A group can be defined as two or more interacting and interdependent individuals who come together to achieve specific goals. Although a groups often have goals, but there’s not state that group members must share a goal or motivation. Many people used the word team and group interchangeably, but there are actually many differences between the word team and group. It is much easier to form a group than a team. In group, they could be grouped according to gender, experience, age or other common factors. Although the effectiveness of the group may be variable, but forming a group just based on a certain commonality is not particularly difficult. A group’s strength may come from sheer volume or willingness to carry out a single leader’s commands. On the other hand, a team can be more difficult to form. The members will selected for their complementary skills, not a single commonality. Continue reading
Management Basics
Frederick Taylor’s Principles of Scientific Management
Frederick Winslow Taylor well-known as the founder of scientific management was the first to recognize and emphasis the need for adopting a scientific approach to the task of managing an enterprise. He tried to diagnose the causes of low efficiency in industry and came to the conclusion that much of waste and inefficiency is due to the lack of order and system in the methods of management. He found that the management was usually ignorant of the amount of work that could be done by a worker in a day as also the best method of doing the job. As a result, it remained largely at the mercy of the workers who deliberately shirked work. He therefore, suggested that those responsible for management should adopt a scientific approach in their work, and make use of “scientific method” for achieving higher efficiency. The Frederick Taylor’s principles of scientific management consists essentially Continue reading
Case Study and Different Areas of Management
The cases of management cannot be properly analyzed and solved unless the student has a thorough knowledge of die subject. The cases of General Management may be on the functions of management like planning, co-ordination, organization, control and decision-making. The cases also relate to the principles of management like division of labor, centralization and decentralization of authority, span of control, equity, remuneration, unity of direction, unity of command etc. While solving the case problem the student must be able to know to which function or principle of management the case relates. It will enable the student to analyze the case properly as he becomes clear about what is ‘required “as per functions or principles and what is lacking in the given situation of the case. The cases of Personnel Management relate to recruitment, selection, induction, placement, wage Continue reading
Formal and Informal Leaders
Leadership as the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation to accomplish the mission and improve the organization. While it is a relatively short definition, it implies a lot of action. Look at the action words: influencing; purpose; direction; motivation; accomplish; improve. To define Leadership, means to take action, to get up and do something. It has been observed above that a manager should also be a good leader. But in actual practice, every manager is not able to provide the kind of leadership desired by his subordinates. This gives rise to informal leaders who do not hold any managerial post in the organization. A formal leader, on the other hand, is one who possesses organizational authority to direct and control the activities of his subordinates. He can issue orders and instructions to his subordinates by virtue of his formal authority in the organization. An informal leader is Continue reading
Decision Making: Meaning and Characteristics
Meaning of Decision Making Decision Making is a process of selection from a set of alternative courses of action, which is thought to fulfill the objectives of the decision problem more satisfactorily than others. It is a course of action, which is consciously chosen for achieving a desired result. A decision is a process that takes place prior to the actual performance of a course of action that has been chosen. In terms of managerial decision making, it is an act of choice, wherein a manager selects a particular course of action from the available alternatives in a given situation. Managerial decision making process involves establishing of goals, defining tasks, searching for alternatives and developing plans in order to find the best answer for the decision problem. The essential elements in a decision making process include the following: The decision maker, The decision problem, The environment in which the decision Continue reading