You want me to explain what management is? Well, I guess I can manage that! Actually, management as we understand it today is a fairly recent idea. Most economists in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, for example, wrote about factors of production such as land, labour and capital, and about supply and demand, as if these were impersonal and objective economic forces which left no room for human action. An exception was Jean-Baptiste, who invented the term ‘entrepreneur’, the person who sees opportunities to use resources in more productive ways.
Entrepreneurs are people who are alert to so-far undiscovered profit opportunities. They perceive opportunities to commercialize new technologies and products that will serve the market better than it is currently being served by their competitors. They are happy to risk their own or other people’s capital. They are frequently unconventional, innovative people. But entrepreneurship isn’t the same as management, and most managers aren’t entrepreneurs.
So, what’s management? Well, it’s essentially a matter of organizing people. Managers, especially senior managers, have to set objectives for their organization, and then work out how to achieve them. This is true of the managers of business enterprises, government departments, educational institutions, and sports teams, although for government services, universities and so on we usually talk about administrators and administration rather than managers and management. Managers analyse the activities of the organization and the relations among them. They divide the work into distinct activities and then into individual jobs. They select people to manage these activities and perform the jobs. And they often need to make the people responsible for performing individual jobs form effective teams.
Managers have to be good at communication and motivation. They need to communicate the organization’s objectives to the people responsible for attaining them. They have to motivate their staff to work well, to be productive, and to contribute something to the organization. They make decisions about pay and promotion.
Managers also have to measure the performance of their staff, and to ensure that the objectives and performance targets set for the whole organization and for individual employees are reached. Furthermore, they have to train and develop their staff, so that their performance continues to improve.
Some managers obviously perform these tasks better than others. Most achievements and failures in business are the achievements or failures of individual managers.
How To Be A Better Manager.
What is management? What do managers do? How do I manage? These are standard questions that most of us in the management profession have been asked more than once.
Contemporary period in the development of Russian economics, when the radical changes have been made in the sphere of human resource management, is characterized by the acute shortage of qualified trained managers selected on the basis of ability and expertise. During last years interesting books on the personnel management have appeared, however, still there is lack of monographs, books and research works based on the modern management theory and a long history of work. So it turns out to be important to study the questions, concerning personnel and personal management either in business or in state and municipal management.
A management career path is not a straight line. Nor is it the same for everyone. Yet all management career paths have a starting point. All have milestones along the way. This page is the starting point for several management paths. Each path leads managers to what they need to know based on where you are in your career and where your interests lie. On each visit you can go further along the path, retrace steps along the same path, or start down a new path. Five paths are listed below.
Considering Management
This person wonders whether a management career is for them. Maybe someone has suggested it. Maybe they just feel they can do it better than their current boss. Take this path to learn more about what management does and whether management might be for you.
Going For It
This person has decided to try the management career path. They have no management experience yet, but are interested and motivated. This path leads to the knowledge and skill needed to land that first management job.
Just Starting Management
This person has just started, or is about to start, their first management job. This path will guide you through those first confusing, challenging days and months. It takes you through the basic knowledge needed to be a manager and how to deal with the problems that crop up.
Experienced Manager
This manager has had several years experience in management. He or she has had time to make some mistakes and achieve some successes in the real world and now want to improve. This path leads to the resources to improve their skills and their promotion potential.
Management Pros and Consultants
These are veteran managers interested in increasing and sharing their professional knowledge and experience. They have managed different and difficult opportunities, but they know there is always more to learn. This path connects them with their peers and to cutting-edge theory.
Most urgent problems of personnel management :
New approaches to organization of work of personnel, work regulations and scientific labor organizations, team - building, theory of leadership.
Important problems of motivation, payment, methods of personnel estimation and effectiveness of work.
The personnel of the state and municipal management bodies and business;
The notion and classification of the methods of state and municipal management and business;
The manpower policy in the state and municipal management and business;
The competitive basis of the manpower policy in the state and municipal management and business;
The staff appraisal procedure in the bodies of the state and municipal management and business;
The staff estimation procedure based on the estimation center method;
The international experience of the personnel training and skills improvement for the state and municipal management bodies and business;
The personnel management at the bodies of state and municipal administration and so on.
