Holistic Approach to Line Management to Help with the Challenges Faced by SMS Organizations

Critical Analysis of SMS Management
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Introduction
The traditional view of line management is that it is a process of controlling and coordinating work activities to achieve organizational goals. This view fails to consider that line managers also have a crucial role in developing and motivating employees. Les is facing several challenges in her job as a line manager. These include the need to ensure her team members are kept up-to-date with the latest knowledge and skills, the need to motivate her team members, and the need to get the three teams working together more effectively. Therefore, this assignment intends to identify a holistic approach to line management that offers solutions to the management challenges faced by SMS organizations. In addition, this work reflects on the lesson by comparing the initial thought on line management and personal view after undertaking the module.
Challenges that Les Faces
As a line manager, Les faces various issues and challenges while working at SMS organization. Concerning retaining staff, the firm has a high staff turnover, particularly in the Social Media Team. Employees are leaving the company because they are not getting better pay and are working under poor conditions. Concerning the latter, staff members are feeling overworked. Thus, they develop stress, leading them to be absent from work. Most employees in the social team are under the age of 30, representing generation Y. According to Hassan et al. (2019), generation Y has a high tendency to leave their current jobs.
The authors further suggest that within the following year after acquiring a job in an organization, one out of four employees of this generation is likely to leave their current job to engage in something different from their jobs or a new organization. Hassan et al. (2019) add that two out of three employees belonging to generation Y wish to leave the company they are working in for different jobs, while about 16% would like to remain with their current employers for a decade and beyond. At SMS company, high employee turnover is due to poor pay and the inability of employees to secure prestigious clients. Failure of the firm's leaders to fulfill the demands of generation Y leads to the latter seeking better opportunities elsewhere. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, individuals have specific requirements to be met to get motivated and satisfied in their work (Stewart et al., 2018). If workers fail to meet their needs, they will likely experience dissatisfaction, making them look for opportunities elsewhere.
Les also faces the challenge of a lack of team cohesion. All three teams are psychologically and physically separated, with little interaction and cooperation. Consequently, there has been competition and resentment among different teams, as evidenced by posters from various teams meant to ridicule each other. Based on Herzberg's two-factor theory, which attempts to demonstrate the lack of collaboration and theory between teams, some conditions influence employees' satisfaction and dissatisfaction (Alrawahi et al., 2020). For instance, recognition, achievement, and responsibility make workers feel satisfied. On the other hand, aspects like monotony, lack of challenge, and feeling of being undervalued lead to dissatisfaction. Sajid et al. (2022) also suggest that elements of trust, welcoming nature, purity, communication, similar background, and understanding lead to achieving the general objective by all teams in the organization.
There is also the challenge of ineffective performance management that Les faces. She finds it hard to understand the company values and how they relate to her role in the organization. For instance, Les can recall some of the organization's values, like integrity, innovation, and compassion, whereas Les cannot recall the other, which is excellent execution and inclusion. In addition, she cannot adequately motivate and manage her team effectively, resulting in tension and conflict. For instance, she goes against the company's value of inclusion when she decides to reward the print team less than others because they already have established life backgrounds.
Ideally, Les seems not to be on good terms with her senior, Sam. The former feels the latter is always unclear in her directions. According to McGregor's X and Y theories, there are two kinds of employees. They comprise those requiring close management and those requiring high self-motivation (Daneshfard & Rad, 2020). Les likely falls under the latter category. That is why she does not give her proper guidance on the expectation when problems occur. Les also faces the challenge of recruiting staff. Given the location of the company and the payment scales, it is not easy to attract potential employees for the social media team. For instance, the SMS firm requires the social media team to relocate to Sheffield once offered employment. Consequently, the company faces the challenge of inadequate staff, leading to increased pressure on the available team.
Vroom's expectancy theory could be used to explain Les's situation. The framework suggests that workers are motivated to the extent that they believe their effort can achieve the desired outcome (George & Humphrey, 2021). Similarly, the theory asserts that whenever employees feel they will not become successful in their roles, they lack the motivation to apply for the job.
Les also faces the challenge of inappropriate behavior from Zach in the Billboard team. The latter was responsible for public relation scandal when he commissioned a billboard opposite advertisement policies. Thus, Les is in a dilemma. H does not know how to deal with situation because it is likely to lead to a precedent for poor behavior. According to social theory learning, individuals acquire knowledge by observing other people's actions. This theory could explain Zach's inappropriate actions in the Billboard team. Therefore, by observing Zack's behavior without facing any reprimand, other employees will likely believe that his behavior is acceptable and emulate him in the future. Lastly, Les faces the challenge of her position being threatened. Nihal from the social media team seems interested in the managerial position. Therefore, Les is unsure of how to handle the matter as the former seeks her role and wants career development advice.
