8. Management and leadership Flashcards Preview

Business AS > 8. Management and leadership > Flashcards

Flashcards in 8. Management and leadership Deck (46)
Loading flashcards...
1
Q

What are the functions of management?

A
  • Setting objectives and planning: strategic -> tactical -> operational
  • Organising resources to meet objectives: clear division of tasks
  • Directing and motivating staff
  • Coordinating activities: goals of each branch, division and region
  • Controlling and measuring performance against target: take actions if under performance occur, on target -> positive feedback
2
Q

What are the 3 managerial roles according to Mintzberg?

A
  • Interpersonal roles: dealing with and motivating staff at all levels of the organisation
  • Informational roles: acting as a source, receiver, transmitter of info
  • Decisional roles: taking decisions and allocating resources to meet objectives
3
Q

What are the 3 interpersonal roles?

A
  • Figurehead
  • Leader
  • Liason
4
Q

What does a figurehead do?

A

Perform social and legal duties, act as a symbolic leader of the organisation. e.g. greet visitors, sign legal docs, hosting receptions

5
Q

What does a leader do?

A

Motivating subordinates, selecting and training managers and staff

6
Q

What does a liason do?

A

Establish and maintaining contacts within and outside of organisation. e.g. business correspondence with other organisations

7
Q

What are the 3 informational roles?

A
  • Monitor
  • Disseminator
  • Spokesperson
8
Q

What does a monitor do?

A

Seek and acquire work related information. e.g. attending seminars, business conferences, reading research reports

9
Q

What does a disseminator do?

A

Sending information collected from external and internal sources to the relevant people within the organisation. e.g. send memos and reports

10
Q

What does a spokesperson do?

A

Communicating information about the organisation - its position and achievement to the outsiders. e.g. communicate with press and TV media, presenting reports at AGM

11
Q

What are the 4 decisional roles?

A
  • Entrepreneur
  • Negotiator
  • Disturbance handler
  • Resource allocator
12
Q

What does an entrepreneur do?

A

Looking for new opportunities to develop the business. e.g. encourage new ideas, implement new innovations

13
Q

What does a negotiator do?

A

Defends the business’ interests. e.g. conducting negotiations and build up official links with other organisations

14
Q

What does a disturbance handler do?

A

Responding to changing situations that may put business at risk. e.g. settle conflicts between subordinates, choose strategic alternatives to respond to a change in the business environment

15
Q

What does a resource allocator do?

A

Decide where to apply resources and the allocation of its physical and human resources. e.g. drawing up and approving estimates and budget, deciding on staffing levels for departments

16
Q

Define leadership

A

The art of motivating a group of people towards achieving a common objective

17
Q

Why is leadership important?

A
  • Clear vision: understanding of the organisational direction and allows staff to clearly understand their roles and responsibilities
  • Motivation
  • Effective planning
18
Q

Qualities of a good leader

A
  • Desire to succeed and self confidence
  • Able to think beyond the obvious - to be creative and encourage others to do the same
  • Multi talented so they can understand discussions about a wide range of issues affecting their business
  • Incisive mind that enables the heart of the issue to be identified rather than the unnecessary details
19
Q

What are the important leadership positions in business?

A
  • Directors
  • Managers
  • Supervisors
  • Workers’ representatives
20
Q

What do directors do?

A
  • Delegate within the department
  • Assisting in the recruitment of senior staff
  • Make strategic decisions that are based on what the shareholders want
  • Coordinate all departments
21
Q

What do managers do?

A

Direct, motivate and discipline staff within their department and make tactical decisions based on what the directors want

22
Q

What do supervisors do?

A
  • Appointed by managers/directors to help staff achieve objectives in a cooperative spirit
  • Responsible for leading a team of people working towards pre-set goals
23
Q

What do workers’ representatives do?

A

Elected by workers or as trade union officials in order to discuss areas of common concerns with managers

24
Q

What are the 4 leadership styles?