Managers spend a lot of time giving direction to people. When done well you can achieve great results. Make a little slip up and everything goes wrong. Here"s how to do it right.
Management is both art and science. It is the art of making people more effective than they would have been without you. The science is in how you do that. There are four basic pillars: plan, organize, direct, and monitor. Four workers can make 6 units in an eight-hour shift without a manager. If I hire you to manage them and they still make 6 units a day, what is the benefit to my business of having hired you? On the other hand, if they now make 8 units per day, you, the manager, have value. The same analogy applies to service, or retail, or teaching, or any other kind of work. Can your group handle more customer calls with you than without? Sell higher value merchandise? Impart knowledge more effectively? That is the value of management - making a group of individual more effective.
Management starts with planning. Good management starts with good planning. And proper prior planning prevents… well, you know the rest of that one. Without a plan you will never succeed. If you happen to make it to the goal, it will have been by luck or chance and is not repeatable. You may make it as a flash-in-the-pan, an overnight sensation, but you will never have the track record of accomplishments of which success is made. Look at all the probable scenarios. Plan for them. Figure out the worst possible scenario and plan for that too. Evaluate your different plans and develop what, in your best judgments, will work the best and what you will do if it doesn"t. Figure out what your goal is (or listen when your boss tells you). Then figure out the best way to get there. What resources do you have? What can you get? Compare strengths and weaknesses of individuals and other resources. Will putting four workers on a task that takes 14 hours cost less than renting a machine that can do the same task with one worker in 6 hours? If you change the first shift from an 8 AM start to a 10 AM start, can they handle the early evening rush so you don"t have to hire an extra person for the second shift? One of the most often overlooked management planning tools is the most effective. Ask the people doing the work for their input.
Now that you have a plan, you have to make it happen. Is everything ready ahead of your group so the right stuff will get to your group at the right time? Is your group prepared to do its part of the plan? Is the downstream organization ready for what your group will deliver and when it will arrive? Are the workers trained? Are they motivated? Do they have the equipment they need? Are there spare parts available for the equipment? Has purchasing ordered the material? Is it the right stuff? Will it get here on the appropriate schedule? Do the legwork to make sure everything needed to execute the plan is ready to go, or will be when it is needed. Check back to make sure that everyone understands their role and the importance of their role to the overall success.
Now flip the "ON" switch. Tell people what they need to do. I like to think of this part like conducting an orchestra. Everyone in the orchestra has the music in front of them. They know which section is playing which piece and when. They know when to come in, what to play, and when to stop again. The conductor cues each section to make the music happen. That"s your job here. You"ve given all your musicians (workers) the sheet music (the plan). You have the right number of musicians (workers) in each section (department), and you"ve arranged the sections on stage so the music will sound best (you have organized the work). Now you need only to tap the podium lightly with your baton to get their attention and give the downbeat.
Now that you have everything moving, you have to keep an eye on things. Make sure everything is going according to the plan. When it isn"t going according to plan, you need to step in and adjust the plan, just as the orchestra conductor will adjust the tempo. Problems will come up. Someone will get sick. A part won"t be delivered on time. A key customer will go bankrupt. That is why you developed a contingency plan in the first place. You, as the manager, have to be always aware of what"s going on so you can make the adjustments required.
A manager"s most important, and most difficult, job is to manage people. Managing people is not easy. You must lead, motivate, inspire, and encourage them. Sometimes you will have to hire, fire, and discipline or evaluate employees. However, it can be done successfully. And it can be a very rewarding experience. Remember that management, like any other skill, is something that you can improve at with study and practice.
Management Styles
Managers have to perform many roles in an organization and how they handle various situations will depend on their style of management. A management style is an overall method of leadership used by a manager. There are two sharply contrasting styles that will be broken down into smaller subsets later:
Autocratic
Permissive
Each style has its own characteristics:
Autocratic: Leader makes all decisions unilaterally.
Permissive: Leader permits subordinates to take part in decision making and also gives them a considerable degree of autonomy in completing routine work activities.
