Leadership Assignment: Management Strategies Adopted by Leaders of P&G
Question
Task: Using examples from ONE organisation of your choice, prepare a report on leadership assignmentexamining how leadership theory and practice has impacted upon organisation sustainability.
To do this, you must:
a. Critically evaluate one leadership theory and demonstrate how the theory relates to leadership practices occurring within the chosen organisation o You can draw on other theories to demonstrate critical analysis, however, we are looking for a sound theoretical understanding of one theory.
b. Drawing on academic literature, discuss and critically evaluate three of the following topics for leadership practices and sustainability in the organisation of your choice:
• Power and influence
• Unethical leadership/ the dark side of leadership
• Leadership, gender and diversity
• Leadership self-awareness and resilience
• Leadership development
• Generational expectations of leadership
• Leadership and followership
• Sustainable, global leadership
Answer
Introduction
In the 21st century, corporate environment is witnessing intense competition. The market volatility has increased and with the increase in this, organizations are constantly facing challenges. In such scenario as portrayed in this leadership assignment, leadership theory and effective strategies of corporate leaders are becoming effective. Leadership is the process that helps an individual to motivate and influence other individuals or a group of people so that they can accomplish organizational goals or objectives in an efficient manner (Bello, 2012). Corporate leadership has become more prominent among MNEs. There is no exception in case of P&G. P&G is an US based organization operating in the retail sector. The aim of this Paper is to critically analyse the leadership theories that have been adopted by the senior leaders of P&G over the years. The paper primarily aims at aligning leadership theory with the core leadership activities of P&G. Then, the paper aims at critically analysing the leadership practices that have been adopted by the senior leaders of P&G over several years of operation
Leadership theory
Various scholars from different parts of the world have presented variety of leadership theories. Among these theories, democratic leadership theory has been a prominent one. Democratic leadership theory can be aligned with the activities of P&G. When leaders encourage, empower and inspire employees to participate in the core activities within the organization they are known as Democratic leaders. Leaders or individuals who follow Democratic leadership theory helps firm to gain sustainable competitive advantage while they operate in various markets across the world (Ghasabeh, Soosay and Reaiche, 2015). It is found that democratic leaders are collaborative and participative in nature.If the activities of leaders of P&G are analysed then it can be seen that each and every senior leader of the organization aims at initiating innovation and change within the workplace. This can only be possible with the help of collaboration and utmost cooperation of the employees and leaders within the workplace.
Furthermore, the senior leaders of P&G thinks that organizations can be build effectively if employees within the workplace are promoted and empowered significantly. Senior leaders within this firm not only practices democratic leadership theory but they also focus on value-based leadership. Each and every employee within the workplace are empowered so that they can take part in the value-based decision-making procedures. Senior leaders of P&G along with other team members emphasizes on participative or collaborative leadership by adopting several strategies. Effective communication is one such important strategy. The leaders of this organization think that effective, clear and transparent communication within the workplace help employees to clear out their doubts. This not only helps the employee enhance their productivity but it also helps them to accomplish organizational goals. Democratic leaders focus on taking opinions from each and every employee in the workplace. It is found that the leaders of P&G always direct employees in such a way so that they can set their own priorities (Lundberg, 2015). This is how the leaders of P&G has practiced democratic leadership along with value-based leadership which has further helped the company to strive in the retail market. However, as stated by Groysberg and Bell, (2013), P&G has the ability to recruit high skilled marketing employees but this organization have always failed to recruit general managers in the firm. The succession of CEO is not discussed among the board members. Thus, it can be said that development of talent within the firm is not done properly within P&G. This is due to lack of training to the employees of the organization (Groysberg and Bell, 2013). Therefore, this aspect of leadership slows down the decision making and problem-solving aspects of the organization.
In addition to this, top level executives and other senior leaders of P&G have collectively focused on increasing the market share of the firm and help the firm gain competitive advantage. The current CEO of P&G is David Taylor. The leadership style of David has made him the president and CEO of one of the largest retail firm of the world. He has the ability to recruit the right set of people in the firm. The skills of these people are further used for the growth of the firm. The rightly recruited employees are involved in the decision-making process of the organization. Their ideas and actions are taken into consideration and these ideas are further leveraged for developing relevant strategies (Kaye, 2019). The ideas and actions of David have been successful over the years. This is one of the major reasons David have been considered as one of the corporate leaders who is far ahead from the normal curve. However, democratic leadership or collaborative leadership style adopted by David Taylor often failed to give the best possible results. David Taylor focused on dealing with the increase in the volatility in the global market. During the decision-making procedures, opinions from different employees are being recorded and Taylor along with other senior leaders are often finding it difficult to eliminate other alternatives and consider the best option. Thus, from the above analysis it can be concluded that though democratic leadership style satisfies the stakeholders of the organization but it can often lead to conflicting situations.
