Functions of Management

Every organization has to follow the functions of management, then only you can achieve

success. Management is the executive whose important function is to carry out the policy.

Henry Fayol, a French Industrialist wrote a treatise named "General and Industrial

Administration". He had long experience as an administrator.

Henry Fayol gave five functions of administration, namely, to plan, to organize, to

command, to coordinate, and to control. Newman and Summer had given the following

functions of management such as planning, Organising, Leading, Measuring, and controlling.

Stuart and Moran had given the following five functions of management namely,

planning, Organizing, Human resources, Leading, and Controlling. Luther Gulick and

Lyndall Urwick had formulated seven functions of management and developed an acronym

as "POSDCORB".

Functions of Management

Planning

For planning, you need knowledge of that subject along with the experience. Planning

means setting goals and to achieve those goals you have to outline the objectives. The

outlines or strategy will improve work quality. It will maximize work quantity at minimum

cost. The planning is done to produce more output with minimum input.

Planning helps us to avoid wastage of resources rather than trying to utilize the resources

available. In the context of the Library, the planning should be done in such a way that

the services are effective and users are satisfied. Planning is the important function of a

manager or Librarian so careful planning leads to the fulfillment of the user's

requirements.

Organizing

Organizing is one of the important functions of management. It guides you to organize

the structure of the organization to achieve the goals. The work is defined and

coordinated. A logical framework is assigned for specific activities. The staff is brought

together and organized effort will bring good results.

In the Library, the resources are stored in an organized way according to the classification

number. If things are not organized then it will be difficult to retrieve resources. So in the

library context, Organising is an important function of management, which helps in

managing all types of Libraries.

Staffing

This function of management is also called Human Resource Management or Personnel

management. All organizational works depend on skilled and qualified staff. The recruiting

policies should be well implemented then only you will get good staff, which is necessary

for running an organization efficiently.

The librarian should be knowledgeable and qualified enough to see that his staff is trained

enough to understand the needs of users. The staff of the library should be competent

enough to lead the library services and guide the users. If a library has all the collections

and infrastructure but no qualified staff, then everything is useless.

Directing

It means that there should be some authority to give directives or instructions to the staff

so that they can perform the work efficiently. Directives are necessary at some point,

when staff faces some problem during work, and they require suggestions.

In Libraries, the Librarian has the authority to give directives to his subordinates. The

Librarian divides the work into different sections of the library. Now the staff needs

guidance during the work in some extraordinary situations. At this time librarian or Library

manager finds a solution for them. Library work is concerned with technical work,

continuously and so timely decision-making is required and a Librarian is there to help

them.

Coordinating

It is one of the relevant functions of management. Leadership is one such quality that is

required to manage any organization. He will coordinate with all the staff of different

sections so that work goes smoothly. Managers help to resolve issues and coordinate

staff in various parts of the organization to have a harmonious environment.

In Library also coordination is required so that there is no confusion related to work. If the

librarian wants all staff to contribute systematically then he should call meetings

frequently. He should ask every staff of their problems related to work. This will bring an end

to the confusion and duplication of work.

Reporting

This is one of the functions of management that keeps managers informed about the task

given to them and how much they have completed. The information on the progress of

work is necessary. It is a good practice to report the progress and performance of work by

the supervisors. Managers want updated information.

In Libraries, Librarians need reports of the work given to the subordinates. This will help

him to make proper records of the work performed by their staff and submit them to higher

authorities. Reporting helps authorities with the performance of the staff.

Budgeting

It is another important function of management. Budget is made in every organization. It

is a rough estimate of income and expenditure for the coming financial year. The

organization has to follow that allotted money for different departments. No organization

can function efficiently without adequate finance.

Libraries are one such organization where funds are limited. So careful planning is required

so that the allotted budget is utilized properly. Preference should be given to

important requirements and necessities of the Library. Librarians should convince the

authorities about the requirements of libraries. He should maintain proper statistics on

the income and expenditure of the library.

Conclusion

The functions of management are important in every aspect of an

organization. Planning is the function of management, which determines the

goals. Organizing the structure is necessary for the organization. Skilled staff is an asset

to an organization and helps it function properly. So proper recruitment of staffing

should be done.

Directing is also one of the important functions of management. Without proper

directions, sometimes efforts are wasted. Coordinating among staff is done by the

manager so that good output comes. Reporting is a necessary activity to keep authorities

informed. Budgeting is an important ingredient for running an organization.