Management And Operations Assignment Sample

Introduction - Management And Operations

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This report is from the perspective of the Assistant head of operation of Google in order to formulate the strategic plans of the company towards an expansion. Google LLC is a search engine company based in America. It is the most common platform chosen by the users in order to search something online. This report will discuss the roles and functions of the leaders and managers within the organisation. Different theories will be discussed in order to implement them to increase the efficiency of the operations of the leaders and managers. The strength and weaknesses of these theories will also be discussed briefly along with the various approaches applied in the process of managing the operations within Google. It also describes the significance of operation management and how the leaders and managers can implement strategies in order to increase their efficiency and effectiveness and contribute to the growth of Google. It also talks about the internal and external factors that influences and impacts the operations of the company. This report is finally concluded with a relevant conclusion.

Overview of the company

Google LLC is selected as the chosen company. It was formerly known as Google Inc. (About Us | Google - Google, 2021). It was founded by Sergey Brin and Larry Page in 1998, with its headquarter in Mountain View, California, United States (Google | History & Facts, 2021). Google LLC is the subsidiary company of Alphabet, which is the parent company. It is a multinational conglomerate company which has a huge number of users. With such a huge popularity, Google is providing approximately 50 internet services and products to its current users.

 Definition of a leader

A leader is an individual who strives hard in order to motivate and inspire the individuals of his team and helps them by guiding them towards attaining their goals and objectives of the organisation. It is the responsibility of a leader to look after the completion of the job and to see to it that it is done in the most effective and efficient way. The leaders work in a strategic manner keeping in mind the various objectives and the mission that has been set by the organisation (Bertoldi et al., 2018). The leaders need to be in proper coordination with their team members and help them improve their efficiency and skills so that they are eligible to contribute to the growth and effectiveness of the organisation.

Characteristics of a leader

The characteristics of a leader are given below.

• Honesty and maintaining integrity are one of the most important characteristics of being a leader
• They should have the potential of influencing and inspiring the other employees of their team (Aydiner et al., 2019)
• They should have creativity and innovativeness as a part of their skill
• They should be empowered and knows how to delegate jobs to other members of their team
• They should have the skills of decision making
• They should be confident and competent and knows how to finish off their assignments and jobs on time
• They should have a good communication skill and should be able to deliver all the policies and the regulations of Google so that the employees know what to do and what not (Characteristics of an Effective Leader | HBS Online, 2021)
• They should be empathetic in nature
• They should be committed towards their work and have passion in what they are doing

Roles of a leader

The roles of a leader are mentioned below

• Leadership roles integrates the personal objectives with the goals of Google
• Leaders are the representation of the organisation
• The roles of the leader is to motivate the individuals in his team and inspire them to work towards the goals of the company
• The leader guides the employees and helps them increase their efficiency and productivity
• The leader has the responsibilities of formulating and implementing strategies for the better productivity of the organisation
• The leader has the responsibility of taking part in the decision making of the company
• They have the role of setting up goals for the organisation
• They are the role model for the other people in his team (Eikenberry, 2021)
• They also have the responsibilities of controlling and monitoring the financial aspects and budgeting of the organisation.

Definition of a manager

A manager within Google is responsible for managing and controlling the various functional aspects of the employees and the organisation. He is the person who is responsible for exercising all the roles that a management should ensure within the organisation. He is responsible for supervising his team members and inspiring them towards the goals and objectives of the organisation. The manager also has the responsibility of managing the human resources of the company in order to get the work done within the organisation (Sharma, 2018).

Characteristics of a Manager

• They should be active listeners and have a proper understanding of the culture of the operations of the company
• They should have the capabilities of encouraging their team to work hard in order to achieve the set targets of the organisation (What makes an effective manager in 2020? | Robert Half, 2021)
• They should maintain integrity and be honest in nature
• They should be self-motivated individuals
• They should have the ability of making decisions for the organisation
• They should have the ability to do critical thinking and take part in the decision making process of the organisation
• They are result-oriented individuals

Roles of a Manager

The roles of the manager within Google are given below

• The roles of the manager is to hire and recruit the individuals that will contribute to the growth and expansion of the company
• They have the responsibility of training the employees that have joined Google
• They have the roles of coaching and improving the efficiency of the employees that already exist.
• They have the responsibility of monitoring and evaluating the performances of the employees (Roles of a Manager | 10 Key Roles of a Manager, 2021)
• They have the responsibilities of translating the goals of the company into functional goals
• They also have the roles of setting up the goals of the organisation for the future
• They have to implement various strategies in order to improve the efficiency of the employees within the organisation so that it is more focused on the result orientation
• They have the responsibilities of dealing with the problems of performances and terminations of the employees.

