Articles

1) Five functions of management by Henri Fayol

By Vincent Van Vliet (http://www.toolshero.com/management/five-functions-ofmanagement) June 23, 2014 This article explains the five functions of management, by Henri Fayol in a practical way. After reading you will understand the basics of these powerful management principles.

Contents Introduction of the five functions of management These are the five functions of management 1. Planning 2. Organizing 3. Commanding 4. Coordinating 5. Controlling A Closer look at organizing Introduction of the five functions of management At the beginning of the last century (1916) the French engineer Henri Fayol created the first principles of the classical management theory. Henri Fayol is classified as the founding father of for example the line and staff organization.

Based on his experience as a successful director or a mining company, he developed several theories that are still relevant today. At the time, managers had no formal training. However, the increasing complexity of organizations created a need for professional management.

These are the five functions of management: Henri Fayol gained world-wide fame for his 14 general principles of management. He distinguished six general activities for industrial enterprises: technical, commercial, financial, security, accounting and managerial. He defined five functions of management for the management component and these are still seen as relevant to organizations today. These five functions focus on the relationship between personnel and its management and they provide points of reference so that problems can be solved in a creative manner.

Five functions of management by Henri Fayol 1. Planning Planning is looking ahead. According to Henri Fayol, drawing up a good plan of action is the hardest of the five functions of management. This requires an active participation of the entire organization. With respect to time and implementation, planning must be linked to and coordinated on different levels. Planning must take the organization’s available resources and flexibility of personnel into consideration as this will guarantee continuity.

2. Organizing An organization can only function well if it is well-organized. This means that there must be sufficient capital, staff and raw materials so that the organization can run smoothly and that it can build a good working structure. The organizational structure with a good division of functions and tasks is of crucial importance.

When the number of functions increases, the organization will expand both horizontally and vertically. This requires a different type of leadership. Organizing is an important function of the five functions of management.

3. Commanding When given orders and clear working instructions, employees will know exactly what is required of them.

Return from all employees will be optimized if they are given concrete instructions with respect to the activities that must be carried out by them. Successful managers have integrity, communicate clearly and base their decisions on regular audits. They are capable of motivating a team and encouraging employees to take initiative.

4. Coordinating When all activities are harmonized, the organization will function better. Positive influencing of employees behaviour is important in this. Coordination therefore aims at stimulating motivation and discipline within the group dynamics. This requires clear communication and good leadership. Only through positive employee behaviour management can the intended objectives be achieved.

5. Controlling By verifying whether everything is going according to plan, the organization knows exactly whether the activities are carried out in conformity with the plan. Control takes place in a four-step process: Establish performance standards based on organizational objectives Measure and report on actual performance Compare results with performance and standards Take corrective or preventive measures as needed Each of these steps is about solving problems in a creative manner. Finding a creative solution is often more difficult than discovering what the problem is, than making choices or the decision-making process. It starts

with creating an environmental analysis of the organization and it ends with evaluating the results of the implemented solution.

A Closer look at organizing As one of the five functions of management, Henri Fayol divided “organizing” into five subcategories. These five functions of management are still important in organizations today. The first of the five functions of management, Henri Fayol mentioned was “specialization”; if every employee is allowed to use their individual skills this will be advantageous to their area of expertise.

Secondly he mentioned “unity of command”, in which an employee is answerable to one manager only. The “formal chain of communication” is linked to this so that the employee will know how and with whom they will have to communicate. The fourth category is “unity of direction”; all employees must be aware of the organization’s strategic objectives. The fifth category is “authority and responsibility” in which managers have the authority to give orders.

2)The Five Functions of Management

by Dilip Chandra (http://hubpages.com/business/The-Five-Functions-ofManagement) Updated on July 19, 2015 Controlling a complex organisation so as to achieve desired goals resulted in the evolution of the concept management. Management include all those people who are concerned with managing an organisation. It is a sum of organised activities by a group of people. Management involves decision making at various levels of organisation for getting things done by others. It is both science and as well as an art, because the fundamentals of management are the same everywhere but the practices differ.

