Tesco plc: Management, Leadership, and Strategic Direction Journal

This journal reflects on work-related learning experiences within Tesco plc, focusing on management and leadership roles. It examines the principles of management, the skills and abilities required for effective leadership, and the application of organizational theory in a work-based setting. The journal analyzes the role of management in the performance of the business and the development of its strategic direction, highlighting the importance of communication, problem-solving, and employee engagement. Different leadership styles, such as team-oriented, democratic, autocratic, and transformational leadership, are considered in relation to their impact on team motivation and organizational culture. The reflection emphasizes the significance of continuous learning, skill development, and ethical conduct in achieving managerial success and contributing to the overall goals of Tesco plc. This document is available on Desklib, a platform providing past papers and solved assignments for students.

WORK RELATED
LEARNING “JOURNAL”

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
Management and leadership in business.....................................................................................3
Principles of management...........................................................................................................4
The skills and abilities for management......................................................................................5
A consideration of organisational theory relating to work experience.......................................7
Analysing role of management in the performance of a business and the development of its
strategic direction........................................................................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Work related learning means any task or activities that use the context of work in order to
improve a knowledge level of students and also to develop their level of understanding and
skills. It involves learning via the work experience of people in the particular field. With the help
of work based learning opportunities enable learners to apply skills, and professional behaviour
in order to meet the goals related to learning. The present journal study will be based on retail
company Tesco plc situated in UK, providing wide range of products or services to customers.
Products or services includes furniture, home ware, clothing, electronics, financial services and
many more. The present report will evaluate experimental work related skills which is linked to
leadership and management roles. Furthermore, it will analyse the role of the manager to meet
the goals and aims of a company. In addition to this, the study will demonstrate principle of
management in the Tesco plc and problem solving ability in execution of projects in work based
setting.
Management and leadership in business
Management is all about managing work flow and business related things to achieve
goals. It consists of controlling a set of business practices to meet the objectives of the company.
On the other hand, leadership means an individual’s ability to encourage and motivate other
people or group of people to work effectively and contribute towards the success of company. I
am working as a marketing manager in the company Tesco plc, by using leadership skills I have
work effectively to improve and develop actions related to business.
Role of the management and leadership
As a manager, my major role is to plan, control, organize and coordinate with team mates
in order to execute business activities. Basically, management is the systematic process of
provide guidelines about the maintenance, improvement and allocation of resources in order to
accomplish the company’s goals. As a marketing manager, I push my team to achieve desired
goals so that it will be beneficial for their individual performance and company’s reputation.
On the other side, leader’s major role is to focus on roles and responsibilities. They pull
their staff members and encourage them to complete task on time to achieve the objective of
firm.

Principles of management
Social networking is helpful for managers so that they can connect with staff members,
clients and other contacts with professionals. From my work experience, social networking
creates big opportunities for employees and managers so that they can use communication skills
effectively and collaborate with each other. By using social networking, Tesco plc internally
identify experts to share and learn about skills, knowledge and talents.
According to Ding, Choi and Aoyama, (2019), Principle of management says that an
organisation must have a consistent technique for solving major issues using various important
data and statistical tools rather than giving assumptions. The managers need to do experiments in
order to test ideas in every small steps taken related to business. It is important for managers to
review tasks and projects to learn what worked well and what didn’t go well. It is also essential
to transfer important knowledge and skills throughout the company which is helpful to motivate
employees and make everyone a smart member. Tesco plc management team focused on sharing
skills, experience and knowledge with employees and encourage them to accomplish goals.
According to Bellibaş and Gümüş, (2019), By using leadership model and management
model, a company can identify how to govern staff members. These models will show that how
employees react to command of leaders or managers. They also provide suggestion on how to
improve skills and knowledge by using various styles which is related to business success. By
understanding leadership styles and its importance will help me identify my own strengths and
weaknesses and become a better leader for Tesco plc. By supporting this, Dahiya, (2022), A
good leader often possesses a varieties of qualities such as vision, empathy, encouragement and
motivation. However, the most successful leaders are able to deal with different difficult
situations by using leadership skills in order to achieve objectives of company. A good leaders
and managers need confidence, honesty, clear and good communication skills, active listening
skills and problem solving skills.
Team oriented leadership- According to Castillo and Hallinger, (2018), some leaders are
very successful at building a good team for company and leading each employees to develop and
grow with the firm. This type of leadership style creates a collaborative team with a positive and
safe environment in which they focus on individual strengths and motivating each employee so
that they can reach their highest potential. For developing motivational level among my team
members I have followed team oriented leadership style which has helped me to be more

