BUSINESS MANAGEMENT IN ACTION

By : Muhammad Nooramin Bin Mohd Hassan 

Abstract

The purpose of this article is as an introduction that helps in better understanding the introduction of Business management action, this article gather the definition about performance  management in business management action and related subjects in order to understand the definitions. This article likely will focus on performance management and help in understanding its function in business management in action.

Keywords: Business management, business action, business, management, performance management

Introduction

What is business management

Business management is a field that offers opportunities for individuals and group of people with a variety of interests and skills that they have. According to Florida Tech, business management is a field that talented business managers are in demand and may remain so as the global business environment becomes more complex.

Management involves coordinating and overseeing the work activities of others so that their activities are completed efficiently and effectively. Efficiency refers to getting the most output from the least amount of inputs. Because managers deal with scarce inputs including resources such as people, money, and equipment. Effectiveness is often described as “doing the right things” that is, doing those work activities that will help the organization reach its goals (Stephen P Robbins, 2012)

Managers in management

Manager is a responsible person who with qualified education background to manage and ensure all the flow in the organization runs smoothly. Managers are in the level where they have power to control and manipulating workers, they should have different approaches to motivate their people to work effective and efficiently to ensure the goals of the organization accomplished.

Source: Management 11th, Stephen P Robbins, 2012

According to Stephen P Robbins, the lowest level of management, first-line managers manage the work of non managerial employees who typically are involved with producing the organization’s products or servicing the organization’s customers. First-line managers may be called supervisors or even shift managers, district managers, department managers, or office managers. Middle managers manage the work of first-line managers and can be found between the lowest and top levels of the organization. They may have titles such as regional manager, project leader, store manager, or division manager. Top managers, who are responsible for making organization-wide decisions and establishing the plans and goals that affect the entire organization. These individuals typically have titles such as executive vice president, president, managing director, chief operating officer, or chief executive officer.

Nowadays, not all organization used the pyramid exactly. Many of organizations in this 20th century they are structured more like Google, Facebook, Twitter, with their flexible work arrangements, employee work teams, open communication systems, and supplier alliances and others. Their tasks could be done anywhere and anytime, it does not necessary to have formal meeting in meeting room, they could just use video call, e-mail, and others.

Managers always have been challenged to produce results, but the modern manager must produce them in a time of rapid technological and social change. Managers must be able to use this rapid change to produce their results; they must use the change and not be used or swallowed up by it. The most important tool the manager has in setting and achieving forward-looking goals is people, and to achieve results with this tool the manager must: first, be able to instill in the workers a sense of vital commitment and desire to contribute to organizational goals; second, control and coordinate the efforts of the workers toward goal accomplishment; and, last, help his or her subordinates to grow in ability so that they can make greater contributions. (Thomas M. Thomson)

Definition of managers by different authors:

Nancy. H. Shanks, 2012 : Managers are continually challenged to motivate a workforce to do two things. The first challenge is to motivate employees to work towards helping organization to achieve its goals. The second is to motivate employees to work towards to achieving their own personal goals.

Abraham Zaleznik, 2004 : Managers embrace process, seek stability and control, and instinctively try to resolve problems quickly, sometimes before they fully understand a problem’s significance

Katarzyna Cieślińska, 2007 : Managers are the community that visibly stands apart in present-day business organization, although heterogeneous and difficult to unequivocal defining

F. John Reh, 2016 : The manager is the individual responsible for some or all of the tasks in those categories, depending upon his/her level of responsibility in the organization. Managers are accountable for guiding and supporting a team responsible for some aspect of an organization's operations.

What is Business Management in Action?

The organization needs a backup plan, management risk, and also management action plan. It is a part of important things to ensure the organization will compete and know what to do if there are problems, troubleshoot occur. Management action in business industry is needed to ensure that potential risks that may impact on the objectives are identified and treated, beside that management action is the action taken by the organization to overcome the problems they are currently face. As an example, Aims Data Centre were having security issue, where they had intruders in their system, what is the action taken by the management, how they overcome the problems that will help the company to stay in their business track, beside that from the problems they occurred, the organization needs a new improvement to ensure the problems of security issues will not happen again, for example they come out with new biometric system that will not allows strangers to get inside the data centre.

Plans of action, whether for business or the battlefield, always have two fundamental aspects: ends and means, what is to be achieved and how it is to be achieved. The ends sought might be broad, far-reaching, and off in the distant future. Or, they might be nearby, tightly focused, and well defined. (Fred Nickols, 2016). Management action plan is an effective way for project managers to identify, analyze, plan, and control potential risks. By setting controls and guidelines a risk management plan reduces failure and negative impacts. (Jean Scheid, 2013)

Management action provides direction for the future of the business by establishing priorities and allocating resources to achieve the objectives outlined in the plan. The process allows for business owners and managers to allocate resources and implement changed business practices for improved business, a strategy in place that focuses on continual improvement will ensure that the business thrives, but it also means that many crisis situations that can be the undoing of a business may be identified and addressed before they have a negative effect on the business. (Jan Barned, 2011).

  

Improved Business Performance

Figure 2:  The key drivers of business efficiency and effectiveness, or business performance.

