effective managerial skills -handout

8/2/2019 Effective Managerial Skills -Handout

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What is a business

A business enterprise is created and managed by people. It is not

managed by forces. Economic forces set limits to what

management can do. They create opportunities for managements

action. But they, by themselves, do not determine what a business is

or what it does.

Secondly a business cannot be defined or explained in terms of profit.

Economic theory makes a fundamental assumption that maximising

profits is the basic objective of every firm. But in recent years profit

maximisation has been extensively qualified by theorists to refer to

the long run; to refer to managements rather than to owners income;

to include non-financial income such as increased leisure for high-

strung executives and more congenial relations between executive

levels within the firm.

This does not mean that profit and profitability are unimportant. It

does mean that profitability is not the purpose of business enterprise

and business activity, but a limiting factor on it. Profit is not the

explanation, cause or rationale of business behaviour and business

decisions, but the test of their validity.

The problem of any business is not the maximisation of profit but the

achievement of sufficient profit to cover the risks of economic

activity and thus to avoid loss.


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General Mgmt. 3

What the customer thinks he is buying, what he considers value, isdecisive it determines what a business is, what it produces and

whether it will prosper.

The customer is the foundation of a business and

keeps it in existence. He alone gives employment.

And it is to supply the consumer that society entrusts

wealth-producing resources to the business enterprise.

The two entrepreneurial functions

Because it is its purpose to create a customer, any

business enterprise has two and only these two

basic functions : Marketing and Innovation. They

are the entrepreneurial functions.

Marketing is the distinguishing, the unique function of

the business. A business is set apart from all other

human organisations by the fact that it markets a

product or a service. Neither Church nor Army, nor

school, nor State does that. Any organisation thatfulfils itself through marketing a product or a service, is

a business. Any organisation in which marketing is

either absent or incidental is not a business and should

never be run as if it were one.


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Marketing is not only much broader than selling, it is

not a specialised activity at all. It encompasses the

entire business. It is the whole business seen from the

point of view of its final result, that is from thecustomers point of view. Concern and responsibility

for marketing must therefore permeate all areas of the

enterprise.

General Mgmt. 4

A business enterprise can exist only in an expanding

economy, or at least in one which considers change

both natural and desirable. And business is the

specific organ of growth, expansion and change.

The second function of a business is therefore

innovation, that is, the provision of better and more

economic goods and services. It is not enough for the

business to provide just any economic goods and

services; it must provide better and more economic

ones. It is not necessary for a business to grow bigger;

but it is necessary that it constantly grow better.

Innovation goes right through all phases of business. It

may be innovation in design, in product, in marketing

techniques. It may be innovation in price or in service

to the customer. It may be innovation in management

organisation or in management methods.


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Design skill

The functions of managers

Planning

Organising

Staffing

Leading

Controlling

General Mgmt. 6

Planning

Planning involves selecting missions and objectives and the actions

to achieve them; it requires decision making, that is, choosing future

courses of action from among alternatives.

Types of plans: There are a number of different types of plans that

often cause difficulty in making planning effective. In fact, a plan can

encompass any course of future action, which clearly shows that

plans are varied. They are classified here as:

1. Purposes or missions

2. Objectives

3. Strategies

4. Policies

5. Procedures

6. Rules

7. Programs


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Unfortunately, these objectives are not always harmonious. Likewise the

goals of subordinates are not always the same as those of the superior.

Therefore, one of the most important activities of managers is to harmonize

the needs of individuals with the demands of the enterprise.

General Mgmt. 10

Controlling

Controlling is the measuring and correcting of activities of subordinates to

ensure that events conform to plans. It measures performance against

goals and plans, shows where negative deviations exist, and, by putting in

motion actions to correct deviation, helps ensure accomplishment of plans.

Control activities generally relate to the measurement of achievement.

Some means of controlling, like the budget for expense, inspection records

and the record of labour hours lost, are generally familiar. Each measures

and each shows whether plans are working out. If deviations persist,

correction is indicated.

The basic control process, wherever, it is found and whatever is being

controlled, involves three steps :

1. Establishing Standards

2. Measuring performance against these standards.

3. Correcting variations from standards and plans.

In practice, standards tend to be of the following types :

1. Physical Standards2. Cost Standards

3. Capital Standards

4. Revenue Standards

5. Program Standards

6. Intangible Standards


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Delegation 4

Delegation of Authority

Authority is a resource that you make available to your

subordinate - keeping in focus the result.

In delegation, you might have to pass along the authority

- to spend money, or

- to give orders, or

- to make use of company property etc. needed to

complete the task.

B. Doing V/s Managing

Doing

This means directly accomplishing results. It includes

operating a machine or pushing a broom

writing a legal brief

making an engineering drawing

closing a sale

Managing

This involves two aspects - Planning & Directing. In planning, you

are not directly involved in the work but influence it from a distance.

Such as :

Strate

gic planning


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Multiplies your Productivity

Gives you time.

Eliminates detailed work (Trivial) Develops management abilities

Promotes organisation efficiency

Shifts decision making to the appropriate level

Delegation 6

Facilitates decentralisation and diversification.

Provides variety and novelty

Subordinates Learn New Skills

Improves evaluation of peoples potential

What Jobs To Delegate ?

