SCM – Introduction
Supply chain management (SCM) is the active management of supply chain activities to maximize customer value and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. It represents a conscious effort by the supply chain…
Classical School of Management Thought
Scientific Management and F. W. Taylor Scientific management,according to an early definition, refers to “that kind ofmanagement which conducts a business or affairs by standards established by facts or truths gained through systematic observation, experiment, or reasoning.” Advocators of this school of thought attempted toraise labor efficiency primarily by managing the work of employees on the shop floor. Frederick Winslow Taylor, who is generallyacknowledged as “the father of scientificmanagement” believed that organizations should study tasks and prepare precise procedures. His varied experience gave him ample opportunity to have firsthand knowledge and intimate insightinto the problems and attitude of workers, and to explore great possibilities for improving the quality of management in the workplace. Formulating his theory based on firsthand experience, Taylor’s theory focused on ways to increase the efficiency of employees by molding their thought and scientific management. Henry Gnatt, an associate of Taylor, developed the Gnatt Chart, a bar graph thatmeasures planned and completed work along with each stage of production. This visual display chart has been a widely used control and planning tool since its development in 1910. Following is a sample of Gnatt Chart. Frank Gilbreth and his wife, Lillian Moller Gilbreth further improvised on Taylor’s time studies, devising “motion studies” by photographing the individual movements of each worker. They carefully analyzed the motions and eliminated unnecessary ones. These motion studies werepreceded by timing each task, so the studies were called “time and motion studies.” Applying time and motion studies to bricklaying, the Gilbreths devised a way for workers to lay bricks that eliminated wasted motion and raised their productivity from 1,000 bricks per day to 2,700 bricks per day. The Basic Principles of Scientific Management Developing new standard method of doing each job. Selecting…
Management – Evolution & Trends
Management as a practice gained ground when the concept of working together in groups to achieve common objectives was realized by men. But the study of management as a systematic field of knowledge began at the advent of the Industrial Revolution, which ushered in a new era of serious thinking and theorizing on management. To begin with, there is no single universally accepted theory of management. “The wild array of management theories could even look like a jungle” says Harold Koontz. However, to help put the different theories in perspective, we shall discuss them as representing different schools of thought.
Controlling
Managers at all levels engage in the managerial function of controlling to some degree. Two traditional control techniques are budget and performance audits. An audit involves a physical examination and…
Leading
Organizations as they grow, develop complex structures with an increasing need for co- ordination and control. To cope and manage such situations, leadership is necessary to influence people to cooperate towards a common goal and create a situation for collective Response. Leading entails directing, influencing, and motivating employees to perform essential tasks. It also involves the social and informal sources of influence to inspire others. Effective managers lead subordinates through motivation to progressively attain organizational objectives. Personality research and study of job attitudes in Behavioral Science provides important insight on the need for coordination and control. Thus it becomes important for leadership to create harmony among individual efforts to collectively work towards organizational goals.
Organizing
Once a manager has created a work plan, the next phase in management cycle is to organize the people and other resources necessary to carry out the plan. Organizing should also consider the resources and physical facilities available, in order to maximize returns With minimum expenditure. Organizing may be referred to as the process of arranging and distributing the planned Work, authority and resources among an organization’s members, so they can achieve The organization’s goals. Organizing involves the following steps: Creating the organizational structure - The framework of the organization is created within which effort is coordinated allocating human resources to ensure the accomplishment of objectives. This structure is usually represented by an organizational chart, which is a graphic representation of the chain of command within an organization. Making organizational design decisions - Decisions are made about the structure of an organization. Making job design decisions – Roles and responsibilities of individual jobs, and the process of carrying out the duties is defined. Organizing at the level of a particular job involves how best to design individual jobs so as to most effectively utilize human resources. Traditionally, job design was based on principles of division of labor and specialization, which assumed that the more narrow the job content, the more proficient the individual performing the job could become.
