Organization 11

ORGANIZING
1. Delegation of Authority.
2. Importance of Delegation.
3. Elements of Delegation.
4. Problems of Delegation.
5. Steps of Effective Delegation
6. Decentralisation.
7. Factor determining degree of
decentralization
8. Advantages of Decentralization
9. Disadvantages of Decentralization
Delegation of Authority
Delegation Concept :
Delegation is the process of sharing of
responsibilities between superior and
subordinates. As manager cannot perform all
the tasks himself so he must pass some work
to his subordinates.
It helps in completing the work in time, reduced

the workload of managers, and motivate and
develops subordinates.
Importance of Delegation
The importance of delegation can be outlined as :
1. Improves managerial effectiveness.

2. Motivates subordinates.
3. Facilitates organization growth.
4. Facilitates employees development.
5. Basis of management Hierarchy.
6. Better coordination.
7. Reduces the workload of managers.
8. Basis of superior – subordinate relationship.
Elements of Delegation
There are three elements of delegation :

1. Authority is a manager's formal and
legitimate right to make decisions, issue
orders, and allocate resources to achieve
organizationally desired outcomes.
2. Responsibility means an employee's duty to
perform assigned task or activities.
3. Accountability means that those with
authority and responsibility must report and
justify task outcomes to those above them in
the chain of command.
Authority is legitimized power. Power is the

ability to influence others.
Delegation is distribution of authority.
Delegation frees the manager to use his or her
time on high priority activities. Note that
delegation of authority does not free the
manager from accountability for the actions
and decisions of subordinates.
Key Principles & Concepts of Delegation
Delegation of authority is guided by several key
principles and concepts:
•Exception principle -
Someone must be in charge. The most exceptional,
rare, or unusual decisions end up at the top
management level because no one lower in the
organization has the authority to handle them.
•Scalar chain of command -

The formal distribution of organizational authority is in
a hierarchical fashion. The higher one is in an
organization, the more authority one has.
•Decentralization -
Decisions are to be pushed down to the lowest feasible
level in the organization. The organizational structure
goal is to have working managers rather than managed
workers.
•Parity principle -
Delegated authority must equal responsibility. With
responsibility for a job must go the authority to
accomplish the job.
•Span of control -
The typical guideline is a span of control of no more
than 5-6 people. However, a larger span of control is
possible depending on the complexity, variety and
proximity of jobs.
•Unity principle -
Ideally, no one in an organization reports to more than
one supervisor. Employees should not have to decide
which of their supervisors to make unhappy because of
the impossibility of following all the instructions given
them.
•Line and staff authority -

Line authority managers have the formal power to direct
and control immediate subordinates. The superior
issues orders and is responsible for the result—the
subordinate obeys and is responsible only for executing
the order according to instructions. Line authority is
authority within an organization's or unit's chain of
command.
•Staff authority is granted to staff specialists in
their areas of expertise. It is not a real authority in
the sense that a staff manager does not order or
instruct but simply advises, recommends, and
counsels in the staff specialists' area of expertise
and is responsible only for the quality of the advice
(to be in line with the respective professional
standards etc)
•It is a communication relationship
with management. It has an influence that derives
indirectly from line authority at a higher level.
•Functional authority is where managers have
formal power over a specific subset of activities.
•For instance, the Production Manager may have
the line authority to decide whether and when a new
machine is needed but the Controller demands that
a Capital Expenditure Proposal is submitted first,
showing that the investment will have a yield of at
least x%; or, a legal department may have
functional authority to interfere in any activity that
could have legal consequences. This authority
would not be functional but it would rather be staff
authority if such interference is "advice" rather than
"order".
Problems of Delegation
1. Managers are often unwilling to delegate
because they are either too unorganized to
decide what to delegate.
2. They are fearful of the fact that the
subordinates may perform the task too well.
3. They also want to avoid taking risks and may
fear criticism from the superiors for any
mistakes
Steps of Effective Delegation
• Decide which tasks can be delegated

• Decide who should get the assignment
• Provide sufficient resources for carrying
out the task
• Delegate the assignment
• Be prepared to pitch in, if required
• Establish a feedback system
Decentralisation
Decentralisation :
It refers to systematic delegation of authority at all
levels of management and in all departments of
organization to take decisions.
Points which are included in decentralization-
• Authority
• Systematic efforts
• Control and coordination
• Framing the polices
Factor determining degree of decentralization
1. Size of organization
2. Nature of growth
3. Outlook of the top management
4. Availability of managers
5. Rate of change in organization
6. Nature of function
Importance of Decentralisation
Decentralisation is important in following ways :
1. Reduces the work load of top executives.