Routine

Necessary

Trivial

Specialty Jobs

Chores

Pet projects

What Jobs Not To Delegate?

The slogan Delegate Everything has to be followed by the

warning Except.............


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Give advice without

interfering.

Fail to point out

pitfalls

Build controls into the

process of delegating

Impose controls

as an afterthought.

Back up delegatees inlegitimate disputes.

Leave people tofight their own battles.

Give the delegatee full credit

for his or her

accomplishments.

Hog the glory or

look for scapegoats.

Reading Material For Private Circulation Only

ContentsPg. No.

The purpose of a business ..................................................................... 2

Business Environment: Managing Expectations and Work Review .....22

Functions of a Manager ....................................................................... 26

Dimensions of Managerial Effectiveness ............................................. 27

Managerial Roles ................................................................................. 32

Psychological Factors in Managerial Effectiveness .............................38


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Managerial Problem Analysis and Decision Making ............................43

Problem Solving v/s Decision Making .................................................. 47

Business Environment: Managing Expectations and WorkReview

Welcome to Nomads Land, where professional tribes with no permanentabode wander from organization to organization. The only permanentoccupation for all of us will be getting ready for the coming battlesundefined. Organisations like glass prisms will be transparent, quicklychanging the direction and shape of anything passing through them,resisting discipline, and reflecting and refracting light, energy, talent andwisdom into a spectrum of colorful hues.


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performance by giving feedback on performance, conducting informalprogress reviews. The main activities involved are:

Role definition, in which the key result areas and competencerequirements are to be defined

The performance agreement, which defines expectations. Both themanager and his subordinate have an important role to play in thiswhereby an agreed set of results to be achieved are charted throughmutual discussions.

The personal development plan sets out the actions managers intendto take to develop themselves in order to extend their knowledge andskills, increase their levels of competence and improve theirperformance in specified areas.

Managing performance throughout the year, which includes acontinuous process of providing feedback in performance.

Functions of a Manager

The successful manager capably performs four basic managerial functions:planning organizing, leading, and controlling. However, as you will see, theamount of time a manager spends on each function depends on the level ofthe particular job. After further describing each of the four generalmanagerial functions, we will highlight the differences among managers atvarious levels in organizations.Regardless of their level, most managers perform the four generalfunctions more or less simultaneously-rather than in a rigid, preset order-toachieve organizational goals.

Planning. In general, planning involves defining organization goals andproposing ways to reach them. Managers plan for three reasons: (1) Toestablish an overall direction for the organizations future, such asincreased profit, expanded market share, and social responsibility; (2) Toidentify and commit the organizations resources to achieving its goals; and(3) To decide which tasks must be done to reach those goals. Jeff Bezos isa good example of a manager who plans. Through his research, heunderstood how important the Internet is, which products could be soldover the Internet, what channels of distribution would be needed to deliverproducts to customers, and how important motivated employees are. Inother words, he had a good understanding of what planning involves.

Organizing. After managers have prepared plans, they must translatethose relatively abstract ideas into reality. Sound organization is essentialto this effort. Organizing is the process of creating a structure ofrelationships that will enable employees to carry out managements plansand meet organizational goals. By organizing effectively, managers can


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better coordinate human, material, and information resources. Anorganizations success depends largely on managements ability to utilizethose resources efficiently and effectively.Organizing involves creating a structure by setting up departments and jobdescriptions.

Leading. After management has made plans, created a structure, andhired the right personnel, someone must lead the organization. Leadinginvolves getting others to perform the tasks necessary to achieve theorganizations goals. Leading isnt done only after planning and organizingend; it is a crucial element of those functions.

Controlling. The process by which a person, group or organizationconsciously monitors performance and takes corrective action is calledcontrolling. Just as a thermostat sends signals to a heating system thatthe room temperature is too high or too low, so a management control

system sends signals to managers that things arent working out asplanned and that corrective action is needed. In the control processmanagers

Set standards of performance,

Measure current performance against those standards,

Take action to correct any deviations, and

Adjust the standards if necessary.

The Functions of Manager

Dimensions of Managerial Effectiveness

There is only one realistic and unambiguous definition of managerialeffectiveness: effectiveness is the extent to which a manager achieves theoutput requirements of the position. The concept of managerial

Directin

Organizing

Planning

Controlling


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effectiveness is the central issue in management. The managers job theonly job is to be effective.

Skills, theories, and roadmaps come and go. A primary survival capabilityof the future will be the ability to cast off what you have learned.

For managers, changing environment offers many new challenges andopportunities. Managers are increasingly being asked to becomegeneralists who step outside of traditional narrowly defined job descriptionsin support of team objectives and goals. These changes are resulting in thedevelopment of new approaches to management. In this organization,continuous learning is a prerequisite to successful job performance andorganizational effectiveness. Employees must be able to learn work,develop effective technical and people skills in order to assume newresponsibilities, and keep pace with and anticipate the changing nature ofwork and the workplace.

For managers and other employees alike, responding to these changesrequires the ability to learn, adapt to change, solve problems creatively,and communicate effectively in diverse groups. In addition, they must takepersonal and proactive responsibility for their careers to ensure futureemployability and advancement.

