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Running Head: THE FIVE MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS

The Five Management Functions Name Course Professor Date

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According to Reilly, Minnick and Baack (2011), the five functions of management consist of planning, leading, staffing, organizing and controlling. A business can run successfully if these functions are implemented in the best way possible. However, this begins with proper understanding of how planning, leading, staffing, organizing and controlling operate as the most important functions of management are separated from other business functions including marketing, finance, and accounting. Currently I work as a transportation manager for one of the biggest multinational corporation based in the United States, and the purpose of this paper is to analyze how the concepts outlined in the five functions of management are applied including specific examples Planning “Planning is a systematic process in which managers make decisions about future activities and the key goals that the organization intends to pursue” (Reilly et al., 2011). This implies that as a function of management, planning is utilized by managers to identify the most appropriate organizational goals and the best course of action that can be exploited to reach the defined goals. Typically, all managers in my organization engage a wide variety of actions, but the entire process begins with an in-depth examination of the organization’s internal and external environments (SWOT analysis) followed by the determination of goals and objectives that must be pursued as described by Mihai, Alexandra and Danut (2014). Once the goals have been identified, the manager has to collaborate with other managers and employees in order to develop the best operation plan, which outlines the tactics to be employed to accomplish the goals. In my workplace, managers identify multiple courses of action, which are then evaluated on the basis of their ability to create greater chances for success. Finally, resources are then allocated to the activities that need to be performed to meet the set

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goals. In the organization that I work for, the resources often include both financial and human resources (Ramona & Anca, 2013). As a manager, I have a responsibility to coordinate with all levels of the corporation’s management when it comes to the development of the best strategies for the department’s course of action. Each approach outlined in the plan has to be evaluated for success and corrective action taken. For example, when purchasing a new truck for the company, we’ve got a plan that assigns each work team a role to play, such as with the inventory or any other paperwork. Another team performs quality assessment to ensure that each purchase is in line with the corporation’s mission of providing high quality transportation services. Organizing Reilly et al. (2011) describes organizing as a process in which managers create tasks and authority relationships that play a significant role in helping people to work together so as to achieve established organizational goals and objectives. Primarily, this involves forging the best approaches for enhancing proper utilization of organizational resources; both human and financial resources within my department. However, this must begin with the grouping of tasks into solid organizational structures followed by the assignment of authority, as well as the allocation of resources throughout the established corporate structures. Organizing as a function of management plays a vital role in any organization because it can either hinder or help in the achievement of the established corporate plan, and thus it profoundly affects success. In the organization that I work for, the first step in creating a stable organizational structure begins with the identification of diverse roles and responsibilities to be performed by each employee. For example, each employee is assigned a role to play in my department, ranging from responsibilities like vehicle tracking to repairs. Through a well-defined

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job design, each employee becomes well-informed on inherent responsibilities within the assigned position (Ramona & Anca, 2013). Additionally, the work processes are complemented with an explanation of how decisions are to be made, primarily by assigning authority to members of the staff based on their level within the organization. It’s imperative to note that organizing also includes how information has to be communicated based on established organizational hierarchy. I work for a multinational organization that has outlets across different geographic regions in the world, and as a middle manager I only report to my region’s vice president, who then reports to the president of the company. Staffing According to Reilly et al. (2011), “Staffing includes the recruiting, selecting, training, evaluating, compensating and disciplining of employees within the organization.” It’s an outstanding function of management in any organization. The primary purpose of staffing as a function of management is to ensure that the right people are hired for any given job within the organization in order to facilitate the process of goal achievement (Collings, McDonnell, Gunnigle & Lavelle, 2010). While a good number of managers often believe that staffing is the responsibility of the human resource department, recruitment and selection is perhaps the only responsibility that they play in my current workplace. Essentially, staffing is a distributed function of management. In fact, Reilly et al. (2011) asserts that the typical role of the HR department is to design a formal system that assists managers within various departments when it comes to the staffing function. For example, it’s the responsibility of every manager in our organization to come up with the job description that identifies the required human skills (job specifications) for a particular position within the

