Importance of Self-Learning, Time Management and Decision-Making Skills for Employees

Introduction of FWD: PROJECT CODE: 18637 Assignment 

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Leadership and management are two of the mot important concepts and processes of running a business. However, these concepts are more important for the management or executive circle, what is more significant for the employee and labour circle is performance management, and this can also come with proper professional and personal development. This report is strategically divided into two parts where the first part of the report intends to focus on management and leadership and the second focuses on professional development by personal and professional plan and management

TASK 1: Discussion Paper

AC 1.1 Evaluation of the term’s leadership and management and their application in organizations

Leadership

In layman's terms leadership is the ability that a person possesses that can influence or impact a group, community, or organization. A simpler definition of leadership would be a person who leads a particular group or in the case of an organization, a project, a team, or the entire organization. A leader is also defined as a person who can challenge the present status quo and take risks. Leaders have enormous roles and responsibilities when it comes to leading organizations. Leadership in an organization is more of a management approach, as mentioned the roles and responsibilities of leaders are enormous in an organization. They are responsible for building up effective strategies, analyzing and mitigating risks, and keeping the employees within the firm always motivated. Several scholars believe that an able leader in an organization is a person who has the capabilities of structuring the inputs given by various aspects of the firm and creating an organic output of it(Delanoy, N. and Kasztelnik, K., 2020).

Management

From neutral perspective management simply means managing things, operations, or processes in a way so that they do not clash internally and create organic results in the end both individually and as a group. In business, management means managing the resources, strategies, and operations in a firm in a way that it achieves specific designated goals most efficiently and effectively possible. Management also includes the aspects of completion of tasks with minimal costs that will produce maximum benefits that are completed within a designated time and can produce tangible results for the firm. Management in the business sector or an organization can be related to both operations as well as employees or both at the same time.

AC 1.2 personal leadership and management skills required to support the achievement of organizational goals

The term self-leadership or personal leadership was coined in 1983 by Carless Manz. This is the phenomenon of intentionally influencing the thinking process of oneself that ultimately leads to the fulfillment of the objectives of a person. Some skills lead to the development of an organization:

Personal/Self Leadership:

• Self-Awareness/ Knowledge: An individual who is aware of their surroundings and builds up themselves according to the requirement of the firm through continuous learning.
• Identification of desired experiences: A workplace is full of opportunities, but not all of them are for everyone. A person who identifies the correct opportunities and grabs them at the earliest is an asset to the firm.
• Constructive thought and decision-making: An employee should have a constructive thinking process that allows the drafting of strategies and better decision-making in crisis.
• Planning and goal setting: A personal leader should have personalized goals and plans to meet personal and organizational objectives(Hechanova et al., 2018).
• Optimizing motivation: A self-leader always finds pertinent ways of keeping themselves motivated under all circumstances.
• Harnessing the ecosystem: A personal leader is fully aware of the resources that are available to them and can exploit them to the fullest of their potential.
• Amplifying performance: A personal leader is always looking for opportunities that will allow them to enhance their performance. This is done through self-learning, observing, and self-reflection.
• Embracing failure: A personal leader does not take failure as a defeat but as a way of learning from its mistakes.

Management

• Planning: it refers to the capability of organizing operations and processes in a way so that they do not clash with each other and produce organic results at the same time.
• Communicating: communication is the key to a lot of problems in the workplace. Clear communication stops the possibility of a lot of misconceptions and promotes swifter operations.
• Decision Making: this attribute is considered important, especially in times of crisis where some harsh and staunch decisions need to be made that will minimize the losses for the firm and maximize the results(Woods et al., 2020).
• Delegation: An able manager is a person who knows their team by heart and recognizes the individual capabilities of each of them. Such people can delegate appropriate tasks to the right people for maximum productivity.
• Problem-Solving: the capability of solving problems or managing conflicts is essentially important, especially in a multicultural and multidimensional work environment where perspectives and opinions have the maximum chances of clashing.
• Motivation: An able manager is someone who can keep their team and other employees motivated in every situation both possible and impossible. This enhances employee engagement as well as job satisfaction leading to a lesser turnover in a firm.