In the new environment there is need to focus on decision-making andaccountability at the level where the work is done, development of aservice culture that rewards team performance, and integration ofoperations. Critical to the success of this new model is the adoption of a

customer service orientation, a flexible attitude in the face of constantchange. The realities of the contemporary workplace will continue tochallenge existing paradigms and should be considered in managing theperformance of employees in a dynamic working environment.

With the disappearance of reliable management theories, it is very difficult

to predict which characteristics will be critical to being an effectivemanager in the 21st Century. However there are some important traits thatare important determinants of managerial effectiveness:

AdaptabilityChange elicits a natural resistance, but the ability to accept and evenembrace the alterations that will continue to occur will be prized. Theability to adjust your perspective, approach, and behaviour to newparadigms will become more important to successful employment, and


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employees who cannot or will not make the needed transitions will quicklybecome second-class managers.

Appreciation of ambiguityIn the 21st Century, the ability to deal with unstructured, untestedparameters and to arrive at satisfactory conclusions is necessary. Some

people hate ambiguity; others love it. Whatever your predisposition, yourbest interests dictate that you learn to appreciate and deal with a lack ofstructure. Those who can successfully cope with ambiguity will prosper.Managers who cant or wont, will be left in the dust. You must learn to seestructure where none exists and to create it out of swirling events.

AccommodationWorking effectively in the future will require participating in more and moreintragroup and intergroup activities. Solo decision making is becoming lessof an organizational reality. Learning the group and interpersonal

leadership skills needed to assemble the right group and to value differentcultural, functional, and organizational interests will be invaluable.

AccomplishmentBang for the buck. The organizations of tomorrow will be even moreachievement oriented than today companies. Perform or Perish! Gettingthings done will be the way of the world, and figuring out how to make acontribution and improve the way things work will be one of your passportsto success. As telecommuting removes some people from the traditionalworkplace, people will be judged more on performance achievements than

on style; keeping their level of performance high, year after year, will bethe minimum for survival. What have you done for me recently? Is anenduring motto for the future. Performance appraisals will have shortmemories.

Access abilityGetting information that your people need to reach the goals will be ofincreasing value. Clarity derives from accurate information, including a fullexpression of feelings. Extracting information that counts from the ever-expanding highway of data will enable your people to use their limited time

well. Expanding your knowledge of personal and computer networks isextremely important. In the years ahead, you will have to know what youneed, where to look for it, and how to retrieve it.

Accessibility


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You must be available to your people. Accessibility translates into frequentand effective group experiences (meetings, training, presentations etc.) aswell as intensive one-on-one time. The natural pressure of businessencourages managers to distance themselves from their people. Thisseparation will have negative consequences. Accessibility is more than anopen door policy. You must seek out your people. Help them get what they

need. Provide support, information, and resources, shield them, and sharewith them. These attitudes and orientations will allow you to take ininformation, make adjustments, learn new ways and move on in thisgreat adventure.

Three kinds of effectiveness The idea of managerial effectiveness can be clearly understood whenmanagers learn to distinguish sharply between:

Managerial effectiveness

Apparent effectiveness

Personal effectiveness

Managerial EffectivenessManagerial effectiveness is not an aspect of personality. It is notsomething a manager has. Effectiveness is best seen as something amanager produces from a situation by managing it appropriately. Itrepresents output, not input. The manager must think in terms ofperformance, not personality. It is not so much what a manager does, butwhat is achieved. Once managers have decided they want to becomeeffective they should initially focus on how they can contribute more, or

contribute more effectively, than they are doing now. Some managershave narrow views of their jobs. What they do, they may do well, but whatthey leave undone is enormous. Managerial effectiveness can seldom beobtained by achieving a single objective, no matter how broadly it iswritten. Profit, for instance, may be obtained at the risk of losingcustomers or by sacrificing human resources. Any manager who sees theeffectiveness criteria in simple black-and-white terms may perform well inthe short run, but may not in the long run. Effectiveness ismultidimensional.

Before managers can operate with full effectiveness they must:

Understand the overall contribution the unit should make, which meansknowing what the team top member is responsible for.

Understand their role in the unit, which means knowing what they areresponsible for achieving and knowing what the team member thinks isa good job.

Establish specific objectives, which they intend to achieve in adetermined time period.

Have the help of the teams top member in overcoming obstacles, whichmay prevent the attainment of these objectives. These obstacles may


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lie in the organization, the job, the team member or the managersthemselves.

Have the willingness to work to achieve the objectives, which may meanpreparedness to change the behavior.

Receive concrete periodic feedback on the progress towards theirobjectives.

Receive help and guidance when needed.

Be held responsible for their actions over the longer term.

If any of these are missing, full effectiveness is unlikely to occur. A welldesigned organization usually ensures that managerial effectiveness, andonly managerial effectiveness, leads to personal rewards. Whileorganizations do vary in the extent, speed, and adequacy of rewards foreffectiveness, there can be little doubt that in the long run, the effectivemanager is the rewarded one.

Apparent effectivenessIt is difficult, if not impossible, to judge managerial effectiveness by

observation of behavior alone. The behavior must be evaluated interms of whether or not it is appropriate to the output requirements ofthe job.

