Principles of Management

PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT

What is Management?

Management is the art and science of planning, organizing, directing and controlling the acts of all the resources and converging to the attainment of the organization’s goals. The primary objective of management is to create a congenial and work healthy atmosphere where all the employees are motivated to achieve the organization’s goals. An organization structure guides all the employees to focus their work on achieving the organizational goals.

Levels of Management

Management levels refer to an organization's different layers of authority and responsibility. There are three levels with distinct roles and responsibilities:

Top-Level Management (Executive Management)

Roles: This top level has positions such as CEO, CFO, COO, and other C-suite executives.

Responsibilities: Top-level executives are entrusted with setting the high-level organization's strategy, establishing policies, and ensuring its long-term success. They often represent the organization to external stakeholders.

Mid-Level Management

Roles: Mid-level managers include department heads, division managers, and regional managers.

Responsibilities: Middle management is between top management and lower-level management. They implement the strategies and policies that the top management sets and ensure that their departments or divisions operate efficiently. Middle managers oversee day-to-day operations, allocate resources, and are often involved in decision-making within their areas of responsibility.

Lower-Level Management (First-Line Management)

Roles: This level includes supervisors, team leaders, and foremen.

Responsibilities: Lower-level managers are directly responsible for managing employees and overseeing daily operations at the ground level. They ensure that tasks are completed on time and according to standards, provide feedback and guidance to employees, and handle any immediate operational issues.

The fourteen principles of management

Henry Fayol is the father of modern management, and he coined fourteen principles. These principles are general and apply to any organization. The fourteen principles are:

Division of work: Henry affirms that productivity will be enhanced when the tasks are divided among the workforce. Division of work boosts the work's efficiency, accountability, responsibility, and speed.

Authority and responsibility: Henry firmly states that authority and responsibility should have a proper balance in the organization. Authority is the power to instruct, give orders, and give

Instructions: On the other hand, responsibility is fulfilling duties and standing by the consequences.

Discipline: Discipline ensures compliance, obedience, and orderly behavior.

Unity of command: Employees should receive commands only from one boss. If they receive commands from multiple bosses, there will be confusion on the prioritization of work.

Unity of direction: Henry states that all the employees working in an organization should have a common goal.

Subordination of individual interest: Henry states that employees should have the organizational goal first, not the individual one.

Remuneration: According to Henry, remuneration is an essential element that keeps employees motivated. Remuneration can have a monitory and non-monitory component, which should be decided based on his skills and qualifications. The hike in remuneration should be based on the efforts.

Centralization: The decision-making power is concentrated at the top management.

Scalar chain: As per Henry’s principle of scalar chain, there should be clear channels of communication from top to bottom from the lowest path defined.

Order: Henry’s order principle states that a company’s culture should be organized. People, processes, and other resources should be systematic and properly organized.

Equity: The equity principle states that all employees should be treated equally and respectfully. There should not be any discrimination between any employee.

Stability: The stability principle states that all employees should work in a stable environment and feel secure.

Initiative: Employees should be encouraged to take initiatives that bring innovation and creativity to the company. Initiatives enhance the morale of employees.

Esprit de Corps: Esprit de Corps supports unity and mutual support among the employees.

Conclusion:

The principles of management help any person at any level in any organization run a company efficiently and manage people and resources correctly. To understand more about management, enroll in our management course.