Functions of management

Koontz and O'Donell put the functions of a manager into five groups. They thought that the best way to group management functions is by the tasks of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling. Most modern authors agree with this point of view. The tasks of management can be put into the following categories:

• Planning
• Organizing
• Staffing
• Directing
• Controlling

Planning:

Planning is the first step in the management process. The mental act of planning, which calls for the use of one's intelligence, foresight, and good sense. Planning entails determining in advance what to do when to do it, where to do, and how the outcomes are to be assessed. The process of planning involves the following activities:

• Laying down objectives.
• Developing planning premises
• Searching alternatives course of action
• Evaluating various alternatives and formulation of the plan
• Preparing schedules, programs, and budgets.

Management's ability to estimate and maintain the resources needed to meet the activities, and the group's ability to carry out those activities in a way that is consistent with the present objectives, as well as to monitor and evaluate progress towards achievement of objectives and provide feedback, are all aided by careful planning.

Organizing:

When you organize something, you give it form. The outline is a visual representation of the intended task. It's a crucial part of management's job to coordinate the use of human and material resources toward the accomplishment of goals. The process of organizing involves the following activities:

• Identifying the activities involved in achieving the objectives.
• Grouping the activities on the basis of the nature of work and the principle of minimum expenditure and maximum work satisfaction.
• Assigning the activities to specific positions/people.
• Delegating the responsibility and authority to carry out the assigned tasks.
• Establishing authority-responsibility relationships throughout the organization. There must be a good interpersonal relationship among workers, departments, and institutions, which together provide cooperation and good understanding in a working situation.

A well-organized group is able to make decisions more quickly, with less drama and contention, since its members are able to devote their whole attention to their primary responsibilities.

Staffing:

Management's staffing duty is one that focuses on the workforce. Staff development necessitates a methodical approach to human resource planning, recruitment and selection of workers, orientation, and scheduling.

Case methods, functional methods, primary care methods, and team approaches are all examples of assignment systems that nurses use, and they must also choose staffing schedules that are effective for patients or customers, employees, and the business as a whole.

Directing and leading:

Management in action is another name for directing. The following phase for a manager is to take actions that will kickstart the group's activity and keep it going for as long as it takes to complete the job, after which the plan and organizational structure may be considered complete.

According to G.R Terry, "Directing means moving to action and supplying simulative power to the group”. Direction thus involves issuing instructions or communication to subordinates leading/guiding, motivating and supervising them.

Controlling:

Checking to check if actions were taken in accordance with intended outcomes is what we mean when we say "we're controlling.". The process of control involves the following steps:

• Establishing standards of performance.
• Measuring current performance against set standards
• Taking action to correct any person who does not conform to a set of managerial skills.