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Week 5: Management and Leadership

Management: Theory, Practice, and Application
Robert Manning
Week 5/Management and Leadership
Frederick R. Paige III












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Leadership and management are two different styles of employee supervision that are
used to affect the process of an organization through their employees. Both leadership and
management hold similarities, yet there are many differences that differentiate between the two
styles of supervision. In this paper we will differentiate between management and leadership.
We will also describe the roles and responsibilities that Wal-Mart managers and leaders play in
creating and maintaining a healthy organizational culture. Evaluate the affect of globalization
and management across borders. Last, we will recommend two strategies that organizational
managers and leaders can use to create and maintain a healthy organizational culture.
Wal-Mart Inc. was founded by Same Walton in 1962 and officially incorporated October
31, 1969. It is a family owned business in which the Walton brothers and sisters hold a majority
48% of its stock. Wal-Mart is the worlds third largest public corporation and is also the biggest
private employer in the world. Wal-Mart is a global corporation that has over 8,500 stores in 15
countries. Management, cultural diversity, leadership and management are have been imperative
for the success of this corporation. Wal-Mart has exemplified the four functions of management;
leading, organizing, planning and controlling in which they have grown from one store in 1969
to a billionaire, publically traded company.
One definition that Bateman and Snell (2010) state about leadership is a leader is one
who influences others to attain goals. The greater the number of followers, the greater the
influence. And the more successful the attainment of worthy goals, the more evident the
leadership. The role of a leader is transformational than a managerial role. Although leaders
and managers are similar, leaders are not necessarily driven by a formal control plan set forth by
the organization. Leadership is a trait that is taught through experiences where as, management
is merely a position over subordinates. Managers and those in management positions do not
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necessarily have the leadership traits as someone who has influence over their peers,
subordinates and even other managers.
By definition a manager is someone responsible for planning and directing the work of a
group of individuals, monitoring their work, and taking corrective action when necessary. The
organizational goal of Wal-Mart is manufacturing, production, sales, and profits to meet the
needs of consumers. Managers have subordinates and authority over others given to them by the
organization. This managerial position is usually given to someone with a higher level of
education and a certain criteria of qualifications. Management is a transactional style, and the
employees do what is told of them by the managers in hopes of a reward of some type of
financial gain. Managers do not have to inspire workers, but are driven by planning and goals
established by the organization. Controlling and leading the employees is a managers main goal
in hopes of success delegated by a higher authority.
Sam Walton; founder of Wal-Mart; has a belief system in his managers and all of his
employees at Wal-Mart stating Listen to everyone in your company, and figure out ways to get
them talking. The folks on the front line the ones who actually talk to customers are the only
ones who really know whats going on out there. Youd better find out what they know. (Ten
rules of Success from Sal Walton, 2011, para. 7) This is a direct relation to managers and
employees. In order to have success within an organization, it is imperative that you not only
manage your employees, but also lead them into the same direction that you have set for a
company goal.
The managers role within Wal-Mart is based on applying its employees to produce sales
and have positive customer feedback. Wal-Mart values its customers needs, wants and desires.
Wal-Mart is a global organization that stretches across 15 different countries and has a vast
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differential of customer needs. The same products that are sold in the United States are not
necessarily sold in Mexico, United Kingdom, Japan and India. Customer satisfaction and
customer diversity are extremely important in the success of the organization of Wal-Mart.
Managers play the role of fulfilling these customer needs as well as maintaining the operations of
the individual store. Managers within Wal-Mart have goals set by a higher authority, which
must be met and maintained. Resources that managers uses within Wal-Mart are also control
mechanisms, which help the day-to-day operations. Employee accountability, that includes;
scheduling, days off, religious holidays for employees, accounting, distribution, whole sale,
regional sale and global sales are just some of the components that managers must deal with
daily. Scheduling employees seems like an easy task but when one manager is responsible for
numerous employees in a department within Wal-Mart this minute task can be daunting.
Managers must consider an individual employees vacation days, paid holidays, personal days
