Span of Management

Also known as span of control, is a very important concept of organizing function of management. It refers to the number of subordinates that can be handled effectively by a superior in an organization. It signifies how the relations are planned between superior and subordinates in an organization.

Span of management is generally categorized under two heads- Narrow span and Wide span. Narrow Span of management means a single manager or supervisor oversees few subordinates. This gives rise to a tall organizational structure. While, a wide span of management means a single manager or supervisor oversees a large number of subordinates. This gives rise to a flat organizational structure.There is an inverse relation between the span of management and the number of hierarchical levels in an organization, i.e., narrow the span of management , greater the number of levels in an organization.

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Narrow span of management is more costly compared to wide span of management as there are larger number of superiors/ managers and thus there is greater communication issues too between various management levels. The less geographically scattered the subordinates are, the better it is to have a wide span of management as it would be feasible for managers to be in touch with the subordinates and to explain them how to efficiently perform the tasks. In case of narrow span of management, there are comparatively more growth opportunities for a subordinate as the number of levels is more.

Span of Management

The more efficient and organized the managers are in performing their tasks, the better it is to have wide span of management for such organization. The less capable, motivated and confident the employees are, the better it is to have a narrow span of management so that the managers can spend time with them and supervise them well. The more standardized is the nature of tasks ,i.e., if same task can be performed using same inputs, the better it is to have a wide span of management as more number of subordinates can be supervised by a single superior. There is more flexibility, quick decision making, effective communication between top level and low level management,and improved customer interaction in case of wide span of management. Technological advancement such as mobile phones, mails, etc. makes it feasible for superiors to widen their span of management as there is more effective communication.

An optimal/ideal span of control according to the modern authors is fifteen to twenty subordinates per manager, while according to the traditional authors the ideal number is six subordinates per manager. But actually, an ideal span of control depends upon the nature of an organization, skills and capabilities of manager, the employees skills and abilities, the nature of job, the degree of interaction required between superior and subordinates.

Span of Management

Author is the writer of www.managementstudyguide.com/organizing_function.htm which explains in detail about the organizing function of management and its important concepts.

Definition of Stress Management

Understanding the core factors in producing stress takes you closer to eliminating it. But since the most common conception of stress takes into account something we all know, then the definition of stress management should be obvious - except that it isn't.

We define it as our conscious knowledge of things that effect stress and the methods to divest stress harmlessly out of our body system. It is also a set of techniques that professionals do to help us in coping with various kinds of stress. Furthermore, we can also say that it is an equipping of knowledge, a conditioning, or a change of a lifestyle that allows only the most minimum instances where stress can actually set in.

Management

Before we start, what is stress? Stress is a nervous system reaction of your body towards certain stimulus. This nervous system reaction could be easily viewed as an unconscious preparation of the body for a certain activity, like for instance releasing adrenaline chemicals onto your muscles whenever you feel alarmed, for example triggering auto response duck and adrenaline rush quickness on the muscles as you hear and process a gunfire shot; or else shutting down some of your pain receptors while you're in a fight.

Definition of Stress Management

The problem with stress response is that it also triggers psychologically. Anxiety of approaching deadlines, nervousness over the outcome of a completing project, surmounting unpaid bills, or the nervous anticipation of any event, any situation that's going to happen in the near future may trigger stress response. Over time, these repeated stress experiences can severely deplete energy which could be used for other health functions like digesting meals, functioning body defense system, and such.

Returning on track, the definition of stress management is a system that is aimed to reduce stress and/or facilitate the person to cope with these instances. Because stress falls into a complex assortment of emotions and sources of them are even more profuse, the definition of stress management has become so broad, but all of them are aimed to relieve stress and divert these energies elsewhere harmless, and sometimes, even productive. All in all, the definition of stress management falls into three categories: action oriented stress management, emotionally oriented stress management, and acceptance oriented stress management.

Definition of Stress Management

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Total Quality Management

Introduction

Competition is getting harder and becoming global. Companies now have to be more responsive, offer a better product and keep improving. Total quality management (TQM) increases customer satisfaction by boosting quality. It does this by motivating the workforce and improving the way the company operates. In an increasingly competitive market, firms with a continuous improvement culture and external focus are more likely to survive and prosper. TQM is considered an important catalyst in this context.

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What is TQM?

Total Quality Management

TQM is an approach to improving the effectiveness and flexibilities of business as a whole. It is essentially a way of organising and involving the whole organisation, every department, every activity and every single person at every level. TQM ensures that the management adopts a strategic overview of the quality and focuses on prevention rather than inspection.

Objectives of TQM

o Meeting the customer's requirements is the primary objective and the key to organisational survival and growth.

o The second objective of TQM is continuous improvement of quality. The management should stimulate the employees in becoming increasingly competent and creative.

o Third, TQM aims at developing the relationship of openness and trust among the employees at all levels in the organisation.

Significance of TQM

The importance of TQM lies in the fact that it encourages innovation, makes the organisation adaptable to change, motivates people for better quality, and integrates the business arising out of a common purpose and all these provide the organisation with a valuable and distinctive competitive edge.

Elements of TQM

The various elements of TQM are

o Be customer focused

It requires the company to check customers' attitudes regularly and includes the idea of internal customers as well as external ones.

o Do it right the first time

This means avoiding rework, i.e., cutting the amount of defective work.

o Constantly improve

Continuous improvement allows the company gradually to get better.

o Quality is an attitude

Every one has to be committed to quality. That means changing the attitude of the entire workforce, and altering the way the company operates.

o Telling staff what is going on

This involves improved communication. Typically, it includes team briefing.

o Educate and train people

An unskilled workforce makes mistakes. Giving more skills to workers means they can do a wider range of jobs, and do them better. It also means educating staff in the principles of TQM, which is a whole new style of working.

o Measure the work.

Measurement allows the company to make decisions based on facts, not opinion. It helps to maintain standards and keep processes within the agreed tolerances.

o Top management must be involved

If senior management is not involved, the programme will fail.

o Make it a good place to work

Many companies are full of fear. Staffs are afraid of the sack, their boss and making mistakes. There is no point in running a TQM programme unless the company drives out fear.

o Introduce team work

Team work boosts employees' morale. It reduces conflict and solves problem by hitting them with a wider range of skills. It pushes authority and responsibility downwards and provides better, more balanced solutions.

o Organise by process, not by function

This element of TQM seeks to reduce the barriers that exist between different departments, and concentrates on getting the product to the customer.

Reasons for failure

TQM fails because:

o Top management sees no reason for change.

o Top management is not concerned for its staff.

o Top management is not committed to the TQM programme.

o The company loses interest in the programme after six months.

o The workforce and the management do not agree on what needs to happen.

o Urgent problems intervene.

o TQM is imposed on the workforce, which does not inwardly accept it.

o No performance measure or targets are set, so progress cannot be measured.

o Processes are not analysed, systems are weak and procedures are not written down.

Conclusion

In today's globally competitive market, the situation is to buy whichever is of good quality and low cost. The organisations have started with a rigour to have an edge over the global competition and in the process some have become successful. The quality movement, which drives every organisation towards the global market, seems to increase its competitive advantage for better market acceptance.

Total Quality Management

How Management Evolved?

Management has kept on redefining itself over the years. It has been on a continuously reinventing spree. There are not enough literatures available to throw light on evolution of management before 18th century. But it is assumed that, given the magnitude of earlier era's construction and hugely spread kingdom, there must have been elements of planning, organizing and delegating authorities, all of which are essential elements of management. In fact, management from being a personalized solitary concept to the boardrooms of corporate houses has travelled long distance.

