Influence of Organisations Culture on Its Leadership Styles and Management Practices: Analytical Essay

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1.1 Analyse how the leadership and management theories may be applied.

3 theories I plan to analyse come from the principles set out by Kurt Lewin in 1939, I have added some detail to each type giving my opinion on what type of organisation will utilise with an explanation for each.

Autocratic leadership model is a one way instruction way to undertake tasks, this can be for numerous reasons it might be the approach of the organisation leader/leaders or it might be that the there is a specific process that has to be completed a certain way due to guidance or regulation. This style of leadership might be more associated with smaller business with one leader or organisations heavily governed by strict process or regulations e.g. medical industry.

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The Laissez-Faire leadership style is where individuals are given the choice of how they undertake their duties, this would be applicable where individuals have a wider skill set and have the ability to make decisions that would not impact the business in a negative way. I think that this could be a leadership style where your results are seen to be more important than the process of how you get there and could be linked to industries such as sales or marketing for example.

The democratic leadership style is an engaging management style where you are able to involve all individuals in the decision making process, this in my opinion is the best way of getting by in from any group of individuals in your organisation and one I am more accustomed to in my current role. Involvement of any interested parties really does benefit everyone. This type of leadership can often be effective larger organisations with multiple areas or departments as it allows suitable fluctuation between the needs of ranging groups.

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Another theory that can be used in business is a transactional theory this is where individuals are rewarded for tasks completed, this type of theory can be used mainly in business that is production orientated as reward transactions would mostly linked to work completed by individuals or teams that meet the expectations of quality.

The benefits of this as an employer would be that you reward teams who perform and improve the business output to meet demand, this gives team members a sense of rewards that they are able to achieve that links to their efforts the greater the effort the greater the pay that comes your way.

Some draw backs of implementing a reward based theory are that quality can often get compromised in the search of greater productivity that will bring rewards to each individual, to manage this teams would need to control the waste that is created from products that do not meet the required standard. I would make this part of the targets that were rewarded. Reward good products made right first time.

Within Macmillan the theory which would best fit for me from the Kurt Lewin model is a democratic theory, if I want to get buy in from individuals and teams I need their input into the plans I am making, Health and Safety which I manage has to be a team effort. I do this by using communication events such as H&S meetings, training or face to face discussions with team or individuals to promote my ideas and visions for the progression of policies and procedures linked to the operations teams.

The transactional theory has been discussed within Macmillan but has proved devise within the wider teams as there is so many different tasks to be completed that setting reward targets would be difficult, this has resulted in the staff voting to keep all operatives on the same levels of rewards to allow an aligned team goal where everyone buys into the overall process not jut there part that rewards them best.

You can also add knowledge in this area by understanding your individual leading style by completing an assessment, this will assist you in your individual approach.

EV self-assessment form.

1.2 Assess the influence of an organisations culture on its leadership styles and management practices.

I believe that any organisation no matter what leadership and management style they follow is affected by the organisations culture.

Culture has to be driven from the leadership and management team, if the leadership culture is strong shows the required level of commitment, understanding involvement this will be reflected it the organisations wider groups. This again can be promoted by engaging with your teams and making them feel part of the direction and setting the company goals. Good leaders and managers have to have the ability to lead from the front and show the commitment to the group that individuals would expect from their leaders.

If the leadership does not use the above traits to promote good culture then this will undoubtedly leak out into the wider groups within an organisation where individuals will become separated from their leadership team. Poor performance and attitude can follow which in my opinion will lead to poor long term performance.

This is why where possible the democratic leadership style give you the required 2 way engagement of your direct reports and the wider organisation as a whole.

1.3 Assess the influence of an organisation’s structure on its leadership styles and management practices.

As I work in an international organisation that has many levels and reporting lines from Staff in the Pontarddulais warehouse to our CEO who is based on New York John Sargent, this makes Macmillan’s a Tall or Hierarchical organisational structure. But if I concentrate on the Pontarddulais site we also have multiple layers that would ensure we are again in these definitions.