Conventional job descriptions often lead to an emphasis on what could becalled managerial efficiency, the ratio of output to input. The problemwith this is that even if both input and output are low, efficiency couldstill be 100 per cent. In fact, a manager or department could easily be100 per cent efficient yet 0 per cent effective. The efficient manager iseasily identified, as one preferring to :

Do things right Rather than Do right thingsSolve problems Rather than Produce creative

alternativesSafeguard resources Rather than Optimize resource

utilizationDischarge duties Rather than Obtain results

Conventional job descriptions lead to the kind of thinking on the left; jobeffectiveness descriptions lead to that shown on the right.

Conventional job descriptions and, for that matter, management audits,usually focus on the internal efficiency of an organizational system ratherthan its external effectiveness or its output. It would be a simple matter toincrease internal efficiency sharply and to decrease external effectiveness

just as sharply. Paper work is usually quite unrelated to effectiveness.

Personal Effectiveness


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Poorly defined job outputs can also lead to what might be called personaleffectiveness that is, the satisfying of personal objectives rather than theobjectives of the organization. This is particularly likely to occur withambitious people in an organization, which has only a few clearly definedmanagement output measures. Meetings with these people are riddle withhidden agendas, which operate below the surface and lead to poor decision

making.

Managerial Roles

Mintzbergs Ten Managerial Roles

After reviewing earlier studies of managerial activities, Mintzberg (1973)came to the conclusion that the studies failed to provide much insight intowhat a manager does. The focus of these studies was usually on activitiesdefined at a concrete level rather than in terms of activities content. Thefew studies that examined activity content used predetermined contentcategories that provide only an incomplete picture or a managers job.

Mintzberg conducted a study designed to overcome these limitations. Heused unstructured observation and developed new content categoriesduring and after the initial observations. The meaning of the activities was

interpreted by identifying a set of ten underlying managerial roles thataccounted for all of the activities observed by Mintzberg. Each activity canbe explained in terms of at least one role, although many activitiesinvolved more than one of the ten roles. Three of the managerial roles(figurehead, leader, liaison) deal with interpersonal behaviour. Three otherroles (monitor, disseminator, spokesman) deal with information processingbehaviour. The remaining four roles (entrepreneur, disturbance handler,resource allocator, negotiator) deal with the decision-making behaviour ofmanagers. All of the roles are relevant for any manager or administrator,although their relative importance may very from one kind of manager to


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another. A managers roles are largely predetermined for him by thenature of his position, but he can interpret them in different ways whilecarrying them out. Each of the roles will be described briefly.

The ten roles are divided into three groups: interpersonal, informational,and decisional. The informational roles link all managerial work together.

The interpersonal roles ensure that information is provided. The decisionalroles make significant use of the information. The performance ofmanagerial roles and the requirements of these roles can be played atdifferent times by the same manager and to different degrees dependingon the level and function of management. The ten roles are describedindividually, but they form an integrated whole.

1. Figurehead RoleAs a consequence of their formal authority as the head of an organisationor one of its subunits, managers are obliged to perform certain symbolic

duties of a legal and social nature. These duties include signing documents(e.g. : contracts, expense authorisations), presiding at certain meetingsand ceremonial events (e.g. : retirement dinner for a subordinate),participating in other rituals or ceremonies, & receiving official visitors.

The manager must participate in these activities even though they areusually of marginal relevance to the job of managing.

2. Leader RoleManagers are responsible for making their organisational sub-unit functionas an integrated whole in the pursuit of its basic purpose. Consequently,the manager must provide guidance to subordinates, insure that they are

motivated and create favourable conditions for doing the work. A numberof managerial activities are expressly concerned with the leader role,including hiring, training, directing, praising, promoting, criticising, anddismissing. However, the leader role pervades all of a managers activities,even those with some other basic purpose.

3. Liaison RoleThe liaison role includes behaviour intended to establish and maintain aweb of relationships with persona in groups outside of a managers

organisational subunit. These relationships are vital as a source ofinformation and favours. Development of such contacts and relationshipsis part of a chief executives responsibility for linking his organisation to theexternal environment. Horizontal relationships are also essential for middleand lower-level managers in order to obtain information and provide someinfluence over suppliers, clients service units & regulators.

The essence of the liaison role is in making new contacts keeping intouch and doing favours that will allow the manager to ask for favours inreturn. Some examples of activities involving the liaison role include


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attending social events or professional conferences, joining outside boards,clubs or associations, writing to congratulate a colleague, and callinganother manager to provide some helpful information or offer assistance.

4. Monitor RoleManagers continually seek information from a variety of sources. Some

examples of activities with this purpose include reading reports andmemos, attending meetings and briefings, and conducting observationaltours. Some of the information obtained is passed on to subordinates(disseminator role) or to outsiders (spokesman role). Most of theinformation is analysed to discover problems and opportunities and todevelop an understanding of outside events and of the internal processeswithin the managers organisational subunit.

