Meaning of Management
(1) Management as a process: Management is regarded as a process because it includes a series of actions. The management process consists of setting objectives for a enterprise and taking steps to ensure that these objectives are achieved. The steps include functions like planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling. The process of management thus involves laying down various goals and finding ways to achieve the same. Management as a process may be said to consist of three aspects.
(I) Management is a Social Process: the management process is largely a social one, because the activities involved in the achievement of goals are mainly concerned with relations between people. Basically, all tasks are carried out when employees interact with one another. Management as a social process is concerned with making such interaction predictive as useful for achieving organizational goals.
(ii) Management is an Integrating Process: organization the human beings work with non-human resources like machines, materials, technology, financial assets, buildings, etc. Management integrates human efforts in relation to those resources. Management undertakes in bringing together the human physical and financial resources so that there is harmony
(iii) Management is a continuous Process: Management is not confined to the handling at integrating human and material resources at a particular point. Rather it Is an ongoing continuous process. It involves continuous handling of problems and issues. Management is concerned with constantly identifying the problems and solving them by taking appropriate steps.
(2) Management as an Activity: That management is a process of making systematic use of human and material resources implies that management consists of al those activities which must be performed in the said process. Management as an activity means what managers do in the process of management. These include:
(I) Informational Activities: Management involves receiving and giving information orally and in writing. Managers constantly communicate with their subordinates as well as superiors. They exchange information relating to various tasks, situations and persons, and initiate action on that basis.
(ii) Decisional Activities: Another activity which needs considerable time to be devoted by managers relates to making decisions of different kinds. If someone proceeds on leave the manger has to decide who will perform the absentee’s work. Practically all types of activities of managers are based on one or the other decision. For example, the sales manager may decide the content and media of advertising. These decisions become the basis of actions to follow. Similarly, other managers are engaged in decision- making which constitute the basis of other activities.
(iii) Inter- Personal Activities: Management involves achieving goals through people. Therefore, managers have to interact with their superiors ads well as subordinates. They must maintain good relations with them. The inter- personal activities may include maintaining social relations with subordinates, and taking care of individual problems in a helpful manner.
(3) Management as a Group: Management as a group refers to management as a class or section of people who together carry out various managerial activities. Therefore, when someone says ‘management of a certain company is very efficient’, it refers to the section or group of people in that company who are carrying out management functions. Therefore, as a group the term management connotes the group of individuals occupying managerial positions. All the managers from the Chief Executive to first line supervisors are collectively addressed as management. It must be noted that although technically speaking all the people who have managerial duties are top management of the organization like the chief executive or Chairman of the Board, the Board of Directors, or al of these or any combination of these.
(4) Management as a Discipline: the term management is also used to refer to the body of knowledge and as a separate field of study. Management is now recognized as a formal discipline having an organized body of knowledge which can be learnt through instructions and teaching. The emergence of management as a separate discipline is evident from the fact that all over the world a large number of new colleges and schools of management have been set up and increasingly a large number of new colleges and schools of management have been set up and increasingly a large number of universities and connives have introduced management courses. Any branch of knowledge must fulfill two requirements to qualify as a separate discipline. First, the branch of knowledge in question must have scholars and thinkers who communicate the relevant knowledge through research and publications, specially, devoted to the field. Secondly, there should be effort to formally impart the knowledge so generated to others. Management qualifies to be a discipline on both these counts. All over the world scholars are doing research on the principles and practices of management. Their findings are published in books/ magazines specialized in management.