2. Improve motivation.
3. Quick decision making.
4. Develop managerial talent.
5. Facilitate growth.
6. Better control.
7. Promote initiative and creativity.
8. Improved teamwork.
Advantages of Decentralization
• It eases the burden of chief executive

• It facilitates diversification
• It provides product and market
emphasis
• Capable managers can be developed
• Improvement of morale and motivation
Disadvantages of Decentralization
• Lack of coordination
• Costly
• Lack of able managers
Making Decentralization Effective
• Centralize top policy and control

• Appreciation of concept of
decentralization
• Develop of managers
• Competition among units
Span of Management
Span of Management, also known as span of
control, is a very important concept of
organizing function of management.
It refers to the number of subordinates that can
be handled effectively by a superior in an
organization.
It signifies how the relations are planned
between superior and subordinates in an
organization.
Span of management is generally categorized
under two heads-
Narrow span and Wide span.
Narrow Span of Management
• Narrow Span of management means a single manager or
supervisor oversees few subordinates. This gives rise to a tall
organizational structure.
• There is an inverse relation between the span of management
and the number of hierarchical levels in an organization, i.e.,
narrow the span of management , greater the number of levels
in an organization.
• Narrow span of management is more costly compared to wide
span of management as there are larger number of superiors/
managers and thus there is greater communication issues too
between various management levels.
• The less capable, motivated and confident the employees are,
the better it is to have a narrow span of management so that the
managers can spend time with them and supervise them well.
• In case of narrow span of management, there are
comparatively more growth opportunities for a subordinate as
the number of levels is more.
Span of Management
A wide span of management means a single manager or supervisor oversees
a large number of subordinates. This gives rise to a flat organizational
structure.
The less geographically scattered the subordinates are, the better it is to have
a wide span of management as it would be feasible for managers to be
in touch with the subordinates and to explain them how to efficiently
perform the tasks.
The less geographically scattered the subordinates are, the better it is to have
a wide span of management as it would be feasible for managers to be
in touch with the subordinates and to explain them how to efficiently
perform the tasks.
The more efficient and organized the managers are in performing their tasks,
the better it is to have wide span of management for such organization
The more standardized is the nature of tasks ,i.e., if same task can be
performed using same inputs, the better it is to have a wide span of
management as more number of subordinates can be supervised by a
single superior.
There is more flexibility, quick decision making, effective communication
between top level and low level management ,and improved customer
interaction in case of wide span of management.
Technological advancement such as mobile phones, mails, etc. makes it
feasible for superiors to widen their span of management as there is
more effective communication.
Factors influencing larger Span
Factors influencing larger span of management.
• Work performed by subordinates is stable and routine.
• Subordinates perform similar work tasks.
• Subordinates are concentrated in a single location.
• Subordinates are highly trained and need little direction in
performing tasks.
• Rules and procedures defining task activities are
available.
• Support systems and personnel are available for the
managers.
• Little time is required in non-supervisory activities such as
coordination with other departments or planning.
• Managers' personal preferences and styles favour a large
span.

Organization 11

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ORGANIZING

It helps in completing the work in time, reduced

The importance of delegation can be outlined as :

1. Improves managerial effectiveness.

There are three elements of delegation :

Authority is legitimized power. Power is the

•Scalar chain of command -

•Line and staff authority -

• Decide which tasks can be delegated

Decentralisation is important in following ways :

1. Reduces the work load of top executives.

• It eases the burden of chief executive

• Centralize top policy and control

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