5. Disseminator RoleManagers have special access to sources of information not available to

subordinates. Some of this information is factual in nature, and some of itconcerns the stated preferences of individuals & organisations desiring toinfluence the manager, including persons at high levels of authority. Someof the factual information must be passed on to subordinates, either in itsoriginal form or after interpretation and editing by the manager. Theinformation about preferences must be assimilated according to theinfluence of the source, and it is then expressed to subordinates either inthe form of value statement (e.g. : rules, goals, policies, standards) or asspecific responses to subordinates questions.

6. Spokesman RoleManagers are obliged to transmit information and express valuestatements to persons outside their organisational subunit as well as tosubordinates. Middle- and lower-level managers must report to theirsuperiors: a Chief Executive must report to his Board of Directors. Each ofthese managers is also expected to serve as a lobbist and public relationsrepresentative for his organisational subunit when dealing with superiorsand persons outside of the organisation (eg. suppliers, clients, governmentagencies, the press). As Mintzberg points out, To speak effectively for hisorganisation and to gain the respect of outsiders, the manager must

demonstrate and up-to-the-minute knowledge of his organisation and itsenvironment.

7. Entrepreneur Role


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The manager of an organisation or one of its subunits acts as an initiatorand designer of controlled change to exploit opportunities for improving theexisting situation. Such change takes place in the form of improvementprojects such as development of a new product, purchase of newequipment, or reorganisation of formal structure. Some of theimprovement projects are supervised directly by the manager, and some

are delegated to subordinates. Mintzberg offers the following descriptionsof the way a manager deals with improvement projects:

The manager as a supervisor of improvement projects may be likened to a juggler. At any one point of time he has a number of balls in the air.Periodically, one comes down, receives a short burst of energy, and goesup again. Meanwhile, new balls wait on the sidelines and, at randomintervals, old balls are discarded and new ones added.

8. Disturbance Handler Role

The crisis are caused by unforeseen events such as conflict amongsubordinates, the loss of a key subordinate, a fire or accident, a strike, andso on. A manager typically gives this role priority over all of the others.Since managers usually spend much of their time reacting to suddendisturbances, little time is left for reflective planning or general strategyformation.

9. Resource Allocator RoleManagers exercise their authority to allocate resources such as money,manpower, materials, equipment, facilities, and services. Resources

allocation is involved in managerial decisions about what decisions, in thepreparation of budgets, and in the managers scheduling of his own time.By retaining the power to allocate resources, the manager maintainscontrol over strategy formation and acts to coordinate and integratesubordinate actions in support of strategic objectives.

10. Negotiator RoleAny negotiations requiring a substantial commitment of resources will befacilitated by the presence of a manager having the authority to make thiscommitment. The manager may also aid negotiations by serving as an

expert spokesman for his organisational subunit. Finally, the managersparticipation as the figurehead for his subunit adds credibility to thenegotiations. Thus, when a manager services as a chief representative ofhis unit during negotiations, his activities are likely to involve the resourceallocator, spokesman, and figurehead roles in addition to the negotiatorrole. A chief executive is likely to participate in several different types ofnegotiations, including labour-management negotiations with unions,contract negotiations with important customers, suppliers, or consultants,employment negotiations with key personnel, and other non-routinenegotiations (e.g.: acquisition of another firm, application for a larger loan).

Middle-level and lower-level managers also perform a negotiator role.


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The Managerial Roles

Fe

edback

Interpersonal

Figurehead

ProvideInformation

Leader

Liaison

Informational

MonitorProcessInformation

Disseminator

Spokesperson

Decisional

Entrepreneur

UseInformation

DisturbanceHandler

Resource Allocator

Negotiator

The three interpersonal roles are primarily concerned with interpersonalrelationships. In the figurehead role, the manager represents theorganization in all matters of formality. The top level manager representsthe company legally and socially to those outside of the organization. Thesupervisor represents the work group to higher management and highermanagement to the work group. In the liaison role, the manger interactswith peers and people outside the organization. The top level manageruses the liaison role to gain favors and information, while the supervisor


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uses it to maintain the routine flow of work. The leader role defines therelationships between the manger and employees.

The direct relationships with people in the interpersonal roles place themanager in a unique position to get information. Thus, the threeinformational roles are primarily concerned with the information aspects of

managerial work. In the monitor role, the manager receives and collectsinformation. In the role of disseminator, the manager transmits specialinformation into the organization. The top level manager receives andtransmits more information from people outside the organization than thesupervisor. In the role of spokesperson, the manager disseminates theorganization's information into its environment. Thus, the top levelmanager is seen as an industry expert, while the supervisor is seen as aunit or departmental expert.

The unique access to information places the manager at the center oforganizational decision making. There are four decisional roles. In theentrepreneur role, the manager initiates change. In the disturbance handlerrole, the manger deals with threats to the organization. In the resourceallocator role, the manager chooses where the organization will expend itsefforts. In the negotiator role, the manager negotiates on behalf of theorganization. The top level manager makes the decisions about theorganization as a whole, while the supervisor makes decisions about his orher particular work unit.

The supervisor performs these managerial roles but with differentemphasis than higher managers. Supervisory management is more focused

and short-term in outlook. Thus, the figurehead role becomes lesssignificant and the disturbance handler and negotiator roles increase inimportance for the supervisor. Since leadership permeates all activities, theleader role is among the most important of all roles at all levels ofmanagement.

