UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
• This unit serves to introduce the student to the concept of management.
• An organisation brings together resources to produce and provide the
products and services which the society needs.
• Management serves to ensure that such goals are established and
operationalised, and in so doing supports the purpose of the
organisation.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Learning outcomes:
 Discuss the management process and explain the relationship between the
management process and its environments.
 Formulate a workable definition of management.
 Identify the levels of management and critically discuss the activities which are
performed at each level.
 Explain the relationship between the organisation and management.
 Identify and critically discuss the areas of management, manager role distribution
and managerial skills.
 Identify and critically discuss the concepts of, and key differences between, the
‘old’ organisation and the ‘new’ organisation.
 Identify and critically discuss the measures of managerial and organisational
performance.
 Identify and critically discuss contemporary management challenges.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
The relationship between the organisation and management is critical in that
management serves to support the establishment of goals, implementation of
actions and utilisation of resources, so as to enable the achievement of the
organisation’s purpose.
What is management ?
Management is a process where planning, organising, leading & controlling are
executed, utilising scarce resources, so as to provide effective and efficient
achievement of organisation’s goals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=49&v=9EBlLBenBfw
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
The Nature of Management
Management’s task is argued to be “…to examine factors, methods and
principles that enable a business organisation to maximise its profits and
achieve its objectives, (Cronje:2002:8). The achievement of this task is reliant on
the management process, which comprises the functions of planning,
organising, leading and controlling.
The Organisation
Within the organisation, management achieves the goals of the enterprise
through acting on its human, financial, physical and informational resources by
executing the four central management functions of Planning, Organising,
Leading and Controlling (abbreviated to POLC).
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
The four management functions comprise the core management process:
Planning involves determining which goals and courses of action the
organisation and the various departments should pursue;
Organising involves the structuring and arranging of work, resources,
departments and the overall organisation in a manner which will facilitate the
achievement of organisational goals;
o Leading involves influencing the organisation’s employees so as to ensure that
they are motivated to perform actions which are aligned with the organisation’s
overall goals;
o Control means narrowing the gap between what was planned and the actual
achievement of management, and ensuring that all activities are carried out as
they should be. (Du Toit et al, 2013)
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
 The micro-environment is the business itself (internal environment)
 Within the organisation, management achieves the goals of the enterprise
through acting on its human, financial, physical and informational resources
by executing the four central management functions of Planning, Organising,
Leading and Controlling (abbreviated to POLC).
 The organisation operates within a market environment, comprising
consumers, suppliers and competitors, as well as the macro-environment,
which includes the technological, economic, social, political and international
environments.
 These two environments that impact the organisation are external
environments.
 Management theories (schools of thought), provides management with
fundamental principles to guide effective management decisions.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Definitions of management include:
“…the process of planning, organising, leading and controlling the resources of the
organisation to achieve stated organisational goals as productively as possible” (Cronjé,
et al 2004:10).
“…the process of getting things done through the efforts of other people” (Mondy,
Sharplin & Premeaux, 1991: 3).
“…the process of planning, organising, leading, and controlling the work of organisation
Members and of using all available organisational resources to reach stated
organisational goals.” (Jones, George & Hill, 1998:5).
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Levels of Management
Top Management
Middle Management
Lower / First-Line / Supervisory Management
The three levels of management may be distinguished according to level of
responsibility, main functions, time orientation and positions held.
Managers at all levels spend time on all management functions. However, the
amount of time spent on each particular function differs between each level of
management.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Areas of management
A business also has different types of managers, each responsible
for the management of a specialised group of activities.
Six functional areas of management may be identified (Cronjé, et
al, 2004:125):
Marketing Management
Financial Management
Operations Management
Purchasing Management
Human Resource Management
Public Relations Management
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Managerial skills
Cronjé et al (2004) identify three categories of skills managers
need in order to cope with the complex nature of managerial work:
Conceptual Skills: which refer to the manager’s ability to view
the operation of the organisation and its parts holistically.
Interpersonal Skills: which refer to the manager’s ability to
communicate and work effectively with
others.
Technical Skills: which refer to the ability to use discipline
specific skills to complete a particular task.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Mintzberg (1990) identifies the following skill categories:
Development of peer relationships
Motivation of subordinates
Conflict resolution skills
Negotiation skills
Establishment of information networks
Dissemination of information
Allocation of resources
Decision making in conditions of extreme ambiguity
Introspective skills which provide for learning of the job
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Management education
Managerial skills may be developed from both education and experience.
Management education can take the form of formal or continuous education within an
educational setting, for example, at colleges, technikons, universities and/or company inhouse training facilities (Cronjé, 2004).
Managerial skills may be developed from both education and experience
Practical experience provides the manager and potential manager with the opportunity
to develop management skills while performing his/her job.
In management development programs, cognitive learning which results from education
is married with the practical learning which results from experience.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Management and Organisational Performance
Organisations establish goals which must be operationalised for
the purpose of the organisation to be achieved and to meet the
needs and demands of current day society (Cronjé, 2004).
Management serves to ensure that such goals are established
and operationalised, and in so doing supports the purpose of the
organisation.
Criteria used for assessment of managerial and organisational
performance
Efficiency (‘doing things right’) focuses on input and output.
Effectiveness (‘doing the right thing’) focuses on choosing the
most appropriate goals and plans of action
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Scope and Challenges of Management
Cronjé et al (2007) identify the following challenges to
management within the Southern African region:
Management Training for Large and Small Business
Organisations: Skilled management are able to ensure
effective organisational performance.
International Management: Globalisation has resulted
in South African organisations having to compete with
global players.
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Scope and Challenges of Management
Non-profit Seeking Organisations: Non-profit organisations within South Africa,
such as the government, place a significant demand on scarce resources.
Managerial and Economic Empowerment: The initiatives of the South African
apartheid government resulted in considerable inequalities and consequently a
vast number of disadvantaged individuals. (Cronjé,et al 2004).
UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT
Scope and Challenges of Management
Cultural Diversity: The South African organisation is characterized by diversity
in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, gender and sexual orientation.
HIV and AIDS: Taylor (2000) identifies HIV and AIDS to be a management
challenge
Management needs to be sufficiently committed and motivated for the
challenges identified by Cronjé (2004) and Taylor (2000) to be effectively
addressed?