POM Part 1 (1.4) PDF

taking a big project loan from private bank. MORE ON Check Your Progress 1 MANAGEMENT 1. There are mainly four functional areas of management. a. True b. False 2. Soft...

taking a big project loan from private bank. MORE ON Check Your Progress 1 MANAGEMENT 1. There are mainly four functional areas of management. a. True b. False 2. Soft skills are very specific abilities required in a job, which can be demon- strated and measured. a. True b. False 3. Problem Solving skill means to identify the problem and solving it with the balance of creative and logical efforts to make the situation normal. a. True b. False 4. In a negotiator role, manager has to decide who will get resources and how many resources they get. a. True b. False 2.5 Levels of Management Management includes all the levels of an organization or a company. Management is classified by managers at different levels, i.e. – top level, middle level and lower level managers. Here, manager is a new term and we have also used this term even before in this material, so it is now right time to study the term manager. A manager is someone who works with and through other people by coordinating their work activities in order to achieve organizational goals. It is not that managers work for their per- sonal achievement, but they help other people and achieve the goals of organiza- tion. Now, let us talk about different levels of management, which is performed by managers in the organization: 1) Top Level Managers: Titles like managing director, president, vice president, general managers of the company fall in this category of top level of management. Top level managers are responsible to bring change, by showing a long term vision and mission for the companies. They are responsible to develop asense of commitment among the employees of the organization. Top level manag- ers have to develop a positive organizational culture through values, beliefs, tradi- tion, language and action. This managers have to do continuous study of their business environment, i.e. – customer demand, competitor’s plan, economic, so- cial and political changes etc. On the basis of regular watch on internal and external environment of the busi- ness, they design policies and strategies of corporate level in the company and 19  INTRODUCTION TO they also lead, motivate and coordinate activities of the middle level managers. MANAGEMENT 2) Middle Level Managers: Titles like plant manager, project leader, regional manager, divisional manager and functional department head – like, production manager, marketing manager, fi- nance manager, human resource manager and research and development man- ager come in this middle level management category. Middle level managers plans and execute the goals, objectives and strategies of their departments consistent with top management’s goal’s and planning. To achieve departmental goals, they are also responsible for allocation of resources. They should also monitor and manage the performance of the department and manag- ers who report to them. Middle level managers implement changes and strategies generated by top managers andin addition to this, middle level managers lead, motivate and coordinate with lower level managers. 3) First line managers: This level is known as lower level managers or first level or junior level managers or shift managers or This people are also called “supervisors”. First job of first line manager is to manage the performance of entry level employ- ees. They are responsible to teach and train entry level employees about how to do their jobs. First line managers have to prepare detailed schedule and operating plans based on middle level management plans. They also lead, direct and moti- vate the activities of operating employees. Pyramid of Level of Management : All these three levels of management can also be shown in pictorial form. In tradi- tionally structured organization, levels of management is shown in a pyramid form, which is shown in figure 1.3. On the top of pyramid – top management level comes, which is always minimum in number. After top level, on second position in hierarchy, middle level management is there and at the bottom, first line managers come in the hierarchy. Normally number of employees at first line level are maxi- mum and below that non-managerial employees are shown, who are workers or floor people in any organization. 20  MORE ON MANAGEMENT Figure 1.5 Levels of Management Check Your Progress 2 1. Titles like managing director, president, vice president, general managers are used for which level of manager ? a. Top Level c. First Line Level b. Middle Level d. None of the above 2. First line managers are also known as… a. Junior Level Managers c. Senior Level Mangers b. Higher Authority d. Second Line Managers 2.6 Management as a Science, an Art and a Profession 2.6.1 Management as a Science To know whether management is a science or not, one has to study thefeatures of science and then it should be checked with management, so a conclusion can be made that management is a science or not. Science is characterized by the following features: 1. Universally acceptable principles: Synonym for universal is worldwide, it means science principles are applicable to all situations, all time and all places. Similarly management also consists of many theories, principles and models, which can be applied universally. E.g. – Principle of Unity of Direction – It means there should be one leader and one plan, so all members of the department should work for the com- mon goal, with the same plan to achieve shared objective. This principle is applicable to all organizations – business or non-business. 2. Experimentation and observation: Scientific principles are resulted from scientificinvestigation and research, it means they are based on logic. Similarly management principles are also based on scientific inquiry and 21  INTRODUCTION TO observation. They are developed on the basis of experiments and practical MANAGEMENT experience with a large number of people. E.g. – It is observed that fair remuneration to employees helps in creating an environment of job satisfaction in the organization. 3. Cause and effect relationship: Principle of science lay down cause and effectrelationship between various variables, for e.g. when metals are heated, they expand. The same is correct in management. E.g. – It is a general observation that when employees are treated and paid well, it improves their work efficiency, which increases the pro- ductivity of the organization. As against that, if employees are not treated and paid well, it would reduce efficiency and productivity. Thus, both the situations shows cause and effect relationship in management. 4. Test of Validity and Predictability: Validity of scientific principles can be tested at any time or any number of time. Likewise, future events can be tested with reasonable accuracy by using scientific principles. In the same manner, principles of management can be tested for their validity. E. g. – Principle of unity of command can be tested for its validity. In one case, a manager should get order from one boss only and in other case, he can get order from more than one boss. Thus, different principles of science – namely: 1. Universally acceptable principles; 2. Experimentation and observation; 3. Cause and effect relationship; and 4. Test of Validity and Predictability are true in case of management also.However, management ultimately deals with human being, which are always difficult to predict, so it can be concluded that management is an inexact science and not exact like science. 