Managers create and maintain an internal environment, commonly calledthe organization, so that others can work efficiently in it. A manager's jobconsists of planning, organizing, directing, and controlling the resources of

the organization. These resources include people, jobs or positions,technology, facilities and equipment, materials and supplies, information,and money. Managers work in a dynamic environment and must anticipateand adapt to challenges.

The job of every manager involves what is known as the functions ofmanagement: planning, organizing, directing, and controlling. Thesefunctions are goal-directed, interrelated and interdependent. Planninginvolves devising a systematic process for attaining the goals of theorganization. It prepares the organization for the future. Organizing

involves arranging the necessary resources to carry out the plan. It is the


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process of creating structure, establishing relationships, and allocatingresources to accomplish the goals of the organization. Directing involvesthe guiding, leading, and overseeing of employees to achieveorganizational goals. Controlling involves verifying that actual performancematches the plan. If performance results do not match the plan, correctiveaction is taken.

Psychological Factors in Managerial Effectiveness

Managerial effectiveness is difficult to measure in purely objective andobservable terms. Profits of a unit, department or company need not beindicators of the effectiveness of a manager because these depend on anumber of other factors like the overall capabilities of other managers,their co-operation, the nature of tasks undertaken by the organisation,favourable socio-economic environment of the country etc. No manager

works in isolation. The interdependence of managers and other employeesin an organisation makes the measurement of any given managerseffectiveness difficult. There are certain criteria, however, that can be usedto assess the extent to which managers are effective.

If a manager is able to recognise his own strengths and weaknesses,understand the requirements of job well, use his strengths and overcomeweaknesses through continuous learning on the job,he may be considered effective.

He understands his job and job requirement well his role; the various

functions he is expected to perform; and the capabilities (technical,managerial and behavioural) required to perform the various functions.

Through his interactions with various tasks and being sensitive to theoutcomes of different actions taken by him, he is constantly aware of hisstrengths and weaknesses.

Using this self-awareness as well as his awareness of the capabilities ofothers, he so plans his activities that his own strengths and thestrengths of his subordinates are well utilised in the tasks he and hissubordinates perform.

In the process of his performing various takes he is also continuously

growing and acquiring newer capabilities.

Implied are the managers sensitiveness to the environment; hissensitiveness to the needs and capabilities of the subordinates and otherswho work with him; his ability to plan and organise; his ability to forecast

future requirements; and above all, his ability to create a climate where his


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subordinates are bale to give their best and feel happy about it. Certainqualities (behavioural dimensions) that contribute to managerialeffectiveness are:

1. Personal Efficacy

One of the important factors that contribute to managerial effectiveness ispersonal efficacy. This can be defined as the general sense of adequacy ina person. It influences the individuals general orientation and style of life,by virtue of which his effectiveness in working for a task-related goal islikely to increase.

The roots of efficacy (potential effectiveness) of an individual are in hisperceptions and beliefs about himself. These beliefs may be the result ofan individuals self-concept and his perception of his own strengths.Efficacy can be quantified on two aspects:

a) its strength the extent to which it is dominant, andb) its multi-facetness the number of dimensions on which the individual

carries efficacious feelings.

The different factors constituting personal efficacy of an individual, mayvary in strength and direction of their contribution.

The following dimensions have been found to characterise the thoughtprocesses and self-concept of people with a high sense of efficacy.

Action Goal OrientationPeople with a high sense of personal efficacy have clear goals about theirfuture and are directed by these goals. These goals may either be longterm or short term. These goals are action goals rather than essencegoals. Action goals depict the person as involved in doing somethingwhen he achieves his goal whereas essence goals depict the person asbeing something when he achieves the goal. For example person likesthe state of being called Chief, GM, Minister, etc., rather than doingthe activities associated with the role.

Initiative versus ConformityA person with a high sense of efficacy sees himself as an initiative taker oras a proactive person. A proactive person does things on his own withouthaving to be told by any one. Such initiative taking behaviour leads to ahigh level of activity and experimentation. Proactive behaviour is areflection of a high level of self-confidence and drive.

Internal ResourcesPeople with a high sense of efficacy are also aware of their internalstrengths. They may also be aware of their weaknesses but such


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awareness helps them to look for opportunities for self-improvement ratherthan getting too paralysed to act positively.

Problem Solving Capability

People with a high sense of efficacy see themselves as problem solversrather than problem avoiders. They have a positive orientation to problemsand approach problem situations with optimism. They do not run awayfrom problems.

2. Role Efficacy

Role efficacy is the potential effectiveness of a person in his role.Managers with the following perceptions of their roles are likely to be moreeffective:

The role is central in the organisation characterised by a feeling that thefunctions performed are important to the functioning of the organisation.

The role offers an opportunity to be creative, characterised by a feelingthat one has opportunity to innovate and try out many new ideas and donew things.

The role offers enough scope to take initiative and to be proactive,characterised by a feeling that he has the freedom to do what he wantsand can initiate action at his own level without being pressurised toconform.

The role offers an opportunity to apply his capabilities with a feeling thathe enjoys performing the role and there are inter-dependencies in whichhis role also is an important link point.

