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1. WHAT IS MANAGEMENT?
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DEFINITION
OF MANAGEMENT
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You must be
familiar with various principles of business
management to succeed in business.
"Management is the art of getting
things done through people".
In this definition
by Mary Parker Follet:
"One category of people, known
as managers, should achieve their organizational
objectives by arranging others, known as
subordinates to carry out the necessary
tasks instead of performing those tasks themselves."
Therefore:
"The prime purpose of management
is to create a suitable environment in which
people can perform productively and coordinate
individual efforts toward achieving organizational
goals."
On the other
hand, there are Managers who don't
know how to perform their duties properly,
although they may not be aware of it. We prefer
to call them "Damagers".
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2.
WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS?
Irrespective
of a company's size, all managers are engaged in
four prime Management Functions, as outlined
below.
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FOUR
PRIME MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS
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No.
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Description
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1
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Planning.
Planning the development of specific organizational
objectives and the appropriate actions
to achieve those objectives. This enables
management to pursue its goals in a systematic
manner instead of relying on chance.
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2
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Organizing.
Organizing the company's human and material
resources into a workable structure to ensure
cost-effective organizational performance.
This entails coordinating all working
activities into an integrated operational
framework, creating functional positions,
and staffing them with suitable employees.
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3
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Leading.
Leading the company's employees toward accomplishment
of organizational objectives. This entails
directing and influencing subordinates in
performing their designated duties in the
most cost-efficient manner.
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4
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Controlling.
Controlling the performance of the company's
employees and ensuring that the organization
is progressing toward achieving its goals.
This entails establishing standards of performance,
measuring actual performance, comparing
it against established standards, and taking
action to correct any significant deviations.
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3.
WHAT OTHER IMPORTANT ROLES DO MANAGERS PLAY?
According
to Henry Mintzberg managers perform additional important
Management Roles, as outlined below. (1)
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FOUR
IMPORTANT MANAGEMENT ROLES
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No.
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Description
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1
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Leadership
Role.
Managers usually
act as figureheads on behalf of their company
and liaison between their company
and various outside organizations. Managers
also act as leaders and are constantly
involved in hiring training, training, motivating,
and disciplining subordinates.
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2
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Informational
Role.
Managers constantly
monitor information obtained from various
external sources, such as newspapers, magazines,
business reports. Managers also disseminate
essential information among employees within
their organization.
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3
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Decisional Role.
Managers constantly
make decisions related to their company
activities. Managers also face a broad range
of problems and conflict which must be
resolved to ensure successful company
performance.
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4
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Entrepreneurial
Role.
Managers are often
taking risks in undertaking new projects,
investing company funds into new ventures,
and developing new products and services.
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4.
HOW CAN MANAGERS BE CLASSIFIED?
Depending
upon the size of the organization, managers can be
classified into three Management Types, as
outlined below.
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CLASSIFICATION
OF MANAGERS
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Top Managers
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These include
company president and vice-presidents.
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Middle-Level
Managers
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These include
heads of departments.
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First-Level
Managers
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These include
supervisors and foremen.
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5. HOW DO MANAGERS ALLOCATE THEIR
TIME?
Results
of the recent research indicate that Managers
allocate their time to various activities according
to their status within the organization, as illustrated
below.
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TIME
ALLOCATION BY THREE LEVELS OF MANAGERS
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Activity
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Top
Managers
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Middle
Managers
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First-Level
Managers
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Planning
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20% - 30%
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10% - 20%
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10%
- 20%
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Organizing
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30% - 40%
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30% - 40%
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20% - 30%
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Leading
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20% - 30%
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30% - 40%
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50% - 60%
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Controlling
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10% - 20%
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10%
- 20%
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10% -
20%
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6.
WHAT ARE THE FIVE MAIN OPERATIONAL AREAS IN A COMPANY?
Most activities
within any organization may be allocated to one of
the five main Operational Areas, as outlined
below.
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FIVE
MAIN OPERATIONAL AREAS IN A COMPANY
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Area Of Operations
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Functions
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General Management
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Various
administrative aspects of running a company.
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Developing
strategic and operational plans.
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Formulating
policies and rules.
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Organizing
human and material resources into a workable
structure.
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Establishing
lines of communication.
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Leading
the company towards achieving its goals.
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Controlling
the company's performance.
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Monitoring
company's results and taking corrective
actions.
