Performance appraisal is a vital tool to measure the frameworks set by any organization to its employees. It is utilized to track individual contribution and performance against organizational goals and to identify individual strengths and opportunities for future improvements and assessed whether organizational goals are achievedor serves as basis for the company’s future planning and development .

Performance appraisal is a formal system that evaluates the quality of an employee’s performance. An appraisal should not be viewed as an end in itself, but rather as and important process within a broader performance management system that links:

• Organizational objectives
• Day to day performance
• Professional development
• Rewards and incentives

In simple terms, appraisal may be understood as the assessment of an individual’s performance in a systematic way, the performance being measured against such factors as job knowledge, quality and quantity of output,initiative, leadership abilities, supervision, dependability, cooperation, judgment, versatility, health and the like.Assessment should not be confirmed to past performance alone. Potentials of the employee for future performance must also be assessed.

Methord for performance and appraisals involves:

•  Integrating performance appraisal into a formal goal setting system
• Basting appraisals on accurate and current job descriptions
• Offering adequate support and assistance to employees to improve their performance (e.g., professional development opportunities)
• Ensuring that appraisers have adequate knowledge and direct experience of the employee’s performance
  Conducting appraisals on a regular basis.

 

 

Management is a process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in groups, accomplish selected aims. In other words,”It is the accomplishment of Goals through others.”

Management has been used in different senses. Sometimes it refers to the process of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, coordinating and controlling at other times it is used to describe it as a function of managing people. It is also referred to as a body of knowledge, a practice and discipline.

Different thoughts have been given for Management definition :-

HanriFayol :-“ Father of Modern Management”

He described management as process of functions or functional management.

F.W. Taylor :- “Father of Scientific Management”

According to him, Management is the art of knowing what you want to do and then seeing that it is done in the best and cheapest way.

Drucker :- Management is combination of Art and science.

 

Scope of Management

Various functional areas of management are:

• Production management
• Marketing management
• Financial management
• Personal management

Production Management:  

Production means creation of utilities by converting raw material in to final product by various scientific methods and regulations. It is very important field of management. Various sub-areas of the production department are as follows.

Plant lay out and location: This area deals with designing of plant layout, decide about the plant location for various products and providing various plant utilities

Production planning: Managers has to plan about various production policies and production methods.

Material management: This area deals with purchase, storage, issue and control of the material required for production department.

Research and Development: This area deals with research and developmental activities of manufacturing department. Refinement in existing product line or develop a new product are the major activities.

Quality Control: Quality control department works for production of quality product by doing various tests which ensure the customer satisfaction.

 

Marketing Management:

Marketing management involves distribution of the product to the buyers. It may need number of steps. Sub areas are as follows

Advertising: This area deals with advertising of product, introducing new product in market by various means and encourage the customer to buy three products.

Sales management: Sales management deals with fixation of prices, actual transfer of products to the customer after fulfilling certain formalities and after sales services.

Market research: It involves in collection of data related to product demand and performance by research and analysis of market.

 

Finance and accounting management:

Financial and accounting management deals with managerial activities related to procurement and utilization of fund for business purpose. Its sub areas are as follows

Financial accounting: It relates to record keeping of various financial transactions their classification and preparation of financial statements to show the financial position of the organization.

Management accounting: It deals with analysis and interpretation of financial record so that management can take certain decisions on investment plans, return to investors and dividend policy

Taxation: This area deals with various direct and indirect taxes which organization has to pay.

Costing: Costing deals with recording of costs, their classification, analysis and cost control.

 

Personnel Management:

Personnel management is the phase of management which deals with effective use and control of manpower. Following are the sub areas of Personnel management

Personnel planning: This deals with preparation inventory of available manpower and actual requirement of workers in organization.

Recruitment and selection: This deals with hiring and employing human being for various positions as required.

Training and development: Training and development deals with process of making the employees more efficient and effective by arranging training programmes. It helps in making team of competent employees which work for growth of organisation.

Wage administration: It deals in job evaluation, merit rating of jobs and making wage and incentive policy for employees.

