Leadership Management - Research Paper Example

Leadership management Cover letter  I am enclosing herewith a research paper en d “Leadership Management” for publication and possible evaluation. The key points identified in this research include the importance of leadership management and leadership communication in the present day businesses, an analysis of the leadership management practices in a restaurant business called Tige Restaurant, an evaluation of the leadership communicating and leadership traits present in the organization and an analysis of the relations between the leaders and the members of the organization. The findings establish the positive links between leadership management practices, leadership traits, use of power and organizational performance. I confirm that the research paper is original and has not been published anywhere. Please address all correspondence to: ………………………………. I look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience. Yours sincerely………………   Executive summary  The research is aimed at evaluating and understanding the leadership management practices in a selected organization which is the Tige Restaurant located in Wellington. The research is introduced by identifying the scopes of the research work with a consideration of the literary works done on similar topics till date. This is followed by the formulation of the research questions and research objectives. Suitable research methodologies which would be used to collect, analyse and interpret data are identified and explained wherein the importance of qualitative data collection through the use of questionnaire and sampling is identified to be relevant to the study. The collected data are analysed and interpreted and the findings are documented to reach to a suitable conclusion for the study. The report is concluded with the provision of relevant recommendations which can be used by the management of the chosen organization. Introduction  The research paper is prepared on the topic of leadership management and leadership communication of Tige restaurant. The restaurant is a well-known Chinese restaurant situated in Wellington. The research is conducted with the aim of evaluating the leadership styles, leadership communication leadership practices and the overall leadership management in the Tige restaurant. The research is likely to be an important asset in the literary works of leadership management and leadership communication. Leadership communication and management has evolved as critical factors for the success of business organizations across the globe. As such, the study on this topic is expected to add value to the research works done in this field. The main objectives of the research are to evaluate the existing leadership principles and leadership management practices as followed in the chosen company which is the Tige restaurant. The research would take into consideration the aspects of leadership management, leadership styles, leadership communication, leadership practices and the effects of these practices on the overall management and performance of the Tige restaurant. The research would also involve trying to find out how the leadership traits. The role of the managers in motivating the employees of the restaurant and the traits of the manger in displaying leadership communication are also investigated through the research. The leadership styles that are practiced in the organization are also evaluated in order to understand the management and performance of the organization. The research objectives also include an evaluation of the relation between leaders and members pertaining to the organization. Therefore the research objectives are: To identify and evaluate the leadership management practices in the organization To identify the factor that contribute to effective leadership To identify the leadership styles in the organization To evaluate the leadership traits present in the leaders of the organization To evaluate the relations between the leaders and members of the organization. Research methodology The research techniques used in a research depend on the scope of the study, the aims, objectives and the type of the research work (Bryman and Bell, 2003). In this research, a questionnaire method is used to collect and compile data for the research. A number of variables are considered to design a detail oriented and comprehensive open ended questionnaire. The research methodology employs the use of a questionnaire administered on a group of 20 people. The chosen sample size is 20 respondents among which there are 5 managers of the Tige restaurant and 12 employees of the same restaurant. The 12 employees work at various levels and departments of the restaurant. The sampling process follows a judgemental sampling by which the researcher selects suitable people for the sample group. This includes a non-probability sampling technique and is used with the aim of getting more accurate and appropriate results from the study (Punch, 2006). Judgmental sampling is used because there are a limited number of people who can ideally represent the whole population with respect to the scope of the research. This is especially helpful for extracting adequate and relevant information from a specific group of people. The response rate of the sample is identified to be more than 85% which is a healthy response rate for the research (Dawson, 2002). This indicates that the data collected from these respondents through the filling up of questionnaires would be adequate for answering the research questions in a valid and verified manner. The employees and managers from different levels and from a wide range of departments are selected for questionnaire administration to get a holistic and explorative view of the research objectives (Patton, 2002). The questionnaire is formulated by including suitable open ended questionnaires for the managers and employees. The questions are kept open ended and simple so as to administer them suitably for an explorative and in depth study of the research objectives. The questions are kept open ended so that the researcher can get into the depth of the views and other qualitative aspects of the sample regarding their attitude and opinion towards the research topic. An open ended questionnaire is useful in maintaining the scope for leading on to another question. This would help to make the research more exploratory, evaluative and progressive in nature and would help the researcher to identify new dimensions in the research which may open up with each answer of the respondents (Maylor and Blackmon, 2005). The questionnaire used for the research is given in Appendix1. The research methods involve both the qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The qualitative research approaches are used to document and analyse the behaviours, perceptions, views and opinions of the respondents with respect to the research questions (Kumar, 2010). The research process uses more qualitative research approaches than quantitative research approaches because the research topic is more related to the qualitative