questions
Managers and Management Tutorial Week 1
Why is it important to study management?
One reason it is important to study management is that all of us interact with organisations daily, so we have a vested interest in seeing that organisations are well managed.
Another reason is the reality that in your career you will either manage or be managed. By studying management you can gain insights into the way your boss and fellow employees behave and how organisations function.
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What is management?
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Management is getting work done through others.
Many of today’s managers got their start welding on the factory floor, cleaning dishes off tables, helping a customer fit a suit or wiping up a spill in aisle 3.
When a company is describing managerial responsibilities they must find someone that is concerned with effectiveness and efficiency.
Effectiveness
Effectiveness which is accomplishing tasks that help fulfil organisational objectives such as customer service and satisfaction.
Effectiveness means “doing the right things” by doing those work tasks that help the organisation reach its goals
What is the difference between efficiency and effectiveness?
Efficiency
Efficiency is getting work done with a minimum of effort, expense, or waste.
Efficiency is “doing things right”-this means doing a task correctly and getting the most output from the least amount of input.
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What are the four functions of management?
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When managers want to be effective and produce the best possible results they need to perform the following four functions:
Planning
Planning involves determining organisational goals and a means for achieving them. Planning is one of the best ways to improve performance.
Organising
Organising is deciding where decisions will be made , who will do what jobs and tasks, and who will work for whom in the company.
Leading
Leading involves inspiring and motivating workers to work hard and to achieve org. goals.
Controlling
Controlling is monitoring progress toward goal achievement and taking corrective action when progress isn’t being made
Different types of managers
Middle Managers
Middle managers are those who are between the lowest and top levels of organisation. These individuals often manage other managers and maybe some nonmanagerial employees and are typically responsible for translating the goals set at the top managers into specific details that lower level managers will see get done. The titles that they may have are district manager, division manager store manager, department head or project leader.
Top Managers
Top managers are those at or near the top of an organisation. They make decisions about the direction of the organisation and establishing policies and philosophies that affect all members . Top managers typically have titles such as vice president, president, chancellor, managing director, COO, CEO or chairperson of the board.
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Different types of managers
Non-managerial employees
Nonmanagerial employees are those directly on a job or task and have no responsibility for overseeing the work of others. The checkout operator, or the person at subway who makes your order.
First Line Manager
These individuals responsible for directing the day to day activities of non managerial employees. First line managers are often called supervisors, team leaders, coaches, shift managers or unit coordinators.
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Tell me, and I forget Show me, and I may remember Involve me, and I learn
TEAM ROLES
I am creative, and have lots of ideas.
I like to get to know people.
I am good at involving everyone.
I am good at working under pressure.
I am good at making decisions.
I am a good listener.
I am efficient and I get things done.
I like to get things just right.
I am very
organised.
Name:
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Name:
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Name:
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Name:
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Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
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Name:
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Team members:
Walk around the table reading these. There will be more statements than people – that’s OK.
Write your name next to three of these statements that represent you.
CIRCLE your name next to the ONE that best represents you.
More than one person can write their names next to a statement. Several statements not have any names written next to them.
Team Exercise One (a) Team Roles – Week 1
TEAM ROLES
Shaper
Action-oriented roles
People-oriented roles
Thinking-oriented roles
Implementer
Completer Finisher
Co-ordinator
Team-worker
Resource Investigator
Monitor Evaluator
Plant
Specialist
Team Exercise One (a)
Team Roles – Week 1
Over Lay
TEAM ROLES
Shaper
Action-oriented roles
People-oriented roles
Thinking-oriented roles
Implementer
Completer Finisher
Co-ordinator
Team-worker
Resource Investigator
Monitor Evaluator
Plant
Specialist
I am creative, and have lots of ideas.
I like to get to know people.
I am good at involving everyone.
I am good at working under pressure.
I am good at making decisions.
I am a good listener.
I am efficient and I get things done.
I like to get things just right.
I am very
organised.
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Name:
___________ ___________ ___________ ___________
Team Exercise One (a) Team Roles – Week 1
Overlay Guide Sheet to show how overlay works (doesn’t need to be printed)
Mintzberg’s Managerial Roles
Interpersonal Roles
These roles relate to the manager’s behavior that focuses on interpersonal contact Interpersonal roles are roles that involve people (subordinates and persons outside the organization) and other duties that are ceremonial and symbolic in nature.
The three interpersonal roles include being a figurehead, leader, and liaison.
According to Dr. Henry Mintzberg These three interpersonal roles derive from the authority and status associated with managers’ post.
Figurehead: The figurehead performs symbolic legal or social duties. All social, inspiration, legal and ceremonial obligations. In this light, the manager is seen as a symbol of status and authority.
Leader: The Leader builds relationships with employees and communicates with, motivates, and coaches them. Duties are at the heart of the manager-subordinate relationship and include structuring and motivating subordinates, overseeing their progress, promoting and encouraging their development, and balancing effectiveness.
Liaison: The liaison maintains a network of contacts outside the work unit to obtain information. Describes the information and communication obligations of a manager. One must network and engage in information exchange to gain access to knowledge bases.
As a manager, you need to perform many different roles to meet your responsibilities.
One minute you might be resolving a conflict between team members, and the next you could be representing your department at a meeting. You're expected to restore harmony and productivity in one area, and then show your technical and strategic expertise in another. Your challenge is to acquire the skills for each role so that you can deal with every situation successfully.
