Roles of a Manager and Their Importance to Organizations - Essay Example

Topic: Theory & Practice in Management Lecturer: Presentation What is the role of a manager and why is it important for organizations? Introduction In order for a business or an organization to succeed, it is important to have managers who possess excellent skills for controlling various activities and ensuring efficient utilization of resources. Such skills include and not limited to ability to lead and provide guidance on important issues, excellent communication skills so as to ensure that there are no conflicts which may arise due to poor delivery of information as well as the ability to make important decisions concerning the business (Pareek, 2003 p 28). These qualities are essential especially in the field of international management where challenges are unquantifiable. This is due to cultural diversity that can be well explained by Hofstede’s cultural dimensions which include individualism, uncertainty avoidance, power distance index etc (Hofstede, 2005 p 26). This essay is an evaluation of the various roles of a manager and their importance to organizations. Roles of a Manager and Their Importance to Organizations As a manger, one is entrusted with various roles which are meant to enhance the progress and smooth running of a business thus facilitating a favorable environment for business progress as well as harmonizing business operations (Pareek, 2000 p 12). The roles include for example supervising and managing staff. In every department in an organization, there must be someone in charge of ensuring that employees perform their responsibilities according to their job description. This is due to the fact that there are those employees who cannot perform unless there is someone senior supervising them (Pareek, 2000 p 20). If this is not done, the organization would lose a lot in terms of time due to the reluctance of the staff to deliver the expected results within the required time frames. In this context, the manager has the responsibility of ensuring that any staff that shows indiscipline is punished according to the organization’s ethics code. The manager also has the responsibility of assigning duties to the various employees so as to ensure that they do not stay idle at any one time (Christiansen, 2002 p 30). He also has the authority of hiring and firing staff depending on there is need to reduce or increase their number may be due to the increase or reduction of the amount of work. This ensures there is a balance between income and expenditure which correlates highly with production. A manager also has the role of advising his employer on the various strategies that can be made to increase production and standards of goods and services. As such, he is an agent of change (Pareek, 2000 p 32). By doing so, the manager becomes an important asset to the organization due to the fact that he has the ability to bring profitable ideas that can help the organization to maximize returns. In addition, the manager has the role of identifying weaknesses and problems in the organization and also finding viable solutions thus promoting continuity which may be affected by the problems. Conclusion A manager is a person who takes accountability on the day to day operations in an organization (Christiansen, 2002 p 10). This is due to the responsibilities he carries such as supervising and managing employees, advising his superiors on important strategies that can increase productivity and quality of produce thus acting as an agent of change as well as maintaining the organization’s code of ethics. 2. Why is it important for managers to understand motivation and how can this improve organizational performance? Introduction Human beings unlike machines require some form of motivation in order to feel appreciated thus increasing their level of production (Bowen, 2004 p 5). For example, facilitating health services for the employees’ family at a subsidized rate or offering transport to their children to and from school enhances their concentration since the would not have to worry about their family’s welfare while they are at work. As such, they would be motivated to work more and respect their jobs, which is an advantage to the organization. In their capacity as supervisors as well as being responsible for effecting rewards and compensations, managers have the responsibility of ensuring that employees are motivated (Bowen, 2004 p 18). This essay discusses the importance of managers understanding motivation as well as how it can improve organizational performance. Importance of Managers Understanding Motivation and How it Can Improve Organizational Performance Proper strategies and policies only does not guarantee the success of an organization, without having to motivate the employees who provide the skills and power to achieve the set targets, which are the key to financial success (Bowen, 2004 p 22). It is therefore important for managers to understand the needs and factors that motivate each and every employee since people have different motivation factors. The manager, being responsible for the welfare of the organization should therefore be someone who acts with integrity as well as caring for those under him. A manager who mistreats his subjects is a liability to the organization in that he demoralizes the employees thus increasing the chances of them looking for better jobs in other organizations which would recognize their efforts (Padmoroff, 2005 p 7). This is due to the fact that employees produce more when they feel that their work is important thus not boring as well as in an environment where they are appreciated. A manager should be guided by his understanding of motivation. As such, he should be able to fulfill all the employee’s unmet needs which may make them uncomfortable with