It all started with industrial revolution when businesses started growing in gargantuan proportions. Industrial revolution signaled the arrival of increased scale of operations, growing size and emergence of various elements within an organization. This also prompted recruitment of managers for day to day activities who can handle planning and controlling part on their own. With increasing global trade and requirements of efficient man power, management, which was merely an art of getting things done through people, started encompassing other aspects of business as well. Its functions were defined and new scientific aspects were added to management's overall meaning. apart from existing factors like economies of scale, increased productivity and effective, efficient utilization of resources, technical aspects like quality control, cost accounting etc were also included in its broadening perspective. Later on eminent management thinkers like Henri Fayol, Elton Mayo, Chester Bernard, Peter Drucker added new elements of psychological and sociological approaches.

Management

In the last century, the biggest contribution from management's evolution point of view came from de facto humanization of management. From merely being a managing concept which was concerned with rationale side of mind, management started ingraining emotional intelligence as well. The concept of leadership gave itself a big push, working in collaboration with management. Human Resource which was just one of the production tools started being taken as the most important element of organization. More personalized relationships were started between the management and employees. In fact, with changing times, we can safely say that the evolution of management is still in process.

How Management Evolved?

How Management Evolved?

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What is Strategic Human Resource Management?

In Human Resource (HR) and management circles nowadays there is much talk about Strategic Human Resource Management and many expensive books can be seen on the shelves of bookshops. But what exactly is SHRM (Strategic Human Resource Development), what are its key features and how does it differ from traditional human resource management?

SHRM or Strategic human resource management is a branch of Human resource management or HRM. It is a fairly new field, which has emerged out of the parent discipline of human resource management. Much of the early or so called traditional HRM literature treated the notion of strategy superficially, rather as a purely operational matter, the results of which cascade down throughout the organisation. There was a kind of unsaid division of territory between people-centred values of HR and harder business values where corporate strategies really belonged. HR practitioners felt uncomfortable in the war cabinet like atmosphere where corporate strategies were formulated.

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Definition of SHRM

What is Strategic Human Resource Management?

Strategic human resource management can be defined as the linking of human resources with strategic goals and objectives in order to improve business performance and develop organizational culture that foster innovation, flexibility and competitive advantage. In an organisation SHRM means accepting and involving the HR function as a strategic partner in the formulation and implementation of the company's strategies through HR activities such as recruiting, selecting, training and rewarding personnel.

How SHRM differs from HRM

In the last two decades there has been an increasing awareness that HR functions were like an island unto itself with softer people-centred values far away from the hard world of real business. In order to justify its own existence HR functions had to be seen as more intimately connected with the strategy and day to day running of the business side of the enterprise. Many writers in the late 1980s, started clamoring for a more strategic approach to the management of people than the standard practices of traditional management of people or industrial relations models. Strategic human resource management focuses on human resource programs with long-term objectives. Instead of focusing on internal human resource issues, the focus is on addressing and solving problems that effect people management programs in the long run and often globally. Therefore the primary goal of strategic human resources is to increase employee productivity by focusing on business obstacles that occur outside of human resources. The primary actions of a strategic human resource manager are to identify key HR areas where strategies can be implemented in the long run to improve the overall employee motivation and productivity. Communication between HR and top management of the company is vital as without active participation no cooperation is possible.

Key Features of Strategic Human Resource Management

The key features of SHRM are

• There is an explicit linkage between HR policy and practices and overall organizational strategic aims and the organizational environment
• There is some organizing schema linking individual HR interventions so that they are mutually supportive
• Much of the responsibility for the management of human resources is devolved down the line

Trends in Strategic Human Resource Management

Human Resource Management professionals are increasingly faced with the issues of employee participation, human resource flow, performance management, reward systems and high commitment work systems in the context of globalization. Older solutions and recipes that worked in a local context do not work in an international context. Cross-cultural issues play a major role here. These are some of the major issues that HR professionals and top management involved in SHRM are grappling with in the first decade of the 21st century:

• Internationalization of market integration.
• Increased competition, which may not be local or even national through free market ideology
• Rapid technological change.
• New concepts of line and general management.
• Constantly changing ownership and resultant corporate climates.
• Cross-cultural issues
• The economic gravity shifting from 'developed' to 'developing' countries

SHRM also reflects some of the main contemporary challenges faced by Human Resource Management: Aligning HR with core business strategy, demographic trends on employment and the labour market, integrating soft skills in HRD and finally Knowledge Management.

References

1. Armstrong, M (ed.) 192a) Strategies for Human Resource Management: A Total Business Approach. London:Kogan Page
2. Beer, M and Spector,B (eds) (1985) Readings in Human Resource Management. New York: Free Press
3. Boxall, P (1992) 'Strategic Human Resource Management: Beginnings of a New Theoretical Sophistication?' Human Resource Management Journal, Vol.2 No.3 Spring.
4. Fombrun, C.J., Tichy, N,M, and Devanna, M.A. (1984) Strategic Human Resource Management. New York:Wiley
5. Mintzberg, H, Quinn, J B, Ghoshal, S (198) The Strategy Process, Prentice Hall.
6. Truss, C and Gratton, L (1994) 'Strategic Human Resource Management: A Conceptual Approach', International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol.5 No.3

What is Strategic Human Resource Management?

Rana Sinha is a cross-cultural trainer and author. He was born in India, studied and lived in many places and traveled in over 80 countries, acquiring cross-cultural knowledge and building an extensive network of professionals. He has spent many years developing and delivering Cross-cultural Training, Professional Communications skills, Personal Development and Management solutions to all types of organizations and businesses in many countries. He now lives in Helsinki, Finland and runs http://www.dot-connect.com, which specializes in human resource development as well as communication and management skills training with cross-cultural emphasis. Read his cross-cultural blog http://originalwavelength.blogspot.com

6 Management Strategies For Organizational Change Success

Human beings tend to resist anything they view as stressful, and let's face it, organizational changes are about as stressful as it can get!

For most of us, familiarity with our surroundings, our relationships and our working environment allows us to reside safely inside our comfort zone. And comfort equals security.

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But when our comfort zone is detonated by changes in management or organizational systems, we implode, seeking the shelter of our innate desire to resist, at all costs.

6 Management Strategies For Organizational Change Success

Changes that occur outside of our control force us to adapt to new rules, new systems and new policies which can, at the outset, make us feel uncomfortable and insecure.

However, a responsible and responsive management team can intercede before staff resistance spreads like the plague and threatens the smooth transition of organizational changes.

Effective team leaders acknowledge and understand that it is a basic human instinct to react to change with resistance, even though staff may fully comprehend the reasons why changes in the organization are vital to its existence and growth.

6 Management Strategies to Avert Resistance

1. A clear outline - Discomfort and insecurity arises when staff are not made aware of the policies, principles, guidelines and structure of intended changes. Every employee needs to know how his/her position will be affected and what his/her role requires.
2. Commitment -Implementation of organizational changes will not occur smoothly if everyone - from the CEO to the office clerk - is not committed to the project and its successful outcome.
3. Advocacy - Each member of an organization who may be affected by the impending changes must be given the opportunity to express his/her opinion.
4. Responsibility - It is the role of the team leader to ensure that each employee who is responsible for a component of the change strategy is held accountable for his/her actions in implementing the changes required.
5. Acknowledgement - Evaluation and acknowledgement of the success of the change strategy at regular intervals ensures its smooth implementation.
6. Flexibility - Management needs to adopt a flexible approach to each stage of development of a change strategy so that unforeseen contingencies can be implemented, if and where necessary.

It only takes one irresolute employee to destabilize an entire workforce, so periods of internal change within an organization require management to stay vigilant for any signs of rumblings or disapproval.

Long-standing employees can feel betrayed and rejected when changes are announced by management. They often experience a sense of loss, confusion, frustration and job insecurity. The plan for job advancement they have often calculated appears to be shot to pieces.

So they react with denial and resistance to the imminent changes.

Management's ability to recognize these patterns of behavior and work to overcome any resistance establishes how well they will accomplish organizational changes. Their willingness to invest in the support and training necessary is an integral factor in achieving a positive outcome.

Employees aren't the only ones who have to adapt to changes within the organization.

