Management

summarize how to make ethical decisions

1. Gather the facts Don't jump to conclusions without the facts Questions to ask: Who, what, where, when, how, and why. However, facts may be difficult to find because of the uncertainty often found around ethical issues Some facts are not available Assemble as many facts as possible before proceeding Clarify what assumptions you are making! 2. Define the ethical issues Don't jump to solutions without first identifying the ethical issue(s) in the situation. Define the ethical basis for the issue you want to focus on. There may be multiple ethical issues - focus on one major one at a time. 3. Identify the affected parties (stakeholders) Identify all of the stakeholders Who are the primary or direct stakeholders? Who are the secondary or indirect stakeholders? Why are they stakeholders for the issue? Perspective-taking -- Try to see things through the eyes of those individuals affected 4. Identify the consequences Think about potential positive and negative consequences for affected parties by the decision (Focus on primary stakeholders to simplify analysis until you become comfortable with the process). What are the magnitude of the consequences and the probability that the consequences will happen. Short term vs. Long term consequences - will decision be valid over time. Broader systemic consequences - tied to symbolic and secrecy Symbolic consequences - Each decision sends a message. Secrecy consequences - What are the consequences if the decision or action becomes public? Did you consider relevant cognitive barriers/biases? Consider what your decision would be based only on consequences - then move on and see if it is similar given other considerations. 5. Identify the obligations (principles, rights, justice) Obligations should be thought of in terms of principles and rights involved A) What obligations are created because of particular ethical principles you might use in the situation? Examples: Do no harm; Do unto others as you would have them do unto you; Do what you would have anyone in your shoes do in the given context. B) What obligations are created because of the specific rights of the stakeholders? What rights are more basic vs. secondary in nature? Which help protect an individual's basic autonomy? What types of rights are involved - negative or positive? C) What concepts of justice (fairness) are relevant - distributive or procedural justice? Did you consider any relevant cognitive barriers/biases? Formulate the appropriate decision or action based solely on the above analysis of these obligations. 6. Consider your character and integrity Consider what your relevant community members would consider to be the kind of decision that an individual of integrity would make in this situation. What specific virtues are relevant in the situation? Disclosure rule - what would you do if the New York Times reported your action and everyone was to read it. Think about how your decision will be remembered when you are gone. Did you consider any relevant cognitive biases/barriers? What decision would you come to based solely on character considerations? 7. Think creatively about potential actions Be sure you have not been unnecessarily forced into a corner You may have some choices or alternatives that have not been considered If you have come up with solutions "a" and "b," try to brainstorm and come up with a "c" solution that might satisfy the interests of the primary parties involved in the situation. 8. Check your gut Even though the prior steps have argued for a highly rational process, it is always good to "check your gut." Intuition is gaining credibility as a source for good decision making - knowing something is not "right." • Particularly relevant if you have a lot of experience in the area - expert decision-making. 9. Decide on the proper ethical action and be prepared to deal with opposing arguments. Consider potential actions based on the consequences, obligations, and character approaches. Do you come up with similar answers from the different perspectives? Do the obligation and character help you "check" the consequentialist preferred action? How can you protect the rights of those involved (or your own character) while still maximizing the overall good for all of the stakeholders? What arguments are most compelling to you to justify the action ethically? How will you respond to those with opposing viewpoints?

explain management functions, including planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling

1. Planning It is the basic function of management. It deals with chalking out a future course of action & deciding in advance the most appropriate course of actions for achievement of pre-determined goals. According to KOONTZ, "Planning is deciding in advance - what to do, when to do & how to do. It bridges the gap from where we are & where we want to be". A plan is a future course of actions. It is an exercise in problem solving & decision making. Planning is determination of courses of action to achieve desired goals. Thus, planning is a systematic thinking about ways & means for accomplishment of pre-determined goals. Planning is necessary to ensure proper utilization of human & non-human resources. It is all pervasive, it is an intellectual activity and it also helps in avoiding confusion, uncertainties, risks, wastages etc. 2. Organizing It is the process of bringing together physical, financial and human resources and developing productive relationship amongst them for achievement of organizational goals. According to Henry Fayol, "To organize a business is to provide it with everything useful or its functioning i.e. raw material, tools, capital and personnel's". To organize a business involves determining & providing human and non-human resources to the organizational structure. Organizing as a process involves: Identification of activities. Classification of grouping of activities. Assignment of duties. Delegation of authority and creation of responsibility. Coordinating authority and responsibility relationships. 3. Staffing It is the function of manning the organization structure and keeping it manned. Staffing has assumed greater importance in the recent years due to advancement of technology, increase in size of business, complexity of human behavior etc. The main purpose o staffing is to put right man on right job i.e. square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. According to Kootz & O'Donell, "Managerial function of staffing involves manning the organization structure through proper and effective selection, appraisal & development of personnel to fill the roles designed un the structure". Staffing involves: Manpower Planning (estimating man power in terms of searching, choose the person and giving the right place). Recruitment, Selection & Placement. Training & Development. Remuneration. Performance Appraisal. Promotions & Transfer. 4. Directing It is that part of managerial function which actuates the organizational methods to work efficiently for achievement of organizational purposes. It is considered life-spark of the enterprise which sets it in motion the action of people because planning, organizing and staffing are the mere preparations for doing the work. Direction is that inert-personnel aspect of management which deals directly with influencing, guiding, supervising, motivating sub-ordinate for the achievement of organizational goals. Direction has following elements: Supervision Motivation Leadership Communication Supervision- implies overseeing the work of subordinates by their superiors. It is the act of watching & directing work & workers. Motivation- means inspiring, stimulating or encouraging the sub-ordinates with zeal to work. Positive, negative, monetary, non-monetary incentives may be used for this purpose. Leadership- may be defined as a process by which manager guides and influences the work of subordinates in desired direction. Communications- is the process of passing information, experience, opinion etc from one person to another. It is a bridge of understanding. 5. Controlling It implies measurement of accomplishment against the standards and correction of deviation if any to ensure achievement of organizational goals. The purpose of controlling is to ensure that everything occurs in conformities with the standards. An efficient system of control helps to predict deviations before they actually occur. According to Theo Haimann, "Controlling is the process of checking whether or not proper progress is being made towards the objectives and goals and acting if necessary, to correct any deviation". According to Koontz & O'Donell "Controlling is the measurement & correction of performance activities of subordinates in order to make sure that the enterprise objectives and plans desired to obtain them as being accomplished". Therefore controlling has following steps: Establishment of standard performance. Measurement of actual performance. Comparison of actual performance with the standards and finding out deviation if any. Corrective action.

explain how socially responsible management policies are initiated and implemented

Define your messaging. Don't strike blindly at different goals, such as preserving rainforests one quarter and then investing in a community project the next. Come up with causes that resonate with your business culture, research the kind of support they need, then pick one and stick with it. One is enough for a small business - and don't feel pressured to donate more funding or assistance than you can afford. Involve your customers. If you haven't picked a cause yet, come up with a list of alternatives and ask your web site visitors and Facebook fans to vote on which one they would like to see you support. Or actively seek their assistance, such as bringing old but usable technology into your store so that you can donate them to students in underfunded schools. Make sure you offer a potential reward, such as holding a raffle for all participants. Create a scorecard. Make sure it features achievable and measurable goals and keep it visible on your site, tracking your progress. Be honest about any setbacks - you want the tone to be authentic, not promotional. Use social media. Don't just tell your customers what you're doing; solicit their ideas, experiences, and concerns to get them invested in your projects. Make sure you use multiple digital platforms - such as blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and a YouTube channel - to reach people with different media preferences. Partner with a third party. Forming an alliance with a non-profit will not only lend credibility to your efforts, but let you benefit from the non-profit's greater experience in fundraising and philanthropy. The alliance will also offer an opportunity to blend customers and networks. Seek publicity. If you've never sought media coverage for your business before, this might be the time to start. Send out a press release about any contests, events or fundraising drives - and reach out to media outlets that present on green topics as they'll be apt to give you positive coverage. Repurpose your CSR reports. Using charts, stories, and photos in your annual reports and newsletters will appeal to stakeholders and shareholders alike. Most corporate social responsibility projects won't deliver an immediate boost to your company's financial performance. But implemented sincerely and leveraged cleverly, they can bring positive publicity, enhance your corporate reputation, and deepen customer engagement - in addition to giving you the satisfaction of knowing you've truly assisted someone in need.

