LEAD06003 Leadership And Management Development

Case Study – Relating theory and best practice to the context of the company Emerald Logistics.

Emerald Logistics is a medium-sized company providing warehousing and distribution services. The company has recently experienced an increase in orders. Tara, the Warehouse Manager has introduced a new performance dashboard displaying individual productivity figures and targets and also a new Warehouse Management System (WMS).  Some employees have welcomed the changes, while others feel that management is focusing too much on targets and not enough on employees, they feel it is creating competition rather than teamwork. Picking errors have increased and some staff feel under pressure to work faster.

The warehouse supervisor, Dave, has responded by closely monitoring performance and giving employees very specific instructions. While productivity has improved, some employees feel they have less opportunity to contribute ideas.

Mary has worked in the warehouse for 18 years, is resistant to the new WMS. She regularly tells colleagues, “We’ve managed perfectly well without it.” She has also shown newer employees some of her own shortcuts, which are faster but do not always follow the new procedures.

John, an experienced employee with 7 years’ experience, has applied for a team leader position. He is frustrated that Sophie, who has worked in Emerald logistics for only two years, has been asked to help train staff on the new WMS. He believes experience should count more than technical skills and has started making sarcastic comments about Sophie.  Sophie is becoming reluctant to speak up in team meetings.

However, Declan keeps morale high in the warehouse with his sense of humour. He has recently started to use the warehouse radio for jokes. His latest announcement was: “Attention all staff. The last chocolate biscuit has disappeared from the canteen. We believe this is an inside job.” The team finds this funny, but some important operational messages have been missed because of the joking. Dave is considering removing Declan from the radio altogether.

Tara, the Warehouse Manager, wants to support her staff and believes that people are at the heart of a successful operation and is aware that her team is under pressure. However, she is also under pressure herself. Senior management expects her to meet productivity targets, reduce errors and keep costs under control, while customers expect orders to be accurate and delivered on time. Her own performance is measured against these targets, and she knows that failing to meet them could affect her position and the reputation of the warehouse.

Question 1 – Management Theory

a. Discuss why it is important for managers to understand and apply different management theories rather than relying on one management approach in all situations. Using Emerald Logistics case study, explain how Tara could apply at least two management theories to meet customer expectations.

b. Provide an example from your workplace where you observed these or other management theories in action, explain how these influenced team performance and morale.

Question 2 Functions Of Management

a. Explain the key functions of management and discuss why they are important to effective workplace performance. Identify two management functions that Dave could improve and explain how improving these functions could benefit both employee performance and the organisation.

b. Reflecting on your own workplace, which management function creates conflict between managers and employees and what would you do to improve it.

Question 3 Leadership Styles

a. Explain the differences between transformational, transactional and situational leadership, and discuss how these three leadership approaches could be applied in Emerald Logistics during this period of change.

b. Give an example where you worked under one of these leadership styles. What impact did it have your morale and your results?

Question 4 Management Vs Leadership

a. Explain the differences between management and leadership, and why both are important in an operational workplace. Outline three leadership skills that John needs to develop to become an effective team leader?

b. Do you see yourself as a manager, a leader, or both at this stage? Support your answer by outlining the strengths you already have and identify the skills you would like to develop further.

Assignment Guidelines

The guidelines provided here for the Case Study including the word count are indicative only:

For Part B (application of theory), you are welcome to use examples beyond the workplace. These could include experiences from other areas such as community involvement, or participation in clubs or organisations.

Experts Answer on Above Questions on Leadership & Management

Management Theory

Importance of using different management theories – it is important to utilise different management theories because the workplace problems are not the same everywhere, and they differ significantly across organisations. With respect to Emerald Logistics, it requires both the task focussed and people focussed approaches in order to achieve productivity and maintain innovation, team work and accuracy. According to the scientific management theory by Taylor, Tara can make use of productivity standards and WMS in order to improve picking efficiency. From a human relations theory perspective by Mayo, it is important for Tara to include employees in WMS implementation, and listen to their concerns and encourage teamwork rather than facilitating individual competition. By combining both these approaches, it will be possible for Tara to meet customer expectations for accurate, timely deliveries without affecting the employee morale.

Functions of Management

The important functions of management includes planning, organising, leading and controlling and with respect to Dave in the given case study, the two important areas for improvement are leading and controlling. Leading is important because Dave provides specific instruction and Limited opportunity for the employees to contribute their ideas. By supporting team discussions and encouraging employee feedback, it would be possible to increase the involvement and ownership. With a controlling function, Dave is required to monitor accuracy as well as productivity. The increased picking errors currently are because of close monitoring and pressure to work faster, and as a result, a balanced approach that measures speed, accuracy and teamwork would provide better control.

Workplace reflection – with controlling function, there are possibilities of conflict within managers that focus heavily on targets and employees may have a feeling that their workload and practical difficulties are ignored. I would try to improve this by discussing realistic targets with employees, reviewing the performance regularly and measuring results and quality rather than emphasizing on productivity figures only as the indicator of performance.

Leadership styles

The leadership styles are transformational, transactional and situational leadership. In respect to transformational leadership, the main aspect is inspiring employees to achieve a shared vision and encourage improvement. In respect to Emerald Logistics, this particular leadership style can help Tara explain why the WMS is important, include staff in improvements and encourage employees to develop new skills. Transactional leadership on the other hand utilises targets, rewards and correction actions to manage performance.

Tara in the given scenario can utilise this leadership style to productivity and accuracy, but at the same time, it is also important to avoid creating excessive competition or pressure. Finally the situational leadership style includes adjustments based on employee ability and circumstances. Tara can make use of situational leadership style by making provision for close guidance to new WMS users, while experienced employees can be provided with autonomy and involvement.
The best approach for Tara is to combine all the three leadership styles as it will help in building commitment to the WMS, and address employee requirements effectively.

Management versus leadership

The focus of management is on planning, organising, controlling resources and thereby achieving the targets. While the leadership focuses on influencing, motivating and developing people towards achieving a shared goal.

Both the management and leadership are important at Emerald Logistics, as management makes sure that the orders are processed accurately and on time, while the leadership helps employees to accept the WMS, co-operate and remain motivated during change. It is important for John to develop three leadership skills including emotional intelligence to manage his frustration about Sophie, communication skills to listen to colleagues and encourage contribution, and finally team building skills to value technical skills and help colleagues succeed rather than compete.

Personal reflection – with respect to my skills and abilities, I would consider myself as having both the manager and leadership capabilities, as my management strengths include organising, meeting deadlines and taking responsibility for tasks, while my leadership strengths are good communication skills, supporting colleagues and contributing ideas. I would further like to improve on areas including delegation, conflict management and influencing skills with the objective of motivating others in getting the task done.

Want Detailed Answers with References?

Analysis of Management theories, functions and leadership styles at Emerald Logistics above revealed important findings about the current issues faced by the organisation and necessary steps and initiatives required to improve performance. With our management assignment helpers in Ireland, you can also expect to get a similar kind of assistance for your assignment. Visit our Ireland assignment help page and get a professional management expert today. Also get access to answers written by experts from Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) across different disciplines.