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department, especially after job analysis. The description is then forwarded to the personnel department whereby it’s reviewed to ensure that it doesn’t contravene any legal aspect of staffing in our region of operation. As a multinational corporation, staffing is primarily based on the creation of workplace diversity. This begins with recruitment, or soliciting of applications from candidates who meet the requirements outlined in the job description. Publicizing the available positions is usually done through advertisements on the local mass media like the newspapers and other dailies, as well as on social media (through the company’s Facebook and Twitter fan pages) and professional websites like LinkedIn. We usually put more emphasis on recruitment as one of the most important process in staffing our department because “the recruiting process generates candidates that will be the “best fit” for employment” (Reilly et al., 2011). Typically, the right candidates are then selected or screened through interviews and tests. Successful candidates are the one who meet the minimum requirements for the available position. Orientation and placement are the responsibilities of departmental managers since it creates a favorable impression while enhancing personal acceptance. Our corporation operates in a highly competitive environment, and hence each manager has a responsibility to ensure that new employees are trained. However, as one of the managers, I have to come up with the on-thejob training program that allows for workplace flexibility. For example, the training often involves providing in-depth knowledge about the latest technologies in the transport sector, such as truck tracking technologies. E-learning is the most dominant training technique used in my department (Latif, Jan & Shaheen, 2013). Performance appraisals help managers identify if employees are performing as expected, particularly by measuring their performance based on established standards and objectives.

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Immediately after training hired employees, all managers are usually required to implement subjective performance appraisals in order to reward well-performing employees or those who meet the organization’s set goals. Feedback is key, and it’s interesting to note that the organization that I work for make it mandatory for supervisors to offer feedback to employees concerning their performance (Latif et al., 2013). Corrective measures are typically implemented as stipulated in the organization’s contingency plan, which includes developing new training programs or motivational strategies for employees dissatisfied with their jobs. For example, managers ought to recommend promotions to the human resource department, or even identify the employees who require additional training to facilitate career development. Salary increase and other incentives are also awarded to performing employees as a way of motivating employees (Latif et al., 2013). Leading “Leading means motivating, coordinating, and energizing individuals and groups to work together to achieve organizational goals“(Reilly et al., 2011). It’s a function of management that begins with the communication of organizational objectives including a plan to be utilized to achieve them. Depending on one’s leadership style, creating influence is imperative (Ramona & Anca, 2013). For example, leaders within groups assigned to certain projects employ their expertise to influence others since they are usually selected based on their experience with the reality. Motivation is an indispensable component of leadership, and as stated earlier, rewards and other incentives are often used in our organization to motivate performing employees. Furthermore, I work in an organization whereby interaction with heavy machinery is the order of the day, and thus workplace accidents and injuries are usually bound to occur. We’ve clear

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guidelines and safety measures that guide employee behavior in our organization in order to foster workplace motivation by ensuring that we meet the safety or security needs of each employee as described by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. For example, alcohol and drugs abuse in the workplace reduce employee concentration and focus leading to the occurrence of uncalled for accidents, therefore it’s forbidden. Controlling Controlling as function of management basically refers to a process in which the performance of the employees is evaluated against established goals. A typical control process follows four steps: reviewing the standards set in the planning process, measuring of performance, comparing actual performance results with the set standards, and decision-making based on both successful and unsuccessful performances (Reilly et al., 2011). There are two conventional methods of control utilized in the organization that I work for, such as performance audits and budgets audits. For example, managers out to report to the vice president how financial resources allocated to their departments were utilized. Ratio analysis is used to identify activities that contributed to the organizational performance; for instance, I use profitability and activity ratios in my department to foster efficiency (Śliwczyński, 2011). Conclusion Although from my experience working as a transportation manager I realized that the functions of management often exceed the ones listed by Reilly et al. (2011), these five management function of management are enough to make the employees believe in the management of any organization. Essentially, effective management and leadership primarily involve implementing the best strategies to motivate employees, and solve a problem creatively while ensuring that the organization achieves its objectives and goals.

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References Collings, D. G., McDonnell, A., Gunnigle, P., & Lavelle, J. (2010). Swimming against the tide: Outward staffing flows from multinational subsidiaries. Human Resource Management, 49(4), 575-598. Latif, K. F., Jan, S., & Shaheen, N. (2013). Association of training satisfaction with employee development aspect of job satisfaction. Journal Of Managerial Sciences, 7(1), 159-178. Mihai, B., Alexandra, D., & Danut, D. (2014). Integrated systems for planning and resources management in companies. Annals Of The University Of Oradea, Economic Science Series, 23(1), 252-257. Ramona, T., & Anca, Ş. (2013). Human resource management - From function to strategic partner. Annals of the University Of Oradea, Economic Science Series, 22, 631-638. Reilly, M., Minnick, C., & Baack, D. (2011). The five functions of effective management (2nd Ed.). San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Śliwczyński, B. (2011). Operational controlling - a tool of translating strategy into action. Logforum, 7(1), 46-59....