Unit 2 Flashcards
(21 cards)
Describe the functions of management from first to last
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Planning - management evaluate the business’s current position and make decisions to move forward
Organising - Location and allocation of resources, determine the organisational structure and establish and maintain relationships
Directing - Management must oversee staff and influence them in achieving company goals through effective communication and motivation
Controlling - Setting standards using objectives, reviewing and reporting performance through e.g. financial reports or absenteeism rates
What is the trait theory?
An umbrella term for theories that suggest those with certain character traits such as charisma are better at being leaders
State 2 behavioural theory management styles
Considerate style - focuses on subordinate well being over task efficiency
Initiating structure - focuses on defining and planning work but leaving room for staff to feel treated unfairly
Describe autocratic leadership
- Management assume information and decision making is best kept at the top of the organisation; Downward one-way communication; close supervision of employees; minimal delegation and decentralisation
- Useful in intense markets; when subordinates are mostly unskilled; when the leader has a clear vision
Describe democratic leadership
- Operates according to decisions agreed by the majority; delegation common; two-way communication common; subordinate empowerment;
Describe Laissez-faire leadership
Minimal leadership input; Employees empowered for majority of decisions; gives room for employee talent to shine
What are the 2 types of decision making
Scientific decision making - Based on data (during the decision making process alternatives are created and analysed based on data) - used when risk is higher
Decision making based on intuition - used for less risky decisions and/or when data is less available and/or deemed less reliable; Can also be used when manager is very skilled e.g. Richard Branson
Describe the 4 quadrants on the stakeholder map
Quadrant A: Low power/Low interest - Minimal effort - e.g. customers of declining products
B: Low power/High interest - Keep informed - e.g. Residents near a manufacturing business
C: High power/Low interest - Keep satisfied - e.g. Investors who only care about dividends
D: Low power/High interest - Key players - e.g. target customers
What are opportunity costs?
The loss of what would have been gained from choosing the alternative option
What is risk?
The chance of incurring misfortune
List and describe 5 approaches to stakeholder management
- Partnership - Involves stakeholders most closely - decisions taken jointly by management and relevant stakeholders - For key players - the business should invest in the partnership
- Participation - Lesser form of partnership where stakeholders are involved in a team relevant to decision making - extensive two -way communication - Used for keep satisfied and key players
- Consultation - means finding out the views of relevant stakeholder groups - Stakeholders are engaged in two-way communication but have little power in influencing decisions
- ‘Push communications’ - One-way communication to relevant stakeholder groups through e.g. emails - suited for minimal efforts
- ‘Pull’ communications - Management will only engage if the stakeholder group chooses to - appropriate for low power groups
List the 5 management styles on the blake mouton grid
- Country club leadership: 1 concern for production, 9 concern for people - relaxed and fun people focused work environment
- Produce or perish leadership: 1 concern for people, 9 concern for production - likely very authoritarian, employees are means to an end, emphasis on getting the job done
- Impoverished leadership: 1 concern for production and 1 concern for people - Ineffective leadership will usually see poor results
- Middle of the road leadership: 5 concern for production, 5 concern for people - A compromise between meeting employee needs and getting the job done - neither ever entirely met, will produce average performance
- Team leadership: 9 concern for production, 9 concern for people - employees involved in the task and want to get it done
List 4 influences on the style of management
- The tradition and history of the business
- The type of labour force - a skilled labour force may be more suited to democratic leadership as they can bring new perspectives that may exceed the managers awareness
- The nature of the task and the timescale - skilled managers may use different styles depending on their aims - an urgent short-term task would be better with an autocratic task-focused approach
- The leader’s personality - Confident communicators may be suited to democratic styles
Explain what the Tannenbaum-Schmidt continuum depicts and list its 7 stages
A range of leadership behaviour that changes as use of authority goes up and subordinate freedom goes down, or vice versa
- Manager makes and announces decision
- Manager sells decision to subordinates
- Manager presents ideas and asks questions
- Manager presents tentative decision and asks for help
- Manager presents problem and gets suggestions to make the decision
- Manager defines limits and lets subordinates decide
- Manager permits subordinates to function limitlessly and independently
List the 5 stages of the decision making process
- Setting objectives
- Gathering and interpreting information
- Selecting the chosen option
- Implementing the decision
- Reviewing
Differentiate programmed and non-programmed decisions
Programmed - Familiar, information required is easy to define and obtain e.g. re-ordering components
Non-programmed - require a unique solution, riskier e.g. entering a new market
Differentiate tactical and strategic decisions
Strategic are long term, require a lot of resources and are difficult to turn back
Tactical are short term, taken regularly, require fewer resources, e.g. re-ordering of stock
Where may data for decision making be derived from?
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Surveys, business records, internet questionnaires
List 5 influences on decision making
1 - Mission and objectives (does it align?)
2 - Ethics (Is it morally permissible / optimal)
3 - Risk (Will it be scientific or hunch based)
4 - The external environment (changing external conditions increases uncertainty)
5 - Resource constraints - (managers must make the best decision possible given their resources e.g. finance, time, information)
Distinguish primary and secondary stakeholders
Primary - those affected by a particular business decision; functional and financial relationships e.g. employees, customers
Secondary - do not have direct functional/financial relationships, but are affected by and can influence actions e.g. local communities, general public, activist groups
List internal influences on business relationships with stakeholders
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Objectives - Profit maximising businesses will likely care less about stakeholder interests than a not-for-profit
Management/Leadership styles -