Top level managers generally bear the brunt of discontented staff from the ground up. Senior managers who have been instrumental in bringing about the changes within the organization often underestimate the impact those changes will have on their employees.

Unrealistic expectations of how their staff will react (or over-react!) often causes top level managers to retreat and isolate themselves from the problem when the impact of their proposed changes filter back to them.

However, they tend to lay the blame at the feet of middle management if employees resist or complain about the changes.

Middle management tend to carry the most stress during times of organizational change. They feel "trapped", unless they have exceptional leadership skills; besieged by resistant employees who look to them for guidance yet often denied direction and focus by top level management.

Those in middle management often find themselves acting as the arbiter during times of organizational upheaval.

However, organizational changes within a business often prove to be a suitable testing ground for leadership qualities; from the employees all the way through to top level management.

Those who possess the qualities that define a good leader often emerge during the stressful environment that usually accompanies change. This creates an ideal opportunity for potential leaders to display those qualities and be recognized accordingly.

6 Management Strategies For Organizational Change Success

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Preparing For Management Responsibilities

The Webster dictionary describes a manager as 'someone who handles or directs with a degree of skill'. But this definition is not rigid as are the responsibilities. Alternatively, you can think of a manager as someone who controls resources and expenditures. A manager has 4 basic roles to play in such areas as planning, organizing, directing or leading and supervising. Is this all that it takes to become a manager? Unfortunately not; you have to be answerable for failures while credit may not be given to you for successes (unless you are the owner). To understand how to prepare for management responsibilities, let's look first at desirable managerial characteristics:

Attributes Of An Outstanding Manager

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An outstanding manager is respected by both his peers and upper management. He is respected because he possesses qualities which others wish to have.

Preparing For Management Responsibilities

1. Manager Is A Task Maker: A manager sets realistic targets achievable through hard work and breaks them up to share them among the team members.

2. Industrious In Nature: Typically characterized by a hard working nature and perseverance to work meticulously to promote goals.

3. Approachable: He is a vivid listener and is easily comprehendible. Available for discussions and is eager to help solve matters.

4. Respectful: It is perhaps for this character that he inspires respect from teammates. He never disrespects an individual nor does he demand the impossible. He has a perfect judgment of individual capabilities, so he acknowledges difficulties and frustrations.

5. He Is Charismatic And Cheerful: Positive in outlook and bubbly in nature.

6. Never-Say-Die Attitude: Above all else, this character self-motivates the manager. It keeps him spontaneous and resourceful.

How To Prepare For Management Responsibilities

At the core, a manager has two responsibilities. Overseeing the day-to-day activities and leading the team or organization to next level. Preparing for both of these necessitates certain carefully cultivated habits.

Dealing With Day-To-Day Activities:

The first thing to understand is that, come what may, daily activities can't be ignored. Even if there are bigger and better plans, what makes the wheel run is daily activities. Cultivate habits like following routines; ask about problems being faced by workers, don't be impatient and lose your temper, ask how you can help them finish their tasks, etc. Unless you master the daily grind, a manager can quickly find himself behind.

Leading The Team:

Taking Things With A Grain Of Salt: It might feel like you are being weighed down by the workload. But you can't just wish it away. Learn to be judicious and willing to take calculated risks. You should not differentiate workers on personal levels but must be aware of the abilities of each one. Solving problems and disputes instantaneously, not only saves the day for you but wins confidence from everyone.

Putting Your Experience To Use: Develop analytical abilities. This helps you to both envision plans and put them into concrete steps. Draw from past experiences, wherever necessary. Don't hesitate to ask questions and accept suggestions. Generate ideas by brainstorming with colleagues.

Goal Setting: Although you are managing daily activities, your main goal is organizational growth and with it, your own personal growth. You should dream big, but also set realistic goals based on assessments of scalability, need and cost factors etc.

Preparing For Management Responsibilities

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Why Inventory Management is So Important

There are many different reasons why inventory management is so important in today's world. One of them is being able to know exactly how many of each product you have in stock, so you know exactly how much needs to be ordered. Without proper inventory management, you may order too many of one thing, and not enough of something else. What does this translate too? Running out and having to order more, and having an over stock of other products, costing you not only money, but available storage space.

Proper inventory management also allows you to track the products you sell. You can see at a glance what items sell the most, what time of the year that more are sold, and have a chance to see what patterns develop so you can plan your buying accordingly. For an example, if you are a clothing merchandise store, and you find that you sell more coats and hats during the fall, just before Winter, or during the Spring, then you can order more of these items before then, so there is enough merchandise before hand. It also helps you track products that don't sell as often, or at all, so you can either not order as much as your would routinely do, or maybe even decide to discontinue this product line altogether.

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Having the right inventory management software is just as important. Today, inventory has become streamlined, with bar codes, scanning devices, and computers, so you need software that keeps up with the latest technology. You need to be able to find out at a glance if you are running out of something, rather than going in the back or having to call the warehouse to find out. Your inventory managers need to be able to quickly and easily count how many items there are, and be able to scan the bar code and have it downloaded into the computer automatically, without having to physically write down the information and then input it into their inventory computer.

Why Inventory Management is So Important

Inventory management is vital to today's businesses, especially in the retail market. In order to keep up with sales, trends, and popularity of a certain product, or line of products, the only way to do this is if you can track what sells, how much does at certain times of the year, and what products are losing ground. This really is the only way to keep up with your competition, order the right amount at the right time, and know whether to eliminate products that just aren't selling, saving you space, time, and money.

There are an abundance of different kinds of inventory management software available on the market. These are compatible with just about any type of computer operating system you have. Not all software is the same, so you really have to take the time and make sure that it is right for your needs, and for those people who are starting off small, will be able to expand and grow as you do, without having to buy new software all the time.

Why Inventory Management is So Important

Visit Inventory Management Systems to learn more.

Domestic Waste Management

Wastes are unwanted, unusable items, remains, or byproducts or household garbage. They are also include excrement, used or contaminated water etc. Wastes are generated in our homes on daily bases. And these wastes must be handled and managed proper to avoid been a source of danger in our homes. There are various types of wastes generated in our homes that require different management system. These wastes are classified into two major forms namely solids and liquids. The liquid forms are easy to handle and manage. They connected from their sources to septic and soak away pits. These are evacuated as soon as they are filled up by waste management operators.

The solid wastes are relatively different in their management. This is because there are no built in facilities to handle them like the liquid waste. But they could be handled by proper understanding of the various types of solid wastes and their sources. The types and sources of solid waste in our home are but not limited to:

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1. Kitchen wastes such as vegetables and fruits, peels, bones, scales etc.

Domestic Waste Management

2. Metal wastes

3. Glasses

4. Plastics and polythenes

All these wastes are daily generate in our homes and it very important to handle and manage them so that they do not endanger our health.

Kitchen waste.

These form bulk of daily generated wastes. This is as a result of the fact that we feed daily. And if they are not properly handled well, they can start to decompose after 24 hours. To handle these therefore, a container with a plastic bag with cover should be provided for these wastes only. They should be placed inside the bag and container as soon as they are generated and covered to avoid rats and rodents scattering them. And as soon as they filled, disposal at the designated place should be carried out. Animal waste should be disposed the same day they are generated.

Glasses.

These wastes come from processed products we purchased from stores such as drinks, creams, broken doors and windows etc. These can be a great source of hazard in our homes if not properly handled and disposed. To dispose these therefore, a plastic or wooden create or box should be provided to stack these glasses. In some cases the manufacturers of the products buy them back from us or recycled by glass recycling companies. In this case we make some money from our wastes.

Metals

These wastes come from metal containers of foods and drinks we purchase. They should be handled with care to avoid been a source of injury. Get a plastic container with a cover to put these wastes. And as soon as they are filled up, should be disposed at the designated place or sold to the metal recycling companies and make some money.

Plastics and polythenes.

These have become a major source of waste in our homes. These wastes do not rust or decay easily and so need to be handled with care. The good thing about these wastes is they are easily recyclable. Though generated in a great measure are easy to manage.

