Scenario and activity:

In 2020 the world was faced with a global pandemic, Covid-19, which has had a serious and drastic impact on businesses, people and societies. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of your organization has asked you to critically examine the role leaders and managers play in the operations function of your organization during the Covid-19 pandemic.

With references to ideas, readings, models and theories covered in Unit 4, you are required to conduct an investigation within the organization of your choice to compare and examine the role of a leader and the functions of a manager during the Covid-19 pandemic and address how the leadership and management team can improve overall operations within the company. To assist with this, you will need to investigate external business factors that influence operational management and the decisions the leadership and management team makes.

You will select the organization and identify leaders and managers from the organization outlining their impact during the Covid-19 pandemic. You can select a company based on information from case-studies, the news/press, journals, managers and employees and your own experience.

The report should have the following structure and cover the following areas:

1.Introduction
Introduction to the organization
Overview of the key operations of the organization of your choice
The organization’s management structure (provide a hierarchy chart)
Overview of the operation management issue and the purpose of the report.

2.Main body of the report: Definitions, Analysis and application of theories
Explain the key operational functions, identifying the roles and responsibilities of managers in key operational functions
Explain the key approaches to operations management and the role leaders and managers play
Explain the importance and value of operations management in achieving business objectives
Define, compare and analyse to differentiate the role and characteristics of leaders and managers in your organization, drawing on a range of theories and concepts
Critically analyse and evaluate these theories and approaches to leadership by contextualizing them to the given scenario
Examine with at least two examples how leaders in your chosen organization functioned in the different situations during the Covid-19 pandemic by applying theories and models, including situation, system and contingency leadership
Assess the strengths and weaknesses of the different leadership approaches to situations adopted by the leaders from the organization of your choice within the work environment
Assess the factors within the business environment that impact upon operational management and decision-making by leaders and managers.
Critically evaluate application of operations management and analyse how these different factors affect and have an impact on the business environment and wider community
An evaluation of how leaders and managers have made an impact on the organization considering whether they improved efficiencies of operational management to meet business objectives

3.Recommendation/conclusion
Provide solutions/recommendations to address how leaders and managers can make future improvements to the operations management function of the organization in light of the issue(s) you raised
Conclusion highlighting the main points of your report and the importance of your analysis and recommendations