12. Management

Question 1

Fayol: the funciton of management

Answer 1

1. Planning
All managers need to think ahead. Senior management will establish overall objectives and these will be translated into tactical objectives for less senior managers. The planning needed to put these objectives into effect is also important. For example, new production or marketing objectives will require the planning and preparation of sufficient resources.

2. Organising resources to meet objectives
Employees need to be recruited carefully and encouraged, via delegation, to take some authority and accept some accountability. Senior managers should ensure that the structure of the business allows for a clear division of tasks. Each functional department, such as marketing, is organised to allow employees to work towards the common objectives.

3. Commanding, directing and motivating employees
This means guiding, leading and overseeing employees to ensure that business objectives are being met. Employee development will help motivate employees to use all of their abilities at work. Managers should be capable of motivating a team and encouraging employees to show initiative.

4. Coordinating activities
As businesses grow there is a greater need to ensure consistency and coordination between different parts of the business. The goals of each branch, division, region and employee must be welded together to achieve a common sense of purpose. At a practical level, this avoids the situation where, for example, two divisions of the same company both spend money on researching into the same new product, resulting in wasteful duplication of effort.

5. Controlling and measuring performance against targets
Establishing clear objectives for the business, and for each section within it, establishes targets for all groups, divisions and individuals. It is management’s responsibility to appraise performance against
targets and to take action if underperformance occurs. It is just as important to provide positive feedback when things go right.

Question 2

Mintzberg management roles

Answer 2

1. Interpersonal roles – dealing with and motivating employees at all levels of the organisation.
* Fiqurehead - symbolic leader of the organisation, undertaking duties of a social or legal nature
* Leader - motivating subordinates; selecting and training other managers/workers
* Liaison - linking with managers and leaders of other divisions of the business and other organisations

2. Informational roles – acting as a source, receiver and transmitter of information.
* Monitor - collecting data relevant to the business’s operations
* Disseminator - sending information collected from external and internal sources to the relevant people within the organisation
* Spokeperson - communicating information about the organisation – its current position and achievements – to external groups and people

3. Decisional roles – taking decisions and allocating resources to meet the organisation’s objectives.
* Entrepreneur - looking for new opportunities to develop the business
* Disturbance handler - responding to changing situations that may put the business at risk; assuming responsibility when threatening factors develop
* Resource allocator -deciding on the spending of the organisation’s financial resources and the allocation of its physical and human resources
* Negotiator - representing the organisation in all important negotiations (e.g. with government)

Question 3

Differences between Fayol and Mintzberg’s approaches

Answer 3

The differences between the approaches of Fayol and Mintzberg should not be exaggerated. Mintzberg did not strongly disagree with Fayol. He just thought that the simple division of managerial tasks into five functions was too closed and limiting. He considered that the role of managers was much more open ended. In particular he stressed the interpersonal nature of many of the tasks that the managers he observed were performing. Mintzberg believed that he had demonstrated, through his systematic framework, that management is much more than the five functions. It must include interpersonal relationships and open-ended discussions with workers and customers.

Question 4

Autocratic management
* Features

Answer 4

• leader takes all decisions
• they give little information to workers
• they supervise workers closely
• only one-way communication is used
• workers are given only limited information about the business

Question 5

Autocratic management
* Applications

Answer 5

• defence forces and police where quick decisions are needed and the scope for discussion must be limited
• in times of crisis when decisive action might be needed to limit damage to the business or danger to others

Question 6

Autocratic management
* Limitations

Answer 6

• demotivates workers who want to contribute and accept responsibility
• decisions do not benefit from employee input
• Workers can become so used to this style that they are dependent on managers

Question 7

Democratic
* Features

Answer 7

• participation encouraged
• two-way communication is used, which allows feedback from workers
• workers are given information about the business to allow their full involvement

Question 8

Democratic
* Applications

Answer 8

• most likely to be useful in businesses that expect
  workers to contribute fully to the production and decisionmaking processes, thereby satisfying their higher-order needs
• an experienced and flexible workforce will be likely to benefit most from this style
• in situations that demand a new way of thinking or a new solution, employee input can be very valuable

Question 9

Democratic
* Limitations

Answer 9

• consultation with workers can be time-consuming
• on occasions, quick decision-making will be required
• some business issues might be too sensitive to allow worker involvement (e.g. job losses) or too secret (e.g. new product development)

Question 10

Paternalistic
* Features

Answer 10

• managers do what they think is best for the workers
• some consultation might take place, but the final decisions are taken by the managers – there is no true participation in decision-making
• managers want workers to be happy in their jobs

Question 11

Paternalistic
* Application

Answer 11

• used by managers who have a genuine concern for workers’ interests, but feel that managers know best in the end
• when workers are young or inexperienced this might be an appropriate style to employ

Question 12

Paternalistic
* Limitations

Answer 12

• demotivation of more experienced workers who would prefer to be given responsibility for decision-making

Question 13

Laissez-faire management
* Features

Answer 13

The term ‘laissez-faire’ means ‘let them do it’. Laissez-faire management allows workers to carry out tasks and take decisions themselves within very broad limits. This is an extreme version of democratic management. There is very little input from management into the work to be undertaken by subordinates.

Question 14

Laissez-faire management
* Limitations

Answer 14

• workers may not appreciate the lack of structure and direction in their work – this could lead to a loss of security
• lack of feedback – as managers do not closely monitor progress – may be demotivating

Question 15

Laissez-faire management
* Application

Answer 15

• when managers are too busy (or too lazy) to intervene
• may be appropriate in research institutions where experts are more likely to arrive at solutions when not
  constrained by narrow rules or management controls

Question 16

McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y

Answer 16

• Theory X managers, according to McGregor, view their workers as lazy and disliking work. These managers think workers are unprepared to accept responsibility and need to be controlled and made to work. Clearly, managers with this view will be likely to adopt an autocratic style of leadership.
• On the other hand, McGregor considered that managers who hold Theory Y views believe that workers enjoy work. These managers think workers find work as natural as rest or play. They think workers are prepared to accept responsibility, be creative and take an active part in contributing ideas and solutions to work-related problems.
• It is important to note that McGregor did not suggest that there were two types of workers, X and Y. The X and Y refer to different attitudes of management towards workers. In practice, most managers will have views somewhere between these two extremes.

Question 17

The best management style depends on many factors

Answer 17

• The training and experience of the workforce and the degree of responsibility that they are prepared to accept.
• The amount of time available for consultation and participation.
• The attitude of managers, or the management culture of the business. This is influenced by the personality and business background of the managers, such as whether they have always worked in an autocratically run organisation.
• The importance of the issues under consideration. Different styles may be used in the same business in different situations. If the business is at risk, resulting from poor or slow decisions, then it is more likely that management will make decisions in an autocratic way.

Question 18

Evaluation of Democratic Leadership

Answer 18

Democratic leadership − involving participation and two-way communication – is increasingly common for a number of reasons. Working people are better educated than before and have higher expectations of their experience from work. They expect their higher-level needs to be satisfied at work. Many managers realise that the rapid pace of changes at work, as a result of technological and other factors, has increased the need to consult workers and involve them in the process of change. People find change less threatening and more acceptable if they have been involved in some meaningful way in managing it.