Wastes in our homes though unwanted can be a source of extra income when properly managed.

Domestic Waste Management

Okwuegbunam Francis

How to Improve Working Capital Management

"Cash is the lifeblood of business" is an oft-repeated maxim amongst financial managers. Working capital management refers to the management of current or short-term assets and short-term liabilities. Components of short-term assets include inventories, loans and advances, debtors, investments and cash and bank balances. Short-term liabilities include creditors, trade advances, borrowings and provisions. The major emphasis is, however, on short-term assets, since short-term liabilities arise in the context of short-term assets. It is important that companies minimize risk by prudent working capital management.

What Affects Working Capital Management:

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o Organizations are generally focused on cash, accounts payable and supply chain issues. On the hand, external issues like the legal and business environment, or internal mechanisms like organization structure, information systems, can significantly impact working capital.

How to Improve Working Capital Management

o Owing to market pressures, companies are led to paying a lot of attention to producing good quarterly results quarter after quarter. Undue focus on this may sometimes produce a flattering but inaccurate snapshot of working capital performance. This also happens in companies that have a marked seasonality of operations with working capital requirements varying widely from quarter to quarter.

Measures to Improve Working Capital Management:

o The essence of effective working capital management is proper cash flow forecasting. This should take into account the impact of unforeseen events, market cycles, loss of a prime customer and actions by competitors. The effect of unforeseen demands of working capital should be factored in.

o It pays to have contingency plans to tide over unexpected events. While market-leaders can manage uncertainty better, even other companies must have risk-management procedures. These must be based on objective and realistic view of the role of working capital.

o Addressing the issue of working capital on a corporate-wide basis has certain advantages. Cash generated at one location can well be utilized at another. For this to happen, information access, efficient banking channels, good linkages between production and billing, internal systems to move cash and good treasury practices should be in place.

o An innovative approach, combining operational and financial skills and an all-encompassing view of the company's operations will help in identifying and implementing strategies that generate short-term cash. This can be achieved by having the right set of executives who are responsible for setting targets and performance levels. They are then held accountable for delivering, encouraged to be enterprising and to act as change agents.

o Effective dispute management procedures in relation to customers will go along way in freeing up cash otherwise locked in due to disputes. It will also improve customer service and free up time for legitimate activities like sales, order entry and cash collection. Overall, efficiency will increase due to reduced operating costs.

o Collaborating with your customers instead of being focused only on own operations will also yield good results. If feasible, helping them to plan their inventory requirements efficiently to match your production with their consumption will help reduce inventory levels. This can be done with suppliers also.

Working capital management is an important yardstick to measure a company operational and financial efficiency. This aspect must form part of the company's strategic and operational thinking. Efforts should constantly be made to improve the working capital position. This will yield greater efficiencies and improve customer satisfaction.

How to Improve Working Capital Management

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Project Management: History and Evolution

Project management, as we know it at present began to stretch its branches only a few decades ago, yet it was mounting around civilization from the beginning of history.

With an objective of maximum productivity with minimum participation, and to breed imagination into realism, human need for an optimal management system that can trigger workforce efficiency to yield product, that is predetermined and objectified was outlining a management system within the growth of human perception though out its evolution.

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This stream of development in its respective path also had marked its course from its source, and events in its voyages were observed and registered in the pages of history.

Project Management: History and Evolution

Turning these pages, today we witness a simple endeavor to illustrate and analyze tasks through simple bar charts cultivated seed yesterday, and within a short span of time, it had grown to a gigantic tree of the project management industry we witness at present.

"Henry Gantt" is considered to be the forefather of project management, as his planning and organizing methods with the use of the "bar charts" as a project management tool recognizes him as the foremost precursor for contemporary project management practices employed today.

However, civilization was practicing an anonymous management system for accomplishing tasks carried out by them since the beginning of civilization; as today we can witness Pyramids, Roman structures, etc as one of most exceptional achievements human workforces had ever delivered.

To consider these massive project missions without any proper management scheme would be an unjust platform to write about today for our ancestors. The conception of project management was there in the womb of our civilization from the beginning, but its name is coined and structure is fabricated by our modern world.

As a discipline, project management has evolved from numerous diverse fields, including engineering, construction, military projects, etc. If we have to mark the date of identification for this management system then we need to start not before the industrial revolution, as this revolution sprouted a complex need of organizational management and interaction. The need of budget management, workforce utilization, demand and supply scaling, compels to develop the management system that was methodological and goal oriented.

Frederick Taylor, who introduced a scientific approach for understanding productivity measurement through performance leveling, led him as the father of scientific approaches in organizational management systems.

Moreover, his associate Henry Gantt's use of the bar diagram as a gauging process for planning and controlling, acknowledged him as a father of project management tools.

But the 1950's was marked as a date for the beginning of modern project management; as before the 50's projects were managed only with the popular use of Gantt charts and informal tools and statistics.

Furthermore, the immediate launch of the Polaris submarine missile project to fulfill the need of the missile gap with Russia; the US Army systemized a "Program Evaluation and Review Technique" or PERT devised by Willard Fazar and the use of the "Critical Path Method" (CPM) a mathematical technique for management of complex projects, drives project management systems further with advances in scientific approaches.

In 1969, the Project Management Institute (PMI) was formed to professionalize and modernize through formalizing project management tools and techniques.

In addition, today with rapid technological advancement, thriving IT industries, and globalization, project management solutions are in demand throughout the world as a fundamental force to complete projects within a defined scope, time, and within cost constraints.

Management tasks, where few individuals use to manage and memorize before; now require advance systems and methodological approaches for organization decision-making and planning implementation.

At present ultra modern project management systems deliver innovative solutions and its management process possesses the latest tools and techniques, systems and schemes with scientific evidences and statistical explanations.

Project Management: History and Evolution

Author: Bharat Bista

Resource and Reference:

Surrex Project Management [http://www.surrex-project-management.com/] - Project Management Solutions [http://www.surrex-project-management.com/project-management-solutions.html] - Project Management Tools [http://www.surrex-project-management.com/]

Property Management Fees Explained

 When you hire a property management company to serve as the liaison between yourself and your tenants, you want to be sure you're getting the best possible property management services for the money. The services a property management company provides can range from ala carte to an all-in-one inclusive package. Along with that comes an array of fees for each. There is no set in stone fee structure we can provide you. But we can educate you on what common fees to expect and what each is commonly for. In the end it will be up to you to compare company fee structures and choose the best one that fits within your budget. Below are some of the most common fees and what service they provide.

Commission

Management

This is an ongoing monthly fee charged to the owner to compensate the property manager for the responsibilities of overseeing the management of their property. This fee can vary from as little as 3% to over 15% of the monthly gross rent. In place of a percentage some managers may charge a flat monthly amount which again can vary from to over 0 per month. All property management companies generally charge this fee.

Property Management Fees Explained

Lease-Up or Setup Fee

This fee is charged to the owner to compensate the property manager for their initial time invested and resources used in setting up an owners account; showing property and/or other activities resulting in tenant placement. I guess you could look at it as a "finders fee" for placing a tenant in your property. Once a tenant has been placed and first rent income comes in, the property manager will deduct this fee from the rent proceeds. Some property managers have been known to require this fee upfront prior to tenant procurement. Usually this fee is non-refundable once the property manager has started the process of tenant procurement or any legwork has been initiated with the property. This fee can vary from none to as much as the first months rent, and usually is a one-time fee per tenant.

Lease Renewal Fee

This fee is charged to the owner when a property manager renews a current tenants lease and covers the costs of initiating paperwork or communication involved in implementing the new lease document. A property manager may also justify this fee if they perform a year end inspection of property. This fee can vary from none to 0 or higher, and may be charged every time a lease renewal is implemented.