Source: Improving Business Performance, Jan Barned, 2011

Business management action is the act to overcome problems or for improved business performance, all relevant the key drivers should be identified and regularly evaluated against performance indicators such as business targets and benchmark data. Implementing a continual improvement program will ensure that all key business resources are being utilized efficiently and effectively at all times, one of the simplest ways to improve business performance is to increase productivity. Improving business performance through the better use of technology will require a thorough understanding of key processes in the business. As one of the key drivers of business performance, maximizing the use of assets is critical in improving business performance. The key to successful working capital management is reviewing all the essential steps in the working capital cycle. (Jan Barned, 2011)

Why Organizations need Performance Management

A performance management system sets criteria for evaluating worker productivity by the responsible authority who will audit the workers, usually managers of the workers. Organizations should have a global look at their performance management system and have very objective goals that are tied to efficient initiatives and the performance management process. According to Eli Lilly and Co, performance management focuses on aligning the individual goals with the goals of the organization and ensures that the employees work on the right tasks and do the right things. Successful organizations have learned experiences in managing their performance to improve day by day, to ensure company achieve their target or goals. Performance management is a managerial style where individual employee performance goals are written to align with and achieve the company's overall goal. Dr. Aubrey Daniels first used the term "performance management" in the 1970s. Daniels defined performance management as tracking employee behavior and results, which together contribute to performance. Performance management is not always perfect and happen to have flaws, striving to constantly improve the process can be one of the best ways to help organizations achieve their mission and goals.

Definition Performance management by several experts:

Dr. Herman Aguinis, 2013 : Performance management is a continuous process of identifying, measuring and developing performance in organizations by linking each individual’s performance and objectives to the organization’s overall mission and goal.

MSG expert, 2017 : Performance management is a strategic tool and is holistic in nature as it pervades in every activity of the organization which is concerned with the management of individual, team and the overall organizational performance.

Patricia, 2015 : Organizations that do not have strong performance management systems can have a negative effect both on employees as well as their managers.

Benefits of Performance Management

An effectively implemented performance management system can benefit as below:

·         Organization’s benefits

By doing performance management, it is to improved organizational performance, employee retention and loyalty, improved productivity, overcoming the barriers to communication, clear accountabilities, and cost advantages.

·         Manager’s benefits

Saves time and reduces conflicts, ensures efficiency and consistency in performance.

·         Employee’s benefits

Clarifies expectations of the employees, self assessment opportunities clarifies the job accountabilities and contributes to improved performance, clearly defines career paths and promotes job satisfaction.

Characteristics of an ideal performance management system:

·               Acceptability and fairness

·               Inclusiveness

·               Openness

·               Standardizations

Conclusion

In a conclusion business management in action related to all auditing performances toward in improving company profitability, to achieve goals, mission of the organization. Business management in action is important to ensure the most relevant actions was taken if the organizations want a better future decision making and also to increase their profitability. Business management is a field that offers opportunities for individuals and group of people with a variety of interests and skills that they have.

In management of business, the responsible person to manage and ensure the workers are motivated to achieve organization’s goals is managers. Manager is a responsible person who with qualified education background to manage and ensure all the flow in the organization runs smoothly. Management has 4 levels, the lowest level of management is non managerial employees, followed by first-line managers and next middle managers, and the top of management is top managers.

Management action is the actions taken towards performance management and the benefits of the management actions, who is going to get the benefits. Management action in business industry is needed to ensure impact on the objectives are identified and treated, beside that management action is the action taken by the organization to overcome the problems they are currently face.

 Besides that, Implementing a continual improvement program will ensure that all key business resources are being utilized efficiently and effectively at all time. And also performance management system sets criteria for evaluating worker productivity by the responsible authority who will audit the workers

In a nutshell, business management in action is the activities that helps organization to manage the company through evaluating performance management effectively and efficiently. Management in action requires that managers ensure that employees’ activities and outputs are congruent with the organization’s goals

References

Robbins, Stephen P.(2012).Management 11th edition. Retrieved from

https://shankar9119.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/management-11th-edn-by-stephen-p-robbins-mary-coulter-pdf-qwerty80.pdf

Shanks, Nancy H.(2012).Management and Motivation. Retrieved from

https://www.jblearning.com/samples/076373473X/3473X_CH02_4759.pdf

Zaleznik, Abraham.(2012). Managers and Leaders: Are They Different?. Retrieved from

https://hbr.org/2004/01/managers-and-leaders-are-they-different

Cieślińska, Katarzyna.(2007).  The Basic Roles Of Manager In Business. Retrieved from

http://www.jard.edu.pl/pub/1_6_2007.pdf

Reh, John F.(2016). Understanding the Role and Core Responsibilities of a Manager. Retrieved from https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-a-manager-2275723

Nickols, Fred.(2016) Strategy in Management. Retrieved from

http://www.nickols.us/strategy_etc.pdf

Scheid, Jean.(2013).Why You Need a Risk Management Action Plan. Retrieved from

http://www.brighthubpm.com/risk-management/31709-why-you-need-a-risk-management-action-plan/

Barned, Jan.(2011).Improving Business Performance. Retrieved from

https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/~/media/corporate/allfiles/document/professional-resources/business/improving-business-performance.pdf?la=en

Management Study Guide.(2017). Retrieved from

http://www.managementstudyguide.com/benefits-of-performance-management-system.htm

Aguinis, Herman Dr. (2013) Performance Management. Retrieved from

https://www.ebsglobal.net/EBS/media/EBS/PDFs/Performance-Management-Course-Taster.pdf

Robert, Behn D.(2003). Why Measure Performances? Retrieved from

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/f311/b46229f7e81fbf289ed2548aace868ec3610.pdf