2.6.2 Management as an Art Art is characterized by following features: 1. Practical Knowledge: Every art requires practical knowledge, there- fore it is very important to know practical applications of theoretical principles. For example, to become a good actor, a person should have a knowledge of the art and various types of acting etc. to use them in theatre. Similarly a manager should also know how to apply various principles and theories in real situations in his capacity as a manager, instead of just relying on his educational qualifications. 2. Personal skill: All the theoretical base may be the same for each artist, each one has his own style and mode of interpretation. For example, there are several actors, but Amitabh Bachan is known for his style and 22  image, because of his personal skill. MORE ON Similarly, management as an art is also personalized. Every manager has MANAGEMENT his own way of managing the things, based on his knowledge, experience and personality. That is why some managers are highly effective and some are not. 3. Creativity: Every artist has an element of creativity. That is why they aim to produce something, that has never existed before. This requires a combi- nation of intelligence and imagination. Management is also creative in nature, since it combines human and non- human resources in a useful way to achieve desired results. 4. Perfection through practice: Every artists gets perfection through more and more practice. Similarly managers learn through an art of trial and error initially, but application of management principles over the years makes them per- fect in the job of managing. 5. Goal oriented: Every art is result oriented, as it seeks to achieve con- crete results. Management is also directed towards its predetermined goals. Managers use different resources like man, material, machin- ery, money to promote growth in the organization. So, management can be said as an art because it has features like an art – i.e. - it needs practical knowledge, demands creativity, gets perfection through practice and it’s a goal oriented. 2.6.3 Management as a Profession Now to understand whether management is a profession or not, let us check the attributes of profession: 1. Specialized knowledge: A profession must have systematic body of knowledge that can be used for the development of professionals.Every professional must make necessary efforts to get expertise in the prin- ciples and techniques. Similarly, a manager should havedevotion and involvement to acquire expertise in the field of management. 2. Formal education and training: There are many institutions and bodiesto impart formal education and training. For e.g. – ICAI, ICSI etc. but a degree of management is not mandatory by law, thoughit is always an added advantage. 3. Social obligation: Profession is a source of livelihood, but profession- als are primarily motivated by the desire to serve the society. Work of professionals are influenced by social norms and values. Similarly, a manager is not responsible to his reporting authority but also to soci- ety. Therefore he is expected to offer quality service at a reasonable price to the society. 4. Code of Conduct: Members of the association have to follow the code of conduct. Code of conduct means what is acceptable and what is not acceptable behaviour. This code of conduct is designed by the concerned 23  INTRODUCTION TO body for self-disciplined habit among its members. The people who do not MANAGEMENT follow these code of conduct are punished and their membership can be withdrawn. The All IndiaManagement Association has prescribed a code of conduct for managers but it has no right to take legal action against any manager who violets it. 5. Representative Association: For the regulation of any profession, the exist stance of a representative body is must. For e.g., The Institute of Char- tered Accountants of India establishes and administers standards of com- petence for auditors. However, AIMA does not have any legal power to regulate the activities manag- ers. Here is the list of code of conduct mentioned by AIMA: Formal education to degree level; Existence and strengthening of professional organization; Development of professional literature; Increase research activity to support the discipline; New knowledge to deal with issues of technical development After referring the write up on management as a profession, it can be said that management fulfils several essentials of profession, but management is not a complete profession, it is a developing profession because… It does not restrict the entry in management jobs; No minimum qualifications are prescribed for managers; No management association has right to grant a certificate of practice to managers; Competent education and training facilities do bot exist. Check Your Progress 3 1. Cause and effect relationship is a characteristic of management as a sci- ence. a. True b. False 2. Creativity is a feature of management is an science. a. True b. False 3. Every art requires practical knowledge, therefore it is very important to know practical applications of theoretical principles. a. True b. False 4. Management is a perfect profession. a. True b. False 2.7 Let Us Sum Up In this unit, we started with functional areas of management, they are: Human 24 Resource, Finance, Production and Marketing. They are the major areas of ac- tivities in any type organization. MORE ON It is the skill – ability to perform a particular task is required to a make any MANAGEMENT organization very successful. There are many type of skills – like, soft skill, hard skull, conceptual skill, interpersonal skill, technical skill etc. Every manager has to play different types roles in the organization. Mintzberg has identified mainly three types of role. They are interpersonal, informa- tional and decisional roles, which are sub divided in 10 sub-categories. Any organization has three types of levels – top, middle and first line. Top level management deals to create culture, bring change and design strategy. Middle level management prepares departmental plans and execute organi- zational strategy. First line or junior management does scheduling and teach- ing-training of entry level employees of the organization. Management is the combination of art, science and profession, but in case of science it is inexact science, because it deals with human beings. Manage- ment is also a profession, but it is in developing stage or in other words, it is emerging as a developing profession. 2.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Check Your Progress 1 1 – a, 2 – b, 3 –a, 4 - b Check Your Progress 2 1 – a, 2 – a Check Your Progress 3 1 – a, 2 – b, 3 – a, 4 - b 2.9 Glossary Skills : Skill is an ability to do something. Role : Role means what is expected from an individual in a job. Manager : A manager is someone who works with and through other people by coordinating their work activities in order to achieve organizational goals. 2.10 Assignment What are the different type of levels ? Differentiate the responsibility of people at different levels. 2.11 Activities 1. What do you mean skill ? Explain various type of skills. 2. How management is art, science and profession? Discuss. 2.12 Case Study Meet different people who are working in business organization and ask them what are various types of roles sperformed by them? List out such type of 10 different roles performed by them. 2.13 Further Readings 1. Principles of Management, B. S. Moshal, Galgotia Publications 2. Management Text and Cases, VSP Rao and V. Hari Krishana, Published 25