define ethical workplace behavior

Ethics in the workplace is defined as the moral code that guides the behavior of employees with respect to what is right and wrong in regard to conduct and decision making. ... Furthermore, ethical behavior doesn't only apply to individual employees, the organization itself should exemplify standards of ethical conduct

Define the term management:

Management is a process or function that mobilizes people and resources to accomplish outlined goals and objectives. According to Henri Fayol, there are five functions that would ensure the process of production is conducted effectively and efficiently. These include: Planning, where management must provide a schedule of how production will be conducted using the available resources Organizing, where management is required to mobilize all resources for the purpose of production Commanding, where management is required to guide and direct activities conducted by human resources Coordinating, where management is required to ensure all the production processes are conducted in a systematic and synchronous manner Control, where management must monitor and evaluate all the processes involved in the production to provide an opportunity for mitigation and improvement.

define the role of management

Management is the process of guiding the development, maintenance, and allocation of resources to attain organizational goals. From this perspective, the managerial process can be described as (1) anticipating potential problems or opportunities and designing plans to deal with them, (2) coordinating and allocating the resources needed to implement plans, (3) guiding personnel through the implementation process, and (4) reviewing results and making any necessary changes. This last stage provides information to be used in ongoing planning efforts, and thus the cycle starts over again. The four functions are highly interdependent, with managers often performing more than one of them at a time and each of them many times over the course of a normal workday.

define social responsibility

Social responsibility means that businesses, in addition to maximizing shareholder value, must act in a manner that benefits society. Social responsibility has become increasingly important to investors and consumers who seek investments that are not just profitable but also contribute to the welfare of society and the environment. However, critics argue that the basic nature of business does not consider society as a stakeholder.

identify the external and internal environmental factors that influence management

The Importance Of External Factors What are external factors? The economy, politics, competitors, customers, and even the weather are all uncontrollable factors that can influence an organization's performance. This is in comparison to internal factors such as staff, company culture, processes, and finances, which all seem within your grasp.

explain the history and evolution of management

The evolution of management thought is a process that started in the early days of man. It began since the period man saw the need to live in groups. Mighty men were able to organize the masses, share them into various groups. The sharing was done accord to the masses' strength, mental capacities, and intelligence.

define the management pyramid

The management pyramid is a skills set used to describe the characteristics managers need to develop in order to be successful and further their careers. The tool is shaped as a pyramid with the most basic skills at its base while climbing to the top where there are the skills corresponding to senior managers. Structure of the Management Pyramid A) Level 1: it corresponds to the basic skills a manager should have in the industry in order to begin a career in an organization. Some of these skills include: Planning: determining the resources and setting deadlines and objectives that can fit the management plan; Organizing: developing work teams, setting hierarchy and collaboration relations and a report-to structure; Supervising: providing daily instructions in order to ensure productivity and the respect of company standards. Controlling: monitoring, tracking and reporting on output, efficiency, cost and quality. B) Level 2: the second layer supposes the acquisition of the basic skills laid out at Level 1 and reinforcement of people management skills, also called the "soft skills" in the Management Skills Pyramid. Generally, they are the type of skills used to motivate and develop staff, and the most important ones can be grouped into these categories: Motivational: a good manager needs to be able to recognize the needs of the staff and create a proper environment that encourages people to engage and deliver their best efforts. Training: the manger should ensure the team members have or acquire the fundamental skills and knowledge they need to execute the tasks of the department or function. Coaching: the managers support the team members in order to improve productivity and develop behaviors in support of higher individual performance and group goals. Problem-solving: a manager needs to be able to assess the existing relations between team members and encourage collaboration with the goal of improving daily work tasks. C) Level 3: this level of the Management Skills Pyramid corresponds to self-development. Though it may be surprising that a part is dedicated entirely to one's own development, these skills are essential in order to become a better manager for the team members and ultimately for the organization. Skills that are included in this category are: Self-management: assess the style and success of different types of management used to support and help others develop in order to overcome the challenges of daily work and management life. Time management: how to distribute the workload in order to improve performance and meet deadlines. It does not belong specifically to this level, but it crosses the entirely pyramid as it is fundamental at every level. D) Top Level: at the top of the pyramid there are the leadership skills. The difference between managers and leaders is that the latter have the management skills as well as a vision for the organization, while managers are more focused on the daily functioning of the company. While some managers can be leaders, they need to acquire the strategic insight in order to be able to develop and implement management plans suited for the organization.