in all levels of an organization. A leader has different roles
in different organizational levels. Leaders have the ability of helping their subordinates to
pursue their work with zeal and confidence (Eberly and Fong, 2013). There can be two types of
leaders in an organization, formal and informal leaders. Formal leaders are appointed or
recognized by the management to take up certain responsibilities. They have the organizational
authority as well as accountability. On the other hand, Informal leaders do not have official
recognition. Their authority is based on their followers.
Roles of Leader
The leaders perform following roles in an organization (Yukl, 2013)
• They lay out goals and policies.
• They enhance the working of the subordinates by inducing them with zeal and
confidence.
• They motivate and direct their subordinates for best results.
• They identify the capabilities of subordinates and assign suitable roles for maximum
efficiency and results.
• They are responsible to initiate action according to organizational situations.
• They coordinate between individuals as well as between subordinate and
management.
A leader is expected to have the following characteristics (Renko et al., 2015). The leader must
be pleasing personality. He should have effective communication skills and long term vision
regarding the professional competencies. The self-confidence and ability to accept the
responsibility are projected by the leaders in Tata Motors.
Roles of a Manager
A manager is an individual that has a defined set of tasks and has official authority for executing
them. They usually have a team of employees to complete the given tasks. In an organization,
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the managers can be divided into three different management levels that are Low-level, Mid-
level and Top-level managers. A top-level manager supervises and directs the entire
organization, whereas a mid-level manager executes plans in accordance with company policies
and acts as a link between the top-level and low-level management. The low-level managers
direct the team under their supervision. The basic roles of a manager within an organization can
be divided into the following three categories (Stewart, 2012)
Figure 1: Mintzberg’s Management Roles
Source: Renko et al., 2015
• Informational roles
 Monitoring - Being aware of the area of work and being vigilant to the team
dynamics.
 Disseminator - Collection of information from external as well as internal
sources and forwarding the relevant information to the team.
 Spokesperson - Representing the team within the organization in a positive and
impressive manner.
• Interpersonal roles
 Liaising - communicating with people within and without the organization to
keep the work running smoothly.
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 Figurehead – Being someone who is confident and able so that people within the
team and outside can rely upon them.
 Leader – Guiding the team towards the end goal by placing team members in
positions that complement their expertise and motivating them through various
means like rewards.
• Decision roles
 Negotiator – Negotiating with individuals within the team to keep them working
towards the goal and convincing them to develop themselves.
 Disturbance Handler – A manager handles the challenges arising during a project
and brings the team back on track at the earliest.
 Entrepreneur – A manager will operate his team like a small business with his
focus on new ideas and problem-solving, in a manner similar to an entrepreneur.
 Resource allocator – It involves using the available resources in a manner that's
best suited to achieve the goal.
Difference between a Manager and Leader
The differences between managers and leaders can be predicted. A manager works through
structuring and delegation of responsibility and authority, whereas a leader operates by
communicating his organizational vision to the employees and inspiring them to fulfil it (Lolli,
2013).A manager focuses on all his primary functions such as planning, directing, staffing, etc. A
leader primarily focuses on the directing aspect and works towards communicating, bonding,
motivating and inspiring his followers.
A manager gains his official authority through his position, whereas a leader may or may not
have official authority. A formal leader carries official authority while the authority of an
informal leader rests with his followers. A manager decides for his employees and company
while a leader is responsible for facilitating the decision and directing others to fulfil it (Stewart,
2012). A leader is usually proactive whereas a manager is mostly reactive.
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M1
LEADERSHIP THEORIES
Trait Leadership Theory
This theory believes that the leaders have inherent qualities that are a result of their birth or
upbringing and any person with these qualities can become a leader. These qualities include
creativity, intelligence, etc. There are nearly 18000 personality based terms identified by
psychologists. (Colbert et al., 2012)
Figure 2: Personality Traits Theory
Source: Colbert et al., 2012
This theory focuses on the analysis of social, mental and physical aspects to deduce common
leadership characteristics.
Behavioural Leadership Theories
Contrary to the Trait Theory, the Behavioural Theory focuses on the behaviour of leaders to
understand their influence (Storey, 2016). This theory believes that instead of being born, a
leader is made through his experience and upbringing. It considers leaders to be either task or
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people oriented. Leadership theories like Role Theory and Leadership Grid or Managerial Grid
theory are associated with Behavioural Theory.
Figure 3: Behavioural Theories
Source: Lolli et al., 2013
Management Theories
Theory of Scientific Management
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Figure 4: Taylor Theory of Scientific Management
Source: Waring, 2016
The Scientific Management theory pioneered by Frederick Taylor recommends simplification of
tasks rather than overworking the employees. This theory contends that making employees
work harder is detrimental in terms of results. The concept of adequate monetary
compensation derived by Taylor is the driving force of today’s business world (Waring, 2016).
Contingency Management Theory
The contingency management theory indicates that the approach of the management of an
organization depends on various internal and external factors. There are following three
variables that influence the choice of management approach and organization structure
• Size of the organization.
• Leadership style.
• Technology that’s being used.
Figure 5: Contingency Model
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Source: Ellyson et al., 2012
This theory was pioneered by Fred Fiedler and he proposed that the efficiency of a leader is
directly related to their leadership traits (Ellyson et al., 2012). A leader needs to be flexible
enough to adapt to changing scenarios or incorporate leadership traits that are ideal for the
situation.
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LO2
P2
Types of Leadership Styles in TATA Motors
There are following three classic types of leadership styles (Antonakis and Day, 2017)
Figure 6: Leadership Styles
Source: Antonakis and Day, 2017
• Participative or Democratic: The leader allows subordinates to use their own
creativity and initiative but controls the overall direction of work and effort.
• Autocratic: This leadership style is mostly out-dated in today’s business
environment. This style involves a leader that controls the majority of the decision
making. This style is effective only when it includes subordinate face-time and
feedback.
• Laissez-Faire: This leadership style involves minimal involvement of the leader in
terms of supervision and direction of subordinates work (Antonakis and Day, 2017).
This can be an effective leadership style with the introduction of efficient and
trained managers between the leader and the staff.
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