productive, improved employee satisfaction and employee engagement. Firstly, I acted as coach
by using coaching leadership in order to identify strengths and weaknesses and works with each
employee to develop various strategies for development and growth. I have built teams within
which the employees work well with each other to develop productivity and quality for every
project. I also acted as participative leader in which I provided productive feedback which bring
success to Tesco plc.
Democratic leadership- This type of leadership style encourages employees to make
effective decision making process. It can boost the morale of group members and improve job
satisfaction so that they can easily achieve success.
Autocratic leadership- This type of leadership style can be helpful for leaders when instant
and quick decisions are to be made by them. With the help of this leadership style, the leaders
can make rapid decisions which is beneficial for their performance and achieving task.
Transformational leadership- It is a type of approach that causes change in social systems
and at an individual level. By using this, I have created valuable and positive environment at the
workplace and change many things in the employees with the end goal of improving employees
into good leaders for Tesco plc. I have influenced followers and inspire them to perform
effectively towards goals.
The skills and abilities for management
For managers, it is important to have good skills and knowledge so that they can motivate
their team members to meet goals. Management competencies are the knowledge, attitudes,
habits, behaviour and skills which is important to manage people successfully. With the help of
management competencies people can promote better style of leadership and contribute
effectively towards success of any business.
Interpersonal communication- Interpersonal communication and awareness allows the
managers to read other employees feelings which is totally based on their attitudes and habits.
This skill is important for management team so that they can identify and understand the needs
of employees.
Motivating others- An effective leaders motivate others to achieve objectives of the
company. By using interpersonal skills such as active listening they can understand what
encourage people and what more improvement is needs to encourage their productivity level.

Problem solving- A good leader solve problems to avoid any kind of conflicts within the
company between team members. They empower their team mates to seek important information
that improves their ability to assess and develop different types of potential solutions for critical
problems. For example- By using problem solving skills, I have successfully solved issues
related to marketing in Tesco plc such as products or services promotional activities. When
problem arise, good solutions plays important role because it prevents escalation of conflict
between team mates.
Delegation- In Tesco plc, effective managers and leaders understand that they can’t
handle things alone in the company. They believe that they need someone else or team to
complete task and achieve goals. Distributing work is the major goal of management team so that
each member can experience work. In my job role I distribute tasks effectively by evaluating the
strengths and weakness of people and give them work who is the best fit for each task based on
their qualification, experience and others. If done correctly, then managers can resolve conflicts
between employees. In my opinion I have delegated task as per the knowledge and interst of
people so that they can feel valued. The major role of leader is to find solutions that can satisfy
the need of staff members. The managers and leaders must remember to avoid partiality between
employee and treat everyone equally then only positive and safe organizational culture can be
made.
The very best way to improve management competencies is to develop an effective
competency model in the company. When improving a competency model, managers can select
competencies that align with the objectives of company. It is difficult to identify essential
management competencies, so as a manager I keep focusing on unique set of competencies
which is based on the requirements. By doing so, I can have a clear idea and knowledge of what
competencies I need to develop in order to perform effective at my job role.
According to Hallinger and Kovačević, (2021), management and leadership behaviour
can enhance employee engagement in the company. It is said that when staff members have
positive perceptions about their managers or leaders, they are more likely to be emotionally and
socially engaged in their business task or projects. The basic and important management
competency includes being honest and ethical towards work and company. This will improve
staff member’s perceptions about their leader’s work. so, it is mandatory for leaders and

