Management: An Overview

Management is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives
using available resources efficiently and effectively. Since organizations can be viewed as
systems, management can also be defined as human action, including design, to facilitate the
production of useful outcomes from a system. This view opens the opportunity to manage
oneself, a pre-requisite to attempting to manage others.

Definition of Management: The Management Process

Management functions include: Planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and
controlling an organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose
of accomplishing a goal.
There are several different resource types within management. Resourcing encompasses the
deployment and manipulation of:
 Human resources
 Financial resources
 Technological resources
 Natural resources
Characteristics of Management
It is safe to say that an effective manager is a key ingredient for business success. A manager’s
job is to ensure good management in an organisation. This is achieved by learning the ins and
outs of management. Thus gain deeper insights into management we need to learn about the
basic characteristics of management.
Goal-oriented process

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An essential aspect of management is to combine individual efforts and direct them towards
achieving organisational goals. These goals differ from organisation to organisation. For
example, an organisation can have a profit motive whereas a social work organisation might
have a goal of eradicating illiteracy among children. Management recognises these goals and
aims to fulfil them.
Pervasive
Management is a requirement and essential for the functioning of all kinds of organisations-
social, economic or political. Without management, the processes of an organisation would be
chaotic and unordered. Further, it is equally essential for organisations across all countries.
However, the only difference lies in the how management is implemented within an
organisation.

Multidimensional
Management has three dimensions:
Work management: Every organisation exists for completion of some work. This work varies
from producing clothes in clothing sector to treating patients in hospitals. Management looks at
this work as goals to be achieved and works towards these goals. Further, this is done in terms of
problems to be solved, decisions to be made, plans to be established, budgets to be prepared,
responsibilities to be assigned and authority to be delegated.
Management of people: Another dimension of management is concerned with getting work done
from people, by assigning work to worthy employees who can work effectively towards the
realisation of organisational goals. This is achieved by ensuring that the strength is highlighted
and the weakness is driven out of the equation. It further has two dimensions- a) dealing with
people as individuals with diverse needs and behaviours and b) dealing with individuals
perceiving them as a part of a wider group of people.
Management of operations: As every organisation aims at the completion of work, they also have
a particular product or service to provide with respect to their domain of operation. Note that this
is met with the help of a production process. Management also looks after a production process
of an organisation that transforms the input with the help of technology required into the output
for consumption. Interestingly, this is linked to both management of work and people.
Continuous Process
We now know that there are various functions of management. These are- planning, organising,
directing, staffing and controlling. As a matter of fact, a manager performs all these functions
simultaneously. Although these functions are separate, management is concerned with
performing all of them simultaneously all the time. Consequently, management is a dynamic and
continuous process.
Group Activity

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An organisation consists of a large number of individuals having different reasons and purposes
to join. Again these individual differ based on their needs and behaviours. However, it is
important to realise that these diverse individuals work together towards the achievement of the
organisational goals. Management diverts the individual efforts towards the right direction.
Further, effective management enables all the individuals to grow and develop as their needs and
opportunities change.
Dynamic Function
An organisation has to adapt to the environment in order to succeed. Thus management is
dynamic in nature and adapts to the ever-changing social, economic and political conditions. A
famous example of this is how McDonald’s had to change its menu to serve and emerge as a
major fast food giant in the Indian market.

Intangible Force
Management cannot be touched or it isn’t tangible. However effective management can be easily
felt. Evidently, if there is order instead of chaos within an organisation, the employees are happy
and the organisational goals are being organised it can be easily said that there exists good
management.
Management Levels: An Overview
Most organizations have three management levels:
Low-level managers;
Middle-level managers; and
Top-level managers.
These managers are classified in a hierarchy of authority, and perform different tasks. In many
organizations, the number of managers in every level resembles a pyramid.
Below, you’ll find the specifications of each level’s different responsibilities and their likely job
titles.
Top-level managers
The board of directors, president, vice-president, and CEO are all examples of top-level
managers.
These managers are responsible for controlling and overseeing the entire organization. They
develop goals, strategic plans, company policies, and make decisions on the direction of the
business.
In addition, top-level managers play a significant role in the mobilization of outside resources.
Top-level managers are accountable to the shareholders and general public.

