Functions of Management

The Functions of Management

There may be many ways for an organization to become successful but the key to success is not the system of the firm but the character and skills of the individual manager (Maister, 2002). Maister further stated that the character and skill of individual managers who "practice what they preach" and recognize the manager's role in training employees are what's really significant. Management is necessary for a business to function, yet when exploring the role of the manager, it becomes rather complex. Managers must be resourceful; they are individuals who wear many hats. The job of every manager involves what is known as the functions of management. Richard Daft definition of management is "the attainment of organizational goals in an effective and efficient manner through the employment of the four management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling organizational resources" (2005). Daft adds that these functions are goal-directed, interrelated and interdependent.

The first of these functions, planning, involves creating a systematic process for achieving the goals of the firm. It prepares the organization for the future. Planning can take many forms and a variety of methods may be employed. Creativity and communication becomes very important in the function of planning. For example, during my employment with a tax service, in planning a marketing campaign several people had to be contacted. Communication was initiated in different forms such as e-mail, telephone, written memorandums and creative jingles. Today managers make use of planning through software and technological items such as blackberries in order to be well prepared during the planning process.

Planning can also be seen as a way of control. There are some similarities in the two functions. When you began to look at future planning some activities associated with control helps with providing information on an organizations performance. A lack of planning can hurt an organization's performance which can result in the failure of an organization (Daft, 2005).

Keeping an eye on whether the goals of a company are being met can assist in future planning which could determine success or failure of that company. "For example , clothing retailer Merry-Go-Round, a once-ubiquitous presence in malls across America, slid into bankruptcy and ultimately disappeared as a result of poor planning", (Daft, 2005).

The management function that follows planning is organizing. Organizing reveals how an organization handles the planning stage. This part of management involves several jobs to be carried out, such as assigning task and distributing resources to departments within the organization. Organizing will depend upon what needs to be done at any given moment and people may be given particular jobs as a part of the organization function (Phillips, 2002). Delegation is seen as part of this process because management is often important in terms of team building. This becomes a critical function in the designing of teams and making sure that the teams work well together (Mealiea & Baltazar, 2005).

Organizing relates to planning because it gives out the responsibility to accomplish the plan. When management fails the planning function of an organization, a collapse in the company can be forthcoming. Organizing also lay out the agenda for which leading and control takes place. Global One joint venture formed by Deutsche Telekom, Sprint, and France Telecom in 1996 is an example of failed organizing, planning, leadership, and control. The joint venture's three-year history was filled with disagreements about many issues, including who would manage Global One's different divisions, who were its target customers, and where its headquarters should be located (Hitt, Ireland, and Hoskisson, 2003). In this case the actual performance did not match the joint venture plan. And corrective actions were taken and now Global One is run by France Telecom.

Looking at the first two functions we see that top management spends most of their time on planning and organizing. They determine the mission and set the goals for the organization. Creativity input and communication are often part of the process as planning is put in motion and people, data and effects of the business are organized for completion. All of which is related to the company as well as management functions. In essence, the planning and organizing involved will state what is necessary and perhaps what is the best way to manage an organization.

Leading involves the guiding, directing, and overseeing of employees to achieve organizational goals. Since leadership permeates all activities, the leader role is among most important of all roles at all levels of management (Mintzbert, 1973). Some managers and supervisors are better leaders than others. Ideally, in respect to motivation, a manager will adopt a transformational leadership style. Manning (2003) explains that transformational leadership is a style that is equated with a leader's pattern of interactions that actually serves to make the group move powerful, developed and satisfied. Such leaders nurture their followers. Sometimes there is an inspirational or charismatic element to it (Manning, 2003). Stephen Covey's take on leadership supports a style that goes to camaraderie. This theorist's method is reportedly as follows: "Convey talks of a "servant leader," one who draws strength from those who surround him even as he or she leads. The servant leader, says Convey, asks, "How is it going? What are you learning? What are your goals? And how can I help you?" He or she exercises empathetic listening - within the other's frame of reference - as opposed to attentive, selective or pretend listening" (Everyone's 2000, p.33). Clearly, this is a creative process and good leaders and managers will become a guiding force to motivate subordinates.

Motivation is a rather unique function of management that is generally aligned with leadership. In looking at motivation as an entity it becomes clear that managers who are inspirational will make the best leaders and create motivated employees. This idea is also aligned with public enterprises and in the field of education too. In an interview with a retired teacher of 50 years, J. P. Fields (personal communication, September 28, 2006), of the New Orleans Public Schools, says, "Many teachers and parents want to know what will motivate their children". Motivation is something rarely taught in academia, but it is a very important aspect of leadership and management.

Controlling is the final function of management to be discussed.