Sustainable and global leadership
Sustainability is one of the most discussed topics in the current world. When any individual or group of individuals focus on utilizing natural resources by keeping in mind the future generation it is known as sustainable practices.Ensuring sustainability is not only the responsibility of governing bodies. Corporate firms and citizens should also come forward to make sure sustainability is practiced in an effective way. When corporate leaders focus on managing the activities within the organization by keeping in mind its impact on the society it is known as sustainable leadership. Constant change in the climate has given rise to the concept of sustainable business practices. Global leaders who are want to increase the market share of their organization are focusing on sustainability and sustainable business actions. In recent years, sustainable leaders have gained popularity because they have the ability to judge the dark as well as the light side of the business (Kociatkiewicz and Kostera, 2012). There is no exception in case of P&G. P&G is one of the renowned MNE in the modern world. This organisation is also well-known for providing feminine as well as family care products to people in different parts of the world. The organizationis also operating in various parts of the world and is striving in the competitive business environment.Thus, the leaders of the firm have made sure to ensure sustainable leadership practices within the workplace.
In the recent years, P&G has undertaken several sustainable initiatives. A clear and transparent roadmap has been created by the leaders of P&G. The objective behind initiating this roadmap is to guide the workforce and other stakeholders of P&G to focus on environmental initiatives. In a conference named SB’19 that took place in Paris, VirginieHelias who is the non-executive chairman of the organization presented a framework on behalf of the firm. The objective of this framework was to focus on initiation of innovation strategies that can enhance sustainable business practices. P&G is well-known for producing products like pampers, sanitary napkins and many more. Disposal of these products can enhance the rate of air, water and land pollution in a significant way. The leaders of the organization think that effective communication and innovation strategies can help the firm focus on producing products that can further enhance sustainable lifestyles of the consumers. The leaders have made sure to develop goal and ambition. P&G committed socially and environmentally. In the summit, the organization said that one of the missions of P&G is to address societal challenges and aim at developing societies (SB, 2019). Furthermore, the leaders of the organization have also set sustainable goals for the next 10 years. However, as stated by Vinopal, (2021), various descendants of the organization have marked several negative aspects of the organization’s sustainable actions. The toilet paper source of the organization has been highly criticized by several external members of the organization. It has been found that all these toilet papers are sourced from forests that are highly carbon dense. This is having a negative impact on the environment. Furthermore, the manufacturing practices adopted by P&G is also marked as one of the major causes behind mass destruction of forests. This is also one of the major violations to the number 13 sustainable goal of the United Nations. According to this goal decreasing the constant change in the climate with the help of sustainable practices should be the major concern of corporate and governing bodies across the world. Thus, from the above analysis it can be found that though the senior leaders of P&G are constantly focusing on sustainable leadership but there are few sustainable challenges that are getting overlooked. It is the immediate responsibility of the organizational leaders to look after the issue and take necessary actions for the further growth of the firm.
Leadership development
Prominent leaders can only help a firm to strive in the competitive global environment. The constant changes in the market can be predicted by effective leaders. Once, the change in the market is predicted then effective change management strategies can be initiated by the leaders within the firm. When the ability of an individual is expanded so that they can perform leadership roles and responsibilities within the organization in an effective manner it is known as leadership development. The development of leaders has been a prominent concern for firms across the world (Day, et.al., 2014). The abilities of an individual are expanded with the help of formal as well as informal trainings. In the current business environment, uncertainties have increased to a significant level. Thus, leaders should have the ability to cope up with any kind of challenging situations. This is one of the primary reasons’ leadership development is necessary in the modern-day business environment. Moreover, improper leadership development can result in decrease in productivity within the organization. Roles often get fragmented if leaders are not properly skilled.The concept of leadership development is also relevant in P&G. P&G has organized senior development programs that aims to set the professional ambitions of individual who are a part of the firm. P&G Leadership academy is a leadership development program that aims at developing a wide range of leadership skills so that the leadership capabilities of employees within the organization is enhanced (P&G, 2021a). P&G believes that developing skills and abilities of employees will not only help the firm to get effective leaders. It is the responsibility of the senior leaders of the organization to identify potential individuals who can become future leaders and can contribute to the organization significantly.In the leadership academy the employees are trained by senior members of the organization. The leaders are trained by providing presentations, and other training materials. The training primarily focuses on skills and knowledge that a leader must have. Moreover, the Emerging leadership program has also gained popularity in various parts of the world.
