netrashetty
Netra Shetty
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories, and is the world's largest furniture retailer.[3] Founded in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad in Sweden, the company is named as an acronym comprising the initials of the founder's name (Ingvar Kamprad), the farm where he grew up (Elmtaryd), and his home parish (Agunnaryd, in Småland, South Sweden).[4]
The groups of companies that form IKEA are all controlled by INGKA Holding B.V., a Dutch corporation, which in turn is controlled by a tax-exempt, not-for-profit Dutch foundation.[5] The intellectual property of IKEA is controlled by a series of obscure corporations that can be traced to the Netherlands Antilles[6] and to the Interogo Foundation in Liechtenstein.[7]
INGKA Holding B.V. owns the industrial group Swedwood, which sources the manufacturing of IKEA furniture, the sales companies that run IKEA stores, as well as purchasing and supply functions, and IKEA of Sweden, which is responsible for the design and development of products in the IKEA range. INGKA Holding B.V. is wholly owned by Stichting INGKA Foundation, which is a non-profit foundation registered in Leiden, Netherlands. The logistics center Europe is located in Dortmund, Germany and Asian Logistic center is located in Singapore.
An organisational function is a specific department that the business
must perform in as efficiently as it can to enable the business to
make money. There are several different sections to these fundamental
functions: production, marketing, sales, accounting and finance, and
few others. The managing directors of Ikea have a specific job;
controlling how to perform these functions. It is vital that these
separate functions of Ikea all perform well to enable the business to
succeed. Each function of the business interlinks with the mission
statement and the businesses objectives. Depending on the business
structure you can follow the path of the different functions (see
appendix 2). Each function has its own co-workers that report back to
the managing director of that function. Ikea must find the optimum
balance of between Production, Marketing, Sales, human resources,
administration, research and development and finance to maintain its
accomplishment.
Ikea have several smaller internal functions that also are carried out
through the whole of Ikea worldwide. These interior functions consist
of: Bathrooms, Beds, Checkouts, Children, Cooking, Eating, Kitchen,
Lighting, Living Rooms, Showrooms and Wall Units (shelving). Ikea
insist on sticking to this easily followed structure. Ikea's huge
success can be put down high level of fundamental control.
Preservation, worldwide, of stability of the IKEA brand name and its
image is all-important if they want to continue their market
domination! Working the way IEKA does it frequently causes
apprehension between the other UK stores and the head office in
Sweden. Local stores want to follow local market trends. Because
trends affect their stores aswell, however it often causes problems;
as other businesses would prefer to stamp their mark on the industry
as opposed to follow the crowd. E.G. Store design and effective
development both run directly from Sweden. IKEA has currently
performed remarkably well, it has set the standards for its
competitors to meet, there are very few that can offer the same
quality and assurance. It would take major changes in the business
environment to nock IKEA of the top! Such as new exceptional rivalry
or even an extensive depression.
E5
Leadership Styles
Autocratic. An autocratic management style is one where the manager
sets objectives, allocates staff with tasks, and strongly encourages
obedience. Therefore the group become dependant on him or her. The
result of this style is that the co-workers often become unsatisfied
and frustrated with the management. This ultimately results in lack of
cohesion, high supervision and a distinct lack of motivation amongst
employees in the work place. This does not sound like a management
style that a business like Ikea would use. Ikea rely on their
co-workers to be able to do their jobs to their potential, if they're
discontented and lack motivation then I'm sure that they will be
unable to do so.
Democratic. A democratic management style encourages the staff to
participate in decision making on behalf of the business. Often
managers may consult employees or could ask them their views on the
final decision. After being asked to input their opinions or
suggestions the employee may feel like he she has a greater value or
importance to the business, therefore they are more likely to put more
effort into their work. It is argued that through allowing employees
to participate and consult their managers the co-workers fell that
they have helped achieve objectives with his or hers input. This
eventually results in the co-workers feeling more motivated and a
willingness to work harder. Democratic managerial styles depend
heavily on strong communication between each level of management. The
managers must be able to clearly explain ideas and understand
co-worker feedback. This does sound like the approach that Ikea would
take towards its management style because of the more laid-back
environment and the efficient communication techniques.