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Middle-level managers
General managers, branch managers, and department managers are all examples of middle-level
managers. They are accountable to the top management for their department’s function.
Middle-level managers devote more time to organizational and directional functions than top-
level managers. Their roles can be emphasized as:
Executing organizational plans in conformance with the company’s policies and the objectives of
the top management;
Defining and discussing information and policies from top management to lower management;
and most importantly
Inspiring and providing guidance to low-level managers towards better performance.
Some of their functions are as follows:
Designing and implementing effective group and intergroup work and information systems;
Defining and monitoring group-level performance indicators;
Diagnosing and resolving problems within and among work groups;
Designing and implementing reward systems supporting cooperative behavior.
Low-level managers
Supervisors, section leads, and foremen are examples of low-level management titles. These
managers focus on controlling and directing.

Low-level managers usually have the responsibility of:

Assigning employees tasks;
Guiding and supervising employees on day-to-day activities;
Ensuring the quality and quantity of production;
Making recommendations and suggestions; and
Upchanneling employee problems.
Also referred to as first-level managers, low-level managers are role models for employees.
These managers provide:
Basic supervision;

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Motivation;
Career planning;
Performance feedback; and
Staff supervision.

Functions of Management
Management has been described as a social process involving responsibility for economical and
effective planning & regulation of operation of an enterprise in the fulfillment of given purposes.
It is a dynamic process consisting of various elements and activities. These activities are
different from operative functions like marketing, finance, purchase etc. Rather these activities
are common to each and every manger irrespective of his level or status.

Different experts have classified functions of management. According to George & Jerry, “There
are four fundamental functions of management i.e. planning, organizing, actuating and
controlling”. For theoretical purposes, it may be convenient to separate the function of
management but practically these functions are overlapping in nature i.e. they are highly
inseparable. Each function blends into the other & each affects the performance of others.

Functions of Management
Planning

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It is the basic function of management. It deals with chalking out a future course of action &
deciding in advance the most appropriate course of actions for achievement of pre-determined
goals. According to KOONTZ, “Planning is deciding in advance - what to do, when to do & how
to do. It bridges the gap from where we are & where we want to be”. A plan is a future course of
actions. It is an exercise in problem solving & decision making. Planning is determination of
courses of action to achieve desired goals. Thus, planning is a systematic thinking about ways &
means for accomplishment of pre-determined goals. Planning is necessary to ensure proper
utilization of human & non-human resources. It is all pervasive, it is an intellectual activity and it
also helps in avoiding confusion, uncertainties, risks, wastages etc.

Organizing
It is the process of bringing together physical, financial and human resources and developing
productive relationship amongst them for achievement of organizational goals. According to
Henry Fayol, “To organize a business is to provide it with everything useful or its functioning
i.e. raw material, tools, capital and personnel’s”. To organize a business involves determining &
providing human and non-human resources to the organizational structure. Organizing as a
process involves:

 Identification of activities.
 Classification of grouping of activities.
 Assignment of duties.
 Delegation of authority and creation of responsibility.
 Coordinating authority and responsibility relationships.
Staffing
It is the function of manning the organization structure and keeping it manned. Staffing has
assumed greater importance in the recent years due to advancement of technology, increase in
size of business, complexity of human behavior etc. The main purpose o staffing is to put right
man on right job i.e. square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. According to
Kootz & O’Donell, “Managerial function of staffing involves manning the organization structure
through proper and effective selection, appraisal & development of personnel to fill the roles
designed un the structure”. Staffing involves:
Manpower Planning (estimating man power in terms of searching, choose the person and giving
the right place).
 Recruitment, Selection & Placement.
 Training & Development.
 Remuneration.
 Performance Appraisal.
 Promotions & Transfer.

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Directing
It is that part of managerial function which actuates the organizational methods to work
efficiently for achievement of organizational purposes. It is considered life-spark of the
enterprise which sets it in motion the action of people because planning, organizing and staffing
are the mere preparations for doing the work. Direction is that inert-personnel aspect of
management which deals directly with influencing, guiding, supervising, motivating sub-ordinate
for the achievement of organizational goals. Direction has following elements:
 Supervision
 Motivation
 Leadership
 Communication
Supervision- implies overseeing the work of subordinates by their superiors. It is the act of
watching & directing work & workers.
Motivation- means inspiring, stimulating or encouraging the sub-ordinates with zeal to work.
Positive, negative, monetary, non-monetary incentives may be used for this purpose.
Leadership- may be defined as a process by which manager guides and influences the work of
subordinates in desired direction.
Communications- is the process of passing information, experience, opinion etc from one
person to another. It is a bridge of understanding.