the job they are doing. These needs are for example psychological, safety, social, esteem as well as self actualization needs (Ventrice, 2003 p 13). By understanding these needs, the manager has the ability to take advantage and therefore take necessary measures to ensure that the employees apply their full potential in their work thus increasing the profit margin. Such measures can be for example providing further training, awarding bonuses to the best performers, awarding recommendations etc. Conclusion Employee motivation is a factor that managers should understand so as to be able to maximize their productivity which is beneficial to the organization. This encourages the staff and also influences their attitude towards their work. As such, they put more effort towards achieving the set targets thus enhancing financial success of the organization. Motivation can be in form of bonuses, promotion, subsidized training which is essential in empowering the staff with skills that can help them contribute actively at higher levels as well as bringing new ideas to the organization (Ventrice, 2003 p 15). The manager, being responsible for employees’ welfare as well as that of the organization, has the responsibility of ensuring that employees are motivated while at the same time minimizing expenditure. 4. What is the importance of good structure? Critically examine how structure relates to the overall effectiveness of an organization. Illustrate your key arguments with organizationally based examples. Introduction For a business or organization to be successful, it requires having a good organizational structure in order to facilitate growth (Roberts, 2007 p 9). This is essential especially to international organizations that have subsidiaries in different countries. The design of structures should be based on the type of the organization as well as the objectives aimed at. For example, a subsidiary organization with autonomy in the management of its affairs has a higher chance of succeeding than one that is controlled from the headquarters, which could be performing under various different conditions and environment as well as cultural back grounds (Ollins, 2001 p 16). This denies the management in the subsidiaries the chance to utilize their skills fully which could be enhanced by the circumstances on the ground. In this essay, the issue of delegation of tasks is discussed as an important factor that enhances the continuity of business operations whenever a senior manager is absent from work, which is enhanced by good structuring. The issue of autonomy has also been discussed as a factor that can describe a good structure since without it, an organization for example those with an international scope may fail to produce the expected results or in worse conditions lead to the failure of an organization. This essay is a critical evaluation of the importance of good structure and its relation to the overall effectiveness of an organization. Importance of good structure It may occur that some organizations are more successful than others. This may not necessarily be as a result of other factors such as good strategies but through good organizational structures (Ollins, 2001 p 7). An organizational structure depends on the size of the organization in that some require simple structures whereas others require more complex structures. With the structure in place, it becomes easy to set a management team that would have the ability to foster speedy growth. A good structure enhances effective flow of information within an organization thus reducing the chances of experiencing conflicts (Ollins, 2001 p 11). For example in a hierarchical organization structure, the information flows through various levels which are headed by different people with higher or lower authority depending on the direction the information is flowing. This type of structure is best suited to large organizations such as large companies or institutions such as universities and colleges though it can also be applied in other small and medium enterprises. Designing a good structure which fits in an organization ensures that informed decisions are easily made and effected in a quick manner. This is due to the fact that every level is assigned with responsibilities which are clearly defined thus does not necessarily have to depend on other heads of departments who also have their clearly defined roles (Roberts, 2007 23). This also facilitates effective utilization of resources which are divided among the various departments thus increasing competition as well as accountability and responsibility since the departmental heads are answerable to poor performance or cases of embezzlement. As such they would do their best to ensure that resources allocated to them are utilized in the best way possible so as to gain recognition from their superiors. With such structures, the crises that may arise due to poor employee handling may be contained through specific departments that deal with their affairs. Most structured organizations have the department of human resource management which ensures that employees produce at their best levels as well as protecting the organization from cases of occurrences such as employee strikes which could slow down the financial progress (Roberts, 2007 p 32). As such the managers are given the autonomy to make independent decisions which are within the organization’s limits. This is in contrast to some structures for example committee structures whereby decisions have to be made jointly by the members then disseminated across the board for execution (Roberts, 2007 p 66). This could work against the success of the organization for example as in the case of Disneyland Park which failed to acknowledge the situation on the ground due to the fact that the top management based in the