Laissez-Faire. A laissez-faire type of leadership allows employees to
carry out activities freely within broad limits. This results in a
relaxed atmosphere in the workplace, but one where there are few
guidelines and directions. This sometimes results in poor productivity
and lack of motivation as the employees feel they have little
incentive to work harder.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Consultative. A consultative style is similar to a democratic approach
but instead of allowing the group to make the decision, managers do it
themselves. This approach to management can create high levels of
motivation with efficient quality output and results.
Paternalistic. A paternalistic management style involves the manager
being very strong in his/ her own ideas and views on what's best for
the business. He/ she believes that it's important to ask the
employees for input and suggestions on what to do in order for them to
gain responsibility and feel like they're needed by the business, this
can result in a higher work rate. However he/ she ultimately always
makes their own decision, as he/ she feels that they know better than
the rest of the employees. This style of management offers a great
deal of direction to the work force, and shows a great deal of care
and consideration for the co-workers. This also sounds like a
managerial style that Ikea may adopt because of the decision-making
and the co-worker welfare consideration.
In conclusion to Ikeas management style I do not think that Ikea have
a certain, set style. I think that they have done is taken important
characteristics from the above styles of management and developed
their own "supreme!" management style. However they have been unable
to completely free themselves from the worse characteristics. For
example giving the employees false hope, by asking their opinions on
the business when it is not even taken into consideration. Despite
this they are still performing considerably well.
A lot of the management styles bond with cultural styles; the way the
business thinks that it should act. Various aspects affect what kind
of culture the business follows, such as; the size of the business,
the objectives of the business, the management style and also what
industry the business is in. The different types of culture are:
Types of culture. Structure
· Role culture Formal hierarchy
· Task culture Matrix
· Power culture Web
· Person culture Cluster
Role culture is best suited for a hierarchy-structured business. In
this kind of working environment employees tasks are clearly stated,
so are their responsibilities. There is a clear chain of command.
Task culture is best suited for the matrix-structured business. This
is job or project orientated. All levels of management communicate
with one another. Other employees have flexibility weather they want
to work by themselves or in a group.
Power culture is best suited to entrepreneurial or a web-structured
business. Often found on small businesses, or property and finance
trading. A strong central figure typically the founder or chairman
usually dominates these businesses.
Person culture this is an unusual structure. It has minimal structure
and can best be describes as lots of individual stars all contributing
to the main task in hand. It thrives where there is no organisational
structure, little rules and lots of communication.
From the above cultures stated I am quite sure that Ikea are applying
a role culture to their business. I can tell this by looking closely
at Ikeas management style and comparing this to the different cultures
and seeing if they meet together. Even though there is a very strong
sense of role culture in Ikea there is also a faint element of power
culture, this is mainly due to Ingvar being a very strong influential
backbone in the business.
C2.
The organisational structure affects Ikea's performance by increasing
the main sense of control flowing from Sweden and The Netherlands. In
general this means that Ingvar Kamprad is clearly stating what he
wants to be done and how he wants it to be executed. This attitude to
how Ingvar wants work to be done backs up my views on the businesses
semi paternalistic management style. And also backs up my thoughts on
their role culture, which fits in with their hierarchy structured
business format.
The affects that an organisations structure have on the business are
minimal compared to the extent of the businesses scale worldwide.
Although, if you break each individual store down and analyse it
closely then you would be able to see the affects of the businesses
structure because it is obviously easier to evaluate a smaller
business. If we look at Ikea globally then clearly it has to be a very
well structured business. (A well-oiled machine if you please!) But if
we take a closer look at each of the stores there is a much flatter
structure to the business. Bearing in mind that this is still not a
"flat" structure, just more condensed levels than the more advanced
global structure. This flatter formation means that the co-workers can
all contribute more to other jobs that may not necessarily be in their
job specifications.