A
  • Autocratic: keeps all decision making at the centre of the organisation
  • Democratic: promotes the active participation of workers in taking decisions
  • Paternalistic: based on the approach that managers are in better positions to know what’s best for the organisation
  • Laissez faire: leaves much of the decision making to the workforce
25
Q

Main features of autocratic leadership style

A
  • Leader takes all decisions
  • Gives little info to staff
  • Supervises workers closely
  • Only one way communication
26
Q

Drawbacks of autocratic leadership style

A
  • Demotivates staff who want to contribute

- Decisions do not benefit from staff input

27
Q

Possible applications of autocratic leadership style

A
  • Defense force and police where quick decisions are needed

- Emergency situations

28
Q

Main features of democratic leadership style

A
  • Participation encouraged
  • 2 way communication, allows feedback from staff
  • Workers given info about business to allow full staff involvement
29
Q

Drawbacks of democratic leadership style

A
  • Consultation with staff can be time consuming

- Disagreements between staff/managers

30
Q

Possible applications of democratic leadership style

A
  • An experienced and flexible workforce

- In situations that demand a new way of thinking/ideas

31
Q

Main features of paternalistic leadership style

A
  • Managers do what they think is best for the workers
  • Some consultation might take place but final decisions are taken by managers
  • Managers want workers to be happy in their jobs
32
Q

Drawbacks of paternalistic leadership style

A

Some workers are dissatisfied with the attempt to consult while not having any real power or influence

33
Q

Possible applications of paternalistic leadership style

A

When workers are young and inexperienced => genuine concern for their interests but feel that managers know best

34
Q

Main features of laissez-faire leadership style

A

Managers establish very broad criteria or limits for the staff to work within

35
Q

Drawbacks of laissez-faire leadership style

A
  • Workers may not appreciate the lack of structure and direction in their work
  • Lack of feedback as managers will not be closely monitoring progress
    => demotivating
36
Q

Possible applications of laissez-faire leadership style

A

Where workers are experts and therefore arrive at solutions when not constrained by narrow rules or management control

37
Q

What are the 2 components of McGregor’s theory of management?

A
  • Theory X: authoritarian management style

- Theory Y: participative management style

38
Q

What does the Theory X say?

A
  • The average person dislikes work and will avoid it when they can
  • Most people must be forced with the threat of punishment to work towards to objectives
  • Average person prefers to be directed, avoid responsibility and is relatively unambitious, wants security above all
    => tight control, no development, produces limited and depressed culture
39
Q

What does Theory Y say?

A
  • Effort in work is as natural as work and play
  • People will apply self control and self dedication in the pursuit of organisational obj, without external control or threat of punishment
  • Commitment to objectives is a function of rewards associated with their achievement
  • Accept and seek responsibility
  • Capacity to use a high degree of imagination, ingenuity and creativity in solving problems
    => liberating and developmental control, achievement and continuous improvement achieved by enabling, empowering and giving responsibility
40
Q

What is emotional intelligence?

A

The ability to understand their own emotions, and those of the people they work with. Refers to how we handle ourselves and our relationships

41
Q

What’s Goleman’s four competencies of emotional intelligence?

A

self-awareness, social awareness, self-management and

social skills

42
Q

Self awareness

A
  • Knowing what we feel

- Having realistic view of our own abilities and having self confidence in our abilities

43
Q

Self management

A
  • Being able to recover quickly from stress
  • Being trustworthy and conscientious
  • Showing initiative and self control
44
Q

Social awareness

A
  • Sensing what others are feeling

- Empathy

45
Q

Social skills/Relationship management

A
  • Handling emotions in relationships
  • Understanding different social situations
  • Using social skills to lead, persuade and negotiate
46
Q

What are formal and informal leadership?

A
  • Formal leader is a member of organization who has given authority by virtue of his position to influence other members of organization to achieve organizational goals. - An informal leader has no formal organizational authority to influence others but possesses special kills and talent to influence and lead other members of organization