Leadership and Management

Management and leadership are often viewed as one and the same thing, yet, these two functions are distinctively different as far as their roles and usage are concerned. Management is a branch of the human resource function that deals with the administration of work and ensuring that activities required to achieve results are done as per the set-out plan (Robbins et al., 2018). Managers are all individuals in the hierarchy of an organization with formal authority. They influence the actions, responses, and behavior of others within the confines of their formal authority or power (Liphadzi, Aigbavboa, & Thwala, 2017). They have subordinates and work within a plan with an overall agenda to maintain a status quo as part of their effectiveness as authority figures.

Leadership, on the same page, deals with the people. Robins et al. (2018) describe leadership as the function of motivating people in a way that brings about belief and comprehension of a vision set for the company. Leadership allows an organization to get people to work in collaboration in order to attain certain goals. Leadership entails a process of influencing others to believe in attainment of objectives (Rudolph, Rauvola, & Zacher, 2018). Actions and traits define leadership. Traits include the personality, charisma, and key characteristics that leaders possess. It also includes the tasks performed, positions held, and the accomplishments achieved. The bottom line, according to Crosby and Bryson (2018), is that leaders must have followers, be able to influence those followers to attain goals, and that the process must be reciprocated amongst people.

In summary, while these two elements have their distinct roles and functions, the foregoing descriptions point to their importance when used together. Despite being different, Algahtani (2014) expresses that they must go hand in hand in order for any business or organization to succeed. For example, Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon.com, uses leadership qualities to inspire and motivate employees while employing management in decision-making processes to achieve best results. Efforts to separate the two entities would likely lead to more issues. As it is, the two functions complement each other by bridging the gap between strengths and weaknesses. Management is required for its strengths in planning, coordinating, and organizing while leadership is important for motivating and inspiring people to perform at their best.

References

Algahtani, A. (2014). Are leadership and management different? A review. Journal of

management policies and practices, 2(3), 71-82.

Crosby, B. C., & Bryson, J. M. (2018). Why leadership of public leadership research matters: and

what to do about it. Public Management Review, 20(9), 1265-1286.

Liphadzi, M., Aigbavboa, C. O., & Thwala, W. D. (2017). A theoretical perspective on the

difference between leadership and management. Procedia Engineering, 196, 478-482.

Robbins, S., DeCenzo, D., Coulter, M., & Woods, M. (2018). Management: the essentials. Pearson

Australia

Rudolph, C. W., Rauvola, R. S., & Zacher, H. (2018). Leadership and generations at work: A

critical review. The Leadership Quarterly, 29(1), 44-57.

Human Resource Management

One of the core assets of any organization, whether in the profit-making sector or the not-for-profit industry, is the human resource function. In understanding human resource management (HRM), Ahammad (2017) defines it as a practice comprising of the recruitment, hiring phase, deployment, and the management of employees in an organization. the emphasis of HRM is on the employees who are considered as key assets. In the present competitive global environment, the efficient and effective management of people within an organization is seen as a strategy to achieve competitive advantage (Kerdpitak & Jermsittiparsert, 2020). As such, Bombiak and Marciniuk-Kluska (2018) use the terms activities and processes to define HRM as a structured attempt to utilize all employees to attain organizational objectives. Therefore, HRM is a function within an organization that attempts to maximize the performance of employees and the strategic objectives of the employer through effective management.

The role of HRM is to ensure that an organization performs at its best, with reference to the people in the organization through ensuring optimal quantity (optimum number of people), quality (right abilities, skills, and knowledge and competencies), and cost. Robbins et al. (2018) also mention the need for HRM to ensure that people in an organization are kept committed and motivated to achieve current and future strategic needs of their organization. Within the HRM function, planning is a key role that ensures the proper forecasting of the future demand and supply of the best fit employees and in the right number (Ahammad, 2017). HRM has a mandate to understand the nature of jobs and positions and kinds of individuals that are appropriate for them.

In conclusion, HRM is all about the people. The discussion above shows that HRM deals with ensuring an organization has the right amount of people and that quality of these individuals is assured vis-à-vis the organizational goals and objectives. For example, Apple, a technology and communications giant, must always ensure that the organization has the right number of employees who are best suited to perform the various tasks required for the company to stay on top of its industry (Delery & Roumpi, 2017). Therefore, Apple utilizes best practices in HRM to keep the employees motivated, ensure optimal numbers, place the right employees at the right jobs, and ensure quality through continuous improvements.

References

Ahammad, T. (2017). Personnel management to human resource management (HRM): How

HRM functions. Journal of Modern Accounting and Auditing, 13(9), 412-420.

Bombiak, E., & Marciniuk-Kluska, A. (2018). Green human resource management as a tool for

the sustainable development of enterprises: Polish young company experience. Sustainability, 10(6), 1739.

Delery, J. E., & Roumpi, D. (2017). Strategic human resource management, human capital and

competitive advantage: is the field going in circles?. Human Resource Management Journal, 27(1), 1-21.

Kerdpitak, C., & Jermsittiparsert, K. (2020). The Impact of Human Resource Management

Practices on Competitive Advantage: Mediating Role of Employee Engagement in Thailand. Systematic Reviews in Pharmacy, 11(1), 443-452.

Robbins, S., DeCenzo, D., Coulter, M., & Woods, M. (2018). Management: the essentials.

Pearson Australia.