off which can include; religious holidays. These factors must also coincide with the staffing
needs and demands needed to efficiently operate. This is an internal operation that managers
must consider.
Though managers and leaders are different there are also similarities that exist between
the two when it comes to organizational goals and maintaining a healthy organizational culture.
We have discussed how managers must lead and their orders come from policies and directives
that are established within the corporation. Sometimes leaders roles within a business can
influence management. Even thought leaders are not always in a management position,
management can take advice and receive help from the leaders of their teams. The leaders and
managers of Wal-Mart work together to ensure that organizational goals are met and employees
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are happy. Good leaders can ensure that managers and employees are understood and the
communication lines between everyone are open when it comes to scheduling conflicts.
Globalization has had a major impact on how Wal-Mart conducts business and handles
its operations. Wal-Mart stores span over 15 countries which include; Mexico, United Kingdom,
Japan, India, Brazil, Canada, United Kingdom, South America; and China. Wal-Mart has had
success in countries like United Kingdom, South America and China, but were unsuccessful in
Germany and South Korea. Even with the unsuccessful ventures Wal-Mart has still had major
profitable success across the globe. Wal-Mart is not only the biggest retailer United States, but it
is the biggest and most profitable in the world. Fishman 2006 states. Target might be
considered Wal-Marts biggest rival and closest competitor, but it is small in comparison. Wal-
Mart sells more by St. Patricks Day (March 17) than Target sells all year.
Wal-Mart employs over 1.6 million employees over the world and managers must be able
to deal with different cultures, lifestyles and ways of living. Some of the biggest challenges that
globalization has on a company; especially the size of Wal-Mart is the cultural differences.
Customs, courtesies, and misunderstandings of cultural differences can cause a company to lose
partnerships. Managers must understand this concept and find ways to work around this.
Foreseeing a problem and correcting it is a primary example of a good leader and a good
manager. Members who cannot work together on the same team should be adjusted to
accordingly; this is an example of how managers must deal with arising issues.
Organizational managers and leaders can use different techniques and concepts to
effectively maintain a healthy organizational culture. Wal-Mart uses cultural diversity training
for its managers in different countries. Wal-Mart understands the importance of cohesiveness
among its partnerships with different countries to have the goal of profit in mind. Also, Wal-
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Mart hires managers from other countries to work in those countries where those stores are
located. Different countries have different customs; and in know this, it is imperative to the
success of team building. Another method managers and leaders can use is to maintain open
lines of communication. This is vitally important to the success of any business for without
communication, no one gets heard. Listening and hearing someone are vastly different things.
Bateman & Snell 2009 state. If managers create an environment of openness and honesty, one
in which employees feel comfortable sharing even negative information and are appreciated for
doing so in a timely fashion, then the control system is much more likely to work effectively.
This example shows how keeping open lines of communication works from the lowest level
employee all the way to upper management. While stationed in Japan in the Marine Corps, there
was an introductory level class that all personnel attended before leaving the base. In this class,
we discussed the customs, courtesies, and rituals that offended the Japanese people. That class
set the tone for how to act, what to say, and what the Japanese people felt was inappropriate that
maybe us Americans did not find as such. Wal-Mart takes this same approach with its
employees but on a much bigger scale because it operates in over 15 countries.
In this paper we have differentiated between managers and leaders, and described the
roles and responsibilities that organizational managers play in creating and maintaining a healthy
organizational structure. Also, we have talked about how Wal-Mart has had an affect on
globalization and management across the borders of the countries that it does business. We
recommended two strategies that leaders and management can use to create and maintain healthy
organizational structure.


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References
Bateman, T. S., & Snell, S. A. (2009). Management: Leading & Collaborating in a Competitive
World (8th ed.). Retrieved from https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/content/eBookLibrary2
http://www.apple.com/jobs/us/
Ten rules of Success from Sam Walton. (2011, January). the Leadership Institute at Harvard
College, 1(), . Retrieved from http://harvardleadership.wordpress.com/2011/01/25/ten-rules-of-
success-from-sam-walton/
The Wal-Mart Effect (New York: Penquin, 2006). Charles Fishman