Issue 1 The manager’s role

Our society is made up of all kinds of

organizations, such as companies,
government departments, unions, hospitals,
schools, libraries, and the like. They are
essential to our existence, helping to create
our standard of living and our quality of
life. In all these organizations, there are
people carrying out the work of the
manager although they do not have that
title. The vice-chancellor of a university,
the president of a students‟ union or a chief librarian are all managers.
They have a responsibility to use the resources of their organization
effectively and economically to achieve its objectives.
Are there certain activities common to all managers? Can we define the
task of a manager? A French industrialist, Henri Fayol, wrote in 1916 a
classic definition of the manager‟s role. He said that to manage is „to
forecast and plan, to organize, to command, to coordinate and to control‟.
This definition is still accepted by many people today, though many
writers on management have modified Fayol‟s description. Instead of
talking about command, they say a manager must motivate or direct and
lead other workers.
Henri Fayol‟s definition of a manager‟s functions is useful. However, in
most companies, the activities of a manager depend on the level at which
he/she is working. Top managers, such as the chairman and directors,
will be more involved in long range planning, policy making, and the
relations of the company with the outside world. They will be making
decisions on the future of the company, the sort of product lines it should
develop, how it should face up to the competition, whether it should
diversify etc. These strategic decisions are part of the planning function
mentioned by Fayol.
On the other hand, middle management and supervisors are generally
making the day-to-day decisions which help an organization to run
efficiently and smoothly. They must respond to the pressures of the job,

7
which may mean dealing with an unhappy customer, chasing up supplies,
meeting an urgent order or sorting out a technical problem. Managers at
this level spend a great deal of time communicating, coordinating and
making decisions affecting the daily operation of their organization.
An interesting modern view on managers is
supplied by an American writer, Mr. Peter
Drucker. He has spelled out what managers
do. In his opinion, managers perform five
basic operations. Firstly, managers set
objectives. They decide what these should be
and how the organization can achieve them.
For this task, they need analytical ability.
Secondly, managers organize. They must
decide how the resources of the company are
to be used, how the work is to be classified
and divided. Furthermore, they must select people for the jobs to be done.
For this, they not only need analytical ability but also understanding of
human beings. Their third task is to motivate and communicate
effectively. They must be able to get people to work as a team, and to be
as productive as possible. To do this, they will be communicating
effectively with all levels of the organization - their superiors, colleagues,
and subordinates. To succeed in this task, managers need social skills.
The fourth activity is measurement. Having set targets and standards,
managers have to measure the performance of the organization, and of its
staff, in relation to those targets. Measuring requires analytical ability.
Finally, Peter Drucker says that managers develop people, including
themselves. They help to make people more productive, and to grow as
human beings. They make them bigger and richer persons.
In Peter Drucker‟s view, successful managers are not necessarily people
who are liked or who get on well with others. They are people who
command the respect of workers and who set high standards. Good
managers need not be geniuses but must bring character to the job. They
are people of integrity, who will look for that quality in others.
“A manager develops people, including himself or herself (and) helps
them to grow and become bigger and richer persons.”

Peter Drucker

8
 1. According to the writer, what is the main duty of the head of any
organization?
2. Why do some people disagree with Henry Fayol‟s definition of
the role of management?
3. In what ways are the functions of the company director, for
example, different from those of a middle manager?
4. In Peter Drucker‟s opinion, which of the following things should
a manager be?
- Exceptionally intelligent
- Keen to improve people‟s lives
- Interested in other people
- Popular
- Able to give clear orders
- Honest
- Admired by others
- Able to examine carefully and make judgments
5. Managers set objectives (line 43)
- What is an objective?
- Give examples of objectives that sales, production and
personnel managers might set.

Word-
Word Definition
form
vice - chancellor noun the head of a university in Britain, who
/ˌvaɪs ˈtʃɑːnsələ(r)/ is in charge of the work of running the
university.
coordinate verb to organize the different parts of an
/koʊˈɔːrdɪneɪt/ activity and the people involved in it so
that it works well.
modify verb to change s.th slightly, especially in
/ˈmɒdɪfaɪ/ order to make it more suitable for a
particular purpose.

9
motivate verb to make s.b want to do s.th, especially
/ˈməʊtɪveɪt/ s.th that involves hard work and effort.
policy (on s.th) verb a plan of action agreed or chosen by a
/ˈpɒləsi/ political party, a business, etc.
product line noun an array of related products, under a
/ˈprɒdʌkt laɪn/ phrase specific brand, offered by a particular
company to its customers.
productive adj. making goods or growing crops,
/prəˈdʌktɪv/ especially in large quantities.
competition noun a situation in which people or
/ˌkɒmpəˈtɪʃn/ organizations compete with each other
for something that not everyone can
have
diversify (into verb to develop a wider range of products,
s.th) interests, skills, etc. in order to be more
/daɪˈvɜːsɪfaɪ/ successful or reduce risk.
= branch out (into s.th)
strategic decision noun Chosen alternative that affects key
/strəˈtiːdʒɪk phrase factors which determine the success of
dɪˈsɪʒn / an organization's strategy.
middle noun Comprises of managers who head
management phrase specific departments (such as
/ˈmɪdl accounting, marketing, production) or
ˈmænɪdʒmənt/ business units, or who serve as project
managers in flat organizations.
top manager noun The highest ranking executives (with
/tɒp ˈmænɪdʒə(r)/ phrase titles such as chairman/chairwoman,
chief executive officer, managing
director, president, executive directors,
executive vice-presidents, etc.)
responsible for the entire enterprise.
supervisor noun a person who supervises s.b/ s.th
/ˈsuːpəvaɪzə(r)/
superior adj. better in quality than s.b/ s.th else;
/suːˈpɪəriə(r)/ greater than s.b/s.th else.
Chase s.b <-> up Phr.v to contact s.b in order to remind them
to do s.th that they should have done
already.

10
spell out Phr.v - to explain something in a
/spel/ simple, clear way.
- to say or write the letters of a
word in the right order
measurement noun the act or the process of finding the
/ˈmeʒəmənt/ size, quantity or degree of something.

11