Organizational Conflict Management and Resolution - Prof. IN, Summaries of Financial Management

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PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT

QUESTION AND ANSWERS

INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT

1. What are the four managerial functions and how do they interrelate with each other? {20}

The four managerial functions are:-

a) PLANNING – (Decision making, looking ahead). It is the deteƌŵiŶiŶg of oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s goals aŶd deĐidiŶg hoǁ ďes t to achieve them. Managers think through their goals and actions in advance, that their actions are based on some method, plan or logic, rather than on a hunch. It is the basis by which:-  The organisation obtains and commits the resources required to attain its objectives  Members of the organisation carry on activities consistent with the chosen objectives and procedures.  Progress towards the objective is monitored and measured so that corrective action can be taken where such progress is unsatisfactory.

b) ORGANISING - ( harnessing, combining, co-ordinating resources). While planning provides the framework in terms of organisational goals, organising refers to the process of arranging and allocating work, authority and resources aŵoŶg aŶ oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s ŵeŵďeƌs so that theLJ ĐaŶ aĐhieǀe the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s goals ef feĐtiǀelLJ aŶd effiĐieŶtlLJ.

It entails setting or designing the organisational structure that suits the organisation in terms of its resources and gaols. Students will note organising should necessarily follow after planning.

Management cannot organise without any idea as to the purpose of such an exercise, thus tasks and positions are allocated after an organisation has established its direction (planning)

The organisational structure defines the reporting levels within an organisation and provides a hierarchy of formal positions

c) LEADING: - ( Directing, supervising, overseeing, guiding, motivating). This entails directing, influencing and motivating the task related activities and efforts of organisational members to achieve set goals of an organisation.

The leadership function is distinct from planning in that it involves dealing with people. It should be borne in mind that leading function necessarily follows after organising. Managers are given authority and responsibility as well as confirmation of their levels in the company through that organisation function. It should therefore follow that you cannot effectively lead without knowing:

Who to lead? Where you belong in terms of the various departments of the organisation. How much authority is bestowed upon you, and finally. Who you report to in the organisational hierarchy.

d) CONTROLLING :- (Monitoring, Evaluating, Checking, Making sure). This process is the ultimate management function and it evaluates the efficiency and effectiveness of the other management functions. The control function is concerned with ensuring that the action s of the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s ŵeŵďeƌs does move the organisation towards its stated goals.

It is sometimes referred to as the process of monitoring progress towards achievement of goals. The controlling function entails:-  Establishing standards of performance and how it will be measured  Measuring current performance  Comparing actual with standard performance, and  Taking corrective action where deviations from stated goals are detected.

Through the control function, the manager keeps the organisation on its chosen track through timorously investigating and correcting and deviations from set standards

2. Explain three ways of classifying managers {20}

a) Managers can be classified by management levels were we have:-

 First line managers also known as operations managers or just line managers. These are responsible for the work of employees only and as such do not supervise any managers. They are the lowest management level in the organisational hierarchy, being directly responsible for the supervision of non-managerial staff. First line ŵaŶageƌs͛ aĐtiǀities tend to focus mainly on the day to day running of the organisation and they focus on the activities of sub-units such as departments and sections thereof.

Typical titles of first line managers are: foreman, supervisor, operations managers etc

iii. Liaison: - In the liaison role, managers must learn to work with everyone both within and outside the organisation who can help them achieve their goals. This role necessitates establishing networks of contacts and creating obligations among the people with whom the manager interacts. In this instance, managers also act as a contact person and his activities include those of writing correspondences, replying customer enquiries, etc. Thus liaison role enables the manager to win support for his/her proposal.

b) INFORMATIONAL ROLES

These ƌelate to the ŵaŶageƌ͛s tasks of ƌeĐeiǀiŶg aŶd ĐoŵŵuŶiĐatiŶg iŶfoƌŵ atioŶ. MaŶageƌs Ŷeed iŶfoƌŵatioŶ to make quality and informed decisions.

Similarly other people, both within and outside the organisation rely on information received from and / or transmitted through the manager. Mintzberg identifies the following three informational roles that managers have to undertake:-

i. Monitor: - Managers are constantly and actively seeking for information from both inside and outside the organisation that may be useful to the organisation. They establish a network of contacts through which they get information. In addition they ask subordinates for information where the subordinates are more informed.