aspects. The qualitative data collected in the research are expected to establish the research objectives in a valid way (Hennink, Hutter and Bailey, 2010). The responses to the questionnaire are evaluated in a quantitative and a qualitative manner by analysing the responses with the use of suitable leadership theories and models. The analysis of the responses of the selected sample is done in a careful and analytical way to answer the research questions suitably and to conduct the research in an ethical and unbiased manner (Cooper, 2003). Findings Leadership management can be stated as a process through which a company can deliver good quality of product or services to its customers and create an efficient and good image in the market. Management and Leadership are two important aspects for delivering good services. Although these two words are quite similar but have so many differences also. Like leaders create vision of the organization and management is helping to achieve those visions and goals in a proper way. Managers are selected on the basis of merit but in case of choosing leaders the merit is not the only thing for consideration. Communication is the most important key to become a successful leader (Miller, 2014). A leader always inspires his followers through his effective communication. Leader should clarify the goals of communication, plan carefully before attending a meeting or sending a message (Daft, 2014). He should be able to anticipate receiver’s feelings and viewpoints. Leader should express the meaning of conviction, relate the message to goals, and confirm the other’ thinking and understanding, identify the actions to be taken. He should always keep an open mind to receive appropriate and proper messages, identify all the key points of those messages and provide constructive and valuable feedback for the purpose of growth (Matha and Boehm, 2008). Here it is clearly mentioned that the business is related to restaurant and food industry. When the question is asked to the employees of the restaurant that what kind of prominent leadership style has adopted by the managers or CEO of the company then they answered that the managers has taken participative leadership. The employees of this business are involved in minor decision making that improves the understanding and basic growth of the business. When employees are taking decision together for the betterment of business then social commitment will be greater to one another. As the business is service based, not product based so taking decision at each and every step is very much important. So if here management would take the strict rule that the decision making procedure will be rigid then it will be a troublesome condition to run the business on daily basis. The employees also told that the management also adopted transformational leadership over here. This kind of leadership enhances motivation, job performance of the employees and morals. Some employees told that the CEO of the company has adopted laissez-faire leadership because he thinks that if the employees have the ability for taking decision then their responsibility will be increased. He believes that the employees will do excellent performance if the management will give least guidance in case of service industry and they can take their own decision as and when necessary (Barrett, 2013). This can be obviously stated that these kinds of leadership styles will increase the job satisfaction of the employees. If there will be any rigid rules and regulations then they will face trouble. Services are done as per necessity of the customers and for that reason rules and regulations of the business should be flexible. For example- The restaurant provides home delivery within 100 kilometres and gets a huge order which have to deliver within the 110 kilometres but above the 100 kilometres. The cost of delivery will remain same. In such case though there is no rule of the business to deliver the food above 100 kilometres but employees can take decision to deliver it as because the cost of delivery will remain same and the business can earn more revenue by this huge order. Here employees can use their experience and knowledge while they will take decision related to business. Stereotype work culture has been reduced by these leadership techniques (Howatt, 2008). Major leadership traits are as follows: Team Building- A good leadership always encourages the employees to work together rather than to do work in a competitive way. Passion- Leaders always have the passion to do work in a better way and feel every work as an important one. Communication- Leaders know how to communicate effectively with the staffs and give them advice to do the right thing in a right way. Commitment to staff- Leaders understand that success is possible only with the help of the employees. So they always trying to keep commitments which are already provided to the staffs. These commitments include good package of salary, proper training for work, providing lunch and other related benefits (Cragan, Wright and Kasch, 2008). All these traits are helping to enhance effectiveness of leadership communication in the business. Without these traits self-assessment, sharp perception, knowing the organization, responsive to the group needs will not be completed. Lack of communication will hamper the service of the restaurants. Team building is also required to run this business. Without a good cook or without efficient delivery boys the services will be hampered. And finally if the commitments of management will not be fulfilled then the employees will be demotivated and stop for taking decisions in their own urge (Pauley and Pauley, 2009). Leader member relationship is a two way communication system between managers and subordinates. This theory assumes that leader and members both will exchange their views and take decision together for the betterment of the business. The growth is generally increased by using this method. In this company a good and stable leader member relationship is visible (ODonnell, 2009). Some goals are required to motivate the team members. Motivation comes after fulfilling the satisfaction. If employees are satisfied by getting good salary package and other benefits, getting good behaviour from the higher management, getting proper training for doing the work in a better and improved way then they will be motivated to do the job in more efficient ways (Doyle, 2005). Strengths and weaknesses of the communication approaches and strategies adopted by the manager are as follows: Strength of the communication is to build relationship among all the levels of the organization. Problems can also be identified through effective communication. Weakness is failure to meet the requirement of the customers. The employees can be engaged in mal practices without proper communication from the management end. They will be demotivated and the customers also will be unsatisfied from ineffective communication system of the business. There are five factors which affect the leader’s choice of style and approaches. For example- the