ch. 11

what are the 7 main organizational responsibility relationships?

general, operating, specific, must be consulted, may be consulted, must be notified, and must approve responsibility

managerial characteristics needed for delegation

i. Willingness to consider seriously the ideas of others ii. Insight to allow subordinates the free rein necessary to carry out their responsibilities iii. Capacity to trust subordinates' abilities iv. Wisdom to allow people to learn from their mistakes rather than instituting unreasonable penalties because they made mistakes

personal attitudes and values

identify with the group, put the organizational goals ahead of personal desires or activities, perform tasks that offer no immediate reward but help subordinates, the company, or both, and conserve corporate resources as if the resources were their own.

exercising authority: it is only accepted if:

individual can understand the command being communicated, individual believes the command is consistent with the purpose of the organization, individual sees the order as compatible with his or her personal interests

behavior with other groups

make sure that any gaps between their areas and those of other managers are securely filled

define responsibility gaps

exists when certain tasks are not included in the responsibility area of any individual organization member. Nobody within the organization is obligated to perform certain necessary activities

Management responsibility guide

Helps management to describe the various responsibility relationships that exist in the organization and to summarize how the responsibilities of various managers relate to one another

what are the four dimensions the degree of responsibility a manager can possess

attitude toward and conduct with subordinates, behavior with upper management, behavior with other groups, and personal attitudes and values

centralization of authority

the location of most authority at the upper levels of the organization

eliminating obstacles of delegation

1. Continually strive to uncover any obstacles to delegation 2. Approach taking action to eliminate these obstacles with the understanding that they may be deeply ingrained and therefore might require much time and effort to overcome. 3. Build subordinate confidence in delegated authority 4. Help delegate cope with problems

what are the guidelines for delegating tasks?

1. Give employees the freedom to pursue tasks in their own way. 2. Establish mutually agreed-upon results and performance standards for delegated tasks. 3. Encourage employees to take an active role in defining, implementing, and communicating progress on tasks. 4. Entrust employees with completion of whole projects or tasks whenever possible. 5. Explain the relevance of delegated tasks to larger projects or to department or organization goals. 6. Give employees the authority necessary to accomplish tasks. 7. Allow employees access to all information, people, and departments necessary to perform delegated tasks. 8. Provide the training and guidance necessary for employees to complete delegated tasks satisfactorily. 9. When possible, delegate tasks based on employee interests.

advantages of delegation

1. Gives senior managers more time to focus on important, strategic roles 2. Shows trust in subordinates which can challenge and motivate them 3. Develops and trains staff for more senior positions 4. Helps staff to achieve fulfilment through their work (*self-actualisation*) 5. Encourages staff to be accountable for their work-based activities

obstacles related to organizations

1. Small organization may present the supervisor with only a minimal number of activities to be delegated 2. If delegation has not occurred before, employees may be uncooperative and apprehensive because change is strongly resisted.

Roles of staff personnel

1. The advisory or counseling role 2. The service role 3. The control role

obstacles related to supervisor

1. They can resist delegating his authority to subordinates a. Due to fear of subordinates not doing a good job b. Surrendering authority shows weakness c. Hinder their own personal success

obstacles related to subordinates

1. They may be reluctant to accept delegated authority due to fear of failing, lack of self-confidence or feel the supervisor does not have confidence in them. a. Apparent is subordinates who have never used delegated authority 2. Fear supervisor will be unavailable for guidance when needed 3. Complicate congenial working relationships

what are the three steps of delegation?

1. assign responsibility/duties 2. grant authority to subordinates 3. create accountability/obligation

3 areas in job description

1. dividing job activities 2.clarifying the job activities of managers 3. being responsible

disadvantages of delegation

Cannot/Should not delegate responsibility, depends on quality/experience of subordinates, harder in a smaller firm, may increase workload and stress of subordinates. Manager could also loose track of progress of delegated task.

dividing job activities under functional similarity method

Most basic method with four basic, interrelated steps 1)examine management system objectives 2. designate the appropriate activities that must be performed to reach those objectives 3. design specific jobs by grouping similar activities 4. make specific individuals responsible for performing those jobs

job description

a list of specific activities that must be performed by whoever holds the position communicates job content, establish performance levels that employees must maintain and act as guides that employees should follow

responsibility and delegation skill

ability to understand one's obligation to perform assigned activities and to enlist the help of others to complete those activities

behavior with management

accept criticism for mistakes and buffer their groups from excessive criticism. ensure that their groups meet management expectations and objectives

delegation

actual process of assigning job activities and corresponding authority to specific individuals within the organization.

Acountability

management philosophy whereby individuals are held liable, or countable, for how well they use their authority and live up to their responsibility or performing predetermined activities. If not performed, penalty of punishment is justifiable.

likelihood of accepting authority if (7):

manager uses formal channels of communication that are familiar to all organization members, each organization member has an assigned formal communication channel through which order is received, the line of communication between manager and subordinate is as direct as possible, the complete chain of command is used to issue orders, the manager possesses adequate communication skills, the manager uses formal communication lines only for organizational business, and a command is authenticated as coming from the manager.

responsibility

obligation to perform assigned activities. Self-assumed commitment to handle a job to the best of one's ability.

three guidelines for dividing job activities

overlapping responsibility should be avoided, responsibility gaps should be avoided, and avoid creating job activities to accomplish tasks that do not enhance goal attainment.

the service role

provides services that can be provided by a single centralized staff group more efficiently and effectively than those services can be provided by many individuals scattered throughout the organization. Viewed as suppliers and line personnel are viewed as customers

define overlapping responsibility

refers to a situation in which more than one individual is responsible for the same activity. Results in conflict and poor working relationships and job does not get done due to assumption the other one will do it. One may forget, both employees may perform the job which can dampen employee morale, or neither performs job and/or valuable time may be spent negotiating each aspect and phase of job

authority

right to perform or command. Allows its holder to act in certain designated ways and to influence the actions of other through orders, allows its holder to allocate the organization's resources to achieve organizational objectives. increases the probability that a specific command is obeyed

control role

staff personnel help establish a mechanism for evaluating the effectiveness of organizational plans. Representative, agents of top management.

the advisory or counseling role

staff personnel use their professional expertise to solve organizational problems. Internal consultants

attitude toward and conduct with subordinates

take omplete charge of their work groups, pass praise and credit along to subordinates, stay close to problems and activities, and take actions to maintain productivity and are willing to terminate poor performance if necessary

must approve

the individual other than persons holding general and operating responsibility who must approve or disapprove the decision

general responsibility

the individual who guides and directs the execution of the function through the person accepting operating responsibility

operating responsibility

the individual who is directly responsible for the execution of the function

specific responsibility

the individual who is responsible for executing a specific or limited portion of the function

May be consulted

the individual who may be called on to relate information, render advice, or make recommendations before the action is taken

Must be notified

the individual who must be notified of any action that has been taken

must be consulted

the individual whose area is affected by a decision and who must be called on to render advice or relate information before any decision is made or approval is granted but the individual does not make decision or grant approval

decentralization of authority

the location of a significant amount of authority in the lower levels of the organization

staff authority

the right to advise or assist those who possess line authority as well as other staff personnel, enables those responsible for improving the effectiveness of line personnel to perform their required tasks

line authority

the right to command immediate subordinates in the chain of command. the right to make decisions and to give order concerning the production-, sales, or finance-related behavior of subordinates

functional authority

the right to give order within a segment of the organization in which this right is normally nonexistent. Complement line or staff authority already possessed. Covers only specific task areas and is operational only for designated amounts of time.

described as responsible if...

they perform the activities they are obligated to perform