- Meaning: Management is a process made of interrelated functions (elements of the management process).
- Managerial vs Operative: Operative functions (production, marketing, purchasing, finance, personnel) differ by organisation, but managerial functions are universal (e.g., planning is done everywhere).
- Basic managerial functions (Koontz & O’Donnell): Planning, Organising, Staffing, Directing, Controlling (coordination is the essence, not a separate function).
- Other classifications: Fayol—planning/organising/commanding/coordinating/controlling; Terry—planning/organising/actuating/controlling; Gullick—PODSCORB.
- Important points: Functions have many sub-functions; staffing is now treated separately due to HR importance; functions are interdependent and done together, not in a fixed order.
Key Points
Key Points: Distinction between Coordination and Cooperation
| Basis | Coordination | Cooperation |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Unity of action | Helping together |
| Nature | Deliberate | Voluntary |
| Relations | Formal + informal | Informal |
| Result | Needs cooperation | Needs coordination |
| Status | Essence of management | Not essence |
Key Points: Planning
- Meaning: Planning means thinking before doing—deciding a future course of action in advance to achieve objectives.
- Main focus: It involves setting objectives and deciding policies, procedures, strategies, programmes and budgets (decision-making is a key part).
- Nature: Planning is future-oriented and is done to anticipate problems and prepare solutions.
- Key features: It is a mental exercise, involves choosing the best option, is the basis of all other functions, and is continuous + done at all levels.
- Steps of planning: Collect information → set objectives → set planning premises → find alternatives → evaluate → choose best → make subsidiary plans → review/revise.
- Advantages: Helps achieve objectives, reduces risk, improves efficiency, avoids confusion, encourages creativity, builds teamwork, and becomes the base for control.
- Limitations & solutions: Limited by wrong info, time/cost, rigidity, reduced initiative, resistance to change, and external factors; improved by top support, better forecasting, clear objectives, employee participation, good communication, scientific and flexible planning.
Key Points: Classification of Management Functions
Key Points: Coordination
- Meaning: Coordination means harmonising and unifying efforts of people/departments to achieve common goals.
- Essence of management: It is not a separate function—it is present in all functions (planning, organising, staffing, directing, controlling).
- Coordination vs cooperation: Cooperation is voluntary, but coordination is deliberate management effort to ensure unity of action.
- Main elements: It is continuous and dynamic, aims at unity of action, is the responsibility of every manager, and does not happen automatically.
- Importance + principles: It reduces conflicts, balances different abilities, combines resources, and is needed more in big/complex organisations; it should start early, be based on reciprocal relations, be continuous, and is best through direct personal contact.
Key Points: Organising
- Meaning: Organising means creating an organisation structure (authority–responsibility relationships) to implement plans and achieve goals.
- What it involves: Grouping work, assigning roles, and giving authority with responsibility so people can work effectively together.
- Steps: Identify activities → classify into groups → assign to people → delegate authority & fix responsibility → coordinate all relationships.
- Types of structure: Organisation structure depends on size/nature of business; main types are line, functional, and line & staff.
- Importance: Helps direction, control and coordination, supports growth (delegation), best use of human talent, improves communication/teamwork, helps adopt new technology, and encourages initiative—so it must be efficient and adaptable.
Key Points: Staffing
- Meaning: Staffing means manning the organisation structure—finding and keeping the right person for the right job.
- What it covers: It deals with human resources—acquiring, developing, using and maintaining employees (personnel management).
- Steps of staffing: Manpower planning → recruitment/selection/placement/orientation → training & development → appraisal/promotion/transfer → remuneration.
- Nature: It is a managerial, continuous and all-level (pervasive) function focused on optimum use of human resources.
- Importance: Helps get competent employees, improves quality and quantity of output, increases job satisfaction, reduces HR cost/wastage, and supports growth and diversification.
Key Points: Directing
- Meaning: Directing means executing plans through organised action (also called commanding/actuating) and is known as “management in action.”
- Role: It starts actual work after planning, organising and staffing, and makes people work efficiently and effectively to achieve objectives.
- Key features: It is an executing and continuous function, done by all managers, deals with human behaviour, and links planning with control.
- Importance: Directing initiates action, improves efficiency, helps change, ensures coordination, and supports growth and expansion.
- Main elements: Directing includes Supervision (overseeing work & discipline), Communication (two-way flow with feedback), Motivation (incentives to work better), and Leadership (influencing people; style depends on situation).
Key Points: Controlling
- Meaning: Controlling means measuring performance, comparing it with standards, and taking corrective action if needed.
- Main purpose: It ensures work is giving desired results and that activities follow the plans (control = “looking back”).
- Steps of control: Set standards → measure actual performance → compare with standards → find reasons for deviations → take corrective action.
- Relation with planning: Control is inseparable from planning—plans give standards for control, and control ensures plans are followed.
- Importance & good system: Control improves efficiency, implementation, delegation and coordination; a good system should be simple, economical, flexible, report deviations quickly, suit the activity, and focus on critical/exceptional areas.
Key Points: Coordination as the Essence of Management
- Essence of management: Coordination is not a separate function; it is the central purpose of management—to bring harmony in group work.
- Present in all functions: It runs through planning, organising, staffing, directing and controlling (like a thread in a garland).
- Role of manager: A manager acts like an orchestra conductor, creating balance, rhythm and unity among subordinates’ activities.
- Outcome of good management: Coordination is the result of proper performance of managerial functions and makes planning purposeful, organisation well-knit, and control effective.
- How coordination happens: In planning (master plan + departmental plans/resources), organising (authority = responsibility, no duplication), staffing (right skills to right jobs), directing (supervision/motivation/leadership), controlling (actual results match plans).