Planning
Planning is the first and the most important function of management that involves setting objectives and determining a course of action for achieving those objectives. Planners are essentially the managers who are best aware of environmental conditions facing their organization and are able to effectively analyze and predict future conditions. It also requires that managers should be good decision makers. Planning involves selecting missions and objectives and the actions to achieve them, it requires decision making, i.e. choosing future courses of action from among alternatives. Planning means determining what the organization’s position and situation should be at some time in the future and deciding how best to bring about that situation. It helps maintain managerial effectiveness by guiding future activities. Planning as a process typically involves the following steps: Selection of goals for the organization. Establishment of goals for each of the organization’s sub-units. Establishment of programs for achieving goals in a systematic manner. Types of Planning Strategic planning involves analyzing competitive opportunities and threats, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. It also involves determining how to position the organization to compete effectively in their environment. Tactical planning is creating the blueprint for the lager strategic plan. These plans are often short term and are carried out by middle-level managers. Operational planning generally covers the entire organization’s goals and objectives and put into practice the ways and action steps to achieve the strategic plans. They are very short terms usually less than a year.
Management – The P-O-L-C Framework
The primary challenge faced by organizations and managers today is to creatively solve business problems. The principles of management are guidelines using which managers can tackle business challenges. The principles of management have been categorized into the four major functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling popularly known as the P-O-L-C framework. The P-O-L-C Framework Planning Defining Organization Vision & Mission Setting Goals & Objectives Strategizing Plan of Action to Achieve Goals Organizing Formulate Organizational Structure Resource Allocation Job Design Leading Leadership & Direction Motivation Coordination & Communication Controlling Process & Standards Review & Evaluation Corrective Action
Managerial Skills
Henri Fayol, a famous management theorist also called as the Father of Modern Management, identified three basic managerial skills - technical skill, human skill and conceptual skill. Technical Skill Knowledge and skills used to perform specific tasks. Accountants, engineers, surgeons all have their specialized technical skills necessary for their respective professions. Managers, especially at the lower and middle levels, need technical skills for effective task performance. Technical skills are important especially for first line managers, who spend much of their time training subordinates and supervising their work-related problems. Human Skill Ability to work with, understand, and motivate other people as individuals or in groups. According to Management theorist Mintzberg, the top (and middle) managers spend their time: 59 percent in meetings, 6 percent on the phone, and 3 percent on tours. Ability to work with others and get co-operation from people in the work group. For example, knowing what to do and being able to communicate ideas and beliefs to others and understanding what thoughts others are trying to convey to the manager. Conceptual Skill Ability to visualize the enterprise as a whole, to envision all the functions involved in a given situation or circumstance, to understand how its parts depend on one another, and anticipate how a change in any of its parts will affect the whole. Creativity, broad knowledge and ability to conceive abstract ideas. For example, the managing director of a telecom company visualizes the importance of better service for its clients which ultimately helps attract a vast number of clients and an unexpected increase in its subscriber base and profits. Other Managerial Skills Besides the skills discussed above, there are two other skills that a manager should possess, namely diagnostic skill and analytical skill. Diagnostic Skill: Diagnose a problem in the organization by studying its symptoms. For example, a particular division may be suffering from high turnover. With the help of diagnostic skill, the manager may find out that the division’s supervisor has poor human skill in dealing with employees. This problem might then be solved by…
Mintzberg’s set of Ten Roles
Professor Henry Mintzberg, a great management researcher, after studying managers for several weeks concluded that, to meet the many demands of performing their functions, managers assume multiple roles. He propounded that the role is an organized set of behaviors. He identified the following ten roles common to the work of all managers. These roles have been split into three groups as illustrated in the following figure. Interpersonal Role Figurehead – Has social, ceremonial and legal responsibilities. Leader – Provides leadership and direction. Liaison – Networks and communicates with internal and external contacts. Informational Role Monitor – Seeks out information related to your organization and industry, and monitors internal teams in terms of both their productivity and well-being. Disseminator – Communicates potentially useful information internally. Spokesperson – Represents and speaks for the organization and transmits information about the organization and its goals to the people outside it. Decisional Role Entrepreneur – Creates and controls change within the organization - solving problems, generating new ideas, and implementing them. Disturbance Handler – Resolves and manages unexpected roadblocks. Resource Allocator – Allocates funds, assigning staff and other organizational resources. Negotiator – Involved in direct important negotiations within the team, department, or organization.
