Contemporary Management Issues Assignment Sample

Introduction Of Critical Evaluation of Leadership and HRM Models in Contemporary Business Organizations

Drawing on leadership studies and human resource management models, critically evaluate these statements in the context of contemporary business organizations.

As stated by Bill Gates and Sir Ken Robinson, an innovative leader's responsibility is to foster an environment where everybody can share thoughts and feel appreciated. The current report will critically evaluate these claims from the perspective of contemporary corporate organizations in the 21st century. For modern UK firms, empowering management has a chance to have a variety of good effects. By fostering a diverse and cooperative workplace where people feel appreciated and inspired to perform at their peak, it first promotes greater employee engagement (Shanafelt, et.al, 2021). The John Lewis Collaboration, a worker-owned retail business established by John Lewis, is a great illustration of this. Staff involvement and efficiency have reached exceptionally outstanding levels as a result of the development of a worker leadership and involvement culture. Furthermore, by allowing staff members to offer their creative ideas, empowered leaders foster greater creativity and ingenuity. This strategy may lead to revolutionary innovations and an edge over rivals. The Green Living Plan of Unilever, which places a strong focus on incorporating staff in sustainability projects, is a leading instance. The achievement of Unilever has been fueled by empowered executives who have fostered a culture of creativity and idea exchange. Last but not least, empowered leadership improves a company's ability to solve issues. Workers are given the freedom to own problems and work together to discover solutions, which hastens the settlement of issues. Google is a prime example, where staff members are permitted to spend 20 percent of their working hours exploring their thoughts. Gmail as well as Google Maps are only two of the impressive advancements that came from this project.

Although encouraging leadership has many advantages, there might also be negative effects. The possibility of organizational mismatch is one major worry. Worker misunderstanding can result when empowering is prioritized lacking a clear explanation of business aims and beliefs. One instance is the NHS changes in Britain, which drew criticism for not having clear goals and objectives. The execution of the changes was difficult due to this mismatch, which also reduced their efficacy (Fulton, 2023). The likelihood of inefficiency, especially in big companies, is a further disadvantage of leadership empowerment. On the basis of democratic style of leadership, overly distributed decision-making can result in duplicates and issues with the allocation of resources. As an example, if too much autonomy is given to its numerous sections, the BBC, a massive organization, may encounter inefficiency. Such inefficiencies may harm the cohesiveness and efficiency of the whole company. Also, certain individuals who are resistant to increasing accountability and ownership may oppose empowered leadership. Protests and disagreements at work are only two examples of how this aversion to change may present itself. The British Airline crew member's strike, which happened in reaction to empowering programs, serves as an example. This incident highlights the difficulties of executing empowerment leadership strategies when not every staff member is on the same page.

Benefits and Challenges of Innovative Leadership in Modern Firms

Bill Gates believes that innovative leadership, as per the transformational model, has major benefits for modern firms. First off, it encourages an innovative culture. By recognizing different viewpoints and promoting innovation, innovative leaders motivate their people to keep pushing the envelope. The accomplishments of the McLaren Formula 1 Team, under Ron Dennis' direction, serve as an impressive illustration of this. The team adopted an innovative culture due to Dennis; as a result, they have won many Formula 1 titles and are known for their innovative racing and technologies (Lin, et.al, 2020). Additionally, creative leaders are excellent at adjusting to shifts, which is a crucial talent in the fast-paced corporate environment of today. They react quicker to changing market circumstances. Consider Britain's largest retailer, Tesco, where Terry Leahy's innovative management style made a lasting impression. Tesco was able to skillfully handle shifting consumer tastes because of Leahy's strategy, which emphasized creativity in product offers and store layouts. Tesco's transformation into a world-beating retailer serves as proof of the flexibility and adaptation that innovative leadership may provide to a company.

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Challenges and Potential Drawbacks of Empowering Leadership

The possibility of over-innovation is a serious worry. Innovative leaders, according to the transformational leadership model, run the risk of devoting important assets and time away from the company's fundamental capabilities in the search for fresh ideas and methods. BlackBerry, a Canadian business with a substantial presence in the UK, serves as an instance. Since BlackBerry tried to strike a balance between its emphasis on innovation and its fundamental product abilities which eventually caused a drop in market share, BlackBerry forfeited its market supremacy (Nicholas, 2019). Although it is frequently praised for its capability to spur innovation and adaptation, innovative leadership may also cause a certain amount of disruption inside a company. Established procedures as well as hierarchies can be upset by innovative leaders, creating upheaval and opposition inside the company. Transformation initiatives in the banking industry in the UK were met with resistance, which complicated transfers.

The constantly changing and complicated context in which modern businesses operate puts growing expectations on their leaders as well as Human Resource Management (HRM) procedures. Modern businesses in the UK benefited in several ways from the use of HRM as well as leadership research. The improvement of making choices is one important effect. The tactical significance of HR in coordinating HR initiatives with overarching corporate goals has been underlined by HRM approaches such as the Ulrich concept. This model which calls for a shift away from the conventional functional HR strategy and toward a more cooperative and tactical human resources management function inside firms supports this transformation (The Ulrich Model, 2023). As a result of this change, the Human Resources division has become responsive and flexible, enabling HR professionals to act as genuine business contributors as well as stakeholders. This connection has resulted in a positive market response and enhanced involvement of stakeholders, as demonstrated by Unilever's acceptance of a living that is a sustainable strategy that combines HR procedures to promote social and ecological objectives. This coordination assures that HR choices not only benefit workers but also advance the broader goals and performance of the business.

