Functions of Management

Four Functions of Management

The traditional functions of management and fundamental management practices is challenged by a new way of doing business in an Internet era that has transformed the way organizations conduct business. The management process consists of four functions planning, organizing, leading and controlling (Bateman & Snell, 2004). The definitions of the management process remain unchanged while the business world continues to grow and change. While new approaches are required to be competitive in a global marketplace, the four management functions that have made successful companies succeed remain relevant, useful, and adaptable in a new era business environment. The following is an analysis of each function, and how each is applied in my organization.

The four functions of management are planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Planning consists of identifying and specifying goals to be achieved, and deciding the appropriate actions needed to be taken to achieve the specified goals. Planning must analyze and take into account current business situations and environment, the ability to anticipate the future, determine objectives, and what types of activities the organization will engage that correlate to business strategies, and determining the resources needed to achieve the organization’s goals. These plans identify the steps to achievement (Bateman & Snell, 2004).

Organizing is the assembly and coordinating of the human, finances, physical, information, and other resources needed to achieve goals (Bateman & Snell, 2004). When organizing, managers create the structure of coordinating the resources needed that best allows the organization to achieve its goals. Organizing will specify job responsibilities, break groups into different business units, allocating resources, and creating an environment where people work together to achieve the identified goal.

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The third function in the management process is leading. Leading is stimulating people to be higher performers (Bateman & Snell, 2004). Managers who lead determine direction, state a clear vision, and help employees understand each role through communication whether individually or in groups. The leading function is a high-level of motivation and commitment from a manager’s team to the organization (Bateman & Snell, 2004).

Finally, coordination or control is a function that monitors progress and implements necessary changes (Bateman & Snell, 2004). Managers use control to evaluate how well the organization is achieving its goals and takes corrective action to improve performance. In this function, managers will monitor individuals, departments, and the organization to determine if performance has been achieved. The outcome of the coordination or controlling function is an accurate measure of performance, and the regulation of efficiency and effectiveness.

These four functions of management are implemented through a variety of tools in my organization. There are three levels of management in my organization. Regardless of the management level, each of these four functions applies when identifying and developing strategic goals. Each business unit based on input from the leadership team, recommendations from process councils, and technology that drives changes to existing systems and tools identifies business objectives and goals. The business objective will be identified and a Proof of Concept (POC) developed. Once the POC has been developed, it will be brought forth to the process council or leadership team for approval and funding. When the manager receives a go or no-go decision, he, or she will select individuals who bring knowledge and value to most efficiently and effectively achieve the objective or goal. An example of a project within the technology sector of my organization, the information management (IM) team needed to develop a communication plan that would create a road map for optimizing the exchange of information within the project team as well as to and from the project team. The roadmap would establish the communication scope and describe the approach to effectively communicate all project information (what, who, when, how). The scope has been defined and the team must now define or organize the communications requirements. Who is the target audience? What constraints does the team face? Are there any project sensitivities? What are the communication needs, and finally, documentation of the communication plan. Once the requirements are identified, a communication strategy will be developed outlining the approach and the manager will lead the distribution of responsibilities amongst the team. A communication activity schedule will be documented starting with the project kick-off meeting through project closure meeting that the manager will monitor very closely throughout the project duration.

At the conclusion of any project, documenting recommended improvements and positive observations of the project and POC is important. For this specific project, an example of how the team identified opportunities for improvement was documented. The Project Manager should:

Ensure that new project team members promptly receive project information as soon as possible when transitioning onto the team.
Ensure that training is mandatory for any key resources that are critical to the success of the process.
Schedule meetings in the same building as the majority of the team members.
Plan and obtain resources for the Proof of Concept (POC), so that test scenarios can be run by project team members from multiple geographical sites. (This process supports the IM enterprise and not just one group or location.)
Clearly explain the POC testing strategy to the POC testers (“customers”).
Ensure testing to determine how decisions are made about which Engagement Focal is chosen.

Managers who understand the traditional and fundamental functions of management, and how each function of planning, organizing, leading and controlling can be further broadened in today’s ever-changing business environment will become managers that create greater strategic value within dynamic organizations that mobilizes people to learn, change and are more adaptable in this new era business environment (Bateman & Snell, 2004).

Reference

Bateman, T. and Snell. S. (2004). Management: the new competitive landscape. New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies.