[Business Management]

[COBMA1]

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Week 3: Lesson 5
Introduction
Managerial Tasks and Management theory and practice

LEARNING UNIT OBJECTIVES

• Define the term ‘management’ .
• Discuss the evolution of management thought in the African context.
• Explain the dimensions of modern African management thought.
• Discuss the factors that influence the nature of management in Africa.
• Explain the importance and role of management in the business context.
• Analyze the different levels of management.
• Analyze the various skills required at managerial level in the southern
African context.
 What will be covered
in today’s lesson?
Management
Week 3 Different levels of
Lesson 5 management
Importance and role of
management
Factors that influence the nature
of management in Africa

Dimensions of modern African

management
Identify the level of
management
• Supervisor
• Marketing manager
• CEO
• President
• Chief sales officer
• Sales manager
• Clerk
• Branche Manager
• Finance manager
 Answer:
1. Supervisor 1. Lower management
2. Marketing manager 2. Middle management
3. CEO 3. Top management
4. President 4. Top management
5. Chief sales officer 5. Top management
6. Sales manager 6. Middle management
7. Clerk 7. Lower management
8. Branche Manager 8. Middle management
9. Finance manager 9. Middle management
Manager roles
1. Informational roles
 Monitors perform duties such as seeking and receiving information from different sources.
 Disseminators perform duties such as passing useful information to others within the organisation. This can be done by sending emails.
 Spokespeople perform duties such as transmitting information to others outside the organisation. This can be done through radio or TV
interviews.
2. Interpersonal roles
• Figureheads perform ceremonial duties such as greeting visitors, attending charity events and signing new contracts.
• Leaders perform duties such as directing, training, motivating and counselling subordinates.
• Liaison perform duties such as creating and maintaining information links inside and outside the organisation.
3. Decisional role
 Entrepreneurs perform duties such as initiating projects that will result in improvements, encourage innovation within the organisation,
and select and implement the most innovative ideas.
 Disturbance handlers perform duties such as taking corrective action when conflict or crises arises.
 Negotiators perform duties such as negotiations with unions and negotiating better contracts for the organisation.
 Resource allocators set priorities and decide who is given what resources.
 Category Role

Decisional 1.1 This role requires that managers to encourage and initiate
innovation and creativity within the organization that may benefit
the organization.

Practice 1.2. This role requires that managers to find solutions to problems
such as members of the organisation going on strike.

questio
1.3. This role requires managers to make decisions using the
organization’s resources the best way.
1.4 This role requires managers to be rely on their skills to get a
better price for raw materials required for their products.

n Informational 1.5 This role requires that managers continuously scan the
environment to see if there is any new information that may affect
the organisation

1.6 This role requires that managers share important information

with people in and outside the organisation through emails,
newsletters, press statements and websites, among other
communication channels

1.7 This role requires managers to answer questions or share

information with different people about the organisation
 Answer:

Category Role
1.1 Entrepreneur ✓

Decisional 1.2 Disturbance Handler ✓

1.3 Resource allocator ✓

1.4 Negotiator ✓

1.5 Monitor ✓
Informational 1.6 Disseminator ✓
1.7 Spokesperson✓
1. How will applying the decisional managerial roles improve Clean Glass’s business processes?
2. What are Cane’s managerial responsibilities as a middle manager? Provide an example.
3. How would Cane’s managerial responsibilities change if he were promoted to managing director? Provide an example.
4. Cane is asked to speak about self-management at a university graduation. Which managerial role is Cane fulfilling and
what would be the purpose behind him agreeing to the talk?
1. Entrepreneur: Management could create innovative solutions to ensure job satisfaction. Management may need to
allocate resources to addressing diversity concerns, such as providing prayer rooms or religious holidays. The entrepreneur
will also be responsible for creating a BBBEE strategy.
Disturbance handler: The disturbance handler is responsible for identifying and addressing problems, such as salary
disputes. The disturbance handler should have identified the lack of employee satisfaction and high turnover and created
proactive plans to deal with the issues before they impacted on the business processes.
Resource allocator: Considering Clean Glass’s loss of market share, the company needs to ensure that the resource
allocator role is being fulfilled. All businesses have limited resources, and gaining a competitive advantage will depend on
responsible allocation. Clean Glass should invest resources in improving employee conditions.
Negotiator: The negotiator will be Clean Glass’s contact with suppliers. The negotiator may need to relook at contracts to
ensure that Clean Glass is getting the best deal it can to minimize expenses,

2. Cane is responsible for taking the broad strategic decisions of top management and creating clear objectives and goals.
He will focus on leading, organizing and planning, and should be aware of external factors that may impact on his
department. If top management decides to create a programme that secures the company a high BBBEE rating, Cane will
formulate the middle-term plans for how to get there, such as adjusting suppliers and relooking at the recruitment
process.

3. The managing director is a top management position and would therefore be focused on creating strategic decisions
that are aligned with the company’s vision and mission. Top management is concerned with long-term planning and
leading. As a top manager, Cane would be responsible for creating a company-wide BBBEE strategy and any other strategy
that addresses employee diversity, such as flexi-time.
4. Cane is fulfilling the role of spokesperson for Clean Glass. The spokesperson is responsible for sharing information
about the company and improving its public perception. Cane would do this talk to promote Clean Glass and attract
potential staff members
Importance and role of management in the
business context

•Achieving organizational goals.

•Aligning the organization with the
external environment.
•Ensuring operational efficiency.
Discuss the Importance and role of management
in the business. This can be in groups or
individually. Possible answer on next page.
• Achieving organisational goals.
Organisational goals are the overall objectives that managers set to indicate the expected outcomes and to
guide employees’ efforts – in short. At the heart of many organisational goals is making a profit or achieving a
social mission, or both, depending on the type of business it is. In this regard, management integrates
resources such as capital, people and machinery in an effective manner to achieve the set goals.
• Aligning the organisation with the external environment.
Given that organisations operate in a dynamic business environment, managers must constantly scan the
environment and make the necessary changes to align the organisation with the changes in its external
environment. Managers must ensure that the organisation has the necessary resources and capabilities to
respond appropriately to threats or opportunities that may be inherent in the external environment. Failure
to do this can be detrimental to the survival of the organisation.
• Ensuring operational efficiency.
Managers must ensure that the operations of the organisation run as they should. Managers achieve this by
ensuring that things are done right the first time, cost effectively and that changes are made quickly, where
necessary.
 Factors that influence the nature
of management in Africa

• Economic factors
• Technological factors
• Political factors
• The legal environment
• Environmental factors
• Social factors
 Question
Martha is the manager at a pharmaceutical development
plant. She is responsible for managing the removal of
hazardous chemicals. The country in which she operates has
constantly changing laws regarding this procedure and the
directors are concerned about keeping the process as
economically viable as possible. The company has strong
competition and international clientele that need their
suppliers to meet best practice standards. The
pharmaceutical development plant computer systems require
continuous updating. Recently their computer systems had to
be completely replaced as their computers was damaged due
to lightning.

Discuss the factors that influence the nature of management

regarding this pharmaceutical plant. Discuss in class.
Possible answers provided on next page
1. Economic factors
Taxes, wages paid to employees, especially additional costs that may be incurred from working with hazardous
materials. Economic factors are those factors that affect the health and vitality of the economic system in which
the organization operates.
2. Technological factors
The development of more efficient tools for removing waste, eliminating it or reusing it. The cost of new
technology can affect the productivity of the plant. Technology includes anything that enables an organization to
transform inputs into outputs
3. Political factors
Corruption, mismanagement, political intolerance. The business needs to be managed in an appropriate
manner.
4. The legal environment
The laws regarding where companies can place hazardous waste. The company must follow dumping laws and
regulations otherwise there can be fines or penalties.
5. Environmental factors
The disposal process of hazardous waste products. Are the company disposing of their hazardous material in an
appropriate manner. Disposing of hazardous material is expensive. Global warming and many other
environmental concerns, such as pollution, have altered the perceptions of organizations that produce products
and customers who buy these products.
6. Social factors
If the population often protests waste removal, it may affect production. Society protests against pollution.
Dimensions of
modern
African
management
• Traditionalism.
• Communalism.
• Co-operative teamwork.
• Ubuntu (or humanness).
• Indaba.
• Discuss the dimensions of modern African management regarding
to these items. Co-operative teamwork, Ubuntu (or humanness),
• Co-operative teamwork.
Emphasis is on the group, though not at the expense of the recognised worth of the individual. Thus,
interactive communication patterns and organisational behaviours that benefit the entire group are
emphasised. For example, in African tradition, a consensus approach is followed when making decisions,
whereby several discussions involving consultation and inclusiveness are held before a decision is taken.
• Ubuntu (or humanness).
This means that a person is a person because of other people. A person is seen not as an individual, but as
part of a collective society. This concept is closely related to the concept of communalism.
 Indaba.
This concept refers to a traditional social structure of handling and resolving any debate or conflict that may
arise within a group. Indaba promotes leadership engagement on the part of more experienced individuals
and the inclusivity of decision-making. In South Africa, the term it is understood by many as simply referring
to a gathering or meeting. For example, a number of indabas take place every year, such as the baba
indaba, the travel indaba, and the entrepreneurship indaba.
 Approaches to Management
The behavioural The quantitative
The traditional approach Contemporary approach
approach approach
The bureaucratic The human relations The operations The quality approach
approach approach management approach

The scientific approach The systems approach

The administrative The contingency

approach approach
The learning
organisational approach

Entrepreneurial
management thinking
Tradition Early managers placed high emphasis on work efficiency

Organisational level + Management level

al 3 types

approach
• The bureaucratic approach
• The scientific approach
• The administrative approach
1. Bureaucratic

• Developed start 20th C - Max Weber

• positions of power linked to Social class
• Qualifications + competence
• Introduced bureaucratic management
• Whole organisation
• formal rules and procedures
• Ensure managers run organisation:
• Fair
• Consistent
• Efficient
Depends on:
• Specialisation of work
• Formal rules and procedures
• Impersonality
• Well-defined hierarchy
• Career
 • Focuses on work that employees do.
• Frederick W. Taylor
• Productivity low despite new technology
• Lack of financial reward
• Incentive
2. Scientific • Scientifically study each part of a task, and find
Management the best method for performing it.
• Choose employees carefully, and train them to
perform a task using the method.
• Watch and work with employees to ensure that
they use proper methods.
• Delegate work and responsibilities
 Lillian Gilbreth + Frank Gilbreth

• Time and motion studies

• Reduce number of motions per task
Other
contributors Gantt

• Incentive pressured employees

• Minimum requirement incentives
• Work control chart
 Focuses on organisational managers responsible
for a number of different departments

Henry Fayol
3.
Administrative Practical guidelines for effective management
management
Task areas of management

Based on his fourteen principles of

administrative management
 1. Division of work: 2. Authority 3. Discipline:

6. Subordination of
4. Unity of 5. Unity of individual interest
command:. direction:. to the general
interest:.

Fayol’s 14
Principles of 7. Remuneration:. 8. Centralisation: . 9. Scalar chain:.

Management
12. Stability and
10. Order:. 11. Equity:
tenure:

13. Initiative: 14. Esprit de corps:

 type of work,

focus on human
The behaviour +
the nature of the
workforce,
behavioural relations

approach to Follet – pioneer legal and

in Human political
management relations considerations

The Hawthorne
studies
 Focuses: relationships
aspect of management
The human Esp. between supervisor
relations and employee
movement
Where concept of
motivations stems
Malsow’s Heirarchy of needs Mc Gregor’s theory of leadership

??? Theory x
Theory Y
 • Focuses on the individual
• Social aspects of work
The
• Managers should develop human
behavioural skills
approach in
today’s
organisations
 • Operations management
• Uses maths and stats + computer
The systems
quantitative • Focus on operations of
approach to organisation
• Targets – numerical goals
management
Contemporary approaches to management

Response to
limitations Approaches
of other overlap
approaches
• 5 types
• Quality approach
• Systems approach
• Contingency
• Learning
• Entrepreneurial
1. The quality approach
• Top quality management
• Production of high quality products + services
• William Edwards Deming
• Deming’s 14 Principles of Total Quality Management
Deming’s 14 Principles of
Total Quality Management
1. Create constancy of purpose
2. Adopt the philosophy of cooperation
3. Stop depending on final mass inspection
4. Stop choosing suppliers on the basis of price alone
5. Constantly and permanently improve your systems
6. Establish training programs skill development
7. Adopt and establish leadership
8. Remove fear and build trust,
9. Break down barriers
10. Remove encouragement slogans + zero defects
targets
11. Remove numerical goals, quotas
12. Remove barriers that prevent people from finding joy
in their work.
13. Start continual education programme
14. Involve all members of your organisation in trying to
accomplish transformation
2. The systems approach

LOOKS AT AN INTERRELATED PARTS INPUTS + OUTPUTS OPEN + CLOSED

ORGANISATION AS A WORK TOGETHER TO
SYSTEM ACHIEVE GOALS
3. The contingency
approach
• Suggests that managerial action is dependent on the
situation
Learning Approach

Focus – sharing Develop capacity to

knowledge change to environment

Culture of participation Team based structures

 • Characteristics
• Constantly reviewing the
organisation's vision and mission.
• Changing organisational structures
Entrepreneurial • Anticipating and accepting changes
in the business environment.
management • Identifying new opportunities and
innovation.
thinking • Allowing for failure.
• Encouraging employees to share
their knowledge
Chapter 5: Planning
in business will be
discussed in the
next class