Industrial relation: It deals with maintenance of overall employee relation, providing good working conditions and welfare services to employees.

 

 

 

 

Directing is concerned with instructing, guiding, supervising and inspiring people in the organisation to achieve its objectives. It is the process of telling people what to do and seeing that they do it in the best possiblemanner.

 

Elements in Directing: The four essential elements in Directing are :

 

1. Communication
2. Supervision
3. Motivation
4. Leadership

 

 

1. COMMUNICATION

 

Communication is a basic organisational function, which refers to the process by which a person (known as sender) transmits information or messages to another person (known as receiver). The purpose of communication in organisations is to convey orders, instructions, or information so as to bring desired changes in the performance and other attitude of employees. In an organisation, supervisors transmit information to subordinates. Proper communication results in clarity and securing the cooperation of subordinates. Faulty communication may create problems due to misunderstanding between the superior and subordinates. The subordinates must correctly understand the message conveyed to them.

 

Communication Cycle :-

 

Sender—> Message—>Encoding—>Channel/Medium—>Transmission of message—> Receiving & Decoding—>Response & feedback—> Receiver.

 

Classification of Communication :-

 

• On the basis of Organizational Structure:

 

• Formal and Informal Communication

The path through which information flows is called channel of communication. In every organisation we have both formal and informal channels. The paths of communication which are based on relationship established formally by management are the formal channels.

For example, The Collector of the district communicates a decision to the SDM who may then issue orders or instructions to the Tahsildaar.

 

Communication, which takes place on the basis of informal or social relations among staff, is   called informal communication.

For example, any sharing of information between a police inspector and an accountant, as they happen to be friends or so. Mostly informal channels are used due to friendly interaction of members of an organisation. In fact, it may be purely personal or related to organisational matters.

 

 

 

• On the basis of Direction

 

• Upward: When employees make any request, appeal, report, suggest or communicate ideas to the superior, the flow of communication is upward i.e., from bottom to top. For instance, when a typist drops a suggestion in the suggestion box, or a foreman reports breakdown of machinery to the factory manager, the flow of communication is upward. Upward communication encourages employees to participate actively in the operations of their department. They get encouraged and their sense of responsibility increases when they are heard by their supervisors about problems affecting the jobs.

 

• Downward: When communication is made from superiors down the hierarchy it is called a downward communication. For instance, when superiors issue orders and instructions to subordinates, it is known as downward communication. When the General Manager orders supervisors to work overtime, the flow of communication is downward i.e., from top to bottom. Similarly, communication of work assignments, notices, requests for performance, etc. through bulletin boards, memos, reports, speeches, meetings, etc, are all forms of downward communication.

 

 

• Horizontal: Communication can also be amongst members at the same level in the organisation. For instance, production manager may communicate the production plan to the sales manager. This is known as horizontal flow of communication. Here, the communications among people of the same rank and status. Such communication facilitates coordination of activities that are interdependent.

 

• Diagonal: when communication is not made between people who are in the same department nor at the same level of organisational hierarchy, it is called diagonal communication. For example, cost accountant may request for reports from sales representatives not the sales manager for the purpose of distribution cost analysis. This type of communication does take place under special circumstances.

 

• On the basis of Mode of Expression

 

• Verbal and Non verbalCommunication : On the basis of the mode used, communication may be verbal or non-verbal. While communicating, managers may talk to their subordinates either face to face or on telephone or they may send letters, issue notices, or memos. These are all verbal communication. Thus, the verbal modes of communication may be oral and written. Face to face communication, as in interviews, meetings and seminars, are examples of oral communication. Issuing orders and instructions on telephone or through an inter-communication system is also oral communication. The written modes of communication include letters, circulars, notices and memos. Sometimes verbal communication is supported by non-verbal communication such as facial expressions and body gestures. For example – wave of hand, a smile or a frown etc. This is also termed as the gestural communication

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. SUPERVISION

 

It is the duty of the manager to see that they perform the work as per instructions. Managers play the role of supervisors and ensure that the work is done as per the instructions and the plans. Supervisors clarify all instructions and guide employees to work as a team in co-operation with others.

