Management and Its Tasks

PART THREE MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER TEN MANAGEMENT AND ITS TASKS

The above statement is particularly applicable to India in the context of our planned economy geared up to achieve 'socialistic society' and 'welfare state'. Management is significant to every organisation, public or private, governmental or business, because it deals with a natural function of human society, namely, the fundamental endeavour of achieving objectives. Bigness and complexity of the modern government have made the study of public management imperative.

Meaning

The term 'management' is used in many senses. It should not be confused with a person, a group of people, an economic, social or political class. Management is a process made up of definite functions; those who perform these tasks are managers. No standard terminology has yet been evolved in this field as would satisfy everyone. Thus, management is sometimes confused with Administration and sometimes with Organisation. Some writers equate the term Administration and Management; others go further and subordinate Administration to Management. The widely prevalent view, however, is of Meyer according to whom Management, in contrast to Administration, is a purely internal concept "characterising any activity discharged within the framework of an organisation unit." There is a similar confusion as to the relationship between Organisation and Management. Some writers regard Organisation as merely one of the many functions of Management. Others use Organisation in a wider sense to comprehend Management. The fact, however, is that Organisation is the anatomy or the structure while Management is the physiology or the process. Drawing a distinction between the two terms, Seckler-Hudson says, "In this volume organisation will be regarded as the division and unification of effort toward some goal or policy. Management will be regarded as the collective utilisation of human resources and material in an effort to reach the known goal." In other words, Organisation is the framework or apparatus of administration, while Management is the running of it. In the words of Millett, "Public Administration is an instrument for the exercise of political power. Administrative organisation is the formalised structure for exercising certain powers of government, and management is the group of persons and the process by which organisation is animated to accomplish these ends." Management, thus, is a process of achieving a desired goal. However, Management is not doing things, but getting them done. Managers obtain objectives through the efforts of others. According to Terry, "Management is the accomplishing of pre-determined objective through the efforts of other people."