Definitions of Management
Management is a distinct ongoing process of
allocating inputs of an organisation (human and economic resources) by typical
managerial functions (planning, organising, directing and controlling) for the
purpose of achieving stated objectives, viz., output of goods and services
desired by its customers (environment).
In the process, work is performed with and through
personnel of the organisation in an ever-changing business environment.
1. “To
manage is to forecast, to plan, to organise, to command, to co-ordinate and to
control.” —Henry Fayol. It attempts to describe
management in terms of what a manager does, and not what management is.
2. “Management
is a multipurpose organ that manages a business and manages manager, and
manages worker and work.”— Peter F. Drucker: The Practice of Management
(i) Managing a business;
(ii) Managing manager; and
(iii) Managing workers and work.
Even if one is omitted, It would not have
management anymore and it also would not have a business enterprise or an
industrial society. According to P. Drucker, the manager has to balance and
integrate three major jobs of a business enterprise as mentioned above.
Hence, a manager is a dynamic and life-giving
element in every business. Without efficient management it cannot be secure the
best allocation and utilisation of human, material and financial resources.
There is always a discussion about the nature of
management whether it is an Art of doing things or it is a pure Science of
getting things done. It would be useful to explain the nature of management in
brief as under:
Management is an in-exact science, because in pure
science, the principles are put into test in a laboratory and they are either
proved or disproved exactly and precisely. For example, plant leaves have
starch in them which can be proved or disproved in a Botany lab. Similarly the
management principles can be put to test in an organization where men, machine,
money and materials (4 Ms) are practically integrated towards achieving some
chosen organizational goals. These principles cannot be exactly proved or
disproved either as they tend to be flexible to changing environment, policies
and practical difficulties while synchronizing them together. So, management
can be described as an inexact science.
Everyone believes that management is an art. No, it
is not an art in Toto. Because, the concept of art denotes the learning of
skills and practicing them in the day to day life like a mason or carpenter or
mechanic or a musician being able to perform their respective art they learnt
by way of skill display before anybody under any circumstances.
But the concept of management involves a set of required
skills for any one designated as a manager, but the level or span of their
managerial skills would vary from person to person and individual to individual
irrespective of the countries they belonged to. The nature of the
administrative and managerial skills of our former Prime Minister Pt.Jawaharlal
Nehru cannot be compared to his counterpart and his own daughter Mrs.Indira
Gandhi. So management is not an exact art of doing things.
The art of management is fully reflected in the
decision making capacity of a manager. Judgment and imagination are essential
even in a computerised economy. A computer cannot replace a manager in decision
making.
“A
professional manager is one who specialises in the work of planning,
organising, leading and controlling the efforts of others and does so through
systematic use of classified knowledge, a common vocabulary and principles and
who subscribes to the standards of practice and code of ethics established by
recognised body.” — Louis A. Allen.
To conclude, Management is neither a science nor an
art, but a combination of both requiring people holding managerial positions to
apply the scientific management principles and displaying popular managerial
skills to accomplish the organizational goals as efficiently and as quickly as
possible so as to be competitive in the globalised environment of business.
Related Topics
Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions, DMCA Policy and Compliant
Copyright © 2018-2023 BrainKart.com; All Rights Reserved. Developed by Therithal info, Chennai.