As stated above I feel that a democratic leadership style yields the best performance in most cases it we have to understand that while this might suit most of the business you have to be able to adapt at times and there will be some areas that require you to be more autocratic. Examples of each style required within my role would be-

Democratic – Completion of risk assessments, training needs written safe systems of work where I am require to engage with multiple departments and tiers within the business.

Autocratic – Mandatory completion and observation of regulatory requirements, the implementation of agreed policy from the wider Macmillan Group.

1.4 Analyse how theories of motivation may be applied in the practice of leadership.

Motivation is something that will differ greatly from not only organisation to organisation and individual but there are some models that can help you look at what motivates individuals. I have used the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. I will link each step to how this could be used in the workplace.

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Physiological needs – these would be where an organisation provided an environment, equipment and amenities to undertake the needs of their specific role. The basics well provided in a role that they feel offers job security.

Safety – where the organisation was able to offer salaries and benefits such as holidays working hour’s that me the needs of the individual within the policies and procedures that are set out for everyone.

Love/belonging – From this level of needs on you will start to see employees excel on a consistent basis as they will feel that there is a strong team ethic where their opinions are not only valued but encouraged.

Esteem needs- there may be employees who now start to fall off as we reach higher levels this does not make the bad employees it means that the company has met their motivational needs, these are individuals who are happy at their current level and have no desire to progress to higher roles within the organisation. For the employees who ambitions at the higher levels you may need to provide opportunities for them to progress this could be additional learning promotion opportunities etc. these can be individually set during planned meetings such as 1 to 1’s or appraisals and monitored thereafter.

Self-actualisation- these individuals will feel that they have total satisfaction in their role and that they are utterly content. Not many team members will reach this level.

The above theory will give you an understanding overall of what individuals need to be happy within their workplace but you cannot throw a blanket over the needs of your team as individuals have different needs and should be managed as individuals.

1.5 Evaluate the role of the stakeholder engagement in leadership and management.

To evaluate the role of the stake holder I have put together a basic diagram below with an explanation for each of their roles below- (I have based this purely on the Pontarddulais site)

While this is a basic diagram it shows who influences the leadership with Macmillan Pontarddulais.

MPL / 3rd party publishers- Engage with the senior management within Macmillan to work to a set agreed workload completion, this is a rigid expectation and needs to be managed by the Macmillan management team as each publisher wants their business as a priority. It is then up to the management team at MDL Pontarddulais to plan the requirements accordingly.

Management team will then inform the wider workforce within Macmillan of what is required and communicate the plan of what and how each day is planned, it is key that the expectations are managed correctly as there is limit to what can be completed daily and if this is incorrect then the management team can put undue pressures on the operations teams by setting unachievable targets! A poor management trait.

The operational staff are the direct link between publisher’s physical product and the end supplier, the individuals who have the ability to create positive feedback from both the provider and end supplier in this chain. They can affect this by maintain high work standards and in return they receive feedback that adds to their needs i.e. job security and accreditation from suppliers who regularly rate Macmillan as an industry leader.

The end supplier will then complete the circle by selling the product which finances the whole of our business and sales link into their hierarchy of needs too.

1.6 Assess the suitability of a range of leadership styles and management practices to the culture of an organisation.

There are a wide ranging number of leadership and management styles in industry today I have list a range below giving an explanation into each and the potential industry they would be suitable for.

Transformational leadership styles where there is normally 1 leader or figure head of an organisation who will lead by example and inspire others to follow their lead, they will often make individual sacrifices for the greater good. An example of this could vary from the way that Bill Gates figure heads Microsoft to a small business with a single owner that inspires their small team to succeed.

Autocratic leadership styles where there is 1 person in charge and everybody needs to buy into their vision or risk being moved on. An example of this in modern days that is strongly autocratic is professional sports where teams have to follow the manager’s vision for how the game should be played and players who do not follow get frozen out or moved on. Being the leader in this situation is high risk high reward or a costly price if the vision does not meet the expected results.

Charismatic leadership styles are where leader lead from the front and show the way forward often working alongside all team members to push for the best results. This style can be used where the leaders have direct contact with their teams daily and would e.g. fit into a line manager role.

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