Combining these categories with democratic (subordinates are allowed to participate in decision making) and directive (subordinates are told exactly how to do their jobs) styles give us four distinct ways to manage.
Ten Things To Do Today To Be A Better Manager
Listed below are ten things you can do to become a better manager. Pick one. Do it today. Pick another one for tomorrow. In two weeks you will be a better manager.
1. Select the best people
As a manager, you are only as good as the people on your team. Give yourself a better chance to succeed by picking the best people from the start.
2. Be a motivator
Human beings do things because we want to. Sometimes we want to because the consequences of not wanting to do something are unpleasant. However, most of the time we want to do things because of what we get out of it.
It"s no different at work, people do good work for the pay, or the prestige, or the recognition. They do bad work because they want to take it easy and still get paid. They work really hard because they want to impress someone. To motivate your people better, figure out what they want and how you can give that to them for doing what you want them to do.
3. Build Your Team
It is not enough that people are motivated to succeed at work. They have to work together as a team to accomplish the group"s objective. After all, if we just want them to all "do their own things" we don"t need you as a manager to mold them into a team, do we?
Here are some ways to improve your team building skills:
4 . Be a Leader, Not Only a Manager
You have built the best team from the best employee available. You motivated them to peak performance. What is missing? Motivating a team is worthless unless you provide direction; unless you turn that motivation toward a goal and lead the team to it. Enthusiasm, dedication and charisma are some of the more important characteristics of leadership. Leaders are seen as good and evil, and take on many personalities and roles, from managers or coaches to world leaders. It is believed that every leader possesses a charisma that provides change and success. Thus leadership begins with vision, concern and mentorship. Leadership, a critical management skill, is the ability to motivate a group of people toward a common goal. Perhaps the one personal skill that has the greatest impact on your job satisfaction, promotion potential, and career success is your ability to communicate effectively with others. By improving your communications skills at work you increase your ability to achieve success, have your successes noted, and get yourself those promotions you deserve. It is the ability to lead others that truly sets a manager apart from their peers. Remember that leaders are found at all levels of the organization, so be one.
5 . Improve as a Communicator
Communication may be the single most important skill of a manager. After all, all the others depend on it. You can"t be a leader if you can"t communicate your vision. You can"t motivate people if they can"t understand what you want. Communication skills can be improved through practice.
6. Get Better at Managing Money
To stay in business, a company has to make money. That means bringing money in the door and it means spending less than you bring in. Depending on your function in the organization, you may have more influence on one area or the other, but you need to understand both. You can help your company, your employees, and yourself be getting better at managing the company"s money.
7 . Get Better at Managing Time
The one thing you will probably have less of at work than money is time. The better you get at managing time, yours and others, the more effective you will be as a manager.
8. Improve Yourself
Don"t focus so hard on your people that you forget about yourself. Identify the areas in which you are weak and improve them. The fact that you are reading this article shows you understand the concept. You need to put it into practice.
9. Practice Ethical Management
Ethics is very important in business.
10. Take a Break
You are less effective as a manager if you are over-stressed. You are less tolerant. You snap at people more. No one wants to be anywhere near you. Take a break. Give yourself a chance to relax and recharge your batteries. Your increased unbelievable productivity when you return will more than make up for the time you take off. Have a good laugh or go lie on a beach somewhere.
Management is a skill that can be learned. You can improve as a manager by working every day to get better. Good managers always stick to his task until it gets completed from his staff. If you pick one subject each day, and work on improving in that area, you will be a better manager before you know it. And others will notice it too.
