Reference no: EM133296268
Assignment:
1. Management theories have evolved from an emphasis on authority and structure to a focus on employees. Many studies indicate that Management theory progressed with "bureaucratic" and "scientific" management that made use of procedures, measurements, plus routines as the foundation for operations.
Highlight some of the contributions of management theories to Modern organizations.
2. (a ) Define an organization structure
(b) Discuss FIVE key factors or determinants which are taken into consideration when designing an organization structure
(c ) Give two advantages and disadvantages of the functional organization structure
(d) What is the effect of the span of control on organization structure
3. Planning is deciding in advance what to be done in future. It is the process of thinking before doing. It involves determination of goals as well as the activities required to be undertaken to achieve the set goals. In a period of change, planning becomes a matter of great urgency for those who manage the resources of an organization or a nation. As a Human resource expert, discuss;
a) The Various types of plans that an organization can develop in order to achieve its goals.
b) How you as a manager can establish a climate for planning
4. a) Outline and explain the primary functions of managers
b) Highlight the functions of top managers, middle managers, first-line Managers and team leaders.
c) Discuss the various roles managers take on in different organizational settings
5. Fayol defines the "order" principle of management as the systematic, orderly and proper arrangement of people, places and things. In his explanation of the concept of order, Fayol felt that there was no perfect order to anything, but that any form of disorder was unacceptable.
a) Using practical examples, discuss the successes and challenges in the application of the "order" and "Discipline" principles of management in modern work environments
b) How has decentralization of departments in organizations helped in improving effectiveness and efficiency of departments and the organization as a whole?
6. The real source of leadership is power that comes from three general sources, namely; an individual's personality, position and expertise. Explain the sources of power according to John French and Bertram Raven.
7. Matrix departmentalization helps break down barriers by allowing employees from different functional departments to pool their skills involving a common problem, and it increases the organization's abilities to use human and financial resources wisely an to adapt to changing business conditions. With the complexity Matrix departmentalization in mind;
a) Discuss the conditions under which matrix form can be used
b) Explain the advantages and disadvantages of matrix departmentalization
8. In the quest to find out leadership qualities and characteristics, a number of approaches and theories have been developed.
Discuss the contingency approach to leadership giving one theory that explains the approach and compare it with the trait theory.
9. Weber (1864-1920) was a social scientist with an interest in organisations. He developed the bureaucratic model as the type of organisation he felt would best serve the needs of an increasingly urbanised and industrialised society.
Discuss the contributions and the importance of weber's bureaucratic management theory to today's managers.
10. Write Brief Notes on the following
i. Decentralized Vs. Centralized Organizations
ii. Barriers of Communication in Organizations
iii. Advantages and Disadvantages of Labour Turnover
iv. Critic Maslow's theory of Needs
11. Excellence in management is an approach in which characteristics of excellent firms are used as models for other firms. Thomas J. Peters and Robert H. Waterman suggest that financially successful companies possess certain characteristics that result in excellence.
Discuss the set of characteristics that result in excellence in Management according to Thomas J. Peters and Robert H.
12. The organizational environment includes all elements such as people, other organizations, economic factors, objects and events that lie outside the boundaries of the organization. With that in mind, some scholars have stated that, organizations operate two different types of environments, namely; stable and unstable environment.
Discuss the features that managers operating in these types of environment can base their planning and sales efforts on.