Assignment Brief - Unit 5013: Leadership practice

Unit 5013 - Leadership practice

Introduction

This unit is about being able to define and show an appreciation for key leadership principles in setting and communicating organisational direction, and the application of leadership styles in the achievement of organisational objectives. It is also about being able to differentiate between the leadership and management aspects of a job role and show an understanding of how these are integrated to enable effective performance.

Scenario

Learners may use their own employment context, or that of another organisation with which they are very familiar, to base their assignment. However, in the case that they are not able to do so, please use the below scenario:-

You are a manager, leading a department in a medium sized company. You have responsibility for setting direction, motivating and inspiring the team and individuals, and for co-ordinating workload and outputs.

Task 1:

Identify the key differences between leadership and management.Taking two of these from each list, provide practical examples of effective leadership in action and effective management in action in the running of a department. Discuss why it is important for those with management responsibilities to be able use both leadership and management skills effectively. Identify some of the behavioural and skills challenges raised by this concept.

Compare and contrast the differing demands of leadership and management and discuss two working examples of occasions when managers have to strike a balance between these demands in order to work effectively. Where possible, use work based examples throughout.

Guideline word count: 950 - 1,100 words

A.C. 1.1 - Discuss the concept of managers as effective leaders

A.C. 1.2 - Discuss the concept of leaders as effective managers

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Assignment Brief - Unit 5013: Leadership practice

A.C. 1.3 - Evaluate the balance needed between the demands of management and the demands of leadership

Task 2:

Describe your understanding of what the role of a leader should be in the creation and communication of an organisation’s vision. Use both an external and a work based example to provide an illustration of where principle has worked well, and where it has not worked so

well. Highlight the positive and negative points and suggesting reasons for successes andshortcomings. Guideline word count: 400 - 450 words

A.C. 2.1 - Evaluate the role of the leader in contributing to the creation of the organisation’s vision, and in its communication to others

Task 3:

Describe the meaning of empowerment, trust and ethical leadership in a work context. Provide one negative and one positive practical example of the impact these have on organisational practice. Guideline word count: 350 - 400 words

A.C. 2.3 - Identify how empowerment and trust through ethical leadership impact on organisational practice

Task 4:

Describe two different theories on leadership styles and highlight the key differences between them. Provide an outline of two contrasting working situations and in each case select which of the leadership styles you have previously described might be the best choice for the manager to use in order to try and achieve a successful outcome for the organisation. Explain the reasons for your choice, highlighting the practical values of the styles you have selected. By means of two practical examples, one external and one work based, discuss the impact an individual’s personal energy, self-belief and commitment can have on their leadership style. Highlight both the positive benefits and the disadvantages of these factors in each scenario used.

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Assignment Brief - Unit 5013: Leadership practice

Guideline word count: 1,000 - 1,150 words

A.C. 2.2 - Evaluate how personal energy, self-belief and commitment impact on leadership styles

A.C. 3.1 - Distinguish between two different leadership styles

A.C. 3.2 - Assess the practical value of a leadership style to a manager in achieving organisational objectives

A.C. 3.3 - Discuss situational variables likely to influence the choice of a leadership style

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Assignment Brief - Unit 5013: Leadership practice

CMI Membership Benefits

CMI is the only chartered professional body in the UK dedicated to management and leadership.

Membership of the CMI is designed to work for you and your learners during management studies and then beyond this on a day-to-day basis to aid the overall progression of your management careers.

There are many benefits of membership, but for you and your learners in particular this comes to life with our tailored online support - via www.managers.org.uk/practical-support/study-support. All the resources available on Management Direct are designed to help you and your learners with CMI assignments.

Management Direct enables quick and easy access to information which is automatically tailored to the individual units on each relevant CMI qualification, meaning you can spend less time looking for the information you need to deliver the qualification and ensure that your learners have access to the many resources to complete their next assignment.

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Online resources via our website www.managers.org.uk including checklists, management models, learner videos and podcasts, among various other formats tailored to many different learning styles.

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Assignment Brief - Unit 5013: Leadership practice

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For a taster of what CMI membership can do for you and your learners please watch our video www.managers.org.uk/managementdirect-video or for more information visit our website www.managers.org.uk or call our Membership team on 01536 207 307.

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