We frequently associate “management” with the organization of a company. Some people may even consider “management” to be the same as business administration. In reality, “management” systems are present throughout society, from government bodies through military forces, right down to personal home environments.
Management may be defined as any action taken by one or more persons with the intention of organizing and leading the actions of others so that an objective can be achieved that would not have been feasible through individuals acting independently.
The vast majority of recognized authorities on management believe that there are several parts to the concept of management:
Planning
Planning involves the selection of the organization’s goals and then formulating the action plan that will be necessary to achieve them. This requires a significant degree of decision-making so that the right choice can be made once all possibilities have been identified and assessed.
Organizing
The idea of “role” is fundamental to organizing managerial functions. That is, deciding which employees will do particular tasks and how they will be put to work. Team members need to be clear about their purpose when working together. This implies that every employee understands where they belong in the larger scheme of things and how their job objective contributes to the overall goal. To effectively carry out this role, all parties involved must possess the necessary tools, authority, and knowledge to do the task at hand.
Leading
Leading is the managerial function that deals with influencing employees. In order to do that, the manager has to possess interpersonal skills. Without this influential leadership, employees may feel out of touch with the importance of fulfilling the organization’s objectives. Management problems mostly arise from issues with employees. These may be employee conflicts with the manager, employees failing to work together, or individuals suffering behavioral or attitudinal problems. it is the manager’s responsibility to guide everyone out of the muck, regardless of where the issue originated. This will require skills in communication, listening, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and the ability to seamlessly adjust to the diverse range of personalities present in the workplace.
Controlling
The first part of control is monitoring. Monitoring the organization’s ongoing plans and how closely they are followed to achieve its goals is an essential part of effective management. This will require tracking employee’s activity and possibly making necessary corrections. Even the most well-laid strategies are prone to failure. Plans are only the starting point. It is humans who enact them, and humans can become easily distracted or lose motivation.
While it may sound like a manipulative procedure, control is not always the case. An employee may need official consequences and threats of termination, or it may only take a few words of encouragement or praise to keep them on track. Good management means being able to gauge the exact level of control that needs to be exerted to realign performance with objectives.
Although management is clearly far more than motivation, this encapsulates the emotional essence of the skill. We can talk all we like about the management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling, but these say little about the human aspect of managing, which is dealing with people on a day-to-day basis.
The goal of management is to interact in the most effective manner. While some people may naturally possess these skills, managers must be able to react appropriately in any given situation due to the typical workplace dynamics. The dynamics of the average workplace require that managers are able to instinctively respond correctly, whatever the situation.