The Role of a Modern Industrial Manager - Essay Example

 The Role of a Modern Industrial Manager TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Introduction 1.1 What is Industrial Management? 2.0 Management and Leadership Overview 3.0 Functions and Roles of Modern Industrial Manager 4.0 Conclusion and The Way Forward 1.0 Introduction Management and Leadership are important aspects with significant effects on the activities of an organisation’s structures, stakeholders, responsibilities and the shareholders investment. The kind of management and leadership adopted by an organisation should be an indispensable catalyst in its subsequent performance. With the overriding objective of each organisation being maximization of shareholders value creation, successive organisations have adopted management and leadership styles consistent to their goals, values and approaches. Today, while managerial functions remain the same, these functions are however evolving. Managers are pivotal in performing leadership functions in organisation. Having said this, this paper is aim at discussing the role of an industrial manager. While section one provides information about industrial management, part two gives a brief review of management and leadership. There after, part three focuses on the main aspect of the research paper by discussing the role of industrial management. The last section provides a brief conclusion. 1.1 What is Industrial Management? By definition, management refers to the activities and people involved in the four general functions of management –planning, organizing, leading and the co-ordination of resources (McGregor & Cutcher 2006). However, increasing number of literatures today has tended to emphasize the difference between management and leadership. Modern management and modern management thinkers assert that, management has to focus on leadership, if managerial functions must be achieved. Zhong-Ming &, Takao (1994) argue that, most modern management thinkers assert that leadership must be more facilitative, participative and empowering in how visions and goals of the organizations are carried out. Industrial management is concerned with the design, improvement and implementation of integrated systems of people, material, information, equipment and energy (McGregor & Cutcher 2006). According to McGregor & Cutcher (2006), industrial management draws upon specialized knowledge and skills in the mathematical, physical and the social sciences not leaving out the principles and methods of engineering analysis. Today, industrial management also known as industrial engineering, operations management now encompasses services though initially applied to manufacturing. 2.0 Management and Leadership Overview Management involves the process of directing, planning, controlling, and coordinating the activities of an organisation so that predefined goals are met. However, prominent writers in the field of management see coordination as a main objective of management rather than one of its functions (Fairholm, 1998:17). In managerial terms, leadership is the way people relate themselves to an organisation. Leadership is at the centre of coordinating and executing management functions. The activities of an organisation must be properly carried out and executed if the goals must be achieved (Erlbaum and Chemer, 1997). Managerial functions are performed by managers and leaders assigned to each of the functional areas. Acknowledged by all to be the father of scientific management, Frederick W. Taylor (1911) equated leadership with effective management, with focus on productivity, improvement and efficiency, he thought of management as being generic and universal (Fairholm,1998). As for Mullins, (1996), Leadership is a relationship through which one person influences the behavior or actions of other people And he suggested that leadership is a dynamic process, which can be altered to suit a particular management philosophy. According to Benjamin (2004) leadership is a relationship through which one person influences the behavior or actions of other people. “Leadership is the preeminent need in society’s institutions” (Fairholm, 1998). According to Fabian, (2004), Leadership empowers, provides the direction and focus to allow an organisation and its employees to be successful through coaching, networking and teamwork (Fabian, 2004). It involves being at the centre of organisations activities. Other acceptable definition was offered by Chemers, (1997), in his context, “it is a process of social influence in which one person is able to enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task” (Chemers, 1997:1) 3.0 Functions and Roles of Modern Industrial Manager Drawing from the work of Mintsberg, in the late 1960s in his ground breaking work of what managers actually do developed through a survey of American executives; the researcher argues that, managers performed ten interrelated roles which he classified under three categories. These categories include, interpersonal, informational and decisional. Managerial functions are further defined within planning, organizing leading and controlling. Mintsberg, in his ground breaking work defined the functions of industrial manager. Modern industrial managers do plan their activities; they are goal getters as the set a bleu print of actions for organizational resources to be channeled through. Industrial managers facilitate goal achievement through the identification of vision, goals and objective statement. Example of the kind of planning activities performed by industrial managers include, strategic planning, project planning, business planning etc. Industrial managers are at the centre of these activities (Fabian, 2004). The second function of an industrial manager as identified by Fabian (2004) is that of organizing. If resources of the organisation must be channeled and used at the right time and place, then industrial managers are at the centre of it. They organize the resources of an organisation in an optimum fashion, so that resources are channeled at the right time to achieve the best possible results. According to Slack, (2004), Industrial managers assume leadership roles. They