Comparison between the role of a leader and the function of a manager

The difference between the roles and operations of a manager and a leader has been given below with the help of the theories that are relevant:

The Leadership Theories

The leadership theories are applied in order to define and demonstrate the roles of a leader within Google. It involves the Great Man Theory, the trait theory and the transactional theory. These are being given in brief below.

The Great Man Theory

According to the concept of the great man theory, the leaders are born and they are not made by anyone. These possess the traits and these traits are being inherited by them in some form. It also believes that in times of need, the leadership qualities of an individual are born (How Does the Great Man Theory of Leadership Hold Up? | Verywell Mind, 2021).

This theory believes that any leader of an organisation is not being made by any help; they are being born with those special traits with which they are able to contribute to the growth and success of Google. These individuals are born with these abilities that help them transform the organisation and create many opportunities for the improvement of the organisation. These traits that are formed and found within these individuals are rare and unique in nature and are not found in any other being (The Great Man Theory, 2021).

The Trait Theory

According to this theory, certain patterns of behaviour are being generated within individuals and these traits are uniform in nature across various situations. It is also of the view that the individuals are born with the traits of leadership (Early, 2017). The traits associated to this theory includes the flexibility and adaptability, the maturity of the individual in terms of emotional nature, the ability to be able to inspire and motivate others, the eagerness and willingness to accept the responsibilities and take blame on themselves if anything goes wrong, the ability to be empathetic towards others and guide them whenever they require, maintaining integrity and honesty for the work, possessing courage and the ability to make the decisions in order to benefit Google (Trait Theorists, 2021). They have the communication skills, the motivational skills, the technical skills, the creativity and innovation skills, self-confidence and the inter-personal skills.

The Transactional Theory

According to transactional theory, the employees within an organisation are only motivated with the help of certain rewards or punishments. These individuals are not self-motivated. They need a constant source of motivation in order to increase their efficiency and improve their productivity of the organisation. Their performances need to be continuously monitored in order to help them increase their productivity and efficiency (How a Transactional Leadership Style Works, 2021). The transactional theory was first introduced by Max Weber in the year 1947 and later by Bernard Bass in 1981. It also believes that the employees of Google will be able to understand and delegate their objectives only when they are able to obey the command that is being provided to them and that's constantly required to track so that one can ensure that the work within the organisation is being done well. This is how the standard of the jobs performed are being maintained within Google.

The Management Theories

The management theories help in the understanding of the various job roles of the managers within Google and include contingency management theory, the system management theory and the scientific management theory. These theories have been discussed below.

The contingency management theory

The contingency management theory is believed to be one of the most effective approaches that help in the improvement of the organisation. According to this theory, the leader should be able to identify which management style is best suited for improving the operations of the organisation and the efficiency of the employees of Google (Contingency Management Theory FAQ, 2021). In addition to this, these theories also help in the measurement of the performances of the managers and track their efficiency.

The system management theory

The system management theory believes that the development of the organisation begins at a fundamental level (Systems Management Theory, 2021). According to this theory, the business organisation is an open system that consists of parts that are interdependent and they interact with each other forming and creating a sub-system.

The scientific management theory

The scientific management theory is applied to increase the efficiency of the organisation at an individual level within Google. It uses various technologies in order to increase the productivity of the organisation. It also facilitates the smooth functioning of the employees working in the organisation (Aksom and Chornyi, 2018).

With the help of the different approaches discussed above it can be noticed and concluded that the leaders and the managers of Google are highly skilled and self-motivated individuals who work towards achieving the aims and objectives of the company and guide it to increase the potential of the employees. They contribute to the success and growth of the organisation. Both the leaders and the managers have acquired these traits and qualities with their academic as well as professional experiences. They are not born with these traits. The leaders help in motivating the individuals to strive towards the achievement of the different goals and objectives set by the company whereas the managers act as the liaison between the employees and the organisation so that the facilitation of the smooth operation could be done (Kessler, 2017).

