It's time for me to fit into Peter Drucker's shoes and put on Henri Fayol's thinking caps. Don't worry, I'm not going to tell you to read the voluminous books, classic definitions and principles proposed by these great management gurus. Rather, I am going to put forward my simple understanding of 'management', of course, on the same lines as devised by these great thinkers. Management is an ocean. We can find umpteen definitions and concepts related to this field. However, I will try and attempt to present my view which might, in some way or the other, seem pretty generic and obvious.
'Management is the art of getting things done by others' is the most common definition you can get to hear. For me, management is the scientific art of controlling the universe. You name an object or an issue, and you can easily connect the word 'management' to it. Management is a perfect blend of logic, thoughts, emotions and actions. It is everywhere, widespread, encompassing and evolving. Be it politics, markets or for that matter, our very own lives, management is involved in such a way that, everyone of us either knowingly or unknowingly are carrying out management functions, each and every day. The rural shopkeeper, who is earning customers just by being friendly, may not be aware of Customer Relationship Management (CRM), but he is effectively putting in place the CRM practices. Similarly, a mother promi
sing to buy her son a bicycle in case he fares well in the exams, is instilling motivation.
For a moment, let us assume that, there is no crisis in this world- A problem-free, routinized, set life is on. Things are very much under control, the happennings are too predictable. Is there any need for management under such a situation? Well, the answer seems to be a mix of 'Yes' and 'No'. 'No', because the basic purpose can be easily accomplished (assuming everything remains perfect), and 'Yes', because we would continuously like to see the proceedings as they are. As such, there is a need for monitoring and vigil. Also, therein lies an anticipation of risk or problem arising in the future. The fine line that differentiates the certain from the uncertain is management.
Real life situations may be associated with simulations, wherein we can have definite solutions to problems. But there are some situations in which pragmatism finds importance over knowledge and theory. The approach, in such cases, calls for dynamism. In a nutshell, management is not only about PODSCoRB (Planning, Organising, Directing, Staffing, Co-ordinating, Reporting and Budgeting), but it has also got an aspect that is practical in nature and very hard to define.
The quest for management is never ending, and it will only continue to be so.....
'Management is the art of getting things done by others' is the most common definition you can get to hear. For me, management is the scientific art of controlling the universe. You name an object or an issue, and you can easily connect the word 'management' to it. Management is a perfect blend of logic, thoughts, emotions and actions. It is everywhere, widespread, encompassing and evolving. Be it politics, markets or for that matter, our very own lives, management is involved in such a way that, everyone of us either knowingly or unknowingly are carrying out management functions, each and every day. The rural shopkeeper, who is earning customers just by being friendly, may not be aware of Customer Relationship Management (CRM), but he is effectively putting in place the CRM practices. Similarly, a mother promi
sing to buy her son a bicycle in case he fares well in the exams, is instilling motivation. For a moment, let us assume that, there is no crisis in this world- A problem-free, routinized, set life is on. Things are very much under control, the happennings are too predictable. Is there any need for management under such a situation? Well, the answer seems to be a mix of 'Yes' and 'No'. 'No', because the basic purpose can be easily accomplished (assuming everything remains perfect), and 'Yes', because we would continuously like to see the proceedings as they are. As such, there is a need for monitoring and vigil. Also, therein lies an anticipation of risk or problem arising in the future. The fine line that differentiates the certain from the uncertain is management.
Real life situations may be associated with simulations, wherein we can have definite solutions to problems. But there are some situations in which pragmatism finds importance over knowledge and theory. The approach, in such cases, calls for dynamism. In a nutshell, management is not only about PODSCoRB (Planning, Organising, Directing, Staffing, Co-ordinating, Reporting and Budgeting), but it has also got an aspect that is practical in nature and very hard to define.
The quest for management is never ending, and it will only continue to be so.....
Management to me is the art & science of utilizing the maximum of the available resources(e.g. Employee) without harming it's longevity(e.g. efficiency) to have the desired upshot.
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