Advertising Costs

Depending upon the property management company's contract, either they will pay the advertising costs or the owner or they could split the costs. If the manager is willing to cover this cost, most likely they will charge the lease-up or setup fee as outline above. If the management company covers this cost make sure to find out what type advertising or marketing of your property is included. If it's placing your listing on their own web site and other free online classified sites you may not be getting your monies worth. They are many good rental or tenant resource online web sites that bring in qualified tenants for a reasonable fee and you will want to consider these. And don't forget about print media, yard signs, listing on the MLS or even an open house. Nothing is worst than having your property vacant, bringing in no money only because you or your property manager skimped on advertising.

Maintenance Mark-up Charges

This is one of those costs you may never really of known about or had it disclosed to you. A "Mark-up" is a charge over and beyond the final bill on maintenance and/or repair work done to your property initiated by your property management company when using their vendors or in-house maintenance staff. This should be disclosed in your Manager/Owner contract which usually will state the markup as a percentage above the final invoice from vendor. For example, your manager had to call a plumber to replace the dishwasher in your rental property. Total charges for completing the job: 0. If your property manager contract states you will incur a 10% markup on all maintenance work the actual cost to you will be 0. Just one of those things to be aware of as these all eat into your profits.

Early Cancellation Fee

The dreaded "3 months and no tenant". Your property manager insist he or she's doing everything they can to find you a tenant. But here it is 3 months and still no tenant; what do you do. Well, look at your Manager/Owner contract and that might be your deciding factor. I am not a fan of this fee, and believe it to be an unnecessary fee and for you manager out there this could be the deal breaker. I'll tell you why; if a property manager is doing their due diligence and keeping the owners in the loop as far as decision making, market conditions and communication lines open an owner will not be second guessing his property managers abilities. The odds of this scenario happening is unlikely but you must be prepared for it. A cancellation fee can range from none to over 0. To be fair, some managers legitimately deserve this fee especially if they have pocketed advertising costs, incurred lots of legwork and time invested in your property.

"You've Got To Be Kidding Me" Fees - These are ones I have personally had the pleasure of running into.

• Your property is vacant, but we still will charge our monthly commission or a small flat fee.
• "A For-Rent Yard Sign Fee". I believe this was /mo.
• "Preventive Maintenance Fee". This was to cover the "just in case" and changing out A/C filters. If "just in case" never happens they still pocket the money. I believe this was /mo and I still was charged for filters.

In Summary

Read your Manager/Owner contract, understand what you are signing, ask lots of questions and know what the fees will buy you in services. A good real estate lawyer can help in negotiating the terms in a contract that suit both parties. These contracts are not set in stone. If your property manager will not negotiate, there are other property management companies that are eager to earn your business.

Property Management Fees Explained

Karen McDaniel
Principal/CEO
Property Management Profile LLC

Property Management Profile LLC is an interactive online search engine for finding all types of full service property management companies nationwide. For any property management company that is looking to gain national exposure by capturing the attention of out-of-state investors or be found by local clientele, http://www.PropertyManagementProfile.com is the place to showcase their business model and expertise to these prospective clients.

Property Management Profile offers the most up-to-date listing of full-service property management companies. We have created our site with the idea of making it simple yet detailed enough with the right information for the investors to make wise choices when looking for a property manager to manage their investment properties.

We offer an opportunity for all property management companies to list their company on our website, whether you specialize in residential, commercial, vacation or community association management. We accept small to corporate size management companies. We also offer a Free basic listing, so you have no excuse for not being listed.

Property Management Profile has become a wealth of information and resource for the first-time landlord as well as the seasoned investors. We should know what we're talking about, as owner and creator of Property Management Profile, Karen McDaniel, has owned and managed many of her own properties. Today, all are managed by professional property management companies, so she now has more time to continue her work educating and helping others make better choices when it comes to finding a qualified property management company.

Visit us today at http://www.propertymanagementprofile.com

Top 10 Time Management Tips for Effective Office Time Management

Are you working efficiently and effectively? Do you have many productive hours of work or are you constantly distracted? In this article we give you a number of time management tips to help you organize your office time more efficiently and get more out of your work day.

Office Time Management Tips

Management

1. Get a Secretary or Answering Machine to Take Phone Messages

Top 10 Time Management Tips for Effective Office Time Management

Instead of constantly being distracted by telephone calls get a secretary or answering machine to take messages for you, then set aside time each day to focus on returning calls. By separating work and phone calls you will be able to focus more clearly on each task and get more out of your time. Effective office time management means that you need to focus on the task at hand and so an important time management tip is to do whatever you can to minimize distractions, such as the phone and email.

2. Set aside a Time to Answer Emails

Emails are another thing which affects effective office time management and can constantly distract you from focusing on the task at hand. A time management tip to deal with this problem is therefore to set aside time each day to deal with your emails and then for the rest of the day turn off your email program, or at least turn off instant notifications of emails.

3. Create a To-Do List the Day Before

To-do lists are often listed as a time management tip. Effective office time management means that before you leave the office each day prepare a to-do list for the following day and prioritize it, that way as soon as you come into the office in the morning you know what you need to focus your attention on.

4. Complete the Major Tasks First

Start your day with one of the big, important tasks and then go onto smaller and less important tasks. By first focusing on the large tasks you will get them complete in a shorter space of time and then will be able to deal with smaller tasks, whereas if you start with the smaller tasks you will soon find them filling up your day and not having time left to do the larger tasks.

5. Do Tasks that Take Less Than 5 Minutes Immediately

Effective office time management means that if you have a task you need to do that is going to take a few minutes to complete then do it as soon as you receive it, this way you will get the small things out of the way and not need to think about them.

6. Keep your Desk and Office Organized

A major cause of ineffective time management is disorganization. Keep your desk and office organized, keep everything on hand and keep things in the place you have assigned them and you will never waste time searching for the things you need or have important items go missing.

7. Prioritize

Setting priorities is vital for effective office time management. An important time management tip is therefore that you should know both on a long term and daily basis what your priorities are and should prioritize your long term goals as well as your daily to-do list.

8. Delegate

Delegation is another useful tool for effective office time management. You do not need to do everything yourself; if you find a task that someone would be able to do as well as you or even better then delegate that task to that person. Delegation does not only need to take place at work but can also take place at home.

9. Set SMART goals

Another important time management tip is to set SMART goals. SMART stands for specific, measurable, achievable, rewarding and timely. By setting SMART goals you know what you are working towards, have a way of measuring when it has been successfully completed and know when you want to complete it by. SMART goals are useful in showing you what steps you need to take in order to fulfill your dreams.

10. Choose Technology Carefully

Technology can either be useful for improving effective office time management or it can hinder effective time management. Our last time management tip is therefore to be careful when choosing the technology you use to ensure that it really does improve your productivity and efficiency and not harm it.

Effective office time management means setting SMART goals, prioritizing, focusing, and using technology that improves effective time management instead of hindering it. By implementing these time management tips you should be better able to manage your time effectively and get more out of your work day.

Top 10 Time Management Tips for Effective Office Time Management

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Basic Management Skills - What Makes a Good Manager?

Basic management skills are necessary to run a small business. Some business owners believe that leading vs managing is most important. In reality, you need to be able to both lead and manage.

What makes a good manager? There are definite business management styles and skills to focus on; specifically for small business owners. If you're the owner or manager of a small business, it's important to understand what those basic management skills are and to try to incorporate them into your own behaviors. Why? Because some skills are more successful than others and because some styles will engage your employees, while others will dis-engage them.

Management

Business management skills such as planning, decision making, problem solving, controlling and directing, and measuring and reporting are needed for the daily operation.

Basic Management Skills - What Makes a Good Manager?

Using their small business plan, effective managers direct the business operation. Communications, benchmarking, tracking and measuring are tactics and strategies that they use to check their direction, to adjust the plan (if necessary), and to move the business forward. Good managers act to achieve the desired results; and they manage people and resources to get where they want to go.

