FUNCTIONS OF MANAGEMENT

Management refers to the art and science of making various workers of an organization realize the common business objective and thus get the work done effectively.

Functions of Management:

Planning Organising. Directing. Coordinating. Controlling. Decision making.

PLANNING:
Planning is the rational and orderly thinking about the ways and means for achieving certain goals. It involves anticipating future trends and finding relevant alternate course of action. It avoids random action, haphazard setup, short sightedness in the industry.

Steps of Planning:
Forecasting: It involves predicting the future trends. It can be sales, production or cost or profit loss forecast. Goal setting: Setting of definite and time bound business objective. Policy Making: Making of principles or rules governing the business activities. Program making: Deciding the course of action.

Scheduling: Deciding the time duration for starting and completion of the work. Procedure setting: Details of methods of completing the work. Budget Making: Determining the overall cost of production, Income, Profit etc.

Advantages of Planning:

Reduces purposeless activities and focusses on fulfillment of the objective. Helps to reduce change and uncertainty, thus eliminating risk and losses. Helps in growth and expansion of the firm. Gives clear picture to working staff about the work. Facilitates managerial control.

ORGANISING:
It involves providing all necessary things required for the completion of the work for achieving the objective. It involves: a) Determination of activities. b) Staff recruitment. c) Allocation of work. d) Determination of authority. e) Delegation of power.

DIRECTING:
It involves energising the organisational mechanism, activating it to carry out the required work. It largely involves maintaining the human relations and motivation. Steps of directing: a) issuing orders and instructions. b) guiding and training workers. c) supervising the work done.

Components of directing are: a) Leadership: Ability to guide and motivate the subordinates in proper direction. b) Communication: Way of communicating ideas properly, in verbal or written or in the form of instructions. c) Motivation: Inspiring the subordinates effectively towards achieving the goal. d) Supervision: Looking after the work done, helps in smooth operation and completion of work on time.

COORDINATING:
It is a process of achieving team spirit and unity of action among workers at all levels. Coordination is different from cooperation. It has time, quantity and direction elements. It is the combined effort of requisite quality and quantity arranged at proper time.

Advantages of Coordination:
Essence

of management. Creative force. Ensures unity of direction. Creates high employee morale.

Principles of Coordination:
Should be set in early stage of management process. Direct personal contact between persons of each departments and among different departments. It should be a continuous activity. All efforts and interests towards common goal should be integrated.

Internal Coordination:
It is the internal coordination within an enterprise between different departments as planning, production, stores and administration.

External Coordination:
It is the coordination of a firm with society, labour organisations and government. It takes care of the advancements in science and technology.

CONTROLLING:
It is the process of measuring the results obtained and measuring the deviation between the expected and realised results. It involves following steps: a) Setting up of standards. b) Assessment of actual work. c) Calculation of deviation. d) Corrective actions.

DECISION MAKING:
It is the process of selecting the best suitable alternative out of two or more available solutions. Aids for decision making: a) Operations research: using mathematical and statistical techniques. b) Linear programming: Mathematical tool for optimisation problems using computers. c) Break even analysis: Sales, income and costs are analysed to know the present and future profit trends.

Thank you.