The groups of companies that form IKEA are all controlled by INGKA Holding B.V., a Dutch corporation, which in turn is controlled by a tax-exempt, not-for-profit Dutch foundation.[5] The intellectual property of IKEA is controlled by a series of obscure corporations that can be traced to the Netherlands Antilles[6] and to the Interogo Foundation in Liechtenstein.[7]
INGKA Holding B.V. owns the industrial group Swedwood, which sources the manufacturing of IKEA furniture, the sales companies that run IKEA stores, as well as purchasing and supply functions, and IKEA of Sweden, which is responsible for the design and development of products in the IKEA range. INGKA Holding B.V. is wholly owned by Stichting INGKA Foundation, which is a non-profit foundation registered in Leiden, Netherlands. The logistics center Europe is located in Dortmund, Germany and Asian Logistic center is located in Singapore.
An organisational function is a specific department that the business
must perform in as efficiently as it can to enable the business to
make money. There are several different sections to these fundamental
functions: production, marketing, sales, accounting and finance, and
few others. The managing directors of Ikea have a specific job;
controlling how to perform these functions. It is vital that these
separate functions of Ikea all perform well to enable the business to
succeed. Each function of the business interlinks with the mission
statement and the businesses objectives. Depending on the business
structure you can follow the path of the different functions (see
appendix 2). Each function has its own co-workers that report back to
the managing director of that function. Ikea must find the optimum
balance of between Production, Marketing, Sales, human resources,
administration, research and development and finance to maintain its
accomplishment.
Ikea have several smaller internal functions that also are carried out
through the whole of Ikea worldwide. These interior functions consist
of: Bathrooms, Beds, Checkouts, Children, Cooking, Eating, Kitchen,
Lighting, Living Rooms, Showrooms and Wall Units (shelving). Ikea
insist on sticking to this easily followed structure. Ikea's huge
success can be put down high level of fundamental control.
Preservation, worldwide, of stability of the IKEA brand name and its
image is all-important if they want to continue their market
domination! Working the way IEKA does it frequently causes
apprehension between the other UK stores and the head office in
Sweden. Local stores want to follow local market trends. Because
trends affect their stores aswell, however it often causes problems;
as other businesses would prefer to stamp their mark on the industry
as opposed to follow the crowd. E.G. Store design and effective
development both run directly from Sweden. IKEA has currently
performed remarkably well, it has set the standards for its
competitors to meet, there are very few that can offer the same
quality and assurance. It would take major changes in the business
environment to nock IKEA of the top! Such as new exceptional rivalry
or even an extensive depression.
E5
Leadership Styles
Autocratic. An autocratic management style is one where the manager
sets objectives, allocates staff with tasks, and strongly encourages
obedience. Therefore the group become dependant on him or her. The
result of this style is that the co-workers often become unsatisfied
and frustrated with the management. This ultimately results in lack of
cohesion, high supervision and a distinct lack of motivation amongst
employees in the work place. This does not sound like a management
style that a business like Ikea would use. Ikea rely on their
co-workers to be able to do their jobs to their potential, if they're
discontented and lack motivation then I'm sure that they will be
unable to do so.
Democratic. A democratic management style encourages the staff to
participate in decision making on behalf of the business. Often
managers may consult employees or could ask them their views on the
final decision. After being asked to input their opinions or
suggestions the employee may feel like he she has a greater value or
importance to the business, therefore they are more likely to put more
effort into their work. It is argued that through allowing employees
to participate and consult their managers the co-workers fell that
they have helped achieve objectives with his or hers input. This
eventually results in the co-workers feeling more motivated and a
willingness to work harder. Democratic managerial styles depend
heavily on strong communication between each level of management. The
managers must be able to clearly explain ideas and understand
co-worker feedback. This does sound like the approach that Ikea would
take towards its management style because of the more laid-back
environment and the efficient communication techniques.