managers to use good communication skills in order to improve employee engagement. I think I
have clarified goals and objective with my employees by using communication skills and
explaining each employee what they need to do to succeed. For long term vision and goals,
senior management needs to successfully communicates with the employees. Providing feedback
and acknowledgment to employees it is important because employees hard work fosters an
organisational culture. They need to provide rewards and compensations, work flexibility and
other opportunities like promotions to grow and achieve professional development.
A consideration of organisational theory relating to work experience
Organisational theory- basically it shows the behaviour of each employees or team
members who interact with each other in the company in order to complete the task and achieve
goals. According to Chen, (2018), organisational theories is helpful for company because it
provides an overview of how the firm functions and what are the improvement is needed to
achieve profitability and efficiency. In Tesco plc, the management team utilize organisational
theory to study overall structure and individual attitudes and behaviours. It is mandatory to apply
effective organisational theory in order to identify the structures or business patterns the
company use to solve the major issues and maximize the profit. By using effective modern and
classical theory, the company can meet expectations of stakeholders and other external bodies.
The concept of organisational theory suggests the manager how strategies can be designed to
improve effectiveness. By using hierarchical organisational structure, Tesco plc managers has
made equal contribution and efforts to ensure that all employees are employed by the firm.
If the organisational culture and structure is effective, then employees can easily achieve
success. A positive organisational culture plays a vital role as it can avoid conflict between
employees. By using handy model of culture, the company has achieved success in which they
have focused on task and role culture by distributing work according to interest of people.
Analysing role of management in the performance of a business and the development of its
strategic direction
Role of manager in contributing to the strategic direction and aims of Tesco plc
A good manager has to perform various types of functions such as organising, directing,
planning, controlling and staffing. It is the most important functions for running business
smoothly and effectively. By following these functions, I have achieved enterprise targets such

as using planning me and my team set goals and established business strategy for coordinating
activities related to it.
By using effective management theories, managers can achieve success which is leading
and controlling the functional areas. The major aim is to ensure that the whole company moves
towards the goals along with desired target. According to Golensky and Hager, (2020),
management models are a systematic set of ideas that provide detailed information about how to
maintain company and its business.
Scientific management theory- In the world full of advanced technology, it is no
surprise that the pressure for using new and updated technology within the company is the key to
success. By using this theory, I have improved company’s level of task completion through
mathematical and scientific methods. Followed various steps like forecasting, coordinating,
controlling and commanding to my team-mates in order to achieve goals.
CONCLUSION
To conclude, communication is the most important factor in motivating employees of the
company. By using other skills and competencies company can easily engage employee
engagement. The study has concluded that a positive organizational culture is important thus
Tesco plc has followed handy model to motivate people. It also concluded that, Management and
leaderships plays a vital role in the performance of a business and the development of its
strategic direction.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bellibaş, M. Ş. and Gümüş, S., 2019. A systematic review of educational leadership and
management research in Turkey: Content analysis of topics, conceptual models, and
methods. Journal of Educational Administration.
Castillo, F. A. and Hallinger, P., 2018. Systematic review of research on educational leadership
and management in Latin America, 1991–2017. Educational Management Administration
& Leadership. 46(2). pp.207-225.
Chen, C. C., 2018. Leadership and management in China. Cambridge.
Dahiya, R., 2022. Life satisfaction model of intention to contribute in sustainability: through the
lenses of servant leadership theory. International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable
Development. 16(1). pp.61-81.
Ding, W., Choi, E. and Aoyama, A., 2019. Relational study of wise (phronetic) leadership,
knowledge management capability, and innovation performance. Asia Pacific Management
Review. 24(4). pp.310-317.
Golensky, M. and Hager, M., 2020. Strategic leadership and management in nonprofit
organizations: Theory and practice. Oxford University Press.
Hallinger, P. and Kovačević, J., 2021. Science mapping the knowledge base in educational
leadership and management: A longitudinal bibliometric analysis, 1960 to
2018. Educational Management Administration & Leadership. 49(1). pp.5-30.
Hammad, W., Samier, E. A. and Mohammed, A., 2022. Mapping the field of educational
leadership and management in the Arabian Gulf region: A systematic review of Arabic
research literature. Educational Management Administration & Leadership. 50(1). pp.6-25.