The role gives opportunities to learn new things and increase meaningfulexperience.

The role offers an opportunity to help others or contribute to thedevelopment of others, and get help when it is needed.

The role offers opportunities to continuously learn new things,capabilities and grow.

The role can be used to serve super-ordinate goals like working for the

needs of the larger society, welfare of human beings, a good cause, etc. The role offers an opportunity to influence others.

3. Motive Combinations

Motives are driving forces. They can be inferred from consistence inbehaviour. Higher order motives are acquired in the process ofsocialisation. Six motives that have been found to play an important role indetermining managerial effectiveness are: the motivation for achievementcharacterised by a concern for taking challenges and accomplish unique

things; the motivation for influencing others; the motivation for helping


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others (called extension motivation), the motivation to establish andmaintain effective relationship with others (called affiliation motivation);the motivation to control others; and the motivation to be dependent onothers (called as dependency motivation).

Need for Achievement

The need to excel known as n achievement is the single psychologicalfactor that has been extensively researched. Achievement motive is acritical factor that leads a person towards entrepreneurship and otherforms of accomplishments. Achievement-oriented people are, by andlarge, those with a high drive and activity level, constantly struggling toachieve something, which they could call their own accomplishment. Theystrive to accomplish apparently difficult things, wanting to take thechallenge. They accept challenges, which they are confident of achievingwith their own efforts.

Need for Influencing OthersDealing with people effectively needs a drive on the part of the manager toinfluence them, to sell his ideas to them, and to lead them in the process ofestablishing, stabilising and expanding his organisation. The drive toinfluence people and lead them may be called the need for power.Successful managers have this need ranking very high and have becomesuccessful institution builders. They can predict the stumbling blocks(personal and environmental) in their efforts to influence others and makeattempts to overcome these. They use their influencing abilities sparinglyand discriminately.

Need for Affiliation/ ExtensionConcern for the welfare of others and the benefit of the subordinates, or aconcern for larger organisational goals and national interests characteriseextension motivation. This motivation is very helpful to be an effectivemanager. On the other hand, the need to control others for the sake offeeling powerful or enjoying status has been found to be quitedysfunctional for managerial effectiveness. Similarly the need fordependency, which leads to the tendency not to do anything, withoutconfirming with somebody else or consulting the rulebook, etc., is quite

dysfunctional in managerial life.

To, be effective as a manager some need for achievement, a high need forinfluence, high need for extension, and low need for dependency, controland affiliation are likely to be helpful.

4. Openness to Feedback and Learning from Experience

Learning from experience and feedback is a great quality for anyone tohave. These managers continuously modify their goal-setting behaviour on


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the basis of the feedback they receive from their environment. There is anorientation and flexibility of mind to test out capabilities whenever anopportunity arises and is open to feedback.

5. A Belief that they can change the Environment

Effective managers also tend to believe in their own capacity to influencethe environment and change it rather than leaving everything to luck, Godor forces beyond their control. They believe that they can shape their owndestiny. Whenever they achieve something or get rewarded they tend toattribute it to their own efforts rather than to luck or someone elses grace.In psychological terms, such a characteristic is referred to as an internallocus of control. This helps them in making their efforts with vigor so thatthey can make things happen rather than leave them to happen on theirown. This also helps them to accept their mistakes and improve uponthem. When they fail, they are candid enough to own up their mistakes as

they claim their successes.

6. Time Orientation

A past-oriented person lives in his past. He is so taken up by his pastachievements and failures that he is all the time overwhelmed by suchthoughts about the past and cannot live in the present effectively nor canbe he project himself into the future. A future-oriented person is one whois entirely living in daydreams of the future. An effective manager is arational balance between the two extremes. He is neither completelyfuture-oriented nor completely past-oriented. He is pragmatic and realistic.He projects himself into the future to the extent that he has clear goals andplans. But the present is important for him.

7. Expectations from Employees

Effective managers tend to have high expectations from their employees.Managers set high goals for themselves and their workers and driveeveryone hard to achieve the goals. They provide necessary support andguidance for their employees in their work. They are constantly givingthem feedback and helping their subordinates also to advance.

8. Inner Directedness


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In the second step of decision making (developing alternatives) themanager has two directions in which he can turn. He can rely on his ownexperience is valuable and also the most logical direction in which to turnin developing alternative solutions to problems, it should be noted that intodays changing world, it usually is not adequate by itself. Ideally, thedecision maker will also draw on the experience of others to develop

alternatives.

1. Steps in Decision Makinga. Analysis of the Problem

i. Statement of what is wrongii. Getting the Factsiii. Requirements of satisfactory solution as objectives.iv. Restrictions on solutions.

b. Developing Alternative Solutions.c. Analyzing Alternative Solutions

d. Implementing the Decisioni. Developing a plan of action.ii. Communication.iii. Participation.

2. Consensus Decision Making Group think3. Group Decision Making

i. Developing a plan of action.ii. Communication.iii. Participation.

Analyzing alternative involves considering both the advantages anddisadvantages of each alternative, as they relate to accomplishing theobjective of the decision, which were outlined, in step one. Examining thepotential disadvantages is particularly important since they may revealproblems that could occur in the implementation step. In that wayprovision can be made before hand for overcoming those problems if anwhen they do appear.