The application of the role of a leader and the function of a manager in different situational contexts of Google LLC

The managers and the leaders of Google take part in various functions of the company. The leader participates in motivating the employees and strives towards achieving the operational factors of the company, whereas the managers monitor the performances of the employees in order to increase the efficiency and productivity of Google. They take part in the fast growth and development phase of Google which involves different levels of innovation and creativity to the company. While participating in the slow growth and development phase of the company, it results in less profitability of the organisation along with the delay in the job done. This is the result of the inefficient operations and performances of the organisation. While concentrating on the stable growth and development phase of the company, the various changes in the conditions of the market does not influence or impact the operations of Google.

The application of the different theories and the of approach to the above situational context of Google LLC

The traits that are linked with the leadership help the individuals to be flexible and adaptable to the various situations of the company. It is the skills of the leaders to adapt to the slow or fast growth of Google. The leaders also have the capability of identifying the best suited approach for the growth and development of the company. It helps in motivating the individuals of the company so that there is a smooth facilitation of the different operations within Google.

The transactional theory believes that every employee working for the betterment of the company needs to be motivated with the help of rewards or punishments. Having a clear objective of the functional aspect of the company gives it the ability to engage itself in the fast and slow rate of the growth and development of Google.

The strength and weaknesses of these theories when applied within the work environment

The strength and weaknesses of the leadership and the management theories that are applied within the operational factors of Google are as follows:

The Trait Theory
Strengths	Weaknesses
Assessment of the leadership skills of an individual can be done	Complex in nature
Provides a detailed insight of the process of leadership (Trait Theory of Leadership, 2021)	Encompasses judgement in a subjective manner
Related to the physical traits of an individual

The transactional theory
Strengths	Weaknesses
Allows the subordinates to take part in the process of decision making	Does not focus on the enhancement of the subordinate creativity (Transactional Leadership Theory - Meaning, its Assumptions and Implications, 2021)
Links the goals and objectives of the company with the system of reward	Effective only in case of simple organisations and their issues

The Contingency Management Theory
Strengths	Weaknesses
Adaptive in nature	Situational in nature
Supports the structure designing of the organisation	Does not provide any definite solutions to the issues of the organisation

The System Management Theory
Strength	Weaknesses
Facilitates an understanding of the complexities of the organisation	Considered to be less relevant in the situations of an organisation
Enables creation within the operational departments of the organisation	Does not take power and inequalities into consideration

Activity – 2

Key approaches to operations management and the role that leaders and managers play

Just in time inventory (JIT)

The just in time inventory helps the organisation with the knowledge of the guidelines of the space of the storages and the timely storages done appropriately in order to maintain the standard efficiency of Google. The role of the leader in JIT is to ensure that all the materials are being timely stored in right amounts and right proportions. They also need to order these materials just before they run out of supplies time (Franco and Rubha, 2017). Whereas the role of the managers is to ensure whether all the materials are being properly used and ordered before the supplies get over and they also need to monitor whether the quantities of the materials are being ordered in the right amounts.

Total Quality Management (TQM)

The Total Quality Management (TQM) concentrates on the improvement of the various operations of Google along with ensuring that the standard of productivity along with quality is maintained (Tsay et al., 2018). The role of the leaders in the process of TQM is to ensure proper usage of all the human resources in the inventory management processes as well as in the production processes. The work of the managers in TQM is to ensure that the function and operations of the business is done well as well as focuses on the various demands of the customers in order to maintain a good relationship with them (Bouranta et al., 2019).

Importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives

The importance and value of the Operation management are discussed below:

• Controls and distributes the systems that are responsible for the production process of Google
• Transforms raw materials into finished good
• Gain an insight about the heavy demands of the customers
• Facilitates designing of the process
• Contributes in the management of the inventory and logistics
• Ensures optimum utilisation of the resources
• Improves the quality of the production (Importance and Value of Operations Management - CIRCLE OF BUSINESS, 2021)

Contribution of operations management to the success of an organisation

An effective operation management system of an organisation helps in the growth and development of the organisation. It helps Google to utilise its resources in an optimised way and make proper use of it. It implements the different policies and techniques so that the resources in the business are utilised for the competitive advantage of the company. It also ensures a proper management of the supply chain that is effective for the operations of the business.

Relationship between the leadership and management with reference to Google

Several internal and external factors play a role in the management and operations of a business. A business takes its decisions on the basis of those factors in a given geographical boundary. In order to determine those factors, it is important to do a PESTEL analysis.