political disturbance may be hampered the restaurant business. The taste of the food should reflect the cultural value of that particular region. Situations for running the business should be in favour in the business. Structural and social values are also affected the leadership styles and approaches. Employees are sometimes influenced by the social impacts. If there will be good team work and job satisfaction then the social impact on them will be positive (Miller, 2014). The manager and the CEO obviously use the power intelligently. If there is any unethical practice is going on the managers will utilize their power to stop that unwanted activities. If a manager observes that there is a huge amount mismatch in KOT and Bill then he should take proper step to find the problem. At that time he can charge on those employees who are engaged in billing procedure and taking orders from the customers. Strict steps can be prohibited this kind of activities in near future. The factors that contribute to effective leadership are time management, effective communication, motivation, delegation, customer centric, goal setting and periodic reviews etc. Managers have to manage time, energy and activities simultaneously. They have to utilize the limited time for making and implementing strategies and management activities in most effective manner. Timely food delivery is a very crucial part in the restaurant business. Customer centric plan will also help to maximize the growth rate of the business. Setting goals will be the targets of the employees and periodic review by the mangers will help to achieve those goals in a systematic way. Managers of the restaurant told in their interview that they are always trying to keep effective communication with employees as well as with the customers. They are trying to explain their plans, their offers to them and positive feedbacks are getting from the other end which is key success factors of any business. Members of the company perceive the effectiveness of leadership communication through the growth of the business. Their personal and communication skills will be improved. They will stand in such a position to compete with the other rival companies. This leadership style will attract other talents in the organization to become future leader of the business. Managers have to take some steps to optimise the effectiveness in leadership communication. At first they will standard the quality of the services after understanding the needs of the customer. Which types of food the customer wants to eat that have to identify and implement the strategy according to the requirement. They have to track marketing activities and selling activities. They also can give suggestion to the sales person and motivate them for increasing the sales figure by providing extra benefits with salary packages. This is a most effective way for generating more revenue (Busch, Seidenspinner and Unger, 2006). Conclusion  Thus, it has been identified that mainly participative and transformational leadership is practiced in the Tige Restaurant. This can be identified to be a driving factor of motivation and active participation of the employees because they are given some degree of independence in taking decisions in their day to day job roles. This has also increased their accountability and responsibility through empowerment of the employees. A wide number of leadership traits are noted among the leaders of the Tige restaurant. Positive leadership traits like team building, passion, commitment and communication are commonly noted in the restaurant which has helped to enhance the overall leadership management practices in the restaurant business. It is identified that the presence of these leadership traits has helped to improve the leadership communication and leadership management in the Tige Restaurant. It has also been identified that the leaders in the Tige restaurant use their powers and control in an ethical and positive manner that add value to the management of the organization. Recommendation Commitment to the employees and effective communication of leaders with the members is identified to be a key aspect of positive leadership management culture in an organization. Also, the presence of leadership traits and effective use of power and authority by the leaders is critical to foster a beneficial and supportive leadership management practice in the organization (Pratt and Loizos, 2002). Tige restaurant should employ more robust practices to improve the leadership communication levels in the company. The leadership style in Tige restaurant is transformational and participative which is supportive of the activities of the members in the organization. The management should continue to demonstrate this kind of leadership practices to increase the job satisfaction of the members (Goddard and Melville, 2004). Also, the management should take careful steps to improve the effectiveness of the leadership in the restaurant and employ the power and authorities of the leaders in an intelligent and ethical way. The managers of Tige restaurant can enhance the effectiveness of leadership management in the company by creating a positive environment to foster and support leadership skills. Appendices Appendix 1: Questionnaire 1. What kind of prominent leadership style has the manager/CEO adopted? Authoritarian? Participative? Laissez-faire? A mixture? Transactional or transformational?  2. Has this style of leadership led to increased job satisfaction?  3. What are the major leadership traits? How do such traits contribute to (in) effectiveness of leadership communication?  4. What is the leader-member relationship like in the company?  5. What has/have the manager(s) done to motivate the group? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the communication approaches and strategies adopted by the manager?  6. What are the factors within a particular situation (social, cultural, political, structural, and situational) that affect the leader’s choice of style and approaches?  7. Has the manager used the power intelligently? Ethically? Any examples?  8. What are the factors that contribute to (in) effective leadership?  9. How do members of the company perceive the effectiveness of leadership communication?  10. What could the manager(s) have done to optimize the effectiveness in leadership communication? References Barrett, D. (2013). Leadership Communication: Fourth Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. Bryman, A. & Bell, E. (2003). Business Research Methods. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Busch, R., Seidenspinner, M. and Unger, F. (2006). Marketing Communication Policies. New York: Springer. Cooper, R. (2003). Business Research Methods. New York: McGraw-Hill. Cragan, J., Wright, D. and Kasch, C. (2008). Communication in Small Groups: Theory, Process, and Skills. Boston: Cengage Learning. Daft, R. (2014). The Leadership Experience. Boston: Cengage Learning. Dawson, C. (2002). Practical Research Methods. New Delhi: UBS Publishers’ Distributors. 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