INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT

 

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INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT

Management is the art and science of getting work done through people. It is the process of giving direction and controlling the various activities of the people to achieve the objectives of an organization.

Management is a process of planning, decision-making, organizing, leading, motivating, and controlling the human resources, financial, physical, and information resources of an organization to reach its goals efficiently and effectively. Management is the process of getting things done through others with the help of some basic activities like planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, and controlling to achieve the desired goals and objectives. It is the basis for every organization. An organization cannot run for a long time if it's all devices are not suitably managed.

Three functions—analyzing problems, making decisions, and communicating—are called “general” or “continuous” functions because they occur throughout the management process rather than in any particular sequence. In other words, management is the act of harmonizing the 5Ms men, money, materials, machines, and methods towards the achievement of desired goals and objectives.

Some of the common definitions of management given by famous writers and thinkers are:

• According to Harold Koontz and Heinz Weihrich, Management is the process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in groups, efficiently accomplish selected aims.
• According to Robert L. Trewelly and M. Gene Newport, Management is defined as the process of planning, organizing, actuating, and controlling an organization’s operations in order to achieve coordination of the human and material resources essential in the effective and efficient attainment of objectives.
• According to Kreitner, “Management is the process of working with and through others to effectively achieve organizational objectives by efficiently using limited resources in the changing environment.
• According to George R Terry, Management consists of planning, organizing, actuating, and controlling, performed to determine and accomplish the objectives by the use of people and resources.

        So, Management can be defined as a process of getting things done with the aim of achieving goals effectively and efficiently.

  Some important terms in this definition are:

1.     Process: Process means the primary functions or activities that management performs to get things done. These functions are planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling.

2.     Effectiveness: Effectiveness is concerned with the end result. It basically means finishing the given task. Thus Effectiveness in management is concerned with doing the right task, completing activities, and achieving goals

3.     Efficient: Efficiency means doing the task correctly and with minimum cost. Management is concerned with the efficient use of input resources which ultimately reduces costs and lead to higher profits.

it is important for management to achieve goals (effectiveness) with minimum resources i.e., as efficiently as possible while maintaining a balance between effectiveness and efficiency.

Characteristics of Management

The basic characteristics of management are:

1.     Management is a goal-oriented process: An organization has a set of basic goals which are the basic reason for its existence. Management unites the efforts of different individuals in the organization toward achieving these goals.

2.     Management is all pervasive: The activities involved in managing an enterprise are common to all organizations whether economic, social, or political.

3.     Management is multidimensional: Management is a complex activity that has three main dimensions:

1.     Management of work: All organizations exist for the performance of some work. Management translates this work in terms of goals to be achieved and assigns the means to achieve them.

2.     Management of people: Human resources or people are an organization’s greatest asset. Managing people has two dimensions:

1.     it implies dealing with employees as individuals with diverse needs and behavior;

2.     it also means dealing with individuals as a group of people

The task of management is to make people work towards achieving the organization’s goals, by making their strengths effective and their weaknesses irrelevant.

3.     Management of operations: It requires a production process that entails the flow of input material and the technology for transforming this input into the desired output for consumption

4.     Management of operations: It requires a production process that entails the flow of input material and the technology for transforming this input into the desired output for consumption

5.     Management is a continuous process: The process of management is a series of continuous, composite, but separate functions (planning, organizing, directing, staffing and controlling). These functions are simultaneously performed by all managers all the time.

6.     Management is a group activity: An organization is a collection of diverse individuals with different needs. Management should enable all its members to grow and develop as needs and opportunities change

7.     Management is a dynamic function: Management is a dynamic function and has to adapt itself to the changing environment. In order to be successful, an organization must change itself and its goals according to the needs of the environment.

8.     Management is an intangible force: Management is an intangible force that cannot be seen but its presence can be felt in the way the organization functions

 

What are the FIVE FUNCTIONS of management?

Management is a discipline that consists of a set of five general functions: planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling.

 

What is the best concept of management?

Management is the coordination and administration of tasks to achieve a goal. Such administration activities include setting the organization's strategy and coordinating the efforts of staff to accomplish these objectives through the application of available resources.

What is management?

Management is the coordination and administration of tasks to achieve a goal. Such administration activities include setting the organization’s strategy and coordinating the efforts of staff to accomplish these objectives through the application of available resources. Management can also refer to the seniority structure of staff members within an organization.

 Basic operations of a manager

1. Setting objectives

Setting and achieving objectives is the primary way a manager accomplishes and maintains success. They must also be able to convey them to their staff or employees in a compelling manner. For instance, a restaurant manager could state they want to improve service times and remind employees that faster service increases revenue and tips.

2. Organizing

Managers evaluate the type of work, divide it into achievable tasks and effectively delegate it to staff. Organization consists of a series of relationships among individual staff as well as departments or entities inside the organization. It is the manager’s responsibility to ensure that these individuals and entities work together in harmony, which includes motivating staff members and departments to stay on task. A good manager is skilled at building interpersonal relationships among their team members and can troubleshoot when members confuse their encounter challenges.

Organization also requires a manager to establish relationships of authority among their team members. Maximizing organizational arrangements can help businesses enhance the company’s efficiency in the market, reduce the costs of business and improve productivity.

3. Motivating the team

In addition to the tasks of organization and delegation, motivation includes having the skills to handle different types of personalities in a team. An effective manager must know how to form and lead successful teams and know how to galvanize team members around a cause.

4. Devising systems of measurement

Managers need to set targets or key performance indicators that the team aims for and then generate ways to measure whether their team is on track to meet those goals. Because it can be challenging to come up with measurable ways of understanding performance, managers must often be creative and thoughtful. However, like the other functions of management, measurement is critical to improving business performance.

5. Developing people

In addition to leading their team toward a goal and measuring their progress along the way, good managers invest in their staff’s development. Managers can, for example, work with their team to help them set goals to move up in their careers.

Managers must have leadership skills to use these five operations successfully. They are responsible for coaching their team members by helping them recognize their strengths and weaknesses and improve their performance. Different managers may have different styles of leadership. Regardless of their style, managers should develop their leadership skills to be effective supervisors.

Control

Employees of an organization need to understand the goals that they are aiming for as well as the measurement that will be used to determine whether they have been successful. Different staff members in a company have different roles that entail separate levels of responsibility. A manager must have control over what the members do, how they do it, and how to measure their progress. Control over these factors helps a manager reach success.

Planning

The best managers know that planning is critical before the implementation of any strategy, but it is also an ongoing activity. Planning does not end when implementation begins. Rather, management needs to be prepared to answer the questions of who, what, when and where a team is working to implement the organization’s mission. Planning should include selecting objectives as well as implementing them.

Staffing

Staffing is an underappreciated but crucial function of management. Managers need to ensure that they have the right people for the job, but they also need to pay attention to issues like organizing workplace policies. The company needs to retain the best talent by providing incentives such as benefits, paid time off and a thorough training program.