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Human Resources
Management
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Familiarity
with equal employment opportunity laws.
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Analyzing
various jobs.
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Preparing
job descriptions and job specifications.
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Planning
and forecasting employee requirements.
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Recruiting
and hiring employees.
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Screening
and testing of applicants.
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Conducting
interviews.
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Employee
orientation.
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Training
and developing employees.
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Motivation
and compensation of employees.
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Conducting
performance appraisals.
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Maintaining
career management of employees.
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Establishing
sound labor-management relations.
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Resolving
interpersonal conflicts.
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Ensuring
safety and health of employees.
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Financial
Management
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Gathering
of accounting information.
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Maintaining
a bookkeeping system.
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Collaborating
with accountants in preparing financial
statements.
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Evaluating
the company's financial performance.
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Preparing
operating, capital expenditure, and cash
budgets.
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Formulating
tax strategies.
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Identifying
suitable sources of finance.
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Maintaining
cash, credit, and expenditure control.
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Maintaining
inventory and capital assets management
and control.
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Costing
of products, services, and projects.
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Developing
pricing methods.
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Managing
computerized accounting.
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Preparing
accounting accounting reports.
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Production
And Operations Management
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Facility
design, location, and organization.
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Product selection, design, and standardization.
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Process design.
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Design office supervision.
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Equipment evaluation and selection.
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Plant layout.
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Equipment maintenance and replacement.
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Tool control.
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Cost estimating.
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Production planning and control.
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Material requirements planning and purchasing.
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Quality control.
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Inventory control, storage, and dispatch.
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Marketing
And Sales Management
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Gathering marketing information.
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Measuring and forecasting market potential.
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Formulating effective marketing strategies.
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Developing product, pricing, promotional
and distribution strategies
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Preparing marketing plans.
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Initiating the sales process.
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Preparing sales plans and budgets.
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Developing the sales organization.
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Recruiting, training, and motivating sales
staff.
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Allocating, compensating, and controlling
the sales force.
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7. WHAT IS A SMALL BUSINESS?
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CAN
YOU WEAR SEVERAL HATS?
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Your role as a manager will depend substantially
upon the size of your organization.
If you are an Owner-Manager of a small
business, you must be prepared to "wear
several hats" and perform a broad
range of managerial and non-managerial duties.
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DEFINITION
OF A SMALL BUSINESS
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Although there is no exact definition of a
"Small Business", the
Small Business Administration (SBA) defines
small business as follows:
"Small
business is any organization with under 500
employees."
According to the Internal Revenue Service
(IRS):
"99% of about
27 million businesses in United States
can be categorized as "small". These
businesses include sole proprietorships, partnerships,
and corporations.
We prefer to categorize companies of various
sizes into three categories, as illustrated
below.
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CLASSIFICATION
OF COMPANIES BASED ON SIZE
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Small
Company
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Medium-Sized
Company
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Large
Company
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Under 20 employees and annual sales under
$2 million US dollars.
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Between 20 and 100 employees and annual
sales between $2 million to $10 million
US dollars.
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Over 100 employees and annual sales over
$10 million US dollars.
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8.
HOW CAN YOU SUCCEED IN A SMALL BUSINESS?
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SECRET
BUSINESS WEAPONS
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Your success in business will depend
primarily upon your Business
Knowledge and Experience,
Will to
succeed, Patience
and Perseverance
in getting the job done, readiness for Sacrifice,
and Focus
on the final goal. However, all of this will
strongly depend upon the overall Attitude
exhibited by you, your management team, and
your employees.
Please
remember, therefore, that Attitude
plays a paramount role in achieving results
in any company, market, or business situation!
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ATTITUDE
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Charles Swindoll
said it best:
"The longer I live, the more I realize
the impact of attitude on life.
Attitude, to me, is more important than
facts. It is more important than the past, than
education, than money, than circumstances, than
failures, than successes, than what others
think, or say or do.
It is more
important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It
will make or break a company...a church...a
home. The remarkable thing is we have a
choice every day regarding the attitude we will
embrace for that day.
We can not change the inevitable. The only thing
we can do is play on the one string we have,
and that is our attitude... I am convinced that
life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I
react to it. And so it is with you!
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Always
Keep A Positive Attitude!
If Necessary, Ask Your Doctor About Paxil
...
If That Does Not Help - Ask About
Prozac...
And If That Does Not Help - Find A Good
Shrink
...
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