The final step of decision making, implementation, involves developing aplan of action, communicating the decision, and participation. Indeveloping a plan of action, the questions of what must be done, in whatsequence must it be done, who should do them, and how can they be mosteffectively accomplished must be answered. The decision must also be

communicated to those effected, and people should be given the


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opportunity to participate in various phases or steps in the total decisionmaking process. The two latter procedures determine the degree to whichthe people who must implement the decision will be committed to having itcarried out successfully.

Participation in decision-making is useful because it utilizes the potential of

subordinates. It is a vehicle for improving the quality of decisions as wellas increasing the acceptance level on the part of those who must carrythem out. These two factors (quality and acceptance) along with certainmoderating variables will determine which of several possible degrees ofparticipation is appropriate.

Before utilizing participation it will benefit the manager to become familiarwith its advantages, potential disadvantages and here groups are involvedsome of the characteristics of group think which can inhibit effective groupactions.

Various group decision making techniques have been devise for all owingmore than one person to have inputs in the decision process.Brainstorming is useful in generating creative ideas. The Nominal Group

Technique is the device for arriving at consensus when allowing largenumbers of people to participate in decision making. The Delphi Techniqueis a means of aggregating the judgments of knowledgeable individuals inorder to improve the quality of decision-making.

Types of Managerial Decisions

Managerial decisions may be classified on the following bases :

Organisational and Personal DecisionsBarnard has divided decisions into organisational decisions and personaldecisions. Decisions taken by an individual executive himself are known asindividual decisions or personal decisions.

When an executive takes a decision in his official capacity, i.e. on behalf ofthe organisation, it is known as organisational decision. Organisationaldecisions can be delegated but authority for personal decisions is never

delegated to any one else.

Routine and Strategic DecisionsRoutine or tactical decisions are taken in the context of day-to-dayoperations of the organisation. They are of a repetitive nature and do notrequire much thought and deliberation. They concern standard proceduresto that individual cases can be handled by subordinates on a uniform basis.

The general pattern is set by management but the particular circumstancesare interpreted by the person involved and action is taken accordingly.


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Such decisions are normally taken at lower levels of management withinthe policy framework laid down by top management.

On the other hand, strategic or basic decisions are generally taken by thetop management. They concern policy matters and have fundamentaleffects on the organisation. They involve long-term commitment and heavyinvestment or expenditure of funds. Therefore, strategic decisions aretaken after careful analysis and evaluation of various alternatives.Examples of strategic decision are plant location, product diversification,choice of channels of distribution, etc.

Policy and Operating DecisionsPolicy decisions are those which are taken by top management and which

are of a fundamental character affecting the entire organisation.

Operating decisions or administrative decisions are concerned with day-to-day operations of the enterprise. These are taken by lower management forthe purpose of executing policy decisions. They translate policies intoactions by determining how policy will be carried out.

Programmed and Non-Programmed DecisionsProgrammed decisions are of a routine and repetitive nature for whichsystematic procedures have been devised so that the problem need not be

treated as a unique case each time it arises.

The non-programmed decisions are unstructured and have to be taken byhigher management. There is no standard procedure for handling themand each decision has to be treated as a unique case.

Individual and Group Decisions

A decision taken by an individual is known as individual decision. Individualdecisions are taken in small organisation and for matters of a routine

nature. In large organisations, specialised knowledge and experience isneeded for decision-making. Therefore, a number of people participate indecision-making.

Group decisions refer to decisions taken by a group of persons, e.g., Boardof Directors, executive committee, etc. Participation in decision-makingimproves decisions by combining different viewpoints, complementingskills, avoiding motivational deadlocks, and facilitating coordination. Groupdecision-making, however, tends to be more expensive and timeconsuming.


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The Ideal Problem Solving System?The features of an ideal problem solving system are listed below.

Musts

Search out and assimilate both hard and soft data (especially, politicaland cultural aspects of problem situation).

Provide the means for looking at the problem situation from manyviewpoints.

Provide ways of generating ideas, by getting away from the problemsituation.

Actively involve the problem-owners, and accept input from them atvarious stages during the problem solving process.

Provide the means of nurturing and developing ideas/possible solutions.

Provide the problem-owners with a way of learning about the problemsituation.

Provide a conflict-resolving process. Provide the problem-owners with the means for evaluating possible

solutions.

Monitor its own performance and provide corrective feedback whenappropriate.

Wants

Take a holistic view of the problem situation.

Incorporate the perceptions of everyone with a stake in the problemsituation.

Be flexible in its application.

Encourage the participation/involvement of problem-owners in theproblem solving/decision-making process, preferably in groups.

Facilitate subsequent cultural changes. Possess the means to allow problem-owners to incubate/reflect upon

ideas.

Check out the motivation of the problem-owners.

Many of these wants are essential, but keep in mind that musts have to besomething that we can definitely say an option does or does not satisfy.Although highly desirable, it seems unreasonable to insist that certainproblem solving system takes into account the perceptions of all those thathave a stake, takes in the whole problem situation, etc. It is more realistic


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to compare problem solving systems on the extent to which they achievethese wants.

effective managerial skills -handout

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