Controlling
It implies measurement of accomplishment against the standards and correction of deviation if
any to ensure achievement of organizational goals. The purpose of controlling is to ensure that
everything occurs in conformities with the standards. An efficient system of control helps to
predict deviations before they actually occur. According to Theo Haimann, “Controlling is the
process of checking whether or not proper progress is being made towards the objectives and
goals and acting if necessary, to correct any deviation”. According to Koontz & O’Donell
“Controlling is the measurement & correction of performance activities of subordinates in order
to make sure that the enterprise objectives and plans desired to obtain them as being
accomplished”. Therefore, controlling has following steps:

 Establishment of standard performance.

 Measurement of actual performance.
 Comparison of actual performance with the standards and finding out deviation if any.
 Corrective action.
CURRENT ISSUES IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP

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Corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to strategies that companies put into action as part of
corporate governance that are designed to ensure the company’s operations are ethical and
beneficial for society.
Categories of CSR
Although corporate social responsibility is a very broad concept that is understood and
implemented differently by each firm, the underlying idea of CSR is to operate in an
economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable manner.
Generally, corporate social responsibility initiatives are categorized as follows:
 
1. Environmental responsibility
Environmental responsibility initiatives aim at reducing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions,
and the sustainable use of natural resources.
 
2. Human rights responsibility
Human rights responsibility initiatives involve providing fair labor practices (e.g., equal pay for
equal work) and fair trade practices, and disavowing child labor.
 
3. Philanthropic responsibility
Philanthropic responsibility can include things such as funding educational programs, supporting
health initiatives, donating to causes, and supporting community beautification projects.
 
4. Economic responsibility
Economic responsibility initiatives involve improving the firm’s business operation while
participating in sustainable practices – for example, using a new manufacturing process to
minimize wastage.
 
Business Benefits of CSR
In a way, corporate social responsibility can be seen as a public relations effort. However, it goes
beyond that, as corporate social responsibility can also boost a firm’s competitiveness. The
business benefits of corporate social responsibility include the following:
 
1. Stronger brand image, recognition, and reputation

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CSR adds value to firms by establishing and maintaining a good corporate reputation
and/or brand equity.
 
2. Increased customer loyalty and sales
Customers of a firm that practices CSR feel that they are helping the firm support good causes.
 
3. Operational cost savings
Investing in operational efficiencies results in operational cost savings as well as reduced
environmental impact.
 
4. Retaining key and talented employees
Employees often stay longer and are more committed to their firm knowing that they are
working for a business that practices CSR.
 
5. Easier access to funding
Many investors are more willing to support a business that practices CSR.
 
6. Reduced regulatory burden
Strong relationships with regulatory bodies can help to reduce a firm’s regulatory burden.
Challenges Posed by Emerging Trends
 There is a challenge in changing the type of business activity to engage in.
 It is also difficult to attract additional capital especially for those who want to venture in small
businesses due to the preference accorded to large enterprise owners by the loaning institutions
 Entrepreneurs also have the challenge of sustaining and maintaining their businesses
 Human resource is the one who can make best use of other resource to convert raw materials
into finished products. If no proper resource to convert raw materials into finished products. If
not properly managed, the enterprise may not be able to realize its objectives
 Marketing is also a challenge because if no proper marketing strategy is not formulated, then
the business enterprise may collapse. Marketing is the lifeline of any firm.
 Developing and entrepreneur culture is also very difficult due to difficult of many cultural
activities that inhibit entrepreneurship.

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Management of the Challenges
 One should identify a business opportunity and develop a business idea and do several
evaluation of the business idea before engaging into business
 To sustain the business avoid excessive optimism, prepare good marketing plans, make good
cash projection, keep familiar with the market and be sensitive to stress points in the business
 To attract an additional capital ensures you have a proper business plan that can enable the
lenders to lend you money.
 An entrepreneur should ensure that there are effective measures to develop, maintain and
motivate his employees in order to manage his human resource effective
 The entrepreneur should find it necessary to update the technology processes and product as
per the need of that time.
 An entrepreneur should ensure he/she consider all the factors that affect consumer
consumption before establishing which marketing strategy to use.

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