Management is an essential ingredient for a successful business. This is why every business owner looking to run a successful business must know what management is in business. Business owners should not just understand this business term but also know every other important thing about it. Therefore, this article has been written to serve as your ultimate guide for everything business management.
This guide will explain what business management is in clear words.
It will go on to discuss other vital things about management in business, like;
- Management styles
- Main concepts
- Responsibilities of a manager
- Skills a manager should possess and
- Management levels.
If you want to learn all of these things, all you have to do is read this article to the end.
In the end, you should be equipped with all the knowledge you need to ensure proper management in your business.
Meaning of Management in Business – What is Management in Business
Management in business or business management is a term that refers to how business activities, tasks, and resources are coordinated and administered to meet business goals and objectives.
It is all about carrying out business activities and tasks to reach a company’s objectives and goals through planning, coordinating, directing, and organising.
Also, it involves using the organisation’s available resources, coordinating the staff, and employing solid strategies to meet goals and objectives within an organisation.
All of these explanations so far have described only one meaning of business management.
However, business management also means something else other than the above.
Business management also refers to an organisation’s hierarchy structure.
This article will mostly look at business management from its administrative meaning.
Regardless of how you discuss business management, one thing is sure, a business’s management can either make or break it.
If you do not properly manage every aspect of your business, you may run your business to the ground.
Thankfully, the purpose of this article is to ensure that this does not happen.
Business Administration Vs Business Management – What is Management in Business
Business administration is often confused with business management.
Some professionals even use these terms interchangeably.
While both focus on ensuring a business’s smooth running, they differ.
Some little differences distinguish one from the other.
This section will take a closer look at administration and management to ensure you understand them.
So, how are they different?
Well, business administration is more involved with the technical parts of running a business.
It focuses on operations, sales, marketing, finances, etc.
Therefore, business administrators specialise in different fields.
Specifically, they gather essential skills to help them perform optimally in their chosen field.
On the other hand, management is people-centric.
It focuses on the workforce and other resources the organisation has.
Therefore, a business manager needs certain soft skills that will help them properly handle the company’s resources.
Managers need to have great communication and leadership skills, among several other skills.
This will help them coordinate a company’s resources, including its talents, to ensure the company reaches and exceeds its expectations.
Management Styles – What is Management in Business
There are several styles of management.
However, no style is considered to be better than the others.
But you still need to know the different styles of management out there.
Doing so allows you to choose a style or pick some elements from the various styles to create a management style that best suits your company and you.
With that said, here are 3 common business management styles.
Democratic Style of Management
As the name suggests, this management style allows everyone to have a say in decision-making.
In this management style, employees and managers are included in making decisions regarding the company’s growth.
Proper flow of communication is an essential ingredient for this style of management.
By properly communicating with the employees, a democratic manager can learn and understand every employee’s skills and determine their value to the company or team.
While the democratic management style makes employees feel they belong, the decision-making process can become slow.
So to curb this, a manager needs to develop a well-organized decision-making process.
This is the best way to ensure this style of management works.
If a well-organised decision-making process is not in place, making a decision can become very slow and chaotic.
Persuasive Style of Management
Next is the persuasive management style.
This style of management involves leading by example.
So, a manager using this management style will have to spend enough time with those they are managing.
Here, the manager does what they want the team members to do so that the team can do the same.
By doing so, they are persuading the team members to do what they want rather than demanding these things from them or instructing them to do them.
Managers using this management style are usually very involved with the employee’s work life.
They always know what everyone on the team is up to at every time.
Laissez-faire Style of Management
Moving on, managers using this laissez-faire management style act more like mentors than managers to their subordinates.
As a business owner, using this management style means you’d empower your employees enough to take the reins sometimes and make decisions.
In other words, a manager who adopts the laissez-faire management style does not always get involved or micromanage subordinates.
Rather they let the employees use their creativity, experience and recourses to reach the company’s goals.
But when there is a challenge, the manager can step in to straighten them out and offer advice.
Laissez-faire management improves employee satisfaction.
This is because your employees will feel like a part of the company.
They will know that their opinion and effort in the company matters.
Overall, this management style encourages leadership skills and creativity in employees.
Responsibilities of a Manager – What is Management in Business
As mentioned earlier, a manager is someone in charge of handling the management aspect of a company.
They organise and coordinate business tasks to ensure the business reaches its goals and objectives.
This means that a manager’s job can be very demanding.
Specifically, they have several roles and responsibilities to ensure the smooth running of the business processes.
Below, we will consider some of the key responsibilities of a manager.
Organising
One of the core responsibilities of a manager is organising business activities.
They have to evaluate the task at hand, break it into smaller tasks, and then delegate it to the workforce.
A company is made up of different departments, teams, and individuals.
It is the duty of the manager to ensure that everyone collaborates to achieve the company’s goals.
This is why having good interpersonal skills is important for every manager.
This skill allows them to build great relationships among team members.
Additionally, it allows them to handle situations that will arise due to people working together.
Above all, a manager can increase the productivity and efficiency of a company’s workforce.
Setting Goals, Expectations, and Objectives
For a manager to achieve and maintain success, they have to set and achieve goals and objectives.
However, it goes beyond setting these goals and objectives.
They also ensure that their employees understand the goals they set and what they expect from them.
Thus, the employees will know what they are aiming for.
Additionally, the manager has to set KPIs and other targets that will be used to measure the success of any project or task they embark on.
This way, they can measure and determine whether the employees are on the right track to achieve the goals they set or not.
