Roles and Responsibilities of Front-Line Management - Essay Example

Front-Line Managers Assume Heavier Tasks in Small, Young Companies Than in Larger, More Mature Organizations Anyone who gains employment in whatever type of company has to deal with front-line management, the first layer of management tasked to induct new members of an organization and, in the course of employment, serve as conduit between employees and top management. Based on my own dealings with front-line managers as a rank and file employee, front-line management (FLM) is equivalent to the position of a platoon leader in the battlefield who is a rung higher than the foot soldiers but a rung lower than the field commander. In relation to the whole army, the front-line commanders are in fact several rungs removed from the generals and occupy the lowest post in the chain of command but in the eyes of the ground troops, the front-line officers are the army and the high command. Thus, FLM in its organizational sense is sometimes good-naturedly described as a position caught between a rock and a hard place. For this reason, the roles and responsibilities of FLM are so unlike those of the higher management layers, and that these differ in scope and importance according to the configuration of the organization. This paper gathers evidence to support the view that the smaller and younger the organization, the heavier and more difficult the tasks it imposes on front-line management although the rewards are sparse. Conversely, the FLM job is easier but more rewarding in larger and older organizations. The paper will also attempt to explain why such a curiosity happens. 1. Roles and Responsibilities of FLM All managers are required to demonstrate a higher level of skills in planning, organizing, coordinating, communicating and reporting activities; in directing and delegating work; in training, directing, motivating, supporting and disciplining people; and in team building. The need for such skills follows the description of management as getting the work of many done through the guidance of one. More or less the same talents are needed in front-line managers, with some basic differences. First, as noted earlier, they are perceived as management by subordinates but seen as subordinates themselves by senior management. Second, the front-line managers are placed right next to the "coal face" being the first layer of management in an organization. In most cases, the FLM position may be the holder's first exposure to management. For these reasons, the front-line managers bear the burden of developing a good working relationship not only with their superiors but also with their subordinates. This particular responsibility spares managers in the upper hierarchy. Front-line managers go by various designations, among them supervisor, foreman, team leader, office manager and senior administrator. In an organizational context, holders of FLM position are defined as managers with first-line responsibility for a work group of about 10-25 people. They are accountable to top-floor management for the following tasks: People management. Managing operational costs. Providing technical expertise. Organizing, such as planning work allocation and shifts. Monitoring work processes. Checking on quality. Dealing with customers or clients. Measuring operational performance. (Hutchinson & Purcell online) The basic elements of the modern FLM role include building and maintenance of an efficient organizational structure, creating and maintaining a productive workforce, and controlling the workflow. A front-line manager is responsible for managing the individual employee as to his performance and professional development as well a to his health and safety at work. The front-line manager must exert an effort to know his team, improve the social relationships among members, and ensure that jobs and people match. Towards these ends, he must monitor the employees' progress and keep an eye out for possible changes by keeping his communication lines open (Mullins, 2005). Research by Hutchinson & Purcell showed that FLM makes the difference between low performing and high performing firms because they are charged with the sensitive task of implementing strategies that focus the combined efforts of employees on the business goals and translating these plans into positive outcomes. FLMs have to implement policies on appraisal and team briefing, and it is their duty to bring these policies to life. This particular research, which involved 1,000 employees in 12 organizations as diverse as software development, financial services, automotive manufacturing, hospital, retail and call centers revealed that more and more front-line managers are active in people management, performance appraisal, coaching and development, involvement in communication, absence management, discipline and grievances, and recruitment and selection. People management is critical to business performance based on the AMO (ability, motivation and opportunity) model, which supports the theory that business success is based on the ability of organizations to recruit people with the right skills and attitudes, to motivate them and to provide them with the opportunities to use their skills in appropriate jobs (Hutchinson & Purcell). FLM and Organizational Size Size of Organization Small Large Number of levels Few Many Number of specialist functions Few Many Width and Breadth of role Broader Limited In relation to organizational roles, decision-making on long-term strategies are the purview of the managing director or CEO, together with the senior management team, which often consists of members of the board of directors. The conceptualization and control of medium-term strategy is handled by the specialist manager, who could be the marketing manager, the operations manager, the customer services manager or all of them put together. The front-line manager is left with the function of real-time coordination, supervision and control. (Greer & Plunkett, 2006) FLM Roles (Mintzberg, 1987) For the individual employee, the responsibility of FLM is to manage his performance and development, his health and safety at work, and monitor his progress. The front-line manager must also ensure a match between people and jobs, be aware of how circumstances change, improve social relationships in the team, provide the team leadership and be accessible to his subordinates. 