Such approaches also stress the significance of developing human resources. The Harvard Approach of HRM, based on information, is a structure for HR planning intended to help firms successfully employ their staff members in line with their tactical objectives. Effective personnel management enhances the probability that a business will achieve its goals (Gallardo-Gallardo, 2020). As an example, this approach emphasizes the need for employee growth and ongoing learning. Businesses in the UK, including Rolls-Royce, have made investments in staff development initiatives to promote a culture of continual growth in skills. They have been able to keep a competitive advantage in the worldwide aircraft business, where innovation and agility are important success factors, thanks to their dedication to human resources.

The study of leadership emphasizes the need for adaptable leadership in a setting that is changing quickly. The airline British Airways (BA) is a good illustration. BA's CEO Alex Cruz oversaw efforts to reduce costs while fostering a flexible culture (Kravariti, 2020). This flexibility was essential in overcoming obstacles faced by the business, such as the COVID-19 epidemic. Such instances demonstrate the beneficial effects of leadership research and HRM approaches on flexibility in organizations, employee growth, and making decisions in UK businesses.

Although leadership research and HRM approaches provide insightful information, businesses may suffer as a result. The HR value chain is one HRM paradigm that may unintentionally promote overly bureaucratic and inflexible organizational structures. This is evident in the National Health Service (NHS) of Britain, where levels of administration have come under fire for hindering creativity and making choices owing to overly onerous bureaucratic procedures. By concentrating just on HR concepts, it may be possible to miss the complicated facts of handling human resources (Aboramadan, 2021). Bad working conditions at businesses such as Sports Direct attract attention, showing that HRM methods could not be sufficient to ensure moral treatment and the welfare of workers. Sometimes, temporary metrics for achievement are emphasized in leadership research, which may contribute to a limited and narrow viewpoint of triumph. An example is the demise of Carillion in Britain's construction industry. The leadership of the corporation placed a higher priority on immediate financial success than long-term viability, which eventually contributed to its death.

Conclusion

Organizational procedures for making decisions have been significantly affected by the integration of HRM with tactical goals. As an example, Tesco changed its HR practices after realizing the value of inclusiveness as well as diversity, which had a good effect on the way they made choices. This change indicates a growing understanding of the way HRM procedures may inform and direct choices in favor of overarching business objectives. Concepts of human resource management and research on leadership have the power to influence staff conduct in firms. The development of a supportive workplace environment, as witnessed in organizations such as Burberry, may be ascribed to HRM strategies that promote staff autonomy and exchange of thoughts (Langhof, 2020). This encourages a culture of invention and creativity while coordinating team actions with organizational goals. The workforce sector is also affected. HRM approaches have been used by companies such as BP to improve their people resources. BP has successfully adapted to the shifting energy environment because of its laser-focused efforts in acquiring talent and growth, demonstrating the value of talented staff in a dynamic sector. This exemplifies the way HRM approaches may motivate investments in the growth of human resources. The importance of leaders in influencing corporate organizational and cultural variables is emphasized in the study of leadership. Methods of leadership that place a high value on cooperation and empowered staff members have an impact on the move to a flatter hierarchy seen in organizations consisting of Virgin Atlantic. This therefore leads to an organizational design that is further reactive and flexible; illuminating the significant influence that leadership research may have on influencing the dynamics as well as layout.

References

Books and Journals

• Shanafelt, T., Trockel, M., Rodriguez, A. and Logan, D., 2021. Wellness-centered leadership: equipping health care leaders to cultivate physician well-being and professional fulfillment. Academic Medicine, 96(5), p.641.
• Lin, M., Zhang, X., Ng, B.C.S. and Zhong, L., 2020. To empower or not to empower? Multilevel effects of empowering leadership on knowledge hiding. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 89, p.102540.
• Fulton, B.R., Oyakawa, M. and Wood, R.L., 2023. Critical standpoint: Leaders of color advancing racial equality in predominantly white organizations. In Understanding Nonprofit Organizations (pp. 107-124). Routledge.
• Nicholas, C., Eastman?Mueller, H. and Barbich, N., 2019. Empowering change agents: Youth organizing groups as sites for sociopolitical development. American journal of community psychology, 63(1-2), pp.46-60.
• Gallardo-Gallardo, E., Thunnissen, M. and Scullion, H., 2020. Talent management: context matters. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 31(4), pp.457-473.
• Kravariti, F. and Johnston, K., 2020. Talent management: a critical literature review and research agenda for public sector human resource management. Public Management Review, 22(1), pp.75-95.
• Aboramadan, M. and Karatepe, O.M., 2021. Green human resource management, perceived green organizational support and their effects on hotel employees' behavioral outcomes. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 33(10), pp.3199-3222.
• Langhof, J.G. and Güldenberg, S., 2020. Servant Leadership: A systematic literature review—toward a model of antecedents and outcomes. German Journal of Human Resource Management, 34(1), pp.32-68.

Online

• The Ulrich Model. 2023. [Online]. Available through: < https://www.soundingboardinc.com/blog/the-ulrich-model/#:~:text=Ulrich's%20model%20advocates%20for%20a,to%20become%20genuine%20business%20partners.>