Function of Management

Management (from Old French 'menagement'- the art of conducting, directing; from Latin 'manu agere'- to lead by hand) characterises the process of leading and directing all or part of an organisation, often a business, through deployment and manipulation of resources; and in the process ensuring that stakeholders needs are satisfied.

French industrialist Henri Fayol (1967) described the functions of management as Planning, Organising, Commanding, Coordinating and Controlling. In organizations today however, management functions also include Motivating and Developing People.

Planning is the management function concerned with defining goals for future organizational performance and deciding on tasks and resources needed to be used in order to attain said goals. Planning occurs at all levels: by Senior Management- Strategic, by Operations- Tactical, by Supervisors and Team Leaders- Operational. The effectiveness is judged by relevancy and organizational objectives. A lack of planning or poor planning can hurt an organisations performance. Planning is a pervasive activity. It has universal applicability. Plans and structures give some direction and predictability to the work of the organisation, they are a form of risk management.

There are several types of planning.

Setting Objectives. An objective is a specific step enabling you to accomplish a goal. An example of an objective would be a target of 100% on time performance for all flights . Objectives must be focused on result (not an activity), consistent, specific, measurable, related to time and attainable. Setting objectives is a continuous process of research and decision making. If objectives are not set, people may set their own and may loose sight of what is to be achieved.

Strategies. Otherwise described as long term plans. For example, human resource strategy, a plan for number and type of staff to be acquired and maintained in long term.

Policies. Guidelines for management decision making. Use of discretion is allowed. For example, a maximum of eight shift changes are allowed per month, however employees pursuing tertiary education are allowed additional changes.

Procedures. A chronological sequence of actions required to perform a task. This results in efficiency, routine and standardization. For example, employees are required to submit an official letter from the learning institution to their manager, in order for shift changes in excess of eight to be approved.

Rules. Specific, definite action that must be taken in a situation. Use of discretion is not allowed. For example, Customer Service Agents are not to use or have on their person cellular phones, at anytime while on duty.

Programmes. Coordinated groups/series of plans to achieve particular objectives. An example would be document training for all frontline staff.

Budgets. A plan for carrying out certain activities, with specified resources, within a given period of time, in order to achieve certain targets.

Organisation is the management function that follows planning; after setting objectives, analyzing activities, decisions, relations needed and work classified. Organisation is the work to be done to fulfill the plans. It involves the assignment of tasks, the grouping of tasks into departments and that authority and allocation of resources across the organisation. Work scheduling and allocation is also a part of organisation- what is to be done and by whom. This must be done so that idle time is reduced. For example, as flight schedules change, the shift times of employees change to suit. This is done to maximize manpower and to reduce idle time.

Planning and Organisation ensures that subunits know what they need to achieve and when; work flows from one process to another; required resources are available where and when needed; work is not duplicated, resulting in waste of effort; all of the above are achieved in such a way that products/services of required quality are available to customers at right place, time and price.

Commanding or Directing is maintaining activity among personnel. It involves instructing and motivating subordinates to carry out tasks so that jobs are completed.

Communicating is neither a separate nor a periodic task. It is a two way relationship. Within the organisation communication may take place Downward- to subordinates, Upward- to management, Lateral/Horizontal- at the same organizational level. Employees are communicated with frequently and given clear guidelines on the results expected. Managers provide team members with the information needed to do a good job. Communication processes, the message, the means of communication, the frequency, the rationale and the selection of communicators must be tailored to each purpose and constituency. Feedback is used