Extension Activities

1M1 an analysis of the impact of organizational objectives, values, and cultures on the leadership and management role

The culture, values, and core objective of a particular firm are entirely responsible for the choosing of an appropriate leadership technique for the firm. the core values and culture of a firm are determined by how people behave ins the firm or rather they have been instructed to behave in the firm. this is a cyclic process; scholars are divided on the idea of whether the culture of the firm influences leadership or the leadership model and type influence the culture of the firm. Another school of thought believes that the process is vice versa, both aspects have a strong effect on one another. However, in the case of a change in leadership, the existing core values and the culture set by the previous leader can affect the decision-making process of the next leader(Halkias, D. and Neubert, M., 2020). However, this too is always not true, for example when the CEO of Apple Tim Cook took over his responsibilities as the leader of the firm from Steve Jobs, he completely altered the course of leadership in his firm. While the job was a staunch believer of autocratic leadership, Cook turned out to be an appreciator of democracy and changed the leadership style of the firm which in turn paved the way to change the company culture of the firm entirely from its core.

1D1 analyzes the leadership and management skills of a leader in a named organization.

Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple has an interesting and versatile style of leadership that will be explained and analyzed here:

• Risks: Cook understands that taking risks creates the potential for failure in the firm, however, he also understands the fact that the firm cannot progress without risks.
• Focus: Cook is more of an observer and a learner who is hardly ever seen interrupting or asking questions, this allows him to understand his environment and take action according to it. This allows Cook to reflect on his understanding and this is in striking contrast to his much-acclaimed predecessor who was the opposite of this.
• Trust: Moving away from the boisterous and autocratic leadership style of his predecessor, Cook has effectively divided the duties and responsibilities of his executive circle so that operations can run in harmony with one another. He overlooks, supervises, and manages all these circles but does not necessarily intervene or interrupt the operations unnecessarily.
• Diversity: Jobs was somewhat of an orthodox when it came to the point of including people of different perspectives, in other words, jobs wanted his vision and perspective to be the ultimate in the firm. Cook is staunchly against this and includes diversity and different opinions and perspectives in the firm that lead towards enrichment(Cole 2018).
• Delegation: Cook is a huge fan of proper delegation when it comes to the division of roles and responsibilities. He is also a staunch believer in learning and acquiring new skills but he also believes that some people are 'made' for certain tasks and this comes to them normally and naturally and they should be left with the task without any interferences. This has the capability of creating extraordinary results for the firm(Maharaja et al., 2018).

TASK 2 Development personal management skills

AC 2.1 an audit of own personal leadership and management skills

Skills	Bad	Average	Good	Excellent
Leadership
Communication	√
Knowing the people	√
Self-awareness and knowledge	√
Democracy	√
Seeking feedback	√
Management
Planning	√
Communication	√
Decision making	√
Problem Solving	√
Motivating	√
Delegation	√

AC 2.2 objectives to meet personal development needs identified in audit to support the achievement of organizational objectives

According to the audit, three areas need to be focussed on. The three areas have been broadly designated as; immediate attention needs work, satisfactory.

Categories	Activities	Personal Development needs
Immediate Attention	1. Knowing people 2. Decision Making	There are two ways of developing the first point is knowing people, the first is direct interaction with them and the second is understanding the way how they work. The second process is based on observation and reflection of a personal understanding. Furthermore, an increase in the frequency of teamwork and collaboration too can help in the enhancement of the skills of knowing people. The aspect of decision-making is slightly more complicated, in this case, there are joint activities that need to be performed simultaneously. For example, to decide regarding choosing a particular approach for a project, the need to understand the requirement of the project and take a group census to come to a decision. Hence it is important to inculcate the requirement for a better understanding of the environment and surroundings.
Needs Work	1. Communication 2. Planning 3. Problem Solving 4. Delegation	Communication and getting to know people better are somewhat interconnected to each other. Listening and observing matter a lot in the case of communication. Planning is again somewhat connected to decision-making. The requirement is the identification of the critical issue, understanding and arranging the tasks according to priority, delegating tasks, taking follow-ups, solving the issue, and reflecting on the issue. The requirement of an able problem-solving capability is pretty much the same as planning. In the case of delegation, the issue of knowing other arise. Until a person has an elaborate knowledge of the personal skills and abilities of their team, the delegation of tasks will be entirely inefficient. Hence some tasks are interrelated with each other and the betterment of one will automatically lead to the improvement of the other.
Satisfactory	1. Self-awareness and knowledge 2. Democracy 3. Seeking Feedback 4. Motivation	Only the continuation of self-learning is required in a more amplified and structured way. The avenues of seeking feedback need to increase from the managers to the peers and even customers. The need of upgrading motivation skills is required daily to keep up with the challenges that might be encountered.

