manager tasks in an organization

sidra Qayyum

manager tasks in an organization

sidra Qayyum

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Managing is one of the most important tasks in all companies despite their type, size, market or industry. You as an entrepreneur will also need to practice management

Marketing manager task in organization Managing is one of the most important tasks in all companies despite their type, size, market or industry. You as an entrepreneur will also need to practice management Planning Planning is the key management function of any extension worker. It is the process of determining in advance what should be accomplished, when, by whom, how, and at what cost. Regardless of whether it is planning long-term program priorities or planning a two-hour meeting, the planning aspect of management is the major contributor to success and productivity. Stated simply, "If you don't know where you are going, then you won't know when you have arrived!" Planning is the process of determining the organization's goals and objectives and making the provisions for their achievement. It involves choosing a course of action from available alternatives. Planning is the process of determining organizational aims, developing premises about the current environment, selecting the course of action, initiating activities required to transform plans into action, and evaluating the outcome. The types of planning that managers engage in will depend on their level in the organization and on the size and type of the organization. Generally there are four major types of planning exercises: strategic, tactical, contingency, and managerial. Strategic planning involves determining organizational goals and how to achieve them. This usually occurs at the top management level. Tactical planning is concerned with implementing the strategic plans and involves middle and lower management. Contingency planning anticipates possible problems or changes that may occur in the future and prepares to deal with them effectively as they arise (Marshall, 1992). Managerial planning is usually considered as microlevel planning. It helps in combining resources to fulfil the overall objectives of the extension organization. Long-Range Planning Long-range planning is vitally important in that it focuses attention on crucial future issues which are vitally important to the organization. It involves studying societal trends and issues, surveying current and anticipated learners' needs, and being aware of long-term research directions and changes in technology. Many extension workers may think that such management is beyond their level of authority, control, or involvement. They may feel that such management is the prerogative of the director, the deputy minister, or the president. However, while senior levels of management must be involved, those who implement the objectives resulting from long-range planning should also be involved. Strategic Planning Strategic planning has been defined as that which has to do with determining the basic objectives of an organization and allocating resources to their accomplishment. A strategy determines the direction in which an organization needs to move to fulfil its mission. A strategic plan acts as a road map for carrying out the strategy and achieving long-term results. Occasionally a large gap exists between the strategic plan and real results. To boost organizational performance, people must be a key part of the strategy. A stronger, more capable and efficient organization can arise by defining how its members can support the overall strategy. Decision making Closely related to both strategic and managerial planning is the process of decision making. Decisions need to be made wisely under varying circumstances with different amounts of knowledge about alternatives and consequences. Decisions are concerned with the future and may be made under conditions of certainty, conditions of risk, or conditions of uncertainty. Under conditions of certainty, managers have sufficient or complete information and know exactly what the outcome of their decision will be. Managers are usually faced with a less certain environment. They may, however, know the probabilities and possible outcomes of their decisions, even though they cannot guarantee which particular outcome will actually occur. In such cases, there is a risk associated with the decision and there is a possibility of an adverse outcome. Most managerial decisions involve varying degrees of uncertainty. This is a key part of a manager's activities. They must decide what goals or opportunities will be pursued, what resources are available, and who will perform designated tasks. Decision making, in this context, is more than making up your mind. It consists of several steps: Step 1: Identifying and defining the problem Step 2: Developing various alternatives Step 3: Evaluating alternatives Step 4: Selecting an alternative Step 5: Implementing the alternative Step 6: Evaluating both the actual decision and the decision-making process Organizing Once strategic planning and management planning are implemented, organizing to get the job done is next. Organizing is the process of establishing formal relationships among people and resources in order to reach specific goals and objectives. The process, according to Marshall (1992), is based on five organizing principles: unity of command, span of control, delegation of authority, homogeneous assignment, and flexibility. The organizing process involves five steps: determining the tasks to be accomplished, subdividing major tasks into individual activities, assigning specific activities to individuals, providing necessary resources, and designing the organizational relationships needed. Staffing A key aspect of managing an adult and extension enterprise is to find the right people for the right jobs. Much of one's success as a manager is related to appropriate human resource planning, regardless of whether it is the hiring of a secretary or an instructor for a particular work-shop. The staffing function consists of several elements: 1. Human resource planning - how many staff resources, with what backgrounds, and at what cost can be considered for objectives implementation? 2. Recruitment - how does one proceed to find the person with the appropriate mix of education, experience, human relations skills, communications skills, and motivation? An important component of the recruitment process is writing the job description. The description must be exact and specific but sufficiently general to solicit interest among potential candidates. The nature of the job, scope, authority, and responsibilities form the core of the job description. Indications of preferred educational background as well as salary range must also be included. In times of high unemployment, one can always expect several dozen applications for any one opportunity for employment. This leads to the next task of staff selection. Directing At one time there was a management emphasis on "directing" in the directorial (autocratic) sense, but in recent times, the concept of directing has become more congruent with leading than with pushing. Thus today, directing is more related to leading and leadership styles. Leadership in this context means the process whereby a work environment is created in which people can do their best work and feel a proprietary interest in producing a quality product or service. Coordinating This important stage consists of interrelating the various parts of the work. It involves coordinating the various job roles and responsibilities of yourself and other staff, of your unit and other units within the same organization, and of your unit with the broader community. There are two forms of coordination: (1) vertical reporting to your supervisor(s) and to your staff, and (2) horizontal reporting to your colleagues and your management team. Adult and extension educators are usually involved in very complex organizations such as governments, colleges and universities, and boards of education. Because of the size of the organization, the increasing demands for public accountability, the many government regulations and policies, the increasing competition among providers of adult education opportunities, and the changes in technology, it is essential that the coordinating role be given top priority. Reporting This function, closely related to the coordinating function, consists of keeping those to whom you are responsible informed as to what is going on. It is essential that competent managers keep the information flowing, especially in this age when there is so much information being transmitted in so many forms. The reporting function is more than preparing an annual report, quoting statistics, and informing your staff of current developments. The reporting function is almost an evaluation function since it compares how you are doing with what you set out to do. It reviews your objectives and determines to what extent you are meeting your objectives. It consists of more than course numbers or annual statistics, but relates programme direction, policy changes, refinement in objectives, and changes in structures and priorities. It also uses the vertical and horizontal flows of information as presented previously. Budgeting This management function includes fiscal planning, accounting and revenue, and expense controls. Budgeting requires specific planning, a thorough understanding of objectives and future programmes, a sixth sense of economic conditions and realities, and a hunch for predicting the unpredictable. In many cases, an organization specifies the budget system being used. It could be based on (1) historical data (what you had last year with variations for the coming year); (2) 0-based data where the budget is created and justified on a line-item basis according to programmes and priorities; (3) an MBO system - management by objectives whereby specific objectives are funded; and (4) a PERT system - programme review and evaluation technique - where each programme is reviewed and assessed according to its contribution to specific goals. These are only a few of the budgeting systems in use. However, the key elements of any budget system consist of (1) determining what line items are necessary in terms of objectives; (2) in line with policies, determining the financial amounts for each line; (3) determining overhead, surplus, and/or profit margins; (4) determining anticipated revenue from fees, grants, gifts, contracts, etc.; (5) drafting a budget with specific amounts and justifications; and (6) discussing and making adjustments to produce a working budget. Conclusion Organizations constantly encounter forces driving them to change. Because change means doing something new and unknown, the natural reaction is to resist it. Extension programme managers must overcome this resistance and adopt innovative and efficient management techniques to remain high performers. They must improve their personal, team, and cultural management skills if they hope to adapt themselves to a changing world. Overwhelmingly, current management wisdom touts the goal of getting decisions made as low down in the organization as possible. The basic idea is that since people closest to the work are likely to know the most about solving problems in their areas, they should be involved in the decisions concerning those areas. An added benefit is that they are more motivated if they have some control over their work and over their own destinies.

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