Understanding what makes a good manager, means understanding what motivates employees.  How do you build an environment and culture that encourages employees to participate? How do you increase employee productivity and employee satisfaction; simultaneously? How do you recruit the best talent, and then keep them? How do you train your staff to solve problems, make decisions, and involve others in the process? These are just some of the challenges, and responsibilities, of managing.

As a manager, you need to understand what the common business management styles are (autocratic, paternalistic, democratic, and passive are the most common styles). And you need to understand what your style is, and how that style affects business results.

Four Business Management Styles:

1. Autocratic: The manager makes all the decisions; a "command and control" (militaristic) management style. Focus is on business; doesn't want any personal 'stuff' to get in the way. The benefit is that decisions are made quickly. The cost is in high employee turn-over as employees find this style difficult, and stressful.
2. Paternalistic: The manager makes all decisions (or most of them) but focuses on what's best for employees. The benefit is that employees feel the business is taking care of them. The cost is that employees don't take care of business - they are uninvolved and have little at risk.
3. Democratic: The manager wants input from the whole 'team' and majority rules. Often good decisions are made and employees feel involved in the business (the benefit to this style) but the process is very slow and you can't always make everyone happy.
4. Passive: The manager abdicates responsibility to the employees; and calls it delegation. The benefit is that employees often step forward and learn in this environment. The cost is that the direction is scattered and there can be numerous false starts because there is no real manager.

Managers typically use more than one style, depending on the situation. If brainstorming creative new product ideas is today's focus, then the manager may want to use a democratic or passive style. If a decision about keeping or firing an under-performing employee must be made, the manager may need to use an autocratic or paternalistic style (hopefully not a democratic or passive style).

In most small businesses, the business owner is also the manager and the leader. In your business, make sure that you have a good understanding of your own business management styles, skills and qualities and learn how to control them and use them as necessary.

Basic Management Skills - What Makes a Good Manager?

To understand more about what makes a good manager, or the difference between leading vs managing, it is good to focus on the qualities of an effective manager as compared to the qualities of an effective leader.
Kris Bovay is the owner of Voice Marketing Inc, a business and marketing services company. Kris has 25 years of experience in leading large, medium and small businesses. For more pricing strategies and other small business resources and services go to the more-for-small-business website.
Copyright 2008 - 2009 Voice Marketing Inc.

Ethics in Management - Ethical Management

Facilitative and positive leadership is linked to ethics in management, and it begins with a solid understanding of the self. Some argue that the key elements to positive leadership are self-awareness, self-discipline, and self-efficacy, which then leads to the servant leader, who serves the corporation and the workers by focusing on corporate objectives and goals rather than personal goals. Self-awareness, has little to do with contemplating one's navel high in the mountains of India. It is based on a genuine understanding of one's emotions and selfish tendencies, leading to emotional control and emotional intelligence, the ability to see beyond personal aggrandizement and to display a managerial effectiveness that "does not vary" from situation to situation.

Technology has created a new, and younger, leadership corps that is well versed in technological innovation, but not so knowledgeable in management and leadership skills. Psychological knowledge can bridge that gap by providing an understanding of human factors that are usually learned, if at all, through years of on the job experience. These factors include, for example, body language, presentation of self, and motivational theory. Many theorists argue that American corporate culture was creating a Marxian like alienation in its white collar workers, who began to feel isolated and powerless in a bureaucratic world that mandated decision making and problem solving from above, and sought to remove the personality and individual characteristics of its workers. Bureaucracy and its rigid enforcement of rules and regulations was strangling innovation and satisfaction within the workforce. One solution is to eliminate the rule of bureaucracy and allow workers more input into their jobs, which would create a sense of control over their own destinies. His argument for empowerment as a source of innovation is the foundation of much of modern management and workplace theory.

Management

The ethics of management is tied closely to the pursuit of worker motivation, value acquisition and learning principles. Management must serve the company. Ethical managers must never serve themselves or their own personal agendas. To increase ethics in management, managers can nurture and foster their teams and workers by improving performance through the use of learning and value acquisition tools such as seminars, tuition reimbursement for outside courses relating to work and job performance, and encouraging workers to gain transferable skills which will benefit their careers. Ethical managers do not practice negative power and realize that educating a workforce can only help meet the company's objectives and goals.

Ethics in Management - Ethical Management

Ethics in Management - Ethical Management

John Halasz is a former writing teacher and currently a professional writer and internet marketer. He has written SEO articles and ghostwritten novels, books, and scholarly articles.

A Canisius College graduate, he went on to the University of Buffalo for his teaching certificate in English writing, earning a 3.934 GPA before going on to teach in Brooklyn, NY.

With a love for writing, and a need for a stress-free life, John Halasz quit teaching to start several successful writing business, which truly represent all marketable genres of writing.

John Halasz's Writing Services:
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Record Management

Record Management is the practice of identifying, classifying, archiving, preserving, and sometimes destroying records. There is an International Standard on records management, ISO 15489: 2001. This defines record management as, "The field of management responsible for the efficient and systematic control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use and disposition of records, including the processes for capturing and maintaining evidence of and information about business activities and transactions in the form of records".

The ISO defines a record as "information created, received, and maintained as evidence and information by an organization or person, in pursuance of legal obligations or in the transaction of business". It is a distinct piece of recorded information derived, accumulated or received in the preliminary, execution or completion of an activity and that constitutes sufficient composition, significance and structure to provide an attestation of that activity. While the definition of a record is often identified strongly with a document, a record can be either a tangible object or digital information which has value to an organization.

Management

Often, a record management system helps to aid in the capture, classification, and ongoing management of records throughout their life cycle. Such a system may be paper based (such as index cards as used in a library), or may be a computer system, such as an electronic records management application.

Record Management

A record management system is a computer program (or set of programs) used to track and store records. The term is distinguished from imaging and document management systems that specialize in paper capture and document management respectively. Record management systems commonly provide specialized security and auditing functionalities tailored to the needs of record managers.

As processed, record management starts with creating, approving, and enforcing records policies, including a classification system and a records retention policy. The next activity would be developing a records storage plan, which includes the short and long-term housing of physical records and digital information.

In putting this plan into action, it is necessary to identify existing and newly created records, classify them, and then store them according to standard operating procedures. Next step is to coordinate the access and circulation of records within and even outside of an organization. And finally, to execute a retention policy to archive and destroy records according to operational needs, operating procedures, statutes, and regulations.

It is apparent that record management is an essential activity to ensure and certify the authenticity of many business transactions and government activities. The propagation and advancement of electronic documents and their probable litigation exposure have led to issues regarding privacy, data protection, and identity theft, posing some problems in record management.

Managing records involves a variety of diverse disciplines. At the simplest, records must be organized and indexed. In more complex settings, record management demands expertise in forensics, history, engineering, and law. In a business environment, this is usually a matter of filing business documents and making them available for retrieval. However, in many domains, records must be identified and handled much more carefully. Record management then needs a coordination of many experts to build and maintain the system.

Copyright 2007 Ismael D. Tabije

Record Management

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Management, Change and... Stakeholders

Stakeholders are those groups of people or institutions that have a stake in your company (where you are not always aware of). There are many general theories about stakeholder management and methods to implement. When dealing with change, a simple stakeholder "view" could help you in controlling the change.

Such a view will look like a spider. It shows the contexts of your organization (the core) and the legs of the spider are pointing to the stakeholders. In the view below, the spider lost one leg:

Management

• Clients (Business Clients or Consumers)
• Competitors
• Employees (Management)
• Third parties (Suppliers and Business partners)
• Capital suppliers, Investors, Shareholders
• Government (local, national, International)
• Communities (environmental, professionals)

Management, Change and... Stakeholders

The Employee-category is different in the sense that this relation is internal, where the others communicate with the world outside.

For planning a change, it is important to know what you must do regarding these relations. You could see this as a complicated version of Client Relationship Management, where different clients groups have different roles. Each relation must be managed in a different way.

Managing this stakeholder context is managing the important network your company 'got' entangled in during its business cycle. This context provides valuable information that supports the change management process.