act as facilitators, motivators, energizer and are at the centre of results. Industrial managers influence people to follow desired directions. This happens through vision and mission statement and milestones they create. Industrial managers are champions as they are at the centre of organizational performance management. Industrial managers, through organisation systems processes and structures they fit in systems of control to effectively reach goals and objectives, and feed forward and feed backward monitoring systems. Industrial Managers according to Greenberg and Baron, (2003: pp 471) assume the role of a figurehead. As figurehead, they represent symbols of the organizational culture, the perform the rituals necessary to keep the organizational machinery working. Since leadership involves the exercise of influence for the purpose of attaining group or organisational goals. In other words, industrial managers as leaders focus on changing those actions or attitudes of their subordinates that are related to specific goals. They are far less concerned with altering followers’ actions or attitudes that are irrelevant to such goals. (Greenberg and Baron, 2003: pp 471). Greenberg & Baron (2003) also refers to an important role of the industrial manager as that of a leader. This role of an industrial manager was further supported upon when Greenberg and Baron, refers to general leadership as a method of non-coercive influence techniques (Benjamin & Regina, 2004).. Here the researchers draw on the importance to distinguish a leader from a dictator. Whereas dictators get others to do what they want by using physical coercion or by threats of physical force, leaders do not (Greenberg and Baron, 2003: pp 471). Here, industrial managers as leaders activate subordinates as well as staffing, training and performing associated duties to achieve predefined goals. Here as leaders, industrial managers focus on changing those actions or attitudes of their subordinates that are related to specific goals. Industrial managers as under their leadership role influences other group members toward the attainment of defined group or organisational goals. In addition, industrial managers also perform the role of liaison officers with other stakeholders both within and out of the organisation. Greenberg and Baron, (2003: pp 471), postulate that, leaders do indeed influence subordinates in various ways, leader also are influenced by their subordinates. As a matter of fact one can say that leadership exists only in relation to followers. After all, one cannot lead without followers. (Greenberg and Baron, 2003: pp 471). Figure 1 below illustrates the characteristics of leadership process as described industrial manager liaison officer role. (Greenberg and Baron, 2003: pp 471). Shell and Richard (2002) assert that the exploitative autocratic leader looks upon himself as the source of power, and makes all the decisions in an organization in terms of being the absolute centre of authority and control and that a major advantage of working for the strict autocratic leader is that the subordinate always knows where they stand with the leader, namely, the leader will both make decisions and take responsibility for them (Benjamin & Regina, 2004). Industrial manager also performs the role of resource allocated; he/she is seen as an entrepreneur, a negotiator, a motivator and a problem solver. Though, as stipulated by Mintsberg, these roles might change depending on the hierarchical position of the manager in question. For example, some researchers (e.g., Ali et al 2006) indicated that leadership style can be viewed as a series of managerial attitudes, behaviors, characteristics and skills based on individual and organizational values, leadership interests and reliability of employees in different situations , while Aronson et al., (2003) indicated that leadership styles is the ability of a leader to influence subordinates to performing at their highest capability. This factor captures the extent to which management respects workers, operates with honesty and integrity, promotes efficiency, and has open lines of communication with employees. All these fall within the roles of an industrial manager. Conclusion From the foregoing caption, industrial managers as managers perform management and leadership roles. Being important aspect of an organisation, management and leadership goes hand in glove. As a leader, industrial managers assume the centre position of executing managerial functions assigned to them. Leadership as management is logical; leadership focuses on one aspect of management getting others to do the work the leader wants done. Leadership is regarded as good management (Fairholm, 1998:22) References Ali Mohammad Mosadegh Rad, Mohammad Hossein Yarmohammadian ( 2006) A study of relationship between managers' leadership style and employees' job satisfaction Leadership in Health Services, Volume 19 Number 2 pp. 11-28 Benjamin, O. E., & Regina, C.A., (2004). Roles of perceived leadership styles and rewards in the practice of total quality management Leadership & Organization Development Journal Volume 25 Number 1 , pp. 24-40 Chemers M. and; Erlbaum L. Associates, 1997. An Integrative Theory of Leadership. www.questia.com 17/11/07 Fabian N; 2004. Leadership-What Is It and Are You Headed for It? Journal of Environmental Health, Vol. 67, Fairholm Gilbert W.; 1998 Perspectives on Leadership: From the Science of Management to Its Spiritual Heart. Publisher: Quorum Books. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. www.questia.com 17/11/08 Greenberg G., Baron R. A. (2003). Behavior In Organizations. (Eight Edition) Prentice Hall. McGregor, D., & Cutcher, J.G., (2006). The Human Side of Enterprise Annotated edition, McGraw-Hill Professional Slack, N., (2004). Operations Management 4th edition. Financial Times Prentice Hall. Shell, Richard L. (2002). Management of Professionals (2nd Edition, Revised and Expanded). New York, NY, USA: Marcel Dekker Incorporated, Zhong-Ming Wang, Takao Satow(1994) Leadership Styles and Organizational Effectiveness in Chinese-Japanese Joint Ventures Journal of Managerial Psychology, Volume 9 Number 4 , pp. 31-36 Read More