Definition of Management: "To manage is to forecast and plan, to organise, to command, to co-ordinate and to control." - Henry Fayol "Management is a distinct process consisting of planning, organising, activating and controlling to determine and accomplish the objectives by the use of people and resources." - G.R. Terry "Management is the development of people and not the direction of things. Management is the personnel administration." - Lawrence A. Apply "Management is the art of getting things done through and with the people in formally organised groups."

- Horold Kanontz "Management is simply the process of decision making and control over the action of human beings for the express purpose of attaining pre-determined goals." - Stanley Vance

Functions of Management George and Jerry explained four fundamental functions of management. According to them functions of management are planning, organizing, actuating and controlling.

POSDCORB is the key word used by Luther Gullick to explain the functions of management In POSDCORB; P stands for planning, O for organizing, S for staffing, D for directing, Co for co-ordination, R for reporting and B for budgeting.

Newman and Summer gave the managerial functions which include organizing, planning, reading and measuring and controlling.

Koontz and O’Donnel explained five functions of management. They have become widely accepted functions of management everywhere. They are planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling.

Five Functions of Management by Koontz and O'Donnel: Five functions of management as explained by Koontz and O'Donnel are as follows; Planning, Organising, Staffing, Directing and Controlling.

The above five management functions as mention by Koontz and O'Donnel were briefly explained here under.

Planning Deciding in advance what to do, how to do, why to do, where to do and who will be responsible for doing is planning. Determination of the objectives of business, splitting of objectives into goals for each department of the organization and formulating policies, programs, procedures rules and regulations and budget are the important steps involved in planning.

Organizing Division of work into functions and sub-functions, grouping of activities that are closely related in their nature, assigning of duties and responsibilities to the employees and finally delegation of authority and power to each employee or the group to discharge their duties accordingly are the processes come under the function of management organizing.

Directing Communication, leadership and supervision and last but not the least motivation are the elements come under the function of management, directing. Directing is nothing but guiding and leading the people in an organization. It is not just giving instructions by a superior to the sub-ordinates but also is a process of supervising, guiding and motivating the latter to achieve the organizational goals. It is a complex function of management that ensures the employees work effectively and efficiently.

Staffing The process of making out, assessing, appointing, evaluating and developing the employees at

work in an organization is staffing. In here the characteristics of a job are determined primarily. It is followed by ensuring of the right number of and kind of employees are placed at the right places and at the right time when organization is in need of them. Staffing function of management begins with notifying the vacancies in the organisation and selecting the best individuals as employees. Performance appraisal and manpower development are the other processes involved under staffing function of management.

Controlling It is the process that ensures whether the resources are obtained and used efficiently in achieving the organizational objectives. Controlling function of management is closely linked with the planning function because, it includes checking the performance of employees to see whether the planned performance is being achieved by them or not. Budgetary control, Inventory control, quality control, profit and loss control, Management audit, cost accounting and cost control, production control, financial control, break-even analysis and internal audit control are the important control devices of controlling techniques.

3.) Functions of Management

by Gaurav Akrani (http://kalyan-city.blogspot.com/2010/06/management-functionsprocess-management.html) Date: 6/01/2010 02:09:00 AM IST. The essential elements/components of Management Process are four.

Planning, Organising, Directing and Controlling We may add some more elements in the management process. Such elements are:Motivating, Co-coordinating, Staffing and Communicating.

The elements in the management process are actually the basic functions of management these functions constitute the management process in practice. Management process is in fact, management in practice. This process suggests what a manager is supposed to, do or the basic functions that he has to perform while managing the job assigned to him.

Luther Gullic gave a new formula to suggest the elements of Management Process i.e. basic functions of management. According to him, management process may be indicated by the word "PODSCORB�. Here, ‘P' states for 'planning'. "O" for 'organising', "D" for 'directing', "S" for 'Staffing', "CO" for 'Coordinating, "R" for 'Reporting' and "B" for 'Budgeting'. Gullic coined the word "PODSCORB" to suggest seven functions of management.