The stakeholder view can be used for both small businesses as for large caps. To manage each relation you must be well prepared, but you do not have to know everything in advance. In a way you need to manage expectations. You also need to listen very well to the stake that is in the game. You cannot negotiate with relations if you do not know how you value the relation.

To give one example:

A bank is changing its strategy. Many of the local branches will be closed due to the fact that internet is a growing channel. Yet there are a group (community) of elderly people than - although not belonging to the main focus group (80%) will resist in this new approach.

If you have not included them in the stakeholders view, you will have to do a lot of rework once you think you go live. They, representing maybe only less than 20%, will give you a lot of exceptions to handle.

© 2005 Hans Bool

Management, Change and... Stakeholders

Hans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice. Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days. You can apply for a free demo account

Management - 6 Steps to More Effective Decision Making

Managers and leaders have to take many decisions. Some of these will be routine and easy while others will be more challenging. So what 6 steps you can take to be a more effective decision maker?

Step 1: Clearly define your objective

Management

Every time that you have a decision to make, think about the objective or outcome that you want to achieve as a result of taking the decision. Once you have clarity on the objective or outcome it becomes much easier to complete the rest of the decision process. As the saying goes, start with the end in mind.

Management - 6 Steps to More Effective Decision Making

Step 2: Collect the necessary information

There will be times when there is an abundance of information and times when it will be scarce. Each time that you are faced with a decision, think about the type of information that will help you take the decision. From this point, get clear on the essential information and go and find it.

Step 3: Create options

With any decision, there will be a number of options available. Brainstorm these options without any form of evaluation initially. For example, imagine one of your objectives is to improve your decision making skills. In your initial brainstorm of options you might come up with things like reading a book, attending a teleclass, reading blogs on the internet, going to a workshop or training course.

Step 4: Evaluate options and decide

Every option you generate will have benefits and drawbacks. Take time to evaluate each of your options and decide on balance what appears to be the best option in this instance.

Step 5: Implement your decision

Implementation is when you move from analysis to action. When you get into action you start to get results, so make sure that you take action.

Step 6: Monitor and adapt

The final step is to monitor the outcomes that you are getting compared to what you are expecting. Things might go as you expected and they may not but you can adapt and make changes if necessary.

At the end of the day, there is no magic formula that it guarantees success in decision making. On the other hand, by adopting a systematic approach and acting you lay the foundations for more successful decision making.

Management - 6 Steps to More Effective Decision Making

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements (G&A) works with individuals, teams and organisations to develop their management and leadership capability.

With 25 years business experience in a range of sectors, he understands first hand the real challenges of managing and leading in the demanding business world.

Sign up for his free e-course and newsletter at http://www.goalsandachievements.co.uk/

Why Study Management

You may be wondering why you need to study management. If you are an accounting major, a marketing major, or an major other than management, you may not understand how studying management may help you in your career. We can explain the value of studying management by looking at the universality of the management, the reality of work, and the rewards and challenges of being a manager.

The Universality of Management:

Management

Just how universal is the need of management in organizations? We can say with certainty that management is needed in all types and sizes of organizations, at all organizational levels and in all organizational work areas, and in all organizations, no matter what country they are located in. This is known as the universality of management. Managers in all these settings will plan, organize, lead, and control. However this is not to say that management is done the same way. The differences in what a supervisor in a software applications testing facility at Microsoft does versus what the CEO of Microsoft does are a matter of degree and emphasis, not of function. Because both are managers, both will plan, organize, lead, and control, but how they do so will differ.

Why Study Management

Since management is universally needed in all organizations, we have a vested interest in improving the way organizations are managed. Why? we interact with organizations every single day of our lives. Does it frustrate you when you have to spend three hours in department of motor vehicles office to get your driver's license renewed? Are you irritated when non of the sales persons in a department store seems interested to help you? Do you get annoyed when you call an airline three times and their sales representatives quote you three different prices for the same trip? Theses are all examples of problems created by poor management. Organizations that are well managed develop a loyal customer base, grow, and prosper. Those that are poorly managed find themselves with a declining customer base and reduced revenues. By studying management, you shall be able to recognize poor management and work to get it corrected. In addition, you shall be able to recognize good management and encourage it, whether it is in an organization with which you are simply interacting or whether it is in an organization in which you are employed.

The Reality of Work:

Another reason for studying management is the reality that for most of you, once you graduate from college and being you career, you will either manage or be managed. For those who plan on management careers, an understanding of the management process forms the foundation upon which to build your management skills. For those of you who don't see your self in a management position, you are still likely to have work with managers. Assuming that you will have to work for a living and recognizing that you are very likely to work in an organization, you shall probably have some managerial responsibilities even if you are not a manager. Our experience tells us that you can gain a great deal of insight into the way your boss behaves and the internal workings of organizations by studying management. Our point is that you don't have to aspire to be a manager to gain something valuable from a course in management.

Rewards and Challenges of Being a Manger:

We cannot leave our discussion of the value of studying management without looking at the rewards and challenges of being a manager. What does it mean to be a manager? Being a manager in today's dynamic work place provides many challenge. It can be a tough and often thankless job. You may have to deal with a variety of personalities and many times have to make do with limited resources. It can be a challenge to motivate works in the face of uncertainty and chaos. And managers may find it difficult to effectively blend the knowledge, skills, ambitions, and experience of a divers group of employees. Finally, as a manager, you are not in full control of your destiny. Your success typically is dependent upon others, work performance.

Despite these challenges, being a manager can be very rewarding. You are responsible for creating a work environment in which organizational members can do their work to the best of their ability and help the organization achieve its goals. In addition, as a manager, you often have the opportunity to think creatively and use your imagination. You help gather find meaning and fulfillment in their work. You get to support, coach, and nurture others and help them make good decisions. You shall get to meet and work with a variety of people-both inside and outside the organizations. Other rewards of being a manger may include receiving recognition and status in the organization and in the community. Playing a role in influencing organizational out comes, and receiving attractive compensation in the form of salaries, bonus, and stock options. Finally, organizations need good managers. Nothing greater ever happens by it self! its through the combined efforts of motivated and passionate people that organizations accomplish their goals. As a manager, you can get satisfaction from knowing that your efforts, skills and abilities are needed. Author of this article also writes articles about cost and management accounting.

Why Study Management

Rashid Javed is an Asian author. He writes about contribution margin and Operating Leverage.

Management - How to Be a Brilliant Budget Manager

If you are manager in an organisation, chances are that one of your key responsibilities is to manage a budget. Non-financial managers often believe that managing a budget is difficult. The reality is that just about any manager in any discipline can become a brilliant budget manager. So how do you do it?

1. Be actively involved in the budget setting process

Management

When I worked in accounting, it never ceased to amaze me when managers, whose performance was being assessed on a number of areas, including budget management, were reluctant to get involved in the budget setting process.

Management - How to Be a Brilliant Budget Manager

Cancelling meetings with the accountants was all too common and some were even more reluctant to re-schedule. If you don't get involved, assumptions have to be made, probably by people who know a lot less about your function than you do. What would you rather be measured on. Something that you were involved in or something imposed?

2. Know your income and expenditure drivers

If you are managing a budget it is vital that you understand those things that you do operationally that contribute most to the levels of:

o Income generated
o Costs or expenditure incurred

On the cost side, a decision to hire someone or give someone a pay rise will impact on expenditure. What are the big drivers of income generation and costs incurred in your function?

3. Think about how your decisions impact on your budget

Every time you take a decision it impacts on your budget. It might be replacing furniture or getting some temporary resource or even a major purchase of equipment. If you are someone who looks at decision in terms of both the operational and financial impact, you will be in the top tier of budget managers.

4. Monitor performance and act at the earliest opportunity

Most businesses have some form of monthly budget report (more frequently in some organisations). You need to be carefully tracking your actual performance against the planned performance. In those cases when actual performance is not at the planned level, take action to do something about it at the earliest opportunity. It is much easier to deal with challenges when they are small.