In 2021, this leadership program was conducted virtually. This leadership program aimed at providing an idea about the building blocks of the global FMCG industry to the eligible candidates. Furthermore, individuals who are attending this program can interact with top P&G leaders and the alumni of the company. This program has been solely curated for students who can be potential leaders and can work for P&G. IIM MBA/PGDM students were eligible to attend this leadership program. This leadership program not only aimed at enhancing leadership knowledge of these students but it also aimed at providing an internship opportunity to few students who have attended the program (P&G, 2021b). The Emerging leadership program not only focus on developing leaders but the constant interaction between students and the leaders of P&G help the company understand the mindset of the current generation. This is how P&G aims at developing leaders and recruiting them that can further help the firm to gain competitive advantage. However, as stated by Groysberg and Bell, (2013), succession planning or development of leader has been one of the crucial problems in P&G. The board members often fail to decide the next CEO of the organization. This is due to lack of effective leaders within the firm. From this it can be said that P&G fails to properly train employees within the organization. Furthermore, in the above section of the report, it has also been found that P&G finds it difficult to choose general managers. This means employees within the organization are often not aware of the global market conditions that can further develop their skills. Therefore, it is the core responsibility of the executive and non-executive members of the organization to empower, aware and inform them about the activities of the external and the internal environment of the organization.
Leadership, Gender and diversity
In the 21st century business environment, organizations operate in various parts of the world. Continuous expansion of business help firms gain competitive advantage and it also increases the market share of the organization. To operate in various parts of the world, it is the responsibility of the leaders of the organization to focus on gender equality and diversity management. Moreover, gender stereotyping, women not getting enough opportunities are mostly discussed in today’s environment.The objective of diversity managementis the ability of an organization to deal with various demography. Effective organizations focus on reducing the gender gap within the workplace to enhance productivity and the goodwill of the organization. The primary reason behind initiation of diversity management is to provide equal opportunities (Lauring, 2013). There is no exception in case of P&G. Senior leaders of P&G from different parts of the world are primarily concern about diversity management and ensuring gender equality within the workplace.
In the year, 2017, P&G launched a gender equality programme. The leaders of the organization made sure to focus on certain areas that can increase the concept of gender equality in a strong manner. The marketing leaders emphasized on advertising and campaign that portrays gender equality. Senior leaders of the organization also thought of initiating education programme that ensures gender equality. Finally, the leaders of the organization are also appreciated because they have made sure that an inclusive environment is made. The objective of this inclusive environment is to provide equal opportunities to men and women in the workplace (P&G, 2021c). Furthermore, the inspiring voices of women leaders at P&G has put an end to all kind of gender bias and inequality within the workplace. The senior leaders of the organization believe that biasness faced by women leaders can only be reduced if proper awareness is provided to them. Women within the workplace should know their values and should have their own voice. This is how gender stereotyping can stop (P&G, 2021d). Thus, from the above discussion it is clear that leaders of the organization are emphasizing on gender equality. However, according to the gender pay gap report of UK the hourly pay of women within the workplace is 25.7% lower than that of men. The bonus pay of women is also 62.9% lower than of men in the organization. This statistic of the firm does not match with the gender equality goals of the organization. Gender pay gap is a crucial aspect because it enhances the productivity within the workplace (P&G UK, 2020). Thus, it can be said that it is the core responsibility of the senior leaders of the organization to look after the matter and address the gender pay gap challenges in the workplace. In addition to this, diversity and inclusion has been one of the major concerns of leaders of P&G. The objective of this organization is to value and include each and every person irrespective of their cultural or linguistic backgrounds. Inspirational leadership has helped the members of the organization to develop diverse teams over several years of operation. It has helped the organization by initiating innovating and creative activities within the workplace (P&G, 2021e). Furthermore, the marketing team and the other senior leaders of the organization have launched campaigns that aimed at stopping racism and ensuring equality in several parts of the world. However, as stated by Neff, (2020), the pandemic has impacted the organization’s ability to recruit diverse employees. It has been found that the organization has currently stopped focusing on hiring diverse employees. This can decrease the productivity of the organization and it also questions the ability of the leaders within the workplace. Furthermore, the company also faced controversies because the organizational leaders prevented themselves from disclosing diversity report. This has given rise to several questions among the external members of the organization. Thus, the above section focuses critically analyses the leadership practices of gender and diversity in P&G. From the above discussion it is clear that though the leaders of P&G are forming frameworks and emphasizing on equality and diversity management, still the organization is facing controversies that are related to diversity management practices.
Conclusion
The main aim of this report was to critically analyse leadership practices that have been adopted by P&G. The report concludes that the leaders of P&G follow value-based and democratic style of leadership. The leaders are more intrigued towards sustainable leadership. P&G is well-known for undertaking sustainable business practices and it has gained popularity over the years for its environmental initiatives. Despite, this the organizational leaders have confronted various challenges. Apart from this P&G is also well-known for undertaking diversity management practices. The report concludes that the leaders of P&G believes in inclusion and equality. Each and every member within the organization are empowered so that they can take part in decision-making and problem-solving activities within the workplace. Finally, the marketing team of this organization is also very strong. The leaders of this team have made sure to focus on campaigning and other practices that have a close association with equality, sustainability and diversity.
Reference List
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