Describe different skills required by a manager and the responsibilities of a professional manager

Describe different skills required by a manager and the responsibilities of a professional manager

The accomplishment of any task or goals of any organization is dependent upon the competency of manager to a greater extent.An organization cannot be successful without the efficient and effective manager. The following are the basic and important skills required by a manager:-
 Planning
 Organising
 Staffing
 Directing
 Controlling

Planning: Planning is most important technique of management and is a continuing process. Planning is a mental process requiring the use of intellectual faculties, imagination, foresight, aiming at in deciding in advance what to be done, how and where is to be done ,who will do it and how results are to be revealed and evaluated.
While planning manager will have to consider the past, present and future i.e past failures, present needs and future utilities. Planning also involves rethinking of a process.


Organizing: The main output function of manager is to organize the whole show which needs a proper grouping of the work of all departmental activities. By organization the manager combines human and material resources. This function involves determining the activities to be done, grouping the activities, assigning the grouped activities to individuals and creating a structure of authority and responsibility to the people to achieve the goals.

Staffing: The manager should know how many staffs are required to accomplish the task. After determining the number of personnel to be selected to fill different jobs, manager starts recruiting, selecting and training the people to fill the requirements of the enterprise.

Directing: Having done with planning, organizing and staffing the manger have to simulate action by giving orders to subordinates and by supervising them. This managerial function involves:
• Leadership
• Communication
• Motivation
• Supervision

Leadership: Leadership is a process by which a manager guides and influences the work of others in choosing And attaining the specific goals by mediating between the individuals and the organization in such a manner that both will obtain satisfaction. Thus leadership involves the way a manager behaves in his man to man relationship with his subordinates. He should show the way to his subordinates the way to achieve the goals.

Communication: An organizations life is difficult unless messages, instructions and other information are passed on accurately. Regular contact with the employees serves so many purposes i.e. expression of interest, greater individual knowledge of one another anticipation of problems, first hand knowledge of difficulties etc.

Motivation: The aim of motivation is to make the self concept real, to live in a manner that is appropriate to one’s preferred role. A worker today regards himself as a man who gives more than he gets. So a manger should motivate is subordinates so that they can perform to their maximum. A satisfied worker is an investment which can yield greater returns than any other input.

Supervision: -The manger has to see his subordinate work effectively to accomplish the task entrusted to them. Supervision is a process by which conformity between planned and actual results is maintained.

Controlling: Control is the continuing process of measuring actual results which were planned for the organization and it deals with the measurement and correction of the performance of subordinates in order to make sure that organizational objectives and the plans devised to attain them are accomplished. The mangers compare actual performance against the planned one and finds out the deviations, takes corrective actions to remove the deviations and incorporates positive deviations in the plans. The essential ingredient of the process of control is forward looking. A manger cannot control of do anything in the past but can avoid them in future by taking actions in the light of past experiences.


Responsibilities of a professional manager:

Responsibilities towards customers: The manger must always remember that the customer comes first. The starting point for the business firm is an understanding of the needs of the customer, and the firm’s foremost responsibility is towards the customer. A firm’s responsibility towards its customer is in terms of ensuring that the desired quality of product at a reasonable price is made easily available to the customers. Product quality of the utmost concern and covers dimensions of product design, materials used in the production, safety, purity, hygiene and ascetic appeal.

Responsibilities towards Shareholders: All those people who contribute capital to a firm are known as its shareholders. The prime responsibility of the manger is to ensure the security of the shareholders capital. The manger must ensure that the firm does not become bankrupt or it is faced with a situation where the shareholders capital is endangered. In other words the manger must at least ensure the survival of the firm. He must also ensure to get profits for the shareholders.

Responsibilities towards employees: employees are the most important resource. Their hard work loyalty and dedication are critical contributions to the success of any firm. The wages and the salaries which a firm gives must be in accordance with the minimum level as specified by the govt. but they must also be at part with other firms within the industry. Results or productivity linked bonus and incentives are a way to ensure that your employees can share n the growth and prosperity of the firm. Apart from wages, provision of a safe healthy environment which is conducive to work is also important. There must be proper and adequate facilities such as canteens, bathrooms, first aid rooms etc.


Responsibilities towards distributors and retailers: Distributors and retailers are the link between the firm and the actual customers who consume the product. A manger is responsible for ensuring regular supplies to distributors. Persistent delays in processing and supplying distributors order can let to a situation where the distributor eventually loses interest in the product and switches over to a competitor firm. Timely supplies have their relevance provided they are as per the order specification.

Responsibilities towards union: Responsibilities towards employees union is to acknowledge it as a friend rather than as a foe of the firm. Most problems with unions arise because of the assumption to the mangers that unions have no constructive contribution to make but are interested only in playing a negative role. As a responsible manger he must understand that management and union have a great degree of mutual dependence and the union cannot further its interest at the cost of the firm’s interest and vice versa. Only a relationship based on mutual trust and cooperation will best serve the interest of firm and union.

Responsibilities towards government: It is wholly the responsibility of the manger to ensure that the constitution and operations of the firm are within the legal framework as specified by the government. This legal frame work may vary depending upon the nature of ownership of the firm, size of the firm and specific industry within which the firm operates. Also paying the taxes regularly and fairly is also a very big responsibility.