5. Work with your accountant

Contrary to what most people think, the majority of accountants love to be involved in the business rather than just crunching numbers. Your accountant or finance manager is in effect a business partner or advisor who can help you with the financial challenges. Make a point of meeting with them on a regular basis and keep them up to date what is going on in your area of the business. It is even better if you invite them to management meetings.

Bottom Line- All managers have the potential to be brilliant budget managers. Those who can show that they are strong in this area will have greater opportunity to progress in their career. So what steps will you take to become a brilliant budget manager?

Management - How to Be a Brilliant Budget Manager

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements (G&A) works with individuals, teams and organisations to develop their management and leadership capability.

With 25 years business experience in a range of sectors, he understands first hand the real challenges of managing and leading in the demanding business world.

He invites you to sign up for his free audio e-course and newsletter at http://www.goalsandachievements.co.uk/

Organizational Management - Management Structure

In this installment of our guide to organizational management we look at management structure...

The process of planning, organizing, and controlling human and other resources in order to meet an organizations goals, is known as management.

Management

Typically, a company will be set up to include different types of managers, which can include managers with responsibility for a specific department or division of the entity, as well as regional managers who supervise activities in a particular geographic region. The types of management positions will vary in accordance with the size of the business.

Organizational Management - Management Structure

Management structure (also known as organizational structure) is the method by which staff, departments, divisions and regions work and interact with one another. There are two main types of such structures, known as flat and hierarchal.

Whats known as a flat management structure promotes a decentralized decision-making process, which increases staff involvement and is achieved by very few or no management layers between front-line workers and the company's leadership.

By elevating the level of responsibility of baseline employees, and by eliminating layers of middle management, comments and feedback reach all personnel involved in decisions more quickly. Since the interaction between workers is more frequent, this management structure generally depends upon a much more personal relationship between workers and managers.

The hierarchal management structure has a set chain-of-command - that is each unit in the organization (except that at the very top) is subordinate to another unit or division. That means that each individual communicates directly with an immediate supervisor or subordinate and does not jump over layers of management to get to the top leader.

The benefit of a hierarchal structure is also its primary limitation in that it will reduce the level of communication that goes directly to the top. The hierarchal configuration, however, is the most prevalent for large corporations, governments, and even organized religions.

Flat management structures will typically only work well in smaller companies, or within smaller defined units of a large organization. Once an entity reaches a certain size, this type of structure will not work as well and could end up having a negative impact on productivity. An organizations complexity can be related to its size and how widely distributed it is geographically, and it is this complexity that governs which management structure is most beneficial to the company.

Organizational Management - Management Structure

Want to know more? Click here to continue reading our guide to organizational management: Organizational Management

Management - 8 Key Competencies of Successful Managers

Management is a diverse role with a range of responsibilities and challenges that need to be addressed. Competency as a manager is an important part of achieving. So what 8 key competencies do successful managers have?

Competency 1: Results Focus

Management

Successful managers know that at the end of the day it is not what you do but what you deliver that matters. Having a results focus is about knowing what outcomes are required and focusing yourself and those that you manage on delivering the results. This results focus keeps you on track and reduces the scope for distractions.

Management - 8 Key Competencies of Successful Managers

Competency 2: Making Change

Leaders regularly set out requirements for change. It might be in terms of process, people, service, ways of doing things to name just a few. While leaders will set out the overall direction, managers are the people who need to make the change happen on the ground. This requires them to overcome the obstacles that without doubt will appear as they try to make change.

Competency 3: Planning

Managers do not have the luxury of just having one thing to do. They have to manage money, people, processes, projects, customer relationships and themselves. This requires them to be able to plan effectively so that they get the best results possible.

Competency 4: Team Development

Managers cannot do everything on their own. They need a team around them that can help them to deliver results. Successful managers recognise that team development is an ongoing activity. People come and go from teams and the dynamics that this creates need to be managed. Many team members want to progress and so creating opportunities for growth and development is important.

Competency 5: Risk Management

All areas of business face threats and managers need to become competent at identifying and responding to risk. These risks can range from losing key staff to health and safety issues. Successful managers recognise the importance of identifying and proactively responding to risk.

Competency 6: Decision Making

Until a decision is taken, nothing happens. Managers who procrastinate are a source of frustration to staff. The staff might not always like or agree with the decision that you have made but they will prefer you to take a decision rather than procrastinate.

Competency 7: Communication

Successful managers are effective communicators in 3 areas. They are effective speakers and can put their points forward clearly. They are also effective at getting their message across in writhing whether it is an e-mail or report. Finally, they are effective listeners.

Competency 8: Customer Service Focus

Successful managers recognise that they have customers, even if they are not working directly with the end consumer or user of the product or service. Successful IT Managers see the users of the systems as customers. Accounts Department Managers see budget holders, employees whose salaries they process and suppliers they pay as customers.

Successful management requires you to have a range of competencies. So where are you highly successful and where do you need to develop to be an even more successful manager?

Management - 8 Key Competencies of Successful Managers

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements (G&A) works with individuals, teams and organisations to develop their management and leadership capability.

With 25 years business experience in a range of sectors, he understands first hand the real challenges of managing and leading in the demanding business world.

You can learn more about Duncan, Goals and Achievements services and products and sign up for his free e-course and newsletter at http://www.goalsandachievements.co.uk/

Management Accounting

What is management accounting?

According to the Chartered Institute of management accountants (CIMA), Management Accounting is "the process of recognition, measurement, gathering, study, research, analysis and communication of information used by management to plan, assess and control within a body and to assure appropriate use of and accountability for its Resources. Management accounting also comprises the preparation of financial reports for non management groups such as shareholder's, creditor's, regulatory agencies and tax authorities" (CIMA Official Terminology) The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants(AICPA) states that management accounting as practice extends to the following three areas:

Management

- Strategic Management-advancing the role of the management accountant as a strategic partner in the organization.
- Performance Management-developing the practice of business decision-making and managing the performance of the organization.
- Risk Management-contributing to frameworks and practices for identifying, measuring, managing and reporting risks to the achievement of the objectives of the organization.

Management Accounting

The Role of Management Accounting

Management accountants have a double reporting relationship. As a strategic partner and provider of decision based financial and operational information, management accountants are responsible for managing the business team and at the same time having to report relationships and responsibilities to the corporation's finance organization.

Breaking down of cost or outflow into functions and processes to smooth the progress of cost control at each prepared level in the business environment, also to suggest alternatives to improve the productivity of the business to accumulate the maximum profit/success of the business.

The management accountants must develop a standard for all working areas and to evaluate the actual standards within the business sector, ensuring the best operation of available resources in the business sector and to Identify areas of wastages, leakages, inefficiencies and invisible losses that the business has dealt within the last view years.

The accountant must deploy informatic tools for a well-organized management information system to keep the business up to date with the latest whereabouts in the business sector, contributing to a Total Quality Management (TQM) assisting in decision-making process at all levels of management of the specific enterprise.

What management accountants Do?

Also known as corporate accountants, management accountants work within one specific company. They perform a series of tasks to ensure their company's financial security, handling essentially all financial matters and thus helping to drive the business's overall management and strategy skills to the best they can.

A management accountant's responsibilities can be a variety of things, depending on the company you work for, the management accountant's level of experience, the time of year and the type of industry the management accountant is at, you could find yourself doing anything from budgeting, handling taxes, managing assets to help determine compensation, the benefits packages and aiding in strategic planning.

The aims of management accounting

1. Formulating strategies to reach their goals as fast as possible but thorough.
2. Planning and constructing business activities to keep the business up and running for it to make a profit.
3. Helps in making the financial decisions of the firm, by using strategies to reach their aim.
4. Optimal use of Resources (making use of all resources that one can find like the internet, books and own knowledge)
5. Supporting financial reports. preparation (you can also give your meaning about the subject that is discussed by giving your view point).
6. Safeguarding asset.

Management Accounting

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