s events to conform to plans.

8
Controlling function has the following sub functions. They are
Fixation of standards,
Recording,
Measurement,
Reporting,
Corrective action.

1.7. Levels of Management

In every company, there is a managerial hierarchy or chain of command,

which consists of several
levels of authority. The number of management levels may differ from
company to company. In a big
company the management levels may be classified into three categories viz.
Top management
Middle management
Supervisory or Operating management
In a very large enterprise the middle management levels may be subdivided
into upper middle
management and lower middle management

i) Top Management
Top management consists of the board of Directors and the chief
executives. Chief executives may
be an individual, for example, Managing Director, General Manager
etc or a group of chairman
and functional executive Directors. Board of directors is accountable to
the shareholders in the annual
general meetings of the company. The chief executive is concerned with the
overall management of the
companys operations. He maintains coordination among different
departments/sections of the
company. He also keeps the organizations in harmony with its external
environment.
Functions
To analyse and interpret changes in the external environment of
the company.
To establish long term corporate plans (goals, policies &
strategies) of the
company.
To formulate and approve the master budget and departmental
budgets
To design board organization structure
To appoint departmental heads and key executives
To provide overall direction and leadership to the company
To represent the company to the outside world
To decide the distribution of profits

ii) Middle Management

a) Intermediate Management
Intermediate / upper middle management comprises departmental
or divisional heads. For
example, Marketing Manager, Production Manager, etc It is also
known as departmental or
functional Management. Each divisional or departmental heads are the
overall incharge of their
respective division/department. He performs the usual managerial functions
of planning, organizing,
staffing, directing, and controlling in relation to one department.
b) Lower middle Management
Lower middle management levels consist of sectional heads. For
example, plant manager,
sales manager, branch manager etc These executives serve as a link
between intermediate or top
management and the operating management.
Functions of Middle Management
To interpret and explain the plans and policies formulated by top
management
To monitor and control the operating performance.
To train, motivate and develop supervisory personnel
To lay down rules and regulations to be followed by supervisory
personnel
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Top
Management

Intermediate
Management/UpperMiddle Management

Lower-Middle
Management
Operating
Management/
Supervisory
Management
Rank and file
work force

Levels of Management
iii) Supervisory/Operating Management
This is the lowest or first level of management in an organization. It
consists of supervisors,
foremen, sales officers, accounts officer, purchase officer etc They
maintain close contacts with the
ranks and white colour workers and supervise day to day operations.
They serve as the channel of

communication between management and the workforce. They are

concerned with the mechanics of
jobs.

Functions

To plan day to day production within goals laid down by higher

officials
To assign jobs to workers and to make arrangements for their
training and
development
Board of
Directors
Managing
Director
Marketing
Manager
Production
Manager
Finance
Manager
Personnel
Manager
Branch
Managers
Plant
Superintendent
Chief
Account
Office
Manager
Sales officer
Foremen or
Supervisors
Accounts or
finance officer
Personnel
officer
Salesmen Workers Clerks Clerks

11
To issue orders and instructions
To supervise and control workers operations and to maintain
personal contact
with them
To arrange materials and tools and to maintain machinery
To advise and assist workers by explaining work procedures,
solving their
problems
To maintain discipline and good human relations among workers

To report feedback information and workers problems to the higher

authorities.

1.8. Skills of Managers

By managerial skills, we mean the skills or qualities desired in managers, the
possession of
which would enable to act as practicing managers. Following three broad
types of managerial skills are
very essential for managers.
Technical skills
Human skill or Behavioral skills
Conceptual skills

i) Technical Skills

Technical skills refer to the skill and knowledge, which is required

for performing an
operational activity, in the best manner. i.e., technical skill might be
termed as technical expertise.
Technical skill is an imperative skill for managers at the lower level of
management; because it
is actually these people who guide and supervise work operators under their
subordination. For
example, mechanics work with tools, and their supervisors should have the
ability to teach them how to
use these tools. Similarly, the teacher, who, before, imparting teaching to
pupils in a particular
discipline, must be an expert in that discipline.
Technical skill is also required in managers at upper and middle
levels of management.
Managers at these levels do the fundamental planning for
operational work leaving the detailed day
to day operational plans to be made by the supervisory level.

ii) Human Skills

The basic responsibility of every manager is to get things done by others. In
this process,
managers need human skills. Human skills refer to those abilities,
which are needed by the manager to
effectively deal with subordinates. To manage, he has to understand
their needs, interests and values.
He interacts with them, guides, directs, leads, and motivates them.
In this regard, he is expected to
12
know general tendencies of human behaviour and factors influencing it. By
using human skills, he may
establish good rapport, warmth relationships and conductive interpersonal
relations with his
subordinates. It is needed for providing dynamic and effective leadership and
building a team spirit

among employees.
Since, managers at all levels in the enterprise are supposed to deal
with human beings in a
subordinate position; all managers from the top to the lowest levels
in the management hierarchy
equally need human skill.

iii) Conceptual skills

Conceptual skill comprise the ability to see the whole organization and the
inter relationships
between its parts. These skills refer to the ability to visualize the
entire picture or to consider a
situation in its totality. Such skills help the manager to conceptualize the
environment, to analyse the
forces working in a situation and to take a broad and farsighted view of the
organization. Conceptual
skills also include the competence to understand a problem in all its aspects
to use original thinking in
solving the problem. Such competence is necessary for rational decisionmaking.
Conceptual skill is imperative for top management level, necessary
for the middle
management and desirable for the lower level of management.
Thus, Technical skills deal with jobs, Human skill with persons and
Conceptual skills with ideas.
These types of skills are interrelated. The relative importance of these skills
may differ at various levels
in the organization hierarchy. Following figure is clearly explained the
importance of skills required at
various levels of management.
Top
Management
Middle
Management
Operating
Management
MANAGERIAL SKILLS AT VARAIOUS LEVELS OF MANAGEMENT

Conceptual Skill
Human Skill
Technical Skill
13
1.9. Role of Managers
The job of a modern manager is very complex and multi-dimensional.
Mintzberg has identified ten
roles of a manager which are grouped into three categories viz.,
Interpersonal Roles
Figure head

 Leader
Liaison
Informational Roles
Monitor
Disseminator
Spokesman
Decisional Roles
Entrepreneur
Disturbance handler
Resource allocator
Negotiator
1. Figure head
In this role a manager performs symbolic duties required by the
status of his office. Making
speeches, bestowing honours, welcoming official visitors, distributing gifts to
retiring employees are
examples of such ceremonial and social duties.
2. Leader
This role defines the manager relationship with his own
subordinates. The manager sets an
example, legitimizes the power of subordinates and brings their needs in
accord with those of his
organization.
3. Liaison
It describes a managers relationship with the outsiders. A manager
maintain mutually
beneficial relation with other organizations, governments, industry groups,
etc
4. Monitor
It implies seeking and receiving information about his organization
and external events. An
example is picking up rumors about his organization.
14
5. Disseminator
It involves transmitting information and judgments to the members
of the organization. The
information relates to internal operations and the external
environment. A manager calling a staff
meeting after a business trip is an example of such a role.
6. Spokesman
In this role, a manager speaks for his organization. He lobbies and
defends his enterprise. A
manager addressing the trade union is an example.
7. Entrepreneur
It involves initiating change or acting as a change agent. For
example, a manager decides to

launch a feasibility study for setting up a new plant.

8. Disturbance Handler
This refers to taking charge when the organization faces a problem
or crisis. For example, a
strike, a feud between subordinates loss of an important customer. A
manager handles conflicts,
complaints and competitive actions.
9. Resource allocator
In this role a manager approves budgets and schedules, sets
priorities and distributes
resources.
10. Negotiator
As a negotiator, a manager bargain with suppliers, dealers, trade
union, agents, etcFor
example, the manager may negotiate with the union leaders regarding strike
issues.

1.10. Evolution of Management Thought

To get proper and balanced perspective of theory and practice of
management all developments
taking place since the beginning of the 20th century may be placed under
three main categories. They are
as follows:
Classical or traditional Management approach
Behavioral or neo-classical approach
Modern approach to management
1.10.1. Classical or traditional Management approach
The classical approach to management is one of the oldest and most
popular, known as the
traditional or universal process. It is based on the assumption that the
objective of an organization may
vary from one to another but the management of all organizations requires
similar management process.
15
It has its roots in the basic concepts of division of labour and
specialization. This approach consists
mainly of scientific management developed by F.W.Taylor,
administrative theory of management by
Henry Fayol and bureaucratic organization by Max Weber.
1.10.1.1. Theory of Scientific Management
Though scientific management theory is based on the contributions of many
scholars and
practitioners like Fredrick Winslow Taylor, Henry Gantt, Frank Gilbrith,
Emerson and Carl Berth, etc.
But F.W.Taylor has given a concrete shape to the theory of scientific
management.

Tailors Theory of Scientific Management

F.W.Taylor (1856 1915) is known as the father of Scientific

Management. He joined as a
mechanic at midvale steel company in U.S.A at 1878. He became chief
engineer in the year 1884 in the
same company. During his career spanning a period of 26 years, he
conducted a series of experiments in
three companies: Midvale Steel, Simonds Rolling Machine and Bethlehem
steel companies. While