assignment

There are four primary functions of a manager that need to be coordinated in order to be effective and efficient when managing a work force. The first function, planning, is the most important and time consuming because in this step you gather all the information regarding your issue and establish a strategy to increase organizational effectiveness. The second step, organizing, includes breaking workers into groups or teams, in turn creating a work structure where everyone knows what their part is and can complete their tasks in a timely manner without confusion. The third step, leading, is where your job as a coach and mentor come into play. Being able to motivate, encourage, and coordinate people is vital in order to produce the correct results consistently. The fourth and last step, controlling, includes taking time to monitor the progress and evaluate the effectiveness of your strategy, as well as the individual people working for you. If you do not receive the results you were looking for, try altering your strategy and applying information from your results.

Planning is essential to achieving any goal. The planning step requires the manager to decide on organizational goals and allocate the appropriate resources in order to achieve those goals. At Kelly Services, there are many methods in which plan to be successful. There is a yearly kick off meeting to discuss company goals and align strategies for the New Year. In addition, we have quarterly meetings to ensure that all of the managers are on target.

The organizing factor involves the manager establishing rules and guidelines that allow goals to be accomplished. In order for any organization to be effective, they must be organized, which is something done effectively at Kelly Services. The manager is responsible for guiding all orders to the proper recruiter in order to make sure that each order is being handled properly. We utilize whiteboards to write down the orders immediately and we add all candidates that are submitted. This keeps the recruiters on track and allows the manager monitor progress.

Leading is where we encourage and lead our employees toward organizational goals. According to Tony Carter, “Of all the things managers perform to develop employees, many people believe the most important one is Leadership. Leadership is defined as using skills, experience, and direction to help someone improve their performance.” At Kelly Services, each manager is responsible for leading in office huddles, it is how we kick off each day, and wrap up each afternoon. In the morning we discuss our goals for the day and what each recruiter will be responsible for. Afternoon huddles consist of discussing what was accomplished during that day and where we guide our employees as to what will need to be focused on the following day.

Lastly is controlling, we review and evaluate how the organization is progressing toward achieving the goals and redirect efforts where needed. At the quarterly Branch Health Check we examine our group efforts and the product and loss reports to ensure our goals are aligned with strategy. We also have monthly recruiter reviews which ensure that each recruiter is individually accomplishing their goals.

According to Time Barnett, Henri Fayol was the first person to identify these elements of management in his 1916 book entitled “Administration Industrielle et Generale.” In the book “Fayol argued that these functions were universal, in the sense that all managers performed them in the course of their jobs.” These four steps help guide managers down the path to success. By planning, organizing, leading, and controlling we are able to see each step in the process of meeting a goal. In order to ensure a goal is met, each of these steps must be executed properly. These are the tools for any good manager to lead their employees to victory.

References

George, J.M., & Jones, G.R. (2012). Understanding and managing organizational behavior (6th

ed.). Pearson Education. Chapter 1.

Carter, T. Leadership and Management Performance. Journal of Hospital Marketing & Public Relations. United States, 142-147. July 2009.

Barnett, Tim. "Management Functions." Encyclopedia of Management. Ed. Marilyn M. Helms. 5th ed. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 493-495. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 5 Mar. 2015.