AC 2.3 Identify and explain the opportunities you will utilize to meet the objectives set

The workplace is filled with opportunities but as mentioned every opportunity is not for everyone and hence one needs to be very careful while choosing opportunities, carefully reflecting on the fact that whether it will benefit their cause and objective:

• Interaction: I will try to interact with my fellow employees as much as possible, this interaction can be both formal and informal in nature. Formally I can observe their way of working, how they present themselves in the workplace, their capabilities of working under pressure, brainstorming sessions, collaborative projects, group discussions, meetings, and so on. Informally, I can have a casual chat with them in the cafeteria or at corporate gatherings. Even though the conversation will be informal but it will provide valuable insight into the overall character of the person.
• Practice: during brainstorming or group discussions I can host hypothetical situations where everyone can be asked to role-play a crisis that requires some immediate decisions. My first move will be the observation of my fellow employees and understanding the decisions they take and the justification behind them. With theoretical knowledge and reflective observation, I will slowly try to make strategic decisions. It will take time for me to reach proficiency as it will only come with practice(Avleav 2020).
• Feedback: Post every project, I will try to host a group discussion that will aim at reflecting on the decisions and the performances of the employees in the project. The inclusion of my manager in the discussion will allow me to receive the feedback of my manager as well as my colleagues. This knowledge will further be incorporated into my future projects.

AC 2.4 personal development plan to develop own leadership and management skills to support organizational objectives

Activity	Present Situation	Desired Situation	Reward
Development of interactive skills and control of the introverted nature	Mostly introverted, do not like much talking or interaction apart from work.	Better interaction skills, turning into an ambivert and better expression of thoughts.	Potential chances of promotion
A healthier social life	Occasional meet with friends and no hobby.	Frequent meetings with friends, relaxing weekends, and the development of a hobby.	Fresher mind
A stable and regulated diet and sleep pattern	Mostly stable, however, I do crave junk food frequently and do not receive 8 hours of sleep mostly due to social media and streaming sites.	Regular exercise will regulate the sleep pattern and maintain a diet chart.	A healthier and fitter mind and body
Regular learning	Whenever I have free time.	Making time to learn	An enhanced intellect

AC 2.5 personal development activities undertaken by the plan to develop own skills identified in the audit.

• Regular practice of interacting and meeting new people. This will allow me more confidence and provide me an edge regarding knowing people where I face difficulties in my professional life.
• Better communication with old friends and finding a passion or an old hobby. This will allow me to have some form of recreation in my life leading to a healthier and broader outlook that will help me in the aspect of problem-solving.
• Starting small with a free hand or walking, visiting a dietician or nutritionist. A healthier diet, exercise, and proper sleep will allow a cooler but alert mind to help me to make better decisions.
• Starting small, taking out at least half an hour to learn a basic concept every day. Continuous learning will provide me with a special competitive edge in my career and allow me to keep myself updated with the latest trends(Bachik, A.K., and Kitzman, M.J., 2020).

AC 3.1 review of progress and outcomes of the personal development against the objectives set

• Regular practice of interacting with people through my workplace as well as new areas such as restaurants, clubs, and parks have allowed me to control my introverted nature. It has allowed me to understand and experience and perspective of other people automatically and helps me relate with them.
• A hobby and a stable social life have given me something to look forward to when I reach home especially when I feel overwhelmed by work. I make sure to keep time for myself as I practice my high school passion of playing the violin.
• I feel much more energized after I started exercising daily. I do not get the time to visit the gym every day and honestly, I do not enjoy it much as well, I enjoy walks, a stable diet, and try to maintain 8 hours of sleep by altering my streaming addiction to every alternate day and then thrice and then twice a week to only Saturdays.
• I am gradually trying to enhance my time of learning from half an hour to 45 minutes to at least an hour. This has allowed me to uplift the intellectual capital that I use in my workplace.