Where possible, they also obtain information from unsolicited sources. It is because of this role, therefore that managers are often said to be the most informed people in an organisation

ii. Disseminator: - Here managers will be responsible for contributing important information to subordinates. The manager has to make sure that subordinates have all the information to ensure that they carry out their duties efficiently and effectively. This role may also be thought of as a communication role, especially combined with the role of monitor.

iii. Spokesperson: - Managers in this instance are responsible for transmitting information to the outside world. Literally put, managers are said to be the organisation public relations managers (officers). Typical activities include, among other things, replying letters from customers, giving speeches on behalf of the organisation etc.

c) DECISIONAL ROLES

According to Mintzberg, information is the basic input for managerial decision-making. The following are four decisional roles:-

i. Entrepreneur: - Managers try to improve performance of their sub-units as if they are the actual entrepreneurs. Examples include situations when managers make decisions that ǁill ŵadžiŵise shaƌeholdeƌs͛ ǁealth aŶd add ǀalue to the organisation, thus, managers act as entrepreneurs whenever they act in the best interest of the providers of capital. They make decisions that will minimise costs and maximise returns.

ii. Disturbance Handler: - This is the role of problem-solving. In this case the manager is expected to take care of ͚stiĐkLJ͛ situatioŶs. Thus the ŵaŶageƌ is edžpeĐted to Đoŵe up ǁith solutioŶ s to diffiĐult situatioŶs. The ƌole of disturbance handler requires both the analytical and conceptual skills. Good examples of disturbance handlers (which the manager has to deal with) could be industrial actions (strikes), low performance, high employee turnover etc.

iii. Resource Allocator: - The role of the resource allocator entails all the activities that the manager undertakes to minimise revenue and minimise costs. It is primarily concerned with the activities relating to allocating resources (human physical or otherwise) among the organisational members.

For instance, a manager is expected to make decisions, say, on the best way of utilising resources such as that the revenue of the organisation reaches the desired targets.

iv. Negotiator: - As negotiators, managers spend a lot of time bargaining for a better deal for their sub-units or for the organisation as a whole.

Typical examples include bargaining with workers for salary increases, bargaining with suppliers for cheaper materials etc. Thus, negotiating requires the application of various managerial skills such as interpersonal, diagnostic, technical, etc

4. Identify five (5) basic management skills and explain the major sources of these skills. Do managers at all levels require these skills? Explain giving examples. {20}

In order to effectively and efficiently undertake their management functions, managers need to have certain unique abilities called managerial skills. Five managerial skills are (a) Technical, (b) interpersonal (or Human), (c) Conceptual, (d) Diagnostic, and (e) Analytical

(a) Technical Skills: - These are skills necessary to accomplish specialised activities. They incorporate the ability to use procedures, techniques and knowledge of a specialised field. For instance Doctors, accountants, and even musicians all have technical skills in their respective fields. First line managers have to possess technical skills as they are responsible for the day to day running of the organisation. This requires knowledge of procedures, techniques and skills in their specific areas of responsibility.

(b) Interpersonal or Human Skills. At first line level, where managers directly supervise subordinates, they are expected to have the ability to work with, understand, and motivate other people (subordinates) as individuals or in groups. They spend considerable time interacting with people not only inside but also outside the organisation.

This group of abilities is often referred to as interpersonal or human skills and communication skills also form part of these. IŶteƌpeƌsoŶal skills Đould ďe liŶked to MiŶtzďeƌg͛s ŵaŶageƌial ƌoles.

(c) Conceptual Skills: - These refer to the ability to co-ordinate and integrate all of the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s iŶteƌests aŶd activities. It entails the ability to see the organisation as a whole, understand how its component parts interrelate and anticipate how a change in one affects the whole.

Managers with a high level of conceptual skills have the mental capacity to understand various cause-and-effect relationships in the organisation and to view the organisation in a holistic manner.

For instance, a conceptual manager would, before making any decision pertaining to his department or function, ascertain the effect of such a course of action on the operations of the whole organisation. Conceptual skills are especially important at the higher level of management i.e. General Managers, Chief Executives and others. They are a requisite at the higher echelons of the management hierarchy.

(d) Diagnostic Skills. An organisation could be facing problems e.g. in its operations. Managers must have the ability to diagnose them from their symptoms. For instance, a company could be faced with a spate of resignations. This would probably be a result of industrial relations problems within the organisation. Diagnostic skills enable the manager to be able to determine deep-rooted problems from symptoms and are necessary for effective problem-solving. Diagnostic skills are important at all levels of management but especially at the operational and tactical levels.

(e) Analytical skills. These are closely related to and complement diagnostic skills. They entail the ability to identify the key variables in a particular situation, see how they inter-relate and decide which ones should receive the most attention.

Analytical skills enables managers to determine the best possible strategies and select the most appropriate one for a particular situation. Thus, they help managers decide on the best course of action to solve problems identified by diagnostic skills. In some circles analytical skills are similar to decision-making skills, although analysing a problem may itself not amount to making any decision.

There are two main sources of managerial skills which are (1) education and (2) experience

5. Giǀe aŶ aĐĐouŶt of HeŶry Fayol’s ϭ4 priŶĐiples of ŵaŶageŵeŶt {ϮϬ}

Henry Fayol came up with 14 principles which can be represented by the following mnemonic ADDEC – SORIE – USSU.

ADDEC  Authority – Managers must give orders so that they can get things done. They need both formal and personal authority to carry out the tasks.  Discipline – Members of the organisation must abide by the rules and regulations governing them. Discipline results from good leadership, fair agreements etc.  Division of labour - Specialisation of functions will yield maximisation of efficiency in production e.g. in assembly lines.  Equity – Managers should be friendly and four to their subordinates  Centralisation – Managers should retain final responsibility in decision-making, but should also give subordinates sufficient authority to carry out assigned tasks.

He drew distinctions between the various busiŶess opeƌatioŶs aŶd ŵaiŶtaiŶed that ͚ ǁith scientific forecasting and pƌopeƌ ŵethods of ŵaŶageŵeŶt, satisfaĐtoƌLJ ƌesults ǁeƌe iŶeǀitaďle͛.

Fayol divided business operation into six interrelated activities:

(1) Technical – producing and manufacturing of products

(2) Commercial - buying raw materials and selling products

(3) Financial – acquiring and using capital

(4) Security – protecting employees and property.

(5) Accounting and

(6) Management

He was the pioneer of managerial functions of planning, organising, leading and controlling. He also came up with

the 14 principles of management – ADDEC SORIE USSU. (Refer to question 5).

c) THE BUREAUCRATIC THEORY ( ADVOCATED BY GERMAN SOCIOLOGIST CALLED MAX WEBER)

He believed that any goal-oriented organisation consisted of thousands of individuals and as such there was need to carefully regulate and control their activities.

His emphasis was therefore on the bureaucratic organisation which entails.  Strict adherence to the hierarchy and formal communication lines  Strictly defined regulations or a consistent set of abstract rules  Rationally set out objectives and activities with a clearly set out division of labour  Technical competence and merit-based performance evaluation  Making activities and procedures more predictable and standardised to make for easier control and uniformity of performance.  Impersonal conduct of business. Management should maintain appropriate social distance with their subordinates.

The major contributions of the bureaucratic school placed emphasis on the division of labour, reliance on rules, a hierarchy of authority and employment based on technical competence which may improve efficiency

However the major weaknesses of the bureaucratic school lay in the resultant lack of innovation and excessive reliance on formal, impersonal channels which tend to reduce efficiency in decision-making

(ii) THE BEHAVIOURAL MANAGEMENT THEORIES The behavioural school was pioneered by a group of scholars trained is psychology and other social science disciplines who felt that the classical approaches did not yield efficiency and harmony at workplaces. It is split into two main branches which are (1) the Human Relations Movement and (2) The Behavioural Science Approach.

a) THE HUMAN RELATIONS MOVEMENT (BY ELTON MAYO AND THE HAWTHORNE EXPERIMENTS).

This movement arose out of the need to discover the social and psychological factors that would create effective human relations. It followed the experiments conducted at the Western Electric Company which have come to be kŶoǁŶ as ͚ The HaǁthoƌŶe Studies.

Elton Mayo concluded that – through his studies – a complex chain of attitudes had influenced the productivity variations.

Researchers discovered that workers would work harder if they were given special attention and management were concerned with their welfare.

The major contribution of the Human relations approach was that, it highlighted the fact that production is not just an engineering problem as contented by Fredrick Taylor, but was a social problem as well. In addition, their researches laid the foundation for further studies in group dynamics and the effect of group pressure, values and norms on productivity. Great emphasis was now put on management training in human relations skills as opposed to technical skills.

Their limitations however relate to the design and analysis of the studies and experiments

b) THE BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCE APPROACH

It should be noted that Mayo and his advocates used scientific methods in their studies. Later behavioural researchers, however, were more righteously trained in psychology, sociology, and anthropology and as such used ŵoƌe sophistiĐated ƌeseaƌĐh ŵethods. These Đaŵe to ďe kŶoǁŶ as ͚ ďehaǀioural sĐieŶtists͛ as opposed to the ͚the huŵaŶ relatioŶs theorists͛.

The behavioural scientists, (most notably, Professor Abraham Maslow, Fredrick Herzberg, Chris Argyris, Douglas McGregor, Rensis Liket, Victor Vroom and BF Skinner) believed in the ͚self -actualisation man concept͛ and a host of other concepts as a better explanation of human motivation. In particular, Maslow identified the hierarchy of needs which motivate man to exert effort towards achieving organisational goals. These ranges from the basic human needs called physical needs (e.g. sex, hunger, shelter, thirst etc) to the self-actualisation needs (being the needs to ƌealise oŶe͛s full poteŶtialͿ.

He stated that these needs can only be satisfied one after the other in a hierarchical order. Once people have satisfied their lower level needs, they are motivated by esteem (egoistic) needs as well as self-actualisation needs.

Most theorists in this grouping opposed some aspect of Maslow and made their own assertions, as the argued that not everyone goes predictably from one need level to the other. Thus, according to other theorists in the behavioural science, the more realistic model of human behaviour was one of the ͚the Đoŵpledž ŵaŶ ĐoŶĐept͛. The effective manager should be aware that not two people have the same set of needs and the manager has to address such needs differently

Their major contribution has been in shading light into the areas of human motivation, group behaviour, interpersonal relationship at work and the importance of work to the human beings. It says that managers must be sensitive to the needs of the workers.

(iii)THE QUANTITATIVE THEORIES (OPERATION RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCE) This approach tended to concentrate on the development of solutions to more complex problems. It is based on the mathematical modelling.

A model is a theoretical representation of a real life situation, or in this case, a real life problem. It shows the factors giving rise to the problem and their inter-relationship. Various alternative solutions to the problem are simulated and computers are used to determine the best solution. It also placed emphasis on the development of Management Information Systems (MIS).

The greatest contribution of the Quantitative theory was the use of computers to solve complex problems using modelling and simulation techniques.

The greatest limitation is that most managers feel that this management science places too much emphasis on complicated mathematical formulae which they may be unable to fully comprehend.

(iv) THE SYSTEMS APPROACH This appƌoaĐh offeƌs ŵoƌe iŶsights iŶto ŵaŶageŵeŶt. It ǀieǁs the ŵaŶageŵeŶt pƌoĐess as a ͚ sLJsteŵ͛

A system is an interrelated set of components functioning as a whole. The organisation is thus viewed as a system, consisting of inputs from the environment in the form of material, human and financial inputs. They may be shown diagrammatically as follows

INPUTS FROM THE ENVIRONMENT TRANSFORMATION OR PROCESSING OF INPUTS

OUTPUTS TO THE ENVIRONMENT

Financial Resources Physical Resources Human Resources Information Resources

Manufacturing Systems Technology Expertise

Products and Services Job opportunities Wealth Profit or loss Information output MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS Planning, organising, leading & controlling

Thus, the activity of each of the components of a system (called subsystems) has an effect on the activities of the other components. Management has to view an organisation as an open system – meaning a system that interacts

PLANNING

7. Define planning and logic of planning.

PLANNING – (Decision making, looking ahead). It is the deteƌŵiŶiŶg of oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s goals aŶd deĐidiŶg hoǁ ďes t to achieve them.

Planning Đould ďe thought of as the dLJŶaŵiĐ pƌoĐess of aŶalLJtiĐallLJ lookiŶg at the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s pƌeseŶt positioŶ ǁith a view to determine its future position

Managers think through their goals and actions in advance, that their actions are based on some method, plan or logic, rather than on a hunch. It is the basis by which:-

PLANS are the guides by which (1) the organisation obtains and commits the resources required to reach its

objectives; (2) members of the organisation carry on activities with the chosen objectives and procedures; and

(3) progress towards the objectives is monitored and measured so that corrective action can be taken if

progress is unsatisfactory.

8. What are the importance and benefits of planning?

a) Planning gives the organisation direction as it provides expected levels of performance – it gives the organisation an idea of where it is heading, what it has to achieve and how it will be accomplished. b) If objectives are clearly formulated, planning promotes co-operation among various departments or sub-units of organisations c) A manager is compelled by planning to look at the future, thus it encourages the proactive approach to management d) Morden technology advances can best be exploited if a formalised planning process exists i.e. the organisation is better prepared for such changes if it plans in the first instance. e) The increasing complexity of organisations necessitates planning i.e. the interdependence between various managerial functional areas and planning makes c-ordination easier f) Planning eŶsuƌes that aŶ oƌgaŶisatioŶ is ďetteƌ pƌepaƌed foƌ todaLJ͛s eǀeƌ ĐhaŶgiŶg eŶǀiƌoŶŵeŶt. g) Resources aimed at or to be committed towards achieving organisational goals can be set aside if a formalised planning system exists.

9. List the types of plans

a) Operational Plans These are predominantly short-term plans undertaken at the lower managerial levels and tend to concentrate on the fiƌŵ͛s ĐuƌƌeŶt sĐale of opeƌatioŶs. TheLJ aƌe soŵetiŵes Đalled ƌou tiŶe plaŶs ďeĐause theLJ ƌelate to the daLJ to daLJ running of the organisation

b) Tactical Plans These, on the other hand, are medium term plans undertaken by middle management and they focus on the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s ĐuƌƌeŶt sĐale opeƌatioŶs, ǁith paƌtiĐulaƌ eŵphasis oŶ effiĐieŶĐLJ iŶ ƌ esouƌĐe utilisatioŶ.

Typical examples in this category would be the budgets which tend to concentrate on how the organisation is sticking to certain set standards for example relating to expenditure.

c) Strategic / Corporate Plans These are long term ͞suƌǀiǀal͟ plans for the whole organisation undertaken by top management. They provide the ďasiĐ fƌaŵeǁoƌk foƌ all the otheƌ plaŶs alƌeadLJ disĐussed. Theiƌ ŵaiŶ foĐus is oŶ the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s futuƌe sĐale of operations, with the emphasis being on investments and divestments, mergers and acquisition, and all other issues peƌtaiŶiŶg to the edžpaŶsioŶ aŶd ĐoŶtƌaĐtioŶ of the fiƌŵ͛s sĐale of opeƌatioŶs.

There are also other two types of plans (1) Specific plans, and (2) Directional plans. i. Specific plans are plans that are formulated for a specific task ii. Directional plans provide a skeletal framework while according the manager some reasonable leeway as to how they are to formulate their plans

**10. What are the basic steps in the planning process?

1. Environmental assessment** – where the organisation wants to conduct its operations. Is the environment conducive? What does the environment has to offer. What out there needs doing? What are the opportunities and threats? PESTELG ANALYSIS, SWOT ANALYSIS AND PORTER’S FIVE FORCES.
2. Establishments of goals and objectives – These are targets of performance. What do we want? What are currently doing?
3. Establishment of action plans – Come up with action plans with clear deadlines and implementation timetables. This is what we will do to get what we want.
4. Allocation of resources – This is the alloĐatioŶ of oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s ƌesouƌĐes to eaĐh task ǁhiĐh Ŷ eeds to ďe doŶe. Do we have enough resources to achieve what we want? If not where else can we get other resources to fulfil the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s goals. Do ǁe haǀe the capacity of doing what we want done?
5. Implementation – Once the action plan has been formulated, it must be implemented or incorporated into the daily operations of the organisation
6. Control – as implementation proceeds, managers must check their progress at periodic intervals or critical stages 11. What are the barriers to effective planning and how the organisation can overcome them?

There are a number of factors that may limit the effectiveness of plans, these are:

a) Lack of Environmental Awareness: manager may not have sufficient knowledge about the organisation to embark on the planning process. Such information includes information on profitability, and more importantly, information on which resources to use for achieving organisational goals.

b) Lack of organisational Knowledge: This usuallLJ eŵaŶates fƌoŵ the ŵaŶageƌ͛s ǁho haǀe laĐk of ĐoŶfideŶ Đe iŶ theiƌ abilities, and have no knowledge about the organisation in terms of goals, sub-units etc.

c) Resistance to Change: ChaŶgiŶg the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s ĐuƌƌeŶt situa tion is one of the consequences of planning and some members may resent change. This tends to reduce the effectiveness of planning.

d) Time and Expense: Planning costs money and time, and sometimes sacrifices have to be made. Some members may be unwilling to make such sacrifices, preferring instead to tackle problems as they arise.

e) Lack of Knowledge of the Benefits from Planning: If organisational members are not enlightened on the benefits from planning they may not be keen to implement plans.

f) Lack of Involvement: If those who are supposed to implement the plans are not involved in the planning, they may not be enough information to enable effective planning.

g) Lack of Managerial Commitment or Support: it should be borne in mind that top managerial support is instrumental foe effective planning since it ensures that all the policy frameworks is set in place and that all the required resources are provided.

(1) ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS

(2) DETERMINING THE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES (Goal Formulation)

(3) ESTABLISH AN ACTION PLAN

(5) IMPLEMENTATION

(4) ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES

(6) FEEDBACK^ CONTROL

15. What factors influence the span of control? Factors that influence organising.

The following are factors that influence the span of control

a) The competence of both boss and subordinates: - Generally if the subordinates are more competent, then they will need less supervision, in which case the manager could afford a larger span. Conversely, if the manager is incompetent, then a smaller span would be more appropriate.

b) Similarity / Dissimilarity of work supervised: - If task performed by various subordinates are similar, then a larger span is manageable.

c) InĐideŶĐe of Neǁ Proďleŵs iŶ MaŶagers’ DepartŵeŶts: - If the manager is not likely to encounter any significant number of new problems in his department, then he would be able to handle a larger span.

d) Extent of Clear Operating Standards, Policies and Manuals: - Where clear policies and procedures are in place then a larger span would be more logical.

e) Geographical distance: - If functions entail a wide geographical coverage, then smaller span would be practical.

16. Define the terms: Authority, Responsibility, and Accountability? What are the sources of authority?

a) Authority refers to the scope and amount of discretion given to a person to perform a certain task or make a decision. It may also be referred to as the right to influence the behaviour of others. The organisational structure shows the hierarchy and authority derived from the positions.

b) Responsibility refers to the obligation to perform a particular task or the liability of a person to account for his/her aĐtioŶs. It ŵaLJ also ďe ƌefeƌƌed to as ͞ the duty͟ to carry out a particular task.

Unlike authority, responsibility cannot be wholly delegated; the manager maintains the ultimate responsibility for the performance of tasks.

c) Accountability refers to ͞aŶsǁeraďility͟ or the extent to which an individual is answerable to the results of his actions. It entails the credit for desirable results and taking the blame for unfavourable consequences. It is also used to refer to the obligation to report to superiors and it is associated with the scalar chain: the reporting levels, the subordinate remains accountable to the superior in that he has to report to him. Generally accountability of results rest with the manager.

The sources of authority are as follows: a) The top-down authority: - it is the authority conferred on the manager by virtue of his position in the organisational hierarchy.

b) Bottom-up authority: - It is the authority conferred on the leader by those he leads e.g. elected leaders has bottom- up authority conferred to them by those who elected him/her.

c) Rank Authority:- Authority originates from your rank in an organisation

d) Personal Authority /Charisma: - Some leaders acquire authority through their charisma, personal magnetism. Charismatic people can influence the behaviour of others in one way or the other.

e) Traditional Authority: - This emanates from tradition e.g. family elders have authority over their junior counterparts.

Authority may also be examined from two contrasting views, the classical and the acceptance view.

a) The Classical View: - The leader has ultimate, unquestionable authority, and the subordinate is compelled to obey. The leader issues commands and the subordinate obeys them without questions. b) The Acceptance View: - This view maintains that authority is on the basis of the influence. In this case the leader (manager) issues commands and the follower (subordinate) considers and decides either to accept or not

17. List the sources of power.

a) Reward power. It eŵaŶates fƌoŵ the iŶflueŶĐeƌ͛s aďilitLJ to ƌeǁaƌd the iŶflueŶĐe foƌ ĐaƌƌLJ iŶg out certain tasks. b) Coercive Power. It eŵaŶates fƌoŵ the leadeƌ͛s aďilitLJ to puŶish folloǁeƌs foƌ uŶdesiƌaďle ďehaǀiouƌ. c) Legitimate Power. It is the power acknowledged by the subordinate and may be referred to as formal power / authority. This power is derived from the organisational hierarchy. d) Expert Power. It arises from the perception that that the leader has some specialised skill / knowledge that the influence does not have. e) Referent Power. It emanates from the leadeƌ͛s ͞edžeŵplaƌLJ poǁeƌ͟ – his ability to set an example to the influences.

18. What is delegation and what are the reasons for delegation?

Delegation refers to the conferring (upon subordinates by managers) of power, authority, and responsibility to perform specific tasks and accountability of results. It goes down the scalar chain.

REASONS FOR DELEGATION

a) There are mental and physical limits to the workload of any individual or group. Because of this managers need to delegate some extra work they are authorised to do.

b) Managers need to pass routine/less important decisions down the line.

c) The increasing size and complexity of the organisation

19. What are the steps in the delegation process?

a) Establish Performance levels / Results Expected – Expected results should be clearly spelt out to the subordinate and should also be fully understood.

b) Assigning Tasks to subordinates – The tasks should be clear and the subordinates should agree to perform the tasks delegated to him/her.

c) Allocate Authority and Resources – These will be necessary for the accomplishment of the delegated tasks. A subordinate without authority and resources will be handicapped in his quest to perform the given tasks

d) Creating Accountability – After responsibility and authority to perform tasks have been conferred on the subordinate, there is still need to allocate accountability. Here the superior passed accountability for results to the subordinates, but still retains the overall accountability for the same results to his superiors.

20. What are the Classical Principles of delegation?

Classical theorists, most notably Henry Fayol, have recommended the following for effective delegation. a) Authority, responsibility, and accountability must be properly balanced within the organisation: subordinates must be given both authority (power) and responsibility (accountability).

b) Responsibility cannot be wholly delegated: superior retains overall responsibility for the performance of the tasks.

c) Subordinates must be given sufficient authority to enable him to achieve the required results.

d) Once authority is delegated, the subordinate cannot be expected to refer decisions back up the chain, provided the decision is within the prescribed authority limits.

e) A scalar chain must be clearly specified i.e. who holds what authority and who is account to who?

f) There must be unity of command. Each individual must report to only one boss to avoid conflict from dual command.

24. Discus the three approaches to leadership

The three approaches to leadership are (1) Trait Approach, (2) Behavioural Approach, and (3) The contingency Approach.

(i) THE TRAIT APPROACH

This theory seeks to separate certain characteristics that separate effective from ineffective managers. The proponents of this theory identified the following as some of the unique characteristics.

a) Physical Characteristics. These include physical appearance, weight, height, age etc. b) Capacity. Alertness, verbal facility, originality, judgement, aptitude, personal charisma, character c) Achievements. Scholarship, knowledge, athletic accomplishments d) Participation. Activity, sociability, cooperation, adaptability, humour. e) Status. Socioeconomic position, popularity. f) Drive. Leaders exhibit a high effort level. They have a relatively high desire for achievement; they are ambitious; they have a lot of energy; they are tirelessly persistent in their activities; and they show initiatives. g) Desire to lead. Leaders have a strong desire to influence and lead others. They demonstrate the willingness to take responsibility. h) Honesty and integrity. Leaders should build trusting relationships between themselves and followers by being truthful or non-deceitful and showing high consistency between word and deed. i) Self-confidence****. Followers look to leaders for an absence of self doubt. Leaders therefore, need to show self- confidence in order to convince followers of the rightness of their goals and decisions. j) Intelligence. Leaders need to be intelligent enough to gather, synthesise, and interpret large amounts of information, and they need to be able to create visions, solve problems, and make correct decisions. k) Job-relevant knowledge. Effective leaders have a high degree of knowledge about the company, industry, and technical matters. In-depth knowledge allows leaders to make well-informed decisions and understand the implications of those decisions l) Extraversion. Leaders are energetic, lively people. They are sociable, assertive, and rarely silent or withdrawn.

Thus, these theorists sought to judge the effectiveness of leadership be personal characteristics of the leader.

This theory has failed to prove itself practically, in real life situations as there are no distinct traits that aptly describe the effectiveness of a leader.

(ii) THE BEHAVIOURAL APPROACH.

Following the failure of the trait approach to explain how characteristics of a leader could influence the effectiveness of leadership new approaches were developed.

This approach shifted emphasis to the behavioural characteristics of the effective leader i.e. what effective leaders did. This included analysis of how the leader motivated and guided subordinates.

The major advantage of behaviours over traits was that they could be leaƌŶt i.e. ǁith adeƋuate tƌaiŶiŶg, the leadeƌ͛s behaviour could be altered. The researchers analysed two aspects of leadership behaviours. a) Leadership Function: - It is the term used to analyse the behaviour of a manager in terms of whether it is ͞task- related͟ (problem-solving) or ͞group ŵaiŶteŶaŶĐe͟ (social function. An effective leader is the one who is able to blend these two successfully. b) Leadership Style: - These are the various behaviour patterns favoured by leaders during the process of directing and influencing subordinates. Manager with task-oriented style closely supervise subordinates to make sure that the tasks assigned to them are carried out.

(iii) THE CONTINGENCY APPROACH

There are various situational factors (variables) which causes one leadership style to be more effective than another. Put differently, leaders are the product of given situations i.e. leadership is strongly is strongly influenced by the situation from which the leader emerges and in which he operates.

The following factors were identified a) Leadership personality and experience. These include past experience, expectations and standard of education. For example, a manager who has been successful in exercising little supervision is bound to adopt a more employee-oriented approach than his other counterparts – who may have proved that close control is more effective and hence opt for a more task-oriented approach.

b) Expectations and Behaviour of superiors. This emanates from the fact that superiors are usually the ones to review the leadeƌs͛ peƌfoƌŵaŶĐe. Use of ƌeǁaƌd poǁeƌ ďLJ supeƌioƌs iŵplies th at theLJ ĐaŶ iŶflueŶĐe the leadership behaviour of subordinates referent power on the part of the superiors may also have a bearing on suďoƌdiŶate͛s leadeƌship stLJle.

c) Expectations, characteristics and behaviour of subordinates. These eŶtail the suďoƌdiŶates͛ skills, tƌaiŶiŶg, attitudes, confidence, degree of self-motivation, desire for responsible tasks, preferable leadership styles i.e. close supervision, autonomy etc. The appropriateness of a particular leadership style depends on the above factors.

d) Task Requirements. The ŵaŶageƌ͛s leadeƌship stLJle also hiŶges oŶ the joď ƌespoŶsiďi lities of the suďoƌdiŶates. The task requiring precise instructions, for example, would tend to warrant a task-oriented approach than tasks with lesser operating procedures - this is also called the task structure and a task requiring precise instructions is also called a highly structured task.

e) Organisational Culture and Policies. Culture refers to the general pattern of behaviour, shared beliefs, and values that organisational members have in common. It establishes implied rules for the way people should behave. It therefore follows that the organisational culture and policies do influence the leadership style a leader would adopt.

f) Expectations and behaviour of peers. Peers are colleagues at the same echelons (ranks) with the leader and they interact in meetings and exchange ideas (including those on leadership styles). Peer pressure may influence a particular leader to follow the leadership styles advocated by peers.

25. Discus McGregor Theory X and Y.

This theory concentrates on the argument that leadership behaviour depends on how the manager views subordinates. MĐGƌegoƌ͛s ƌeseaƌĐh ĐulŵiŶated iŶto the folloǁiŶg th eories:

a) Theory X The manager is tough, autocratic and supports tight controls with punishment-reward systems. He believes that the human being is lazy by nature (the dislike work) and has to be pushed to attain high levels of production. It maintains that human beings dislike and avoids responsibility and only seeks authority.

Douglas MĐGƌegoƌ͛s theoƌLJ is soŵetiŵes ƌefeƌƌed to as the pessiŵistiĐ oƌ Ŷegatiǀe ŵaŶ. It theƌefoƌe folloǁs that proponents of this theory will inevitably advocate the task-oriented leadership style.

b) Theory Y According to McGregor, this is the positive and optimistic view of man. Man is assumed to derive intrinsic motivation from work and is self-sufficient. In addition, man is also presumed to love challenging and responsible tasks.

26. What are the core leadership skills?

There are certain skills that are considered necessary for effective leadership. Five such skills are:-

a) Empowerment. This refers to the ability to share power with subordinates. Effective managers have the ability to delegate to subordinates and make them feel important.

b) Vision. The foresight, ability to look ahead, give subordinates strategic direction.

c) Value Congruency. The ability to reconcile values, say those of the organisation and those of employees. It entails fostering goal congruency – finding a common link between contradicting goals.

d) Intuition. This refers to the sixth sense – the ability to sense problem from symptoms. It is important for problem solving as well as strategic planning.

e) Self-understanding. It ƌelates to the aďilitLJ to ĐoŵpƌeheŶd oŶe͛s stƌeŶgths aŶd ǁeakŶesses. It involves critical eǀaluatioŶ of oŶe͛s self aŶd helps of foƌŵulatiŶg stƌategies th at ŵake the ŵost of stƌeŶgths aŶd ŵiŶiŵise Ŷegatiǀe impact of weaknesses.