And this is where Mintzberg's Management Roles can help. In his book, "Mintzberg on Management: Inside our Strange World of Organizations," Henry Mintzberg identified 10 essential roles that managers play. These are Figurehead, Leader, Liaison, Monitor, Disseminator, Spokesperson, Entrepreneur, Disturbance Handler, Resource Allocator, and Negotiator. He grouped these roles into three types: interpersonal, informational and decisional.
For example, a Figurehead is an interpersonal type. If you're a manager, you have social, ceremonial and legal responsibilities. You'll be a source of inspiration and people will look up to you.
If you're a Monitor, you're fulfilling an informational type. You regularly seek out news related to your organization and industry, and you're aware of your team's productivity and wellbeing.
A Disturbance Handler is a decisional type. When a team hits an unexpected roadblock, it's the manager who must take charge and mediate any disputes.
Mintzberg's model can help you to identify your leadership priorities and weaknesses. This will give you a starting point for developing your management skills in all the roles that you need to perform.
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Informational Roles
Informational roles involve receiving, collecting, and disseminating information. The three informational roles include a monitor, disseminator, and spokesperson.
These informational roles are all about receiving and transmitting information so that managers can serve as the nerve centers of their organization. The informational roles are;
Monitor: The monitor seeks internal and external information about issues that can affect the organization. Duties include assessing internal operations, a department’s success and the problems and opportunities which may arise. All the information gained in this capacity must be stored and maintained
Disseminator: The disseminator transmits information internally that is obtained from either internal or external sources. Highlights factual or value based external views into the organization and to subordinates. This requires both filtering and delegation skills.
Spokesperson: The spokesperson transmits information about the organization to outsiders. Serves in a PR capacity by informing and lobbying others to keep key stakeholders updated about the operations of the organization.
Decisional Roles
Decisional roles revolved around making choices. Managers’ interpersonal role leads to the decisional roles.
Information and resources that’s collected and gathered by the interpersonal makes a manger able to play the decisional roles or responsibilities that his is obligated to.
The four decisional roles include being an entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource allocator, and negotiator.
Entrepreneur: The entrepreneur acts as an initiator, designer, and encourage of change and innovation. Roles encourage managers to create improvement projects and work to delegate, empower and supervise teams in the development process.
Disturbance handler: The disturbance handler takes corrective action when the organization faces important, unexpected difficulties. A generalist role that takes charge when an organization is unexpectedly upset or transformed and requires calming and support.
Resource allocator: The resource allocator distributes resources of all types, including time, funding, equipment, and human resources. Describes the responsibility of allocating and overseeing financial, material and personnel resources.
Negotiator: The negotiator represents the organization in major negotiations affecting the manager’s areas of responsibility is a specific task which is integral for the spokesman, figurehead and resource allocator roles.
If we analyze Mintzburg’s finds we can say that authority and status derive the interpersonal roles, interpersonal makes it necessary for a manager to play informational roles. And that enable a manager to make decision.
What are companies looking for in managers?
Technical skills
Human Skills
Conceptual skills
Motivation to manage
Technical skills
Technical skills are the ability to apply the specialized procedures, techniques and knowledge required to get the job done.
How important is this for the different managers? It appears that for those who are team leaders have technical skills is of high importance.
For example having worked in the Hospice system for 8 and half years it was very clear that medical team leaders. Had to know a range of technical skills in order to adapt to the needs of different situations that may arise for each patient. This is also key for low level managers who manage employees who make produts or serve customers ? Why ? So they can train new employees and help employees solve problems. The need for technical is see as less important as managers go up with ranks – why or why not?
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Human Skills
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Human skills is the ability to work well with others. But it is not just that , it is also the ability to encourage others to express their thoughts and feelings . This also means being open to other viewpoints and being good listeners and communicators. So which managers need this?
All of them.
Conceptual skills
Is the ability to see the organization as a whole, understand how the different parts affect each other and recognize how the company fits into or is affected by the environment.
Good managers need to be able to recognize, understand and reconcile multiple complex problems and perspectives.
Motivation to manage
This is an assessment of:
how motivated employees are to interact with superiors
participate in competitive situations
behave assertively toward others
tell others what to do
reward good behavior and punish bad behavior
perform actions that are highly visible to others
And handle and organize administrative tasks.
What Great Managers Do Daily – Harvard Business Review
Managers have a tough job.
First, they have knowledge or skill in their area of expertise that the organization relies upon. And, they have a responsibility to engage employees. I would contend that the responsibility to engage extends beyond their direct reports. Managers are asked to set the example and create an engaging work environment with each employee interaction. What does that look like? Well, many managers are promoted from within. They are high-performing employees who have exceptional technical skills. They also have a few habits when it comes to working with employees that make them stand out.
Key Takeaways:
Most companies understand the importance of having highly effective managers, but few invest heavily in training to help them get there. One reason is that it’s difficult to measure and quantify what good management actually looks like.
This state of affairs is hurting not just employee engagement and quality of life, but also corporate performance.
there has been a lot of great work done to identify qualitative traits of great managers — they create trust, focus on strengths, instill accountability, avoid politics, etc.
“Most companies understand the importance of having highly effective managers, but few invest heavily in training to help them get there.”
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What will you take forward?
Think about the things we have discussed today and how does this relate to the simulation and your future careers?