Though supervision is required at all levels of management, it is of great importance at the operational level i.e., at the level of first line supervisor. Managers at this level devote maximum time in supervising the work of subordinates. Though the top or middle level managers also supervise the work of their subordinate managers, but it is the first line supervisors who are in direct and constant touch with operatives i.e., workers in the factory and clerical staff in the office. Thus, they are directly responsible for getting the work done through most of the employees in an organisation.

 

Functions of a Supervisor

 

A supervisor works at the lowest level of management like all other managers he performs the functions of planning, organising, directing and controlling with respect to his own subordinates and department. A major part of his time is devoted in directing and controlling the activities of his subordinates. He also coordinates the activities of his subordinates by integrating the same with the activities of other departments of the enterprise. Besides he performs certain special functions which have been described below:

 

1. Link between Top Management and Workers: A supervisor works as a link between managers working at higher levels and workers. He conveys the decision of the higher level managers to the workers and also communicates the performance of the workers to the higher level management through different performance reports. He also communicates the grievances, feelings of demands etc. of the workers to the higher level management.

 

2. Creating Ideal Atmosphere: Being an important link between the operatives and the management a supervisor is expected to create an ideal atmosphere for work in the organisation by correctly communicating the ideas, wishes and decisions of the higher level management to the workers.

 

3. Guiding the Workers: For obtaining best results the supervisor assigns jobs to the workers keeping in mind their ability and aptitude for work. He makes them available the necessary tools and equipments, raw materials etc. for proper execution of the jobs. He also guides the worker properly to ensure that the job is done with perfection and accuracy.

 

4. Quality Output : A supervisor has to ensure quality output through constant watch on the performance of workers. He ensures that the performance of the worker takes place as per the plans. This results into study flow of output.

 

5. Feedback: A supervisor keeps on watching the performance of his subordinates and identifies their strengths and weaknesses. He gives the feedback about this to the workers with the object to further improve the performance of the workers in future.

 

6. Suggest Training Programmes: A supervisor identifies the areas in which the workers require training and accordingly suggests training programmes that should be organised for them.

 

 

 

3. MOTIVATION

 

Motivation is one of the important elements of directing.

It is a force that inspires a person at work to intensify his willingness to use the best of his capability for achievement of specified objectives. It may be in the form of incentives like financial (such as bonus, commission etc.) or, non-financial (such as appreciation, growth etc.), or it could be positive or negative. Basically, motivations directed towards goals and prompt people to act.

 

The importance of motivation lies in converting this ability to work into willingness to work. Performance depends on ability as well as willingness; and willingness depends on motivation. Thus, motivation is a key element in directing people to do the job.

 

Each employee has some needs of his own that he wants to fulfil. While directing, it is essential to ensure that any of the unfulfilled need of the individual is being taken care of.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:-

 

According to Maslow, an individual has many needs and their order can be determined. If a person satisfies his first need, then he thinks about his next need. After satisfying the second need, he tries to satisfy third need and so on. So needs are the motivators. Maslow has given hierarchy of needs in the following ways :

 

1. Physiological Needs: These needs include need for food, shelter and clothing.

 

2. 2. Safety and Security Needs: Once physiological needs are fulfilled then the people start thinking about their safety. Safety needs include need for physical safety and economic safety. Physical safety means safety from accidents, disease etc. Economic safety refers to safety of livelihood.

 

3. Social Needs: Man is a social animal. He wants to live in the society honourably. Therefore, he wants friends and relatives with whom he can share his joys and sorrows. Social needs include need for love, affection, friendship etc.
4. 4. Esteem Needs: These are the need for respect and recognition. Esteem needs are also known as Ego needs.

 

5. Self ActualisationNeeds : Self actualisation needs are concerned with becoming what a person is capable of becoming. These needs include need for growth, self-fulfilment etc.