29. State the stages in the problem finding process.

A problem arises when an actual state of affairs differs from a desired state of affairs.

The problem finding process is often informal and intuitive.

a) A deviation from past experience. This ŵeaŶs that a pƌeǀious patteƌŶ of peƌfoƌŵaŶĐe iŶ the oƌgaŶisatioŶ has ďeeŶ ďƌokeŶ e.g. a fall iŶ the LJeaƌ͛s sales figure, rising expenses, employee turnover has risen etc. Such events signal to the manager that a problem has developed.

b) A deviation from a set plan This ŵeaŶs that the ŵaŶageƌ͛s pƌojeĐtioŶs oƌ edžpeĐtatioŶs aƌe Ŷot ďeiŶg ŵ et e.g. profit levels are lower than anticipated. These events tell the manager that something must be done to get the plan back on course.

c) Other people Other people often bring problems to the manager. Customer complaints: higher level managers set new peƌfoƌŵaŶĐe staŶdaƌds foƌ the ŵaŶageƌ͛s depaƌtŵeŶt etĐ.

d) The performance of competitors These can also create problem solving situations e.g. when competitors develop new processes or improvements in operating procedures, the manager may have to re-evaluate the processes or procedures in his or her own organisation.

30. What is rational model of decision making? What are the steps in the rational problem solving process?

Decision making is about solving problems, and some theorists maintain that problem solving is not haphazard but entails that there are certain organised and systematic steps.

This model is based on the following assumptions:- i. That all alternative ways of solving a given problem can be identified and that consequences of each course of action can be readily ascertained. ii. That there is a clearly defined criterion for determining the best course of action from among the various alternatives. iii. And that managers act rationally – e.g. they are willing and capable of identifying more than one way of solving a given problem

THE DIAGRAM BELOW SHOWS THE STEPS IN THE RATIONAL PROBLEM SOLVING PROCESS

(STEP 1)

INVESTIGATE THE SITUATION a) Define the problem b) Identify the decision objective c) Diagnose cause

(STEP 2)

DEVELOP ALTERNATIVES a) Seek creative alternatives by brainstorming b) Do not analyse as yet

(STEP 3)

EVALUATE ALTERNATIVES AND SELECT THE BEST ONE a) Evaluate all alternatives b) Select the best alternative

(STEP 4)

IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITOR (FOLLOW-UP) a) Plan implementation b) Implement plan c) Monitor implementation plan and make necessary adjustments (control).

STEP 1: INVESTIGATE THE SITUATION

A thorough investigation has three aspects.

a) Define the problem. Care should be taken in identifying and defining the problem. This problem should be defined in terms of organisational goals and objectives that are being hindered and this could also be an effective way of avoiding addressing symptoms than the actual problem. b) Identification of decision objectives. What would constitute an effective solution? What would be the objective of the decision, in the light of the problem? If a solution enables the manager to achieve organisational objectives, it is a successful one. c) Diagnose the causes. A solid understanding of all the sources of the problem is necessary as it develops a set of appropriate actions. Managers may ask a number of questions e.g. (1) what changes inside and outside the organisation may have contributed to the problem? (2) What or which people are most involved with the problem situation? (3) Do they have insights or perceptive that may clarify the problem? (4) Does their actions contribute to the problem?

STEP 2: DEVELOP ALTERNATIVES This is a simple stage with programmed decisions but not so with non-programmed especially if they are time consuming. Use may be made of idea-generating techniques, most notably brainstorming.

No evaluation of alternatives is necessary as yet at this point, as emphasis is on developing alternative ways of solving the problem only.

STEP 3: EVALUATE THE ALTERNATIVES AND SELECT THE BEST ONE

Managers should, for each alternative, look at o Its feasibility o Whether it is satisfactory and also its consequences. o Some cost-benefit analysis (CBA) may also help make best decision. o The best decision is based on available resources of time and information and imperfect judgement.

STEP 4: IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING (FOLLOW-UP) This is the final stage and entails implementation of the chosen course of action (best alternative) monitoring and where necessary making corrective actions.

One may also view this as the control mechanism for decision making and problem solving

Has the solution (alternative) chosen solved the problem? If not, it may be necessary to go back to the drawing board.

CONTROL

31. Define control. Why is it necessary?

CONTROLLING :- (Monitoring, Evaluating, Checking, Making sure). This process is the ultimate management function and it evaluates the efficiency and effectiveness of the other management functions. The control function is concerned with ensuring that the aĐtioŶs of the oƌgaŶisatioŶ͛s ŵeŵďeƌs do ŵoǀe the oƌgaŶisatioŶ toǁaƌds it s stated goals.

It is sometimes referred to as the process of monitoring progress towards achievement of goals. The controlling function entails:-  Establishing standards of performance and how it will be measured  Measuring current performance  Comparing actual with standard performance, and  Taking corrective action where deviations from stated goals are detected.

Through the control function, the manager keeps the organisation on its chosen track through timorously investigating and correcting and deviations from set standards