Functions of Management

Question 1

What are the 4 roles of management?

Answer 1

1) Planning
2) Organising
3) Reporting
4) Monitoring & Evaluating

Question 2

What is planning?

Answer 2

• looking into the future

Question 3

What duties can planning involve?

Answer 3

• setting targets, goals or objectives for the future
• forecasting likely sales over some future time period and assessing how production might need to be adjusted
• planning marketing actions for the future
• estimating the expected labour requirements of the organisation (overall numbers, where workers need to be located, and the skills the workforce will require)
• financial planning (examining the business’s need for long-term capital and short-term cash, and making arrangements to ensure these needs are met)
• planning resource needs (detailing the likely needs in terms of offices, factories, shops, machinery, vehicles, materials and components)

Question 4

What is organising?

Answer 4

• bringing together the necessary resources

Question 5

What duties can organising involve?

Answer 5

• ensuring that the business has sufficient well-trained staff available throughout its opening hours
• have enough supplies of stock
• make sure suppliers are paid promptly
• keep accurate records of sales, employee performance and attendance, and the financial performance of the business
• be aware of customer’s views on the business

Question 6

What is reporting?

Answer 6

• communicating with relevant people; customers, suppliers and more senior managers

Question 7

What forms can reporting take?

Answer 7

• annual report and accounts
• other financial information
• market research
• employee performance

Question 8

What is monitoring & evaluating?

Answer 8

• assessing past performance, thinking about and implementing improvements

Question 9

Why is monitoring and evaluating important?

Answer 9

• so managers don’t repeat mistakes

Question 10

What are the 4 stages in the decision-making cycle?

Answer 10

`1) Set business objectives

2) Gather data
3) Plan strategy
4) Evaluate decision-making

Question 11

What are the 4 key management skills?

Answer 11

1) technical
2) communication
3) organisational
4) interpersonal

Question 12

What are technical skills?

Answer 12

• the knowledge and capabilities to perform specialized tasks
• e.g. IT skills, data analysis

Question 13

What communication skills are needed to carry out a job effectively?

Answer 13

• to articulate ideas and vision
• convey enthusiasm
• argue points cogently
• persuade people to their point of view
• listening and writing skills
• speaking more than one language

Question 14

What forms can organisational skills be taken in?

Answer 14

• setting achievable targets
• planning workload
• time management
• creating effective teams

Question 15

What interpersonal skills are needed to carry out a job efficiently?

Answer 15

• motivate others
• coordinate the work of their employees
• communicate formally when required
• engage in informal small talk

Question 16

What is the definition of functions?

Answer 16

• an individual’s job role defined broadly within headings, such as marketing or production

Question 17

What is the definition of roles?

Answer 17

• their duties or tasks that a manager has to carry out as part of their job

Question 18

What is the definition of responsibilities?

Answer 18

• relate to managers being accountable for their actions and decisions