Management: An Overview
Management is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively. Since organizations can be viewed as systems, management can also be defined as human action, including design, to facilitate the production of useful outcomes from a system. This view opens the opportunity to manage oneself, a pre-requisite to attempting to manage others.
Definition of Management
The Management Process
Management functions include: Planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and controlling an organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal.
There are several different resource types within management. Resourcing encompasses the deployment and manipulation of:
- Human resources
- Financial resources
- Technological resources
- Natural resources
Different type of Management Styles
There are different types of management styles, and the management process has changed over recent years. The addition of work teams and servant leadership has changed what is expected from managers, and what managers expect from their employees.
Traditional Management
There is a hierarchy of employees, low level management, mid-level management, and senior management. In traditional management systems, the manager sets out expectations for the employees who need to meet goals, but the manager receives the reward of meeting those goals.
Team Managment
In a team management arrangement the manager is a guiding hand to help the members of the team work together to solve problems but doesn't dictate policy and the entire team receives the reward of meeting those goals.
Servant Management
With this approach, the manager helps supply resources the employees need to meet company goals. In servant leadership, the organization recognizes employees as experts in their field and work to help them work efficiently.
No matter which type of management style is used by an organization, the main objective of managers is to help employees reach company company goals and maintain company standards and policies.