PESTEL analysis of Google

Political factors: Political conditions of an area often play a big role in the performance of an organisation. Companies like Google that operate on a large scale round the globe, are often prone to political factors. One of the examples of such a factor is the drive of European Union against the US-based technological organisations which includes Google as well. Another political issue that has affected the business of Google is the rising hostility between China and the US. However, many of the nations it operates in do have stable political climates. It provides opportunities to this technological giant to grow its business amidst all the issues.

Economic factors: Large companies like Google face several issues owing to economic factors. One of those factors is the change in exchange rates. Google keeps a large amount of money overseas that makes it vulnerable to the changing currency exchange rates. Other than this, recession has been a reason that has caused a reduction in the economic activity because of which the purchasing power of individuals as well as businesses has gone down. However, the positive side of this aspect is that the US economy, with its immensely high GDP rate, gives a great opportunity to this company to increase its revenue by exploring newer markets.

Social factors: There are several social and cultural aspects that are affecting the business of Google worldwide. With the emergence of social networking sites as Facebook, the businesses are shifting their ads from Google to those sites as they seem more profitable. Also, with the emergence of o-commerce businesses like Amazon, people prefer to search for shopping items from those sites directly instead of using Google. The criticisms regarding the privacy policies and use of the personal information by the companies has been one of the major threats. However, the positive aspect is the diverse benefit it offers to its users is a positive aspect as it helps increase the customer base. It allows users to create their own email IDs on Gmail, post their videos and watch videos on YouTube, create their own webpages, blogs, etc. They help the business in generating huge revenue.

Technological factors: It is important for any business to update itself with changes in technology. In such a scenario, Google, which is a technological giant itself, has to check all the aspects relating to technology and take the necessary business decisions. Technological innovation is the foundation of the business. There are many other technological giants in the market such as Apple Inc. and Microsoft (Pratap, 2017). Those businesses affect the growth of Google to a large extent. Hence, it is important for Google to add more features to its platform in order to go above and beyond its competitors and retain its competitor base. However, the growing use of internet and online sources in developing nations has increased the opportunity of Google to increase its business. Today, people tend to look for cloud storage Apart from this; the adoption of mobile devices has taken up the global market. These have also given Google a huge opportunity to expand its business.

Environmental factors: Electricity has been an important aspect in the business of Google. The data centres and the other internet infrastructure that impact the business model of Google consume huge electricity (Parker, 2020). Apart from this, bad weather often has a severe impact on the performance of its business. Google continuously supports environmentalism and tends to use a renewable energy resource which helps in increasing its reputation among the customers (Rowland, 2020). Also, the suppliers of this company are often seen taking interest in practising sustainable business. This has also given an opportunity to the company to strengthen its corporate image.

Legal factors: It is important for this technological giant to adhere to the rules and regulations of the countries it is operating in. Non-compliance to the laws can cause the company to be imposed with a fine worth millions (PESTLE Analysis, 2015). The organisation has to be well aware of the laws especially related to privacy with regard to the fact that private data is often needed for running online ads, which is an important source of revenue of the business. This, however, provides an opportunity to the company as well, as implementing more strict regulations on online privacy would help in building trust and give way to more and more customers.

SWOT analysis of Google

The performance of a business also depends on the internal factors such as suppliers, employees, competitors and also the customers. Below is the SWOT analysis of Google that would determine how the internal factors are affecting the business (Sarsby, 2016).

Strengths

• Huge customer base round the world
• Provides varied services
• Adaptable to changes in technology (Parker, 2020)

Weaknesses

• Huge dependence on advertisements
• Protests by employees over some of its policies and actions

Opportunities

• Sustainable business by suppliers help in increasing Googles own goodwill
• Increased demand for remote work solutions

Threats

• Huge competitor base worldwide
• Antitrust controversies emerging from the US lawmakers as well as the European Union
• Reductions in market shares.

Conclusion

With the help of the above report, it is easy to understand the various definitions and functions of the managers along with the leaders. The relevant approach that increases the efficiency of the organisation along with the theories that has been implemented by Google has been stated above. It also states that the efficiency of the leaders and that of the managers contributes to the growth and success of the organisation. The role and the functions of leadership and the management in the organisational context of Google have been demonstrated.

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