1.a. Current FLM Issues In the IT-based economy, the issues involving FLM include changes in organizational structure, new technology, emphasis on team working, changes in environment and working patterns, and the multicultural context. Everyone who has been employed for a reasonable period of time knows that a change in organizational structure, such as moving a business online, requires a new work culture and patterns. A problem arises when some of the employees resist the proposed change because of socio-cultural factors or lack of IT knowledge. It is the responsibility of the FLM to overcome this resistance to technology and build the employees into a cohesive team. The work of FLMs is compounded every time an organization goes high-tech. They have to create and maintain an effective workforce attuned to technology, make employees work as a team, control the work flow to optimize the benefits from technology and productivity, and of course manage cultural diversity (Mintzberg, 1987). On skills and attributes requirements, the issues are skill requirements at different management levels and personal competency model. On individual, it is managing performance and development and motivation people. On FLM and the team, the issues involved as management theory and teams, purpose of groups and teams, team characteristics, team formation and roles (Betts, 2000). In the reconfiguration of organizations, which include decentralization and work contracting, front-line managers assume greater authority and more responsibilities in the production angle. The continuing reorganization and rationalization in the workplace may in fact impose added responsibilities on FLM to strengthen their organizational roles. As companies tighten up operations to regulate spending and control all aspects of the production process, front-line managers are the ones who have to align the processes and employees with market demands. This calls for new social and managerial skills (Tullius, 1999). Notwithstanding these increasing demands on the FLM job, the position and role remain volatile and ambiguous since increased responsibility actually means more accountability even in circumstances that the lowly management position cannot really influence. In interviews with supervisors in the French automotive industry, Tullius (1999) detected widespread fear among these low-tier company officers that their job security is far from assured. As long as the key parameters within their work environment are defined by other actors in the company, such as upper management, engineering and controlling departments, the managerial autonomy of FLM will remain rather limited (Ibid). A front-line manager may possess the management skills required of a good FLM, such as interpersonal skills, technical skills and conceptual skills (Mintzberg, 2005), but this could not serve him well under a less conducive environment. According to Hutchinson& Purcell (online), front-line managers can only do a good job if they enjoy a good working relationship with top management, which gives them upward career mobility, works to support their work-and-life balance, allows them to participate and feel involved in decision-making, and gives them a sense of job security. The company also emplaces an organizational culture that allows front-line managers to raise grievances or discuss personal matters with top management. The span of control of first-line managers is narrower than that of other management-level executives such that their decision-making powers are limited to specific functions. Compared to other holders of management positions in organizations, front-line managers usually come from the lower social class who pulled themselves up by dint of hard work. Nonetheless, their prospects for getting higher on the social ladder are considered low (Mullins, 2005). This general description of front-line managers as poor cousins of upper-level managers even tallies with the typical then-and-now personification of their types. The traditional FL managers are said to be wage earners while their more modern counterparts are paid on salary basis. The old front-line managers are also older, unsure of their role in the organization and of their functions and capabilities. In contrast, the modern FLM persons are younger than their traditional counterparts, who feel they are really part of management, and certain of their functions and capabilities. 