How Les, as the Line Manager, Could Improve the Performance of the Organization
Diversity and Inclusion First
One theory that could apply to the situation above is Social Identity Theory. This theory asserts that individuals' sense of self is based on their association with social groups (Scheepers & Ellemers, 2019). Therefore, it means that people are likely to cooperate with and be loyal to individuals in the same social group. In the case of Les and her team, the theory suggests that Les could improve the team's performance by making sure all members feel like they are part of the same social group. There are various ways in which Les, the line manager, could improve the performance of the people in her team through Diversity and Inclusion. The manager could enhance communication within the group. The strategy will ensure that everyone is aware of the company's values and that they are communicated in a way that everyone can understand. For instance, the employees don't understand the importance of inclusivity, so they are reluctant to work with each other.
Similarly, Les could make sure that all team members feel comfortable communicating with each other and that they can give and receive feedback effectively. Another way the manager could achieve diversity and inclusion is by improving teams' ability to work together (Shore et al., 2018). Thus, the manager would ensure that everyone is aware of each other's weaknesses and strengths and support each other as they work as a team. In addition, the manager could create a working environment where everyone feels valued as a team member and is part of the company's general success. For instance, all the teams across the SMS Company can appreciate that working together will improve the company's image regardless of whether they are from social media, print, or billboard teams.
As the line manager, Les could also improve employee performance through diversity and inclusion by enhancing the team's ability to deal with change (Dashper & Finkel, 2020). Thus, the manager will have to inform the employees of policies concerning change; each can access support at any time. In addition, the line manager could ensure that teams have regular discussions about changes to take place, and they can offer their feedback regarding the upgrades. For instance, before making employees work overtime, Les should seek their opinion instead of regarding them as lazy. Therefore, by taking these actions, Les, the line manager, could improve the performance of the people in her team through Diversity and Inclusion.
Absence Management
According to McGregor's theory X, employees are sluggish and must always be supervised to perform their duties effectively (Chukwusa, 2018). Theory Y states that employees are willing and able to do their work and only need to be supervised if there are problems. In the case of Les, it seems that she is operating under Theory X. This is because she constantly has to recruit for the Social Media team because of the high staff turnover. She is also very strict with the team and does not allow them time to relax or socialize.
There are various that Les, the line manager, could improve the performance of the people in her team through Absence management. Les would have to improve the way that absences are reported. Absences are only reported to Les once the team member has already been away. Therefore, she cannot effectively manage the team in their absence. It would be better to report absences as soon as possible so Les can make arrangements for cover. Thus, Les could track absence patterns and identify potential problems early on. She could also improve absence management by enhancing team members' support once they resume work.
On the contrary, there seems to be no follow-up after team members return from an absence. This means there is no way to check that they are coping well or to see if any underlying issues need to be addressed (Corbière et al., 2020). In addition, It would be better if team members were given some time to settle back in after an absence and if they were checked in regularly. Thus, Les can ensure that team members cope well and identify potential problems early on. The manager could also adopt effective communication concerning absence management so that workers can adhere to proper procedures and access the necessary support. Therefore, by taking these steps, Les could improve the performance of the people in her team through Absence management.
Decision-Making in Teams
Social exchange theory states that people make decisions based on what they believe they will get in return. In other words, people make decisions based on what they think is best for them, and they will only do something if they believe they will get something in return (Wan et al., 2021). There are various ways that Les, the line manager, could improve the performance of the people in her team through decision-making. She can encourage team members to freely share their ideas and opinions and listen to them carefully. This will help create a more open and inclusive environment where everyone feels valued and heard.
She should also ensure that all team members know the company values and use them to guide decisions. This will help ensure everyone is working towards the same goals and that decisions are made with integrity. For instance, in an SMS organization, various teams don't get along as they are unaware of the company's value of inclusivity.
In addition, the manager could urge team members to come up with creative solutions to problems and be open to new and innovative ideas. This will help create a more dynamic and responsive team that can better adapt to change. This approach could help the print team that is very conservative and less receptive to new ideas (Scholl et al., 2018). Members from various teams can take the time to get to know each other and their strengths and weaknesses. This will help you better understand how best to utilize each team member and how to support them in their development. Les could also ensure that all team members know the company's performance appraisal process and understand how it works. Therefore, the move will help ensure everyone is working towards the same goals and that appraisals are fair and objective.
Les could also encourage team members to give feedback to each other and to provide constructive criticism. This will help create a more open and supportive environment where everyone feels comfortable...