The Concept of Guidance Guidance in management can be defined as: – “The act or process of guiding” or “The one who shows the way by leading, directing, or advising. “ or “The one who serves as a model for others, as in a course of conduct.” Good manager guide their employees to continually learn new skills and work toward organizational goals, while being sensitive to their needs. This kind of guidance gives employees a vested interest in their organization, which will affect the quality of their work. The good manager is a leader, not an order giver. When a manager tells an employee what he want done, instead of giving an order, the manager give their employees the freedom to come up with their best way of getting that task done. It may not always be the best way, and the manager may have to do some monitoring and Continue reading
Management Basics
Important Types of Planning in Management
Planning is highly essential for the successful functioning of any organization, big or small. Planning, in simple terms, involves drawing up a scheduled list of activities required to achieve a particular goal. In a company or even at home, a certain amount of planning helps you finish tasks successfully. But in an organization with a huge workforce and many hierarchical levels, planning is quintessential to meeting the organization’s objectives and targets. Types of Planning in an Organization Strategic Planning Operational Planning Financial Planning Marketing Planning Proactive Planning Strategic Planning Strategic planning is the kind of planning that provides direction for the organization on how to proceed in the long run. The organization makes clear the strategy it intends on pursuing to achieve all of its targets, and allocates resources and takes action accordingly. In order to be able to devise the organization’s strategy, it is necessary that the organization knows Continue reading
Criticism of Scientific Management Theory (Taylorism)
Frederick Winslow Taylor was one of the first theorists to consider management and process improvement as a scientific problem and, as such, is widely considered the father of scientific management. He proposed that a business’s economic efficiency could be improved by simplifying and optimizing work processes, which would, in turn, increase productivity. Taylorism, as a philosophy, was the product of a series of experiments and observations, such as time-motion studies, designed to determine the most effective and efficient way to complete a task. Its fundamental and inter-related principles can be summarized as follows: Using scientific method to challenge habitual working practices and to determine the most efficient way to perform specific work tasks; Matching workers’ capability and motivation to the task requirements and supervising them according to the established rules and procedures; Establishing fair performance levels and develop a pay system that rewards, and therefore encourages, over-achievement; and Appropriate division Continue reading
Types of Business Ownership – Sole Proprietorship and Partnership
When entrepreneurs establish a business, they must decide on the form of business ownership. There are three basic forms of business ownership: sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation. The form that is chosen can affect the profitability, risk, and value of the firm. The business ownership decision determines how the earnings of a business are distributed among the owners of the business, the degree of liability of each owner, the degree of control that each owner has in running the business, the potential return of the business, and the risk of the business. These types of decisions are necessary for all business. Sole Proprietorship A business owned by a single owner is referred to as a sole proprietorship. The owner of a sole proprietorship is called a sole proprietor. A sole proprietor may obtain loans from creditors to help finance the firm’s operations, but these loans do not represent ownership. The Continue reading
Meaning and Definition of Motivation
To the behavioral scientists, the word motivation is something stemming from within a person. According to them, motivation refers to a dynamic driving force, which stems from within. It is an “inner striving condition, which activates or moves individual into action and continues him in the course of action enthusiastically”. Thus, motivation is defined as an inner state that activates, energizes or moves behavior towards goals. And, the forces inside the individual that inspire him to continue work are variously called as wishes, drives, needs etc. According to Rensis Likert motivation is the “core of management.” Motivation is an important function performed by manager for actuating the people to work for the accomplishment of organisational objectives. Issuance of well-conceived instructions and orders does not mean that they will be followed. A manager has to make appropriate use of various techniques of motivation to enthuse the employees to follow them. Effective Continue reading
Important Features of Japanese Management
The culture of Japanese management is generally limited to Japan’s large corporations. These flagships of the Japanese economy provide their workers with excellent salaries and working conditions and secure employment. These companies and their employees represent the business elite of Japan: qualification for employment is limited to the men and the few women who graduate from the top thirty colleges and universities in Japan. Placement and advancement of Japanese workers is heavily based on educational background. The students, who are not admitted to the most highly rated colleges, rarely have the chance to work for a large company; instead, they have to seek positions in small and medium-sized firms that cannot offer comparable benefits and prestige. The quality of one’s education and, more important, the college attended, play a decisive roles in a person’s career. The problem is that few Japanese attend graduate school, and graduate training in business per Continue reading