headquarters in America had the overall say on administrative matters. As such, they could not realize the reasons as to why the park was experiencing low levels of French visitors. The managers in the park had a greater chance of saving it from heavy loses since they had a first hand experience of what was required but due to the management hierarchy, it was uneasy for them to act accordingly. A good organization structure enhances the division of labor. This enables the high level officials such as the CEOs to utilize their expansive skills which can be geared towards developing new markets as well as searching for more opportunities for the expansion of the organization and attracting new investors (Brickley, 2003 p 21). This would leave the experts as well as other managers to take care of the simple matters that do not necessarily call for his guidance and which are within their job description. It also helps to stabilize the administration in that every level in the structure has a senior manager who has the power to delegate some of his duties to his deputy whenever he is out of the office on official matters (Brickley, 2003 p 33). This ensures that there is continuity in the operations which would be a problem were there no structure clearly defining the hierarchy. For example, an institution such as a university or a college has a clear structure defining the system of administration for example starting with a chancellor then vice chancellor down the level up to the head of departments or faculties. As such, it is clear that when the university Chancellor is not available, his deputy automatically takes charge of the institution thus ensuring that the lower levels of management do not paralyze their operations on the account of his absence. In addition, different persons may have different capabilities and as such, the structure gives every person in the organization a chance to utilize his or her skills towards its benefit. For example, in an organization there may be activities such as Accounting, Engineering, and customer relations which require persons with broad knowledge on the subjects (Roberts, 2007 p 34). The staff in these departments would perform best under a manager who is conversant with the field so that in case of difficulties, he would be able to assist his staff thus reducing the chances of poor performance leading to financial losses. However, some such as flat structures may not utilize these benefits accrued from hierarchical structures due to their mixing up of high and low level skilled officers. That is why it is necessary to think carefully before making choice on the structure to be adopted in an organization. Structuring also helps to build teamwork amongst employees since it involves grouping them according to their job titles such that communication between them becomes easy thus promoting sharing of ideas (Brickley, 2003 p 35). For example, managers would have their own level in the organization structure whereas the junior staff would have their own level. As such it promotes horizontal communication within the levels which would be difficult to achieve were it that both managers and junior staff were put in the same level. There would be no clear distinction between the two especially due to the difference in the level of skills. It would also be uncomfortable for the two groups to work at the same level a factor that would result to poor performance which would be a disadvantage to the organization. Conclusion A good organization structure determines the effectiveness of the processes that lead to the success of an organization. It is true to say that most of the successful organizations can attribute their performance on the effectiveness of the structure they apply in the administration and management. There are various types of organization structures that include and not limited to hierarchical, flat structure, committee, matrix etc. The size of the organization also influences the type of structure that is suitable for running them. For example, large organizations are best suited to the more complex hierarchical structure while smaller ones are better suited to the flat structure (Brickley, 2003 p 19). An organization that uses the hierarchical structure has various advantages such as efficiency in the administration through the chain of command which empowers managers with the authority to control and give orders to those under their authority. This also facilitates the delegation of responsibilities down the ranks when a manager in one level is absent thus ensuring that the performance and productivity of the staff is not affected. This would be difficult to effect in a poorly designed structure that has no power distribution. In well defined structures, the dissemination of information is usually of high standard such that the lowest level of the staff in the organization can communicate freely with the CEO but through the various levels of administration (Brickley, 2003 p 30). This ensures that the top level managers are not overloaded with responsibilities that do not have a lot of weight in the welfare of the organization and which can be solved at lower levels of management. This therefore allows them the time to formulate policies and strategies as well as to solicit for expansive markets leaving the junior staff to take care of the internal affairs. Bibliography Bowen, B. 2004, Recognizing and Rewarding Employees, McGraw-Hill Brickley, J. 2003, Designing Organizations to Create Value: from Strategy to Structure, McGraw-Hill Christiansen, J. 2002, Building the Innovative Organization: Management Systems that Encourage Innovation, Palgrave Macmillan Hofstede, G. 2005, Cultures and Organizations. Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for Survival. 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