 

 

Financial and Non-financial Hierarchy Theory

 

Monetary / Financial incentives are directly related with money. Non-financial incentives are not directly related with money. Following are the financial incentives:

 

1. Pay and Allowances: Salary is the basic monetary incentive of every employee. Salary includes basic pay, dearness allowance etc.

 

2. Bonus: Bonus means the payment to employees in addition to their regular remuneration. Bonus is provided in the form of cash, free trips to resorts or foreign countries etc.

 

3. Commission: In sales department, sales persons get commission on the basis of their sales.

 

4. Retirement Benefit: Every employee is concerned about his future after retirement. Some retirement benefits are Provident fund, Pension, Gratuity etc.

 

5. Perquisites: Rent free accommodation, car allowance, facility of a servant etc.are called as perquisites.

 

Non-financial Incentives: Besides the financial incentives there is certain non financial incentive that motivates the employees. The important non-financial incentive is given below:

 

1. Career Advancement Opportunity : Appropriate skill development programmes will encourage employees to show improved performance.

 

2. Status: Status means the rank of a person in a organisation. The rank is linked with authority, responsibility and other extra benefits. Everybody has a wish to be in high rank. Therefore an employee can be motivated by placing him in higher rank.

 

3. Employee Recognition Programmes: Every employee wants to be considered as an important part of the organisation. Work of an organisation should be distributed in such a way that every employee feels that his work is yield and he is capable to do that work. This motivates the worker and he works hard and in a responsible manner.

 

4. Employee Participation: It means involving employee in decision making especially when decisions are related to workers.

 

5. Organisation Climate: It means the relationship between superior and subordinates. Employees can put their best if healthy climate exist in an organisation. It is important to remember that the needs and desires of people change. Once their basic needs are satisfied, other needs arise. Managers have thus, to understand the needs and desires of subordinates and decide how to motivate them. The knowledge of the different types of need enables a manager to adopt different ways to motivate individuals depending upon which need is unsatisfied for the individual. For example, a person whose physiological needs are not fulfilled may be motivated to work with a promise of increase in pay, whereas another person may be motivated if he is given a very challenging job to perform regardless of the pay.

 

 

 

4. LEADERSHIP

 

Leadership is the process, which influences the people and inspires them to willingly accomplish the organisational objectives. The main purpose of managerial leadership isto gets willing cooperation of the workgroup to achieve the goals.

Leadership is the ability to persuade and motivate others to work in desired way for achieving the goals. Thus, a person who is able to influence others and make them follow his instructions is called a leader.

Leadership and Management are two separate concepts.

Leadership exists in both formal and informal organization but Management operates in formal organization.

 

Leadership Styles :

 

• Autocratic or Authoritarian Style : 2 types

Pure autocrative or negative Leader : Dictator & makes all decisions by himself.

Benevolent autocrat or Positive Leader : Reward power to influence subordinate and welfare of subordinates.

 

• Participative Leaders : Decentralise authority, Such leaders involve subordinates in decision-making process.

 

• Free-rein or Laissez – faire Style : Leaders uses his power very little, gives high degree of freedom to his subordinates in their operation. Aids subordinates in performing their job.

 

 

• Paternalistic Leadership : It is authoritarian by Nature. Heavily work-centred but has consideration for subordinates.

 

Leadership Qualities: – In order to be successful, a leader must possess certain qualities. A good leader should be professionally competent, intelligent, analytical and he/she should have a sense of fair play, including honesty, sincerity, integrity, and sense of responsibility. He must possess initiative, perseverance, be diligent and realistic in his outlook. He must also be able to communicate his subordinates effectively. Human relation skills are must for any leader. Earlier, it was believed that the success or effectiveness of a leader depends upon his personal traits or characteristics, like physical appearance, intelligence, self-confidence, alertness, and initiative.

 

 

 

COORDINATION

 

“The Harmonization of activities of different work groups and departments.”