Laissez-Faire. A laissez-faire type of leadership allows employees to
carry out activities freely within broad limits. This results in a
relaxed atmosphere in the workplace, but one where there are few
guidelines and directions. This sometimes results in poor productivity
and lack of motivation as the employees feel they have little
incentive to work harder.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Consultative. A consultative style is similar to a democratic approach
but instead of allowing the group to make the decision, managers do it
themselves. This approach to management can create high levels of
motivation with efficient quality output and results.
Paternalistic. A paternalistic management style involves the manager
being very strong in his/ her own ideas and views on what's best for
the business. He/ she believes that it's important to ask the
employees for input and suggestions on what to do in order for them to
gain responsibility and feel like they're needed by the business, this
can result in a higher work rate. However he/ she ultimately always
makes their own decision, as he/ she feels that they know better than
the rest of the employees. This style of management offers a great
deal of direction to the work force, and shows a great deal of care
and consideration for the co-workers. This also sounds like a
managerial style that Ikea may adopt because of the decision-making
and the co-worker welfare consideration.
In conclusion to Ikeas management style I do not think that Ikea have
a certain, set style. I think that they have done is taken important
characteristics from the above styles of management and developed
their own "supreme!" management style. However they have been unable
to completely free themselves from the worse characteristics. For
example giving the employees false hope, by asking their opinions on
the business when it is not even taken into consideration. Despite
this they are still performing considerably well.
A lot of the management styles bond with cultural styles; the way the
business thinks that it should act. Various aspects affect what kind
of culture the business follows, such as; the size of the business,
the objectives of the business, the management style and also what
industry the business is in. The different types of culture are:
Types of culture. Structure
· Role culture Formal hierarchy
· Task culture Matrix
· Power culture Web
· Person culture Cluster
Role culture is best suited for a hierarchy-structured business. In
this kind of working environment employees tasks are clearly stated,
so are their responsibilities. There is a clear chain of command.
Task culture is best suited for the matrix-structured business. This
is job or project orientated. All levels of management communicate
with one another. Other employees have flexibility weather they want
to work by themselves or in a group.
Power culture is best suited to entrepreneurial or a web-structured
business. Often found on small businesses, or property and finance
trading. A strong central figure typically the founder or chairman
usually dominates these businesses.
Person culture this is an unusual structure. It has minimal structure
and can best be describes as lots of individual stars all contributing
to the main task in hand. It thrives where there is no organisational
structure, little rules and lots of communication.
From the above cultures stated I am quite sure that Ikea are applying
a role culture to their business. I can tell this by looking closely
at Ikeas management style and comparing this to the different cultures
and seeing if they meet together. Even though there is a very strong
sense of role culture in Ikea there is also a faint element of power
culture, this is mainly due to Ingvar being a very strong influential
backbone in the business.
C2.
The organisational structure affects Ikea's performance by increasing
the main sense of control flowing from Sweden and The Netherlands. In
general this means that Ingvar Kamprad is clearly stating what he
wants to be done and how he wants it to be executed. This attitude to
how Ingvar wants work to be done backs up my views on the businesses
semi paternalistic management style. And also backs up my thoughts on
their role culture, which fits in with their hierarchy structured
business format.
The affects that an organisations structure have on the business are
minimal compared to the extent of the businesses scale worldwide.
Although, if you break each individual store down and analyse it
closely then you would be able to see the affects of the businesses
structure because it is obviously easier to evaluate a smaller
business. If we look at Ikea globally then clearly it has to be a very
well structured business. (A well-oiled machine if you please!) But if
we take a closer look at each of the stores there is a much flatter
structure to the business. Bearing in mind that this is still not a
"flat" structure, just more condensed levels than the more advanced
global structure. This flatter formation means that the co-workers can
all contribute more to other jobs that may not necessarily be in their
job specifications.