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Final Assignment
Programme Title Unit Title Unit Code Assignment No QCF Level 7 Credit value Assessor Deliverer Handout Date Hand in Date Edexcel BTEC Level 7 Extended Diploma in Strategic Management and Leadership (QCF) Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills Unit code: F/602/2058 01 BTEC Professional 10 Dr. Abhijit Ganguly Dr. Abhijit Ganguly 01/05/2013 28/06/2013

Assignment Title: Assessing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills in McDonalds To address the Learning Outcomes you are required to analyse the case study given below. You will be expected to research relevant literature to inform your analysis of the case study. You will be expected to carry out your own research about the company based on internet searches, the business press and other relevant sources. Your analysis of the case study should show clear evidence of: evaluation of theory, concepts and relevant research methods; critical thinking; and application of theory, concepts and research methods to such a business context. Answers should be structured around the four elements of the assessment task, which relate to the four Edexcel learning outcomes for the Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills module. Answers should be based on the case study, your personal experience, relevant research, investigation and analysis which you personally have carried out. Further research should be taken from authentic and reliable sources which must be properly referenced in the text of your work and fully referenced in an appropriate section at the end of your assessment. Task 1: Understand the relationship between management and leadership With reference to McDonalds Strategic Challenge, discuss the relationship between strategic management and leadership. In your answer refer to the impact management style and leadership style can have on strategic decision making, and how leadership styles can be adapted to suit different business situations.

(This provides evidence of Learning Outcome 1: Assessment criteria 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3) Task 2: Apply management organisational change and leadership theory to support

(a) With reference to at least three theories of management and leadership discuss and evaluate how each might affect McDonalds Strategic Challenge. (b) In relation to McDonalds global competitiveness and business imperatives describe and discuss one leadership strategy that would support organisational change (This provides evidence of Learning Outcome 2: Assessment criteria 2.1 and 2.2)
Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills

Page 2 of 5 Task 3: Assessing leadership requirements McDonalds strategy is to focus on the core business of the organisation. Imagine you are a consultant to McDonalds and you are required to: (a) Critically review McDonalds leadership needs (b) Develop a plan to address the projected leadership requirements to support their business strategy. (This provides evidence of Learning Outcome 3: Assessment criteria3.1 and 3.2) Task 4: Plan the development of leadership skills Provide a plan to demonstrate how McDonalds could effectively develop leadership skills to allow the organisation to focus on its core business. Discuss how useful the methods of developing leadership skills may be to help McDonalds achieve its strategic development. (This provides evidence of Learning Outcome 4: Assessment criteria 4.1 and 4.2) Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria In order to pass this unit, the evidence you present for assessment needs to demonstrate that it can meet all the learning outcomes for the unit. The assessment criteria determine the standard required to achieve the unit. The assessment criteria act as a guide to help you put into context your answers to fulfil all four of the learning outcomes. Learning outcomes 1. Understand the relationship between strategic management and leadership Assessment criteria 1.1 Explain the link between strategic management and leadership. 1.2 Analyse the impact of management and leadership styles on strategic decisions. 1.3 Evaluate how leadership styles can be adapted to different situations. 2.1 review the impact that selected theories of management and leadership have on organisational strategy. 2.2 create a leadership strategy that supports organisational direction.

2. Be able to apply management and leadership theory to support organisational direction

3.1 use appropriate methods to review 3. Be able to assess leadership current leadership requirements. requirements 3.2 plan for the development of future situations requiring leadership
Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills

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4. Be able to development of leadership skills

plan

4.1 plan the development of leadership skills the for a specific requirement 4.2 report on the usefulness of methods used to plan the development of leadership skills