1.b. FLM in Different Settings The FLM span of control is expansive or limited depending on the size and maturity of the organization. In smaller and newly established organizations, authority is usually centralized such that there are few authority levels and little authority to delegate. Precisely because of their smallness and inexperience, these organizations feel a sharper need for efficiency and competitiveness, for more participation and involvement of managers and staff. Under this condition, the span of control of front-line managers is wide and multi-faceted (Betts, 2000). Taking their business online may enable these organizations to decentralize and localize decision-making, with workers checking their own progress, in effect reducing the amount and type of supervision required over the operations. But since e-business is not for organizations that are still in the process of making a name for themselves, the functions that could be taken over by the Internet fall on the shoulders of the FLM. As the front-line managers assume greater responsibility and workload, this may distort the flow of communication to and from top management. For the whole staff, the likely results are reduced opportunities for the advancement of career and status, a climate of low morale, less productivity and distrust of management (Ibid). Needless to say, once these problems become perceptible to top management, the finger of blame will be pointed at the front-line managers In larger and more mature organizations, on the other hand, the span of control of FLM is narrow and more specific because authority is usually decentralized, there are many authority levels and authority is widely spread and delegated. The front-line managers in the richer organizations fit the general description of Mullins (2005) of the modern FLM who are the exact opposite of their counterparts in smaller firms in that they are well-selected and trained, younger, sure of their capabilities and functions, treated as part of management and are thus non-union members, handy with computers, forward-looking, and with an upward career path. These conditions explain why the traditional roles of FLM in large organizations are listed in the literature as: 1) authoritarian and aristocratic, 2) strong disciplinarian, 3) full responsibility for output, quality and subordinates, 4) reporting upwards, and 5) receiving instruction from superiors and issuing instruction downwards (Ibid). 1.c. Employee Induction First-line managers are the first symbols of authority that new employees get into contact with, such that they play a crucial role in the induction of employees, to whom the first few days at work can be a stressful experience. First impression, as the saying goes, is lasting and the task of seeing to it that new recruits get a good impression of an organization is left entirely to the FLM. Handled with less tact and skill, the induction process may give new employees uncomplimentary ideas about the company. In such a case, employee motivation and productivity are likely to be compromised for the rest of his stay in the organization. Employee induction usually starts with the "ice breaker" session, in which the FLM obtains the personal details about the employee, then the introduction to co-workers. This brake-in process includes a briefing on the employee's job and how it fits into the big picture and a guided tour of the worker's assigned station and the whole workplace. The employee also needs to be informed on any unwritten rules, practices and behavior patterns that are observed in the company. A debriefing session may have to be conducted at the end of the new employee's day to identify problems, check the employee's adjustment process and give assurances if necessary. The FLM's duty does not end there. After the employee's first day on the job, the FLM has to maintain regular contact, making himself accessible and helpful so that the new employee should know by heart the required standards of performance and all the company's dos and don'ts (WorkplaceInfo, 2005). Summary & Conclusion The FLM issues, theories and concepts discussed herein all ring true in actual practice, based on the exposure of this writer to employment. In fact, the main criterion used in choosing the references for this paper was their applicability to the present-day workplace. The works of Betts (2000) and Greer & Plunkett (2006) realistically describe the functions of management as a whole in juxtaposition with the specific tasks of front-line management. They suggest in one voice that compared to the higher management levels, FLM wrestles with the harder duties and its "guiding hand" needed in many critical aspects of company operations. However, the FLM lot is only a little better than the rank-and-file employee and their prospect for job security as tenuous. This phenomenon is explored by Mullins (2005), Mintzberg (1987) and Hutchinson & Purcell whose works were selected for this paper because of their credible argument that the FLM span of control is determined by the size and sophistication of an organization. If the organization is small and relatively new in the business, the roles and responsibilities of FLM are more difficult and more encompassing, while these are easier and narrower in scope for front-line managers in older and more mature organizations. The reason is simply that the bigger organizations can afford to adopt a more decentralized structure, where authority can be delegated to many officers. References: Betts, P. (2000). "Supervisory Management." 7th ed., Harlow: Pearson Education. Greer, G. & Plunkett, R. (2006). "Supervisory Management." 11th ed., Harlow: Pearson Education. Hutchinson, S. & Purcell, J. "Bringing Policies to Life: The Role of Front-Line Managers." Available online at: http://www.cipd.co.uk.research/ bringpolatolife.htm Mintzberg, H. (1987). "The Strategy Concept: 5 Ps for Strategy." California Management Review, Vol. 30, No. 1. Mullins, L. (2005). "Management and Organizational Behavior." 7th ed., Harlow: FT Prentice Hall. Tullius, K. (1999). "Internal Contracting and the Changing Role of the First-Line Production Supervisor." SOFI-Mitteilungen, No. 27. WorkplaceInfo (2005). "Induction: The Role of the Line Manager." Available online at http://www.workplaceinfo.com.au/nocookie/alert/2005/ 050531310 Read More