Delegation

According to Bateman and Snell (2007) Management is the process of working with people and resources to accomplish organizational goals. Good managers do those things both effectively and efficiently. To be effective is to achieve organizational goals. To be efficient is to achieve goals with minimal waste of resources, that is, to make the best possible use of money, time, materials, and people. Some managers fail on both criteria, or focus on one at the expense of

Another. The best managers maintain a clear focus on both effectiveness and efficiency.

In this paper, the four functions of management and delegation will be discussed. These items together are what make up an effective manager. The management and delegation within the organization that I am employed by will also be discussed to show how delegation is successful and also to show how delegation within the organization can be improved.

The Four Functions of Management

According to Bateman and Snell (2007), the four functions of management are: Planning, Organizing, Leading, and Controlling. All are used in by all managers regardless of the industry, the level of management, the title or the activity in which they are engaged. These four things are used any time when initiating a new project or dealing with any change, which we all know is constant. A lot of us may be all ready using or have seen others, but just never noticed it or didn't know how to identify the methods. We can start seeing the similarities by looking at the definitions and examples of each. Planning is the function of "doing." It's the first management function both because it lays the groundwork for all other functions. It is a technique of projecting the future, anticipating problems and selecting procedures for circumventing them. It is a general principle of management that a group effort can be attained more efficiently if everyone concerned has been informed of the ultimate goal or the value of the organization. Organizing is the processes in which you build your organization by classify jobs, titles, and functions of the employees. Leading and Controlling is an essential part of management. These are the "hands on" parts of the management role. You must lead a team and control the environment so that the environment is in constant change and evolution. Within each function of management, a successful manager will see that each function can in some aspect be delegated.

Delegation

A good manager will see that the path to effectiveness and efficiency is by delegation. Delegation is the assignment of authority and responsibility to another person to carry out specific activities. However the person who delegated the work remains accountable for the outcome of the delegate work. It allows a subordinate to make decisions, i.e. it is a shift of decision-making authority from one organizational level to a lower one. Delegation, if properly done, is not abdication. The opposite of effective delegation is micromanagement, where a manager provides too much input, direction, and review of 'delegated' work.

It is of importance for a manager to realize when and how to delegate. One downfall of delegation is not knowing who to delegate to, or delegating to improperly trained employees and also delegating in an ineffective manner to where the employee does not understand.

According to Gunn, (2004) Leadership requires knowing when to exercise or delegate authority as well as how to assign accountability. But while responsibility can be shared, a leader can never get out from under it. One way to look at power-and the delegation of power is as a dance that balances 3 parts: authority, accountability, and responsibility. Often they are treated as the same, but their differences shape leaders. All leaders eventually find themselves acting on faith. Ironically, the bigger the idea or decision, the more faith plays a role. Like good parents, skillful managers place the outcome squarely on the lieutenant's shoulders while communicating the feeling of utter confidence in her success.

Now knowing why to delegate, a manager now can conquer how to delegate, or what to delegate. Taking from the four functions of management we can see what to delegate. The first of the four functions of management is planning. A manager can delegate responsibilities within the planning process. The planning process is a state of constant change. A subordinate can assist the team and the manager by anticipating problems, or planning for them ahead of time. For example, within my organization the