The 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