Extension Activities

2M1 Justify how opportunities selected for the personal development plan support achievement of organizational objectives

• Interaction: As mentioned I do lack the process and necessity of knowing others, this is an important leadership and management quality, and lack of the same obstructs promotion. By creating an opportunity, I have allowed myself to enhance my skills here so that I can manage people more efficiently, thereby benefitting the firm.
• Practice: Decision-making process and the perspectives and opinions that lead to the successful completion of the process allow the firm to take better decisions as it involves a range of other views covering every gap in the decision.
• Feedback: Candid, clear, and constructive feedbacks help an employee move towards betterment and thereby ultimately benefiting the firm(Babieva et al., 2019).

3M1 Compare current personal leadership and management skills with the outcome of the original audit identifying clearly what has been achieved and what has not.

Previous Audit	Current Audit
Struggling at knowing other and interactive skills	Better interactive skills by working on my introverted nature, this has helped the aspect of decision making as well as knowing other people and communication
Struggling to keep balanced work life and hence having no personal time or chances of self-development	Better time management so that I have time for my hobbies, recreation, and learning. This has also helped me in my problem-solving issues, delegation issues, and planning.
Struggling to find the time of self-learning	Due to better time management, now I have time for self-learning, which has helped me in my decision-making skills through theoretical knowledge

3D1 Analyse areas for further development and provide a new plan clearly showing the amendments you have made

Previous Condition	Present Condition	Future development
Struggling at knowing other and interactive skills	Better interactive skills by working on my introverted nature, this has helped the aspect of decision making as well as knowing other people and communication	Continuing this process and faxing new challenges such as public speaking and oration.
Struggling to keep balanced work life and hence having no personal time or chances of self-development	Better time management so that I have time for my hobbies, recreation, and learning. This has also helped me in my problem-solving issues, delegation issues, and planning.	Stricter work-life balance
Struggling to find the time of self-learning	Due to better time management, now I have time for self-learning, which has helped me in my decision-making skills through theoretical knowledge	Trying to take up an online class and learning a new skill(Beasley et al., 2021).

References

• Avlaev, O.U., 2020. The role of social intelligence in personal development. JournalNX, pp.692-698.
• Babieva, N.S., Grinenko, A.V., Shulga, T.I., Tkhugo, M.M., Zotova, L.E., Shukshina, L.V. and Ishkov, A.D., 2019. A psychological resource of personality as an integral eco-psychological characteristic (the interrelationship of personal development and quality of human life). Ekoloji, 28(107), pp.629-635.
• Bachik, A.K. and Kitzman, M.J., 2020. The case for including personal development in undergraduate psychology curricula. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 6(2), p.150.
• Beasley, C., Jones-Locklear, J. and Jacobs, M.A., 2021. Cultural competence with American Indian clients: workforce and personal development. North Carolina Medical Journal, 82(6), pp.423-426.
• Cole, K., 2018. Leadership and management: theory and practice. Cengage AU.
• Delanoy, N. and Kasztelnik, K., 2020. Business open big data analytics to support innovative leadership and management decision in Canada. Business Ethics and Leadership, 4(2), pp.56-74.
• Halkias, D. and Neubert, M., 2020. Extension of theory in leadership and management studies using the multiple case study design. Available at SSRN 3586256.
• Hechanova, M.R.M., Caringal-Go, J.F. and Magsaysay, J.F., 2018. Implicit change leadership, change management, and affective commitment to change: Comparing academic institutions vs business enterprises. Leadership & organization development journal, 39(7), pp.914-925.
• Maharaja, G., 2018. The Impact of Study Abroad on College Students' Intercultural Competence and Personal Development. International Research and Review, 7(2), pp.18-41.
• Woods, S.A., Diprose, N., Murphy-Diprose, M. and Thomas, G., 2020. Effective interim leadership and management: development of a cyclical model of interim assignments. Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance.