The four functions of management
Executing the goals of an organization is the main responsibility of a manager, and their tasks can be broken down into four basic functions; planning, organizing, leading and controlling. While all managers at every level of a company perform these tasks, the amount of time spent on each is dependant upon the level of management and the specifics of the organization. Top level managers, such as company presidents, vice presidents, chief executive officers, and chief operating officers are responsible for the overall management of an organization. It is also necessary for them to “…focus on long-term issues and emphasize the survival, growth, and overall effectiveness of the organization” (Bateman & Snell, 2007). Middle level managers are the bridge between upper and lower level management. They take the goals of the upper management and break into specific objectives and activities (Bateman & Snell). Finally, frontline managers, also known as operational managers, perform the day to day activities and traditionally are the link between management and their employees.
My organization was a corporately held entity that consisted of vice-presidents, area directors, general managers, and managers. I would identify upper management to include the area director and VP, while my direct superior was the general manager (middle management). In my role as the banquet and office manager I had more interaction with the day to day activities (frontline manager).
Planning
Identifying goals, and mapping out the best route to achieve the desired results encompasses the main idea of planning. Plans set an organization up for success, and can include analytics, forecasting, goal setting, strategizing, ...
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...out there are many times that glitches are found in the way it is made. Once the employee and manager observe that a product or process does not work as intended, they can send the feedback up the line. This process starts at the frontline manager and works its way up. Once the problem has been identified, recommendations for adjustments can be made, and approved by upper management.
Conclusion
The roles performed by a manager differ by the day or even by the hour. A manager needs to wear many a hat, and sometime simultaneously. Understanding and applying the principals of management allow a manager to plan, organize, lead and control. These principals make for a successful individual, and corporation.
References
Bateman, T. S., & Snell, S. A. (2007). Management: Leading and Collaborating in a Competitive World. New York: The McGraw-Hill Company, Inc.
Bateman, T.S. & Snell, S.A. (2009). Management: Leading and Collaborating in The Competitive World, New York, New York: McGraw Hill Companies. (p. 101)
Leadership and management are vital to the success of any organization. Leadership is necessary for the vision and inception while management is necessary for the operation and maintenance of the organization (Bruno, 2009). While leadership is a process involving influence to help a group of individuals to accomplish a common goal, management is more of a reaction to a need for organization, consistency, or correcting problems that is task-oriented and involves the use of authority (Ricketts, 2009). Management is sometimes a necessary component of leadership, particularly when problems arise in relationships, action must be taken to gain supporters and bring change about, or to create balance between the desires of organization members and the good of the organization (Plachy, 2009). Effective leaders realize possibilities and the need for change, motivate and inspire others, build trust, listen to others, design responsibilities to engage others’ values and abilities (Maccoby, 2000). Effective managers put systems in place to ensure smooth operation of the organization, take corrective actions, develop a hierarchy of authority, develop expectations, prepare and follow through on reshaping, and refine operations (Bruno, 2009).
Robbins, S. P., & Coulter, M. (2009). Management (10th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson
Jones, G. R., & George, J. M. (2011). Contemporary management. (7 ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Managers are responsible for setting goal and objectives for their staff .And the setting objectives managers must work with team .Managers ensure that the team objectives are met when the objective individual and specific to team .They can easily focus their target, improving and increasing customer satisfaction.
“Planning: is specifying the goals to be achieved and deciding in advance the appropriate actions needed to achieve those goals” (Bateman & Snell, 2004, p. 16).
The first function of management is planning. Planning is a process that managers use to identify and involve goal setting and decide the best way to achieve the goal.(Bartol 2007) Planning connect the gap between where we do, where we intend to go. It predict the possible things to happen which would not otherwise happen (MSG 2012). There are several steps to the planning process, which are determine the goals of the organisation, evaluate the current position, consider possible future conditions, identify possible alternative actions and choose the best. Planning is the criteria thinking through goals and making decision to achieve the goal of the organisation’s objective, which requires a systematic way. Also objectives focus the managers how to achieve the final result as managers have to predict anything will happen, avoid the problem and fight back to competitors. An example of planning, which is the President Canon Inc Tsuneji Uchida and lead Canon Company become the no.1 in the global business (Canon.Inc 2011). Tsuneji Uchida has to understand what is the company objective and goal. First, make decision to protect the position and the aim of canon, improve the operation more diversity. Second, he creates the new design of camera and new technology, he plan to do these things to maximise profit.
Bateman, T.S., & Snell, S.A. (2011).Management: Leading and collaborating in a competitive world (9thed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
...level management. The heads of the various departmental heads receive orders and instruction from the top level management or managers and pass it to the low level management. These managers supervise, direct and control the activities of foremen, inspectors and supervisors. They study and examine the received reports of actual performance from their low level managers. Middle level managers act as the middle man, they help in removing misunderstanding and create cordial relationship among the levels of management. Low level management is the line between middle level management and workers. These manages are directly involved with the workers. They are also help building image of the enterprise before workers and creating the sense of belongingness among them towards the enterprise. Managers of this level are directly related with the routine functions of the firm.
"In everyday language usage, management refers to the people in organizations who manage, and to the activities they perform." (Fulop, Frith, Hayward 1992 p. 187) To be more specific, management is the process of organizing work activities with and through people to ensure the activities are completed efficiently and effectively (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg, Coulter 2006, p. 9). Through management, the goals of the organization or business are to be achieved. Henri Fayol, one of the most influential contributors to modern concepts of management, proposed that there are five primary functions for management, which consist of planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating and controlling. Nonetheless, the functions of commanding and coordinating have metamorphosed into leading (Crainer 2003).
PRIMIS MNO 6202: Managing Organizations. 2007. The 'Secondary' of the ' Reprint of the book. McGraw-Hill Education, 2013.
An organisation is a deliberate arrangement of team consisting different personal identities to accomplish some specific goals and managers are the ones who hold the responsibility of mastering and placing them together to strive for that purpose (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg, and Coulter, 2008). Robbins et al. (2008) have stated that managers are people who coordinate and oversee the work activities of others so that the goal is accomplished effectively and efficiently. Managers usually possess qualities such as having strong communication skills, flexibility, imagination, enthusiasm, problem solving skills, and of course the desire to be a great leader (Phdinmanagement.org, 2014). The structure of management conducted by a manager is often influenced by the four functions introduced by Henri Fayol (planning, organising, leading, controlling); how Henry Mintzberg’s management roles play in the organisation and also the three essentials management skills proposed by Robert L. Katz (Robbins et al., 2008).
There are different levels of management such as top, Middle and Lower .In The Devil Wears Prada Miranda is in Middle level management. There is also General Management which refers to the overseeing and co-ordination of the business, by use of (POLC)
Planning can be used to help the organization map out a way to efficiently achieve their goals. The beginning of the planning process should include analyzing of the current situation. From this information the company can determine the goals and start to outline the steps that need to be taken to ensure that the goal will be met. Other planning activities that should be completed are determining the company’s objectives and were they want to be in the future. This will help them to choose their business objectives and strategies. In addition, the company should look at the resources that they have available and determine if they are sufficient to achieve the organizations goals.
Over recent years companies have become less dependent on paper and more dependent on technology. Take American Honda Motors for example; the Davenport Parts facility recently converted computer systems to more efficiently manage its inventory. Prior to its new system months of preparation was needed in order to ensure a smooth change over. Without the four basic functions of management all working together success would not have been possible.