Management Functions

Management Functions Management in some form or another is an integral part of living and is essential wherever human efforts are to be undertaken to achieve desired objectives. Management is a set of principles relating to the functions of planning, organizing, directing, and controlling, and the applications of these principles in harnessing physical, financial, human and informational resources efficiently and effectively to achieve organizational goals.

Management is essential for organized life and necessary to run all types of organizations. Managing life means getting things done to achieve life’s objectives and managing an organization means getting things done with and through other people to achieve its objectives.

There are basically five primary functions of management. These are:

1.Planning 2. Organizing 3.Staffing 4. Directing 5. Controlling

? Planning - Planning is the fundamental management function, which involves deciding beforehand, what is to be done, when is it to be done, how it is to be done and who is going to do it. It is an intellectual process which lays down an organisation’s objectives and develops various courses of action, by which the organisation can achieve those objectives. It chalks out exactly, how to attain a specific goal.

? Definition - According to Louis A. Allen, Management planning involves the development of forecasts, objectives, policies, programmes, procedures, schedules and budgets.

? Advantages:

? Attention on Objectives ? Minimizing Uncertainties ? Better Utilization of Resources ? Economy in Operations ? Better Co-ordination ? Encourages Innovations and Creativity ? Management by Exception Possible ? Facilitates Control ? Facilitates Delegation 2

? Disadvantages:

? Rigidity

? Misdirected Planning

? Time consuming

? Probability in planning

? False sense of security

? Expensive

? Organising - Organizing is the function of management which follows planning. It is a function in which the synchronization and combination of human, physical and financial resources take place. All the three resources are important to get results. Therefore, organizational function helps in achievement of results which in fact is important for the functioning of a concern.

? Definition - According to Theo Heimann, "Organising is the process of defining and grouping the activities of the enterprise and establishing the authority relationships among them."

? Advantage:

? Specialization

? Operational Speed

? Operational Clarity

? Disadvantage:

? Segregation

? Weakening of Common Bonds

? Lack of Coordination

? Territorial Disputes 3

? Staffing - Staffing is the process of hiring eligible candidates in the organization or company for specific positions. In management, the meaning of staffing is an operation of recruiting the employees by evaluating their skills, knowledge and then offering them specific job roles accordingly.

? Definition - According to Theo Heimann, “Staffing is concerned with the placement, growth and development of all those members of the organization whose function is to get the things done through the efforts of other individuals.”

? Advantage:

? Accommodate Employee Lifestyles

? Help When Needed -- No Overtime

? Disadvantages:

? Fewer Employee Benefits

? Low Wages

? Directing - Directing refers to a process or technique of instructing, guiding, inspiring, counselling, overseeing and leading people towards the accomplishment of organizational goals. It is a continuous managerial process that goes on throughout the life of the organization.

? Definition - According to Human, “Directing consists of process or technique by which instruction can be issued and operations can be carried out as originally planned”

? Advantages:

? Leads to Increase in Productivity

? Boosts Employee Morale

? Disadvantages:

? Takes Time Away from Performing Tasks

? Fosters a Clash of Personalities

? Controlling - Controlling consists of verifying whether everything occurs in conformities with the plans adopted, instructions issued and principles established. Controlling ensures that there is 4

effective and efficient utilization of organizational resources so as to achieve the planned goals. Controlling measures, the deviation of actual performance from the standard performance, discovers the causes of such deviations and helps in taking corrective actions.

? Definition - Control is the process of bringing about conformity of performance with planned action.” Dale Henning

? Advantages:

? Efficient Execution

? Helps Delegation

? Aid to Decentralisation

? Assists Co-ordination

? Simplifies Supervision

? Aids to Efficiency

? Boosts Morale

? Disadvantages:

? Difficulty in Setting Quantitative Standards

? No Control on External Factors

? Resistance from Employees

? Costly Affair