Like organising, these efforts will also increase the company’s efficiency and productivity.
Supervising
The manager is responsible for delegating tasks to employees.
While employees carry out their tasks, the manager directs and observes to ensure the job is done correctly.
Managers should be able to observe how the employees work and offer advice and constructive criticism as the need arises.
Having the means to track the employee’s performance will also make it easier for a manager to supervise the employees.
Developing Staff
A manager is often concerned with meeting the company’s goals.
And they know how important employees are in making this happen.
Therefore, one of the managers’ responsibilities is to develop the employees they work with.
They have to invest in the employees’ development to ensure they have everything they need to work to achieve the business goals.
Motivating Staff
People often need the motivation to get things done.
And a good manager should be able to provide the right amount of motivation to spur their subordinates into action.
After assembling a team and delegating tasks, a good manager should make them see the importance of what they have to do.
Above all, they should be able to interact with the workforce and motivate them toward a common goal.
Important Skills Managers Must Possess – What is Management in Business
A manager must possess certain characteristics and skills to carry out the responsibilities discussed above.
One of the most important skills that a manager must have is Leadership skills.
Being a manager is all about directing people.
Also, it involves ensuring that people listen to what you have to say and implement them.
Nobody can achieve this if they are not a good leader.
Another skill a good manager should possess is good communication skills.
They should be able to communicate the goals and objectives they set up.
If a manager lacks communication skills, their employees will have a hard time delivering their expectations.
They also won’t be able to tell the manager their observations.
This would hinder the relationship between the manager and the employees.
As a result, performance and efficiency will also be affected.
A good manager must also possess critical thinking.
They would be in charge of coming up with solutions in certain situations.
Therefore, a manager should be able to think on their feet.
They should be able to think outside the box and proffer solutions to the employees’ challenges.
Furthermore, a manager must have good interpersonal skills.
They should be able to relate and build good relationships with people.
Most importantly, they should have empathy.
This way, the manager will be able to understand the employees and help bring out the best in them.
Concepts of Management – What is Management in Business
The concepts of management are essential for any manager.
These concepts make it possible for managers to carry out their roles and responsibilities.
Hence, knowing these concepts will help you understand what to do to manage your company.
Even more, it’ll help you know what to expect from any manager you put in charge of managing your company.
Below are 3 core concepts of management.
Planning
This is a crucial aspect of management.
There cannot be proper management without proper planning.
Before any strategy is implemented, there first has to be strategic planning.
However, planning is a continuous task.
Even after they start implementing a strategy, a good manager knows that they have to keep planning.
Planning should include setting the objectives and goals of a project.
It should also include specific steps to ensure proper implementation of the project so that the goals and objectives of the project are met.
A good manager does not just know the importance of planning, but they are also good at it.
Control
Managers should have a degree of control over the employees they manage.
They should know what tasks the employees do, how they do them and the necessary metrics for measuring success.
This will help the manager understand when everyone is working in the right direction towards achieving the company’s objectives.
Staffing
While it may not look like it, staffing is a crucial management function.
Why? Because management is all about managing a company’s resources, especially its talents.
If a manager does not have good talents working on their tasks, they most likely will not attain their objectives and goals.
This is why managers must ensure they look for and employ the right candidates.
The company, on the other hand, has to make sure that they do everything possible to retain its best talents and reduce its employee turnover rate.
You can do this for your company by providing better employee incentives, working on your company culture, and so on.
Management Levels – What is Management in Business
Remember when we discussed the meaning of management and how it can also mean the hierarchy structure of an organisation?
Well, this section of this article will explore business management from that point of view.
Here, we’ll look at the different management levels of an organisation’s hierarchical structure.
Typically, large organisations have 3 main management levels or layers; low-level, middle, and senior management.
Let’s consider these management levels individually to help you get a better understanding of them.
Low-Level Management
This is the lowest management level in any organisation.
This level is concerned with managing the day-to-day tasks of the employees.
Managers at this level supervise the employees’ daily tasks and direct them on what to do.
Their responsibilities range from guiding the employees through their daily activities and reporting the issues of employees to the middle management.
They also ensure the employees’ put their best into their tasks.
Managers at this level have roles such as foremen, supervisors, team leaders, and so on.
Middle Management
This level comes right after the low level, so they are directly superior to the managers in the low level.
This means that those in the low level directly report to them.
They direct the low-level managers and define policies for them.
They ensure that low-level managers perform better and adequately execute the company’s plans and goals.
The senior management level oversees the middle management while they oversee the low-level management.
Middle management roles include branch manager, regional manager, and department manager.
Senior Management
This is the highest level of management in an organisation.
This level comprises the board members, the vice president, the president, and the CEO.
They are typically in charge of setting the overall vision and goals of the organisation.
They are the ones that dictate the direction in which the whole company must go.
Senior management is all about developing organisation-wide strategic policies and plans.
The decision of this management level will determine the organisation’s direction.
This management level is also responsible for mobilising external resources to make the organisation perform better.
The shareholders and even the general public hold senior management responsible for an organisation’s performance.
Conclusion on What is Management in Business
Business management is all about coordinating the activities and resources in a business.
It is how a business uses resources to achieve its goals and objectives.
Managing your business well is key to ensuring its smooth running.
This is why you would find managers in a lot of organisations.
If you do not have a manager and are looking to get one for your business, this article can help you hire the right one.
All you have to do is look for the qualities discussed in this article in the candidate you want to hire.