 

Coordination is the orderly arrangement of individual and group efforts to provide unity of action in the pursuit of a common goal. All these departments must function in an integrated manner so that the organisational goal can be duly achieved. Thus, coordination involves synchronisation of different activities and efforts of the various units of an organisation so that the planned objectives may be achieved with minimum conflict.

 

In other words, coordination is the orderly arrangement of individual and group efforts to provide unity of action in the pursuit of a common goal.

 

Types of Organization

 

• Internal Coordination

 

• Vertical – Between different persons & department at different level of an organization.

 

• Horizontal – Between the individual or Department at the same level in the organization.

 

• Procedural and Substantive Coordination-

It refers to the integration of follow and process of activites and behaviour and relations of the members in an organization.

Substantive Coordination is concerned with the content of the organization’s activities.

 

• External Coordination

 

Coordination with external environment as customers, investors, suppliers, employers, govt, political, public etc.

 

 

 

 

Difference between Cooperation and coordination:-

 

Cooperation is the collective will of the people in an organization to contribute the achievement of the organizational goals and cooperation is informal, voluntary & emotional.

Coordination without cooperation cant be achieved ie can be achieved through cooperation, on the other side, Cooperation without coordination is worthless.

 

Significance of Coordination:

 

• The significance of co-ordination as a function of management mainly arises from the fact that work performed by different groups, units or departments form integral part of the total work for which an organisation is established

 

• When there is growth in size and the volume of work, there will be more people and work groups. So there is greater possibility of people working at cross purposes as the unit and sub-unit goals may be considered more important by them than the organisational goals.

 

 

• Large organisations generally tend to have activities located at different places, which may not permit frequent and close interaction among people. Hence, the need for co-ordination becomes greater and it becomes a major responsibility for the managers.

 

• Growth in size of an organisation is often combined with diversification of business activities. This may be due to new unrelated products being added to the existing products. As a result, there may be more division and sub-division of activities. At the same time, there is an increase in the number of managerial levels and vertical division of responsibilities. All these make coordination more difficult as well as important

 

 

 

CONTROL

 

Control is the process by which Managers ensure that performance is an conformity with the plans and goals.

 

Controlling as a function of management refers to the evaluation of actual performance of work against planned or standard performance and taking the corrective action.

 

Planning and controlling are closely related and depend upon each other. Controlling depends upon planning because planning provides the targets or standards against which actual performance can be compared. Controlling, on the other hand, appraises planning. It brings out the shortcomings of planning and helps to improve upon the plans.

 

Process of Controlling

 

The process of control consists of various steps

 

1. Establishment of Standards: Setting standard is the first requirement of control. Standards arise out of plans and provide the basis of comparison. There can be different types of standards, e.g., number of units to be produced per hour, cost of production per unit, permissible quantity of scrap and wastage per day, quality of the products and so on. As far as possible, the standards should be laid down in quantitative terms. A quantitative standard provides a concrete measure and helps in comparison. It is equally important that the standards fixed are realistic and attainable, neither too high nor very low. If these are too high, employees will be discouraged. On the other hand, if these are too low, the organisation will operate at a lower efficiency level leading to higher cost. When standards may not be achieved fully, a range of tolerable deviations should also be fixed. This can be expressed in terms of minimum and maximum limits. Performance within the permissible range may not require any corrective action.

 

2. Measurement of Performance: When standards are established, the next step to measure the performance at regular intervals. Measurement is not difficult in case of physical operations, e.g., units produced, cost incurred, time spent, etc., as these can be easily measured. Performance can be measured by observations, inspection and reporting. Generally, at lower levels, a detailed control is exercised at frequent intervals on the basis of observation and inspection. For higher levels of management, reports are prepared at regular intervals. Performance should be measured as early as possible so that if a corrective action is called for it may be taken in time.