Case Study: McDonalds Plan to Win a Strategic Challenge McDonalds is the largest food retailer in the world and is part of the American way of life. After 50 years of operation, McDonalds top management and leadership is busy working on strategic developments such as revitalizing its products, and pushing innovation through a variety of initiatives. This food service giant with more than 30,000 restaurants in 100 countries provides food to over 50 million customers each day, but decades of expansion, sales growth, and prots have made the burger giant complacent. By focusing on getting bigger, not better, the company stumbled in 2002, recording its rst losing quarter. By 2003, U.S. sales had attened, as many consumers were turning to healthier options and restaurants with more upscale menu items, a segment sometimes referred to as fast casual. Morgan Spurlocks lm, Super Size Me, released in 2004, also seriously diminished the public image of the quick-service chain as moviegoers watched Spurlock become ill and gain 25 pounds after eating only McDonalds food for one month. With pressure to get back on track, it was time for McDonalds management to rethink and re-strategise the business. The chain devised a recovery strategy that included new menu items, redesigned restaurants, and a focus on the consumer experience. Through a program titled Plan to Win McDonalds focused on making a deeper connection with customers through the ve business drivers of people, products, place, price, and promotion (the five ps). Using its ve Ps, the company developed and rened new strategies to deliver value for money, offering product variety, developing updated and contemporary stores, balancing the delivery of value pricing with more expensive items, and marketing through bold and innovative promotions. In order to remain competitive and an iconic American institution, McDonalds developed programs and strategies for motivating employees and teaching leadership. McDonalds corporate management believes in training and leadership at all levels through its Hamburger University. On Hamburger Universitys website McDonalds founder Ray Krocs training focused ideology is quoted: If we are going to go anywhere, weve got to have talent. And, Im going to put my money in talent. This ideology demonstrates that McDonalds does not believe its restaurants crew jmembers are just gears in a machine that can be easily replaced. Because training is not just offered to executives or managers, McDonalds is able to spread and reinforce its culture and values in all directions, not just downward. McDonalds corporate values also have people as one of its pillars (McDonald's Corporation, 2008). Corporate policy says that employees should be paid at or above the local market rate, and should also value both their pay and their benefits. By addressing employees higher needs by providing training they make employees feel important and

Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills

Page 4 of 5 valuable. Training also serves to reinforce the culture at all levels through education and fostering a positive image of the employees importance to the company. Execution of the above strategy has included mystery shoppers and customer surveys, along with grading restaurants to help the company deliver on its people goals. New menu items like the Fruit & Walnut Salad in the United States and deli sandwiches in Australia are part of the commitment to serve high-quality products to satisfy customer demand for choice and variety. Restaurants are staying open longer, accepting credit and debit cards, enabling wireless internet access, and even providing delivery service in parts of Asia. As part of the program, franchisees and suppliers are asked to provide their opinions and ideas on facility design, while the company benchmarks retail leaders, such as Crate & Barrel, to help produce cleaner and smarter restaurants. The company is testing small handheld devices to use on what it calls travel paths a process for checking operational failures such as the temperature inside the refrigerators. Experiments with a new grilling concept from Sweden, which grills burgers vertically instead of horizontally, offers space-saving possibilities for the chain. Product offerings like the McCaf, a concept developed in the Australian market that provides gourmet coffee inside 500 existing restaurants, are proving to be successful.

The trouble experienced in the early part of the millennium has abated, and executives at McDonalds have declared success after several years of progress under the Plan to Win. Company revenues are up, and the rm plans to remain focused on its core business. One indication of its commitment to fast food was the divestiture of its seven - year ownership stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill, a highly successful fast - casual burrito chain. With the sale of around 5 million shares of Chipotle stock, the burger maker is now refocusing on Brand McDonalds.

Attracting more customers to McDonalds remains its goal for growth. In the U.S. market, the strategy is to leverage menu innovation; in Europe, upgrading the customer experience and enhancing local relevance have driven management efforts; and the Asia/Pacic, Middle East, and Africa markets have focused on building sales through extended hours. The question remains whether focusing on the core business will yield maximum return. At McDonalds, the executives are betting on the core brand and hoping that this strategy will pay off.

Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills

Page 5 of 5 Instructions and information for students The four assessment tasks are designed to assess your achievement of all the Edexcel learning outcomes and associated assessment criteria in the relevant unit of the qualification you are undertaking. Your tutor will advise you when you should start work on the assignment, and the date when you must hand in your completed work. You should make sure that you plan your work carefully, to ensure that you cover all the requirements of the assignment, and complete it within the time limit specified. Your answer to each of the four assessment tasks need to be prefixed with the specific number and Learning Outcome heading. This will help you keep focused on the task and help ensure you address what is required. You must make sure that you acknowledge any sources you have used to complete this assignment, listing reference material and web sites used. You must submit your work as hard copy with a Turnitin report of less than 20% of similarity index. You should mark the assignment with your name, student id number, the unit number, and your Centre name. You may include a title page if you wish. You are strongly advised to keep a copy of your completed assignment before you submit it for assessment - the copy you submit will not be returned to you. Your assignment may be retained by the British Institute of Technology and E-commerce for quality assurance purposes. Any assignment not kept for quality assurance purposes will be securely deleted/destroyed. The assignment result will be published to BITEs moodle, normally within 6 weeks of submission. If your assignment is assessed as referred, you will be notified with an indication of the areas to be addressed. You may resubmit an assignment, or submit a new assignment, on a further two occasions during your period of registration as a student at the British Institute of Technology and E-commerce. If there is anything in these instructions or in the assignment itself which you do not understand, please seek guidance from your tutor.

Developing Strategic Management and Leadership Skills