Stoner defines management as
the process of planning, organising, leading
and controlling the efforts of the organisation’s
members and of using all other organisational
resources to achieve stated organisational
goals”. The definition tells us that the
manager’s task is to plan, organise, lead and
monitor. These are not separate activities,
but occur at the same time.
Planning
Plans are needed to give the organisation its goals
and to set up procedures for achieving them.
Plans permit:
the organisation to obtain and commit
resources required to achieve goals;
members of the organisation to carry on
activities consistent with objectives and
procedures;
the progress towards objectives to be
monitored and measured.
The first task of the manager is to select goals
and objectives for the organisation and to select
programmes to achieve these goals and
objectives.
Organising
Once the goals and objectives are established and
the plans developed, the manager must organise
for them to be carried out successfully.
Organising involves co-ordination of the human
and material resources of the organisation.
Systems and structures will need to be
established to obtain goals and objectives. This
could involve arranging a meeting system, for
example, or schedules for child care workers.
Leading
After plans have been drawn up and the
structure, systems and procedures determined,
the next step is to arrange for movement towards
objectives. This involves getting members of the
organisation to perform in ways that will help it to
achieve the established objectives. It involves
directing and influencing those accountable to
the manager.
Monitoring
Having planned, organised and provided
leadership, the manager must ensure that the
actions of the personnel do, in fact, move towards
the organisation’s goals. This is the monitoring
function of the manager and involves three
elements:
establishing standards of performance;
measuring current performance and comparing
against standards...