 

3. Comparison of Performance with Standards: The next step in the control process is comparison of actual performance against the standards. In case the standards set are well defined and can be measured objectively, comparison becomes very simple. But, in case of activities where, it is difficult to develop measurable quantitative standards, the measurement and appraisal of performance becomes difficult. Comparison of actual and standard performance may lead to three possible outcomes: actual performance may be (a) equal to, (b) more than, or (c) less than the standard. If actual performance is equal to the standard, managers need not take any action but where deviations are noticed, corrective action becomes necessary. The managers should ascertain whether these deviations are within the permissible range or outside it. Corrective action becomes necessary only for deviations which fall outside the permissible range.

 

4. Detecting the Reasons for Deviations: Before taking any corrective action, managers should try to ascertain the reasons for the occurrence of deviations. The fault may be that standards fixed were unattainable rather than the subordinate ‘inefficiency. Again, the deviations might have been caused by the nature of instructions issued by the manager rather than due to the subordinate’s mistake. Hence, it is essential that the reasons, which caused the deviation, be ascertained to determine the appropriate corrective action.

 

5. Taking Corrective Action: Once the causes for deviations become known, the next step is to go in for a corrective action which may involve revision of standards, changing the methods of selection and training of workers or providing better motivation. As stated earlier, managers should concentrate only on major deviations. The minor deviations, i.e., deviations within permissible range, should not be cause of anxiety. The rectification of deviations from the standards should be undertaken promptly so that further losses are avoided.

 

 

Techniques of Control :

 

• Traditional Techniques : Personal observation, Setting examples, plans & policies, Charts and Manuals, Disciplinary Systems, Written instruction, Statistical Data, Special Reports and Records, Financial Statements, Operational audit, Break-even analysis, Standard Costing, Budget/Budgetary Control.

 

• Modern Techniques: Return on investment, Management Audit, MIS, Zero based budgeting, PERT/CPM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decision-Making: concept, process and techniques

Decision making is an essential part of planning. Decision making and problem solving are used in all management functions, although usually they are considered a part of the planning phase. A discussion of the origins of management science leads into one on modeling, the five-step process of management science, and the process of engineering problem solving.

Decision-making is an integral part of modern management. Essentially, Rational or sound decision making is taken as primary function of management. Every manager takes hundreds and hundreds of decisions subconsciously or consciously making it as the key component in the role of a manager. Decisions play important roles as they determine both organizational and managerial activities. A decision can be defined as a course of action purposely chosen from a set of alternatives to achieve organizational or managerial objectives or goals. Decision making process is continuous and indispensable component of managing any organization or business activities. Decisions are made to sustain the activities of all business activities and organizational functioning.

Relation to Planning

 

Managerial decision making is the process of making a conscious choice between two or more rational alternatives in order to select the one that will produce the most desirable consequences (benefits) relative to unwanted consequences (costs). If there is only one alternative, there is nothing to decide.

If planning is truly “deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it, and who is to do it” , then decision making is an essential part of planning. Decision making is also required in designing and staffing an organization, developing methods of motivating subordinates, and identifying corrective actions in the control process. However, it is conventionally studied as part of the planning function, and it is discussed here.

Occasions for Decision

 

the occasions for decision originate in three distinct fields:

(a) from authoritative communications from superiors;

(b) from cases referred for decision by subordinates; and

(c) from cases originating in the initiative of the executive concerned.

Types of Decisions

 

TYPES OF DECISIONS:

 

PROGRAMMED DECISIONS:

 

Programmed decisions are routine and repetitive, and the organization typically develops specific ways to handle them. A programmed decision might involve determining how products will be arranged on the shelves of a supermarket. For this kind of routine, repetitive problem, standard arrangement decisions are typically made according to established management guidelines.

 

NON PROGRAMMED DECISIONS:

 

Non programmed decisions are typically one shot decisions that are usually less structured than programmed decision.

 

Decision Making under Certainty

Decision making under certainty implies that we are certain of the future state of nature (or we assume that we are). (In our model, this means that the probability p of future N is 1.0, and all other futures have zero probability.) The solution, naturally, is to choose the alternative A that gives us the most favorable outcome O . Although this may seem like a trivial exercise, there are many problems that are so complex that sophisticated mathematical techniques are needed to find the best solution.