New Paradigm in Management
Around the 1960s and on to today, the environment of today’s organizations has changed a great deal. A variety of driving forces provoke this change. Increasing telecommunications has “shrunk» the world substantially. Increasing diversity of workers has brought in a wide array of differing values, perspectives and expectations among workers. Public consciousness has become much more sensitive and demanding that organizations be more socially responsible. Much of the third-world countries has joined the global marketplace, creating a wider arena for sales and services. Organizations became responsible not only to stockholders (those who owned stock) but to a wider community of “stakeholders.” For a social discipline, such as management, the assumptions are actually a good deal more important than are the paradigms for a natural science. The paradigm -- that is, the prevailing general theory -- has no impact on the natural universe. Whether the paradigm states that the sun rotates around the earth, or that, on the contrary, the earth rotates around the sun, has no effect on sun and earth. But a social discipline, such as management, deals with the behavior of people and human institutions. The social universe has no "natural laws" as the physical sciences do. It is thus subject to continuous change. This means that assumptions that were valid yesterday can become invalid and, indeed, totally misleading in no time at all.
As a result of the above driving forces, organizations were required to adopt a “new paradigm,” or view on the world, to be more sensitive, flexible and adaptable to the demands and expectations of stakeholder demands. Many organizations have abandoned or are abandoning the traditional top-down, rigid and hierarchical structures to more “organic” and fluid forms.
Today’s leaders and/or managers must deal with continual, rapid change. Managers faced with a major decision can no longer refer back to an earlier developed plan for direction. Management techniques must continually notice changes in the environment and organization, assess this change and manage change. Managing change does not mean controlling it, rather understanding it, adapting to it where necessary and guiding it when possible.
Managers can’t know it all or reference resources for every situation. Managers must count on and listen more to their employees. Consequently, new forms of organizations are becoming more common, e.g., worker-centered teams, self-organizing and self-designing teams, etc.
Traits of the New Paradigm
Marilyn Ferguson, in The New Paradigm: Emerging Strategic for Leadership and Organizational Change (provides a very concise overview of the differences between the old and new paradigm.
New Paradigm | Old Paradigm |
appropriate consumption | promote consumption at all costs |
jobs to fit people | people to fit jobs |
autonomy encouraged, worker participation | imposed goals, top-down decision making |
cross-fertilization by specialists seeing wide relevance | fragmentation in work and roles |
identity transcends job description | identification with job |
recognition of uncertainty | clock model of company |
cooperation | aggression, competition |
blurring of work and play | work and play separate |
cooperation with nature | manipulation and dominance |
sense of change, of becoming | struggle for stability |
qualitative as well as quantitative | quantitative |
spiritual values transcend material gain | strictly economic motives |
transcends polarities | polarized |
ecologically sensitive | short-sighted |
rational and intuitive | rational |
harmonious work environment | emphasis on short-term solutions |
decentralized operations when possible | centralized operations |
appropriate technology | runaway, unbridled technology |
attempt to understand the whole, locate deep underlying causes of disharmony | allopathic treatment of symptoms |
Parts of speech (части речи).
Word formation (Способы словообразования)
1 суффиксальный (with the help of suffixes )
2 префиксальный (with the help of prefixes )
3 суффиксально- префиксальный (with the help of prefixes and suffixes )
4 образование слова путем соединения нескольких слов (сложные прилагательные, сложные существительные и т.п.)
5 Совпадение форм (слова пишутся и произносятся одинаково, но являются различными частями речи)
Nouns (существительные)
1 management (суффикс -ment) – менеджмент, управление
2 effectiveness (суффиксы –ive; -ness) - эффективность
3 leadership (суффиксы –er; -ship) - лидерство
4 communication (суффикс –ion) – общение, коммуникация
5 disharmony (префикс –dis; суффикс –y) - дисгармония
Verbs (глаголы)
1 to improve (префикс –im) - улучшать
2 to encourage (префикс – en) – поощрять, ободрять
3 to motivate (суффикс –ate) – побуждать, мотивировать
4 to cooperate (префикс – co) - сотрудничать
5 to identify (суффикс – fy) – выявлять
Adjectives (прилагательные)
1 international (префикс – inter; суффикс –al) - международный
2 qualified (окончание –ed) - квалифицированный
3 considerable (суффикс –able) - значительный
4 different (суффикс –ent) - различный
5 unbelievable (префикс –un; суффикс –able) - невероятный
Adverbs (наречия)
1 effectively (суффиксы –ive; ly) - эффективно
2 consequently (суффикс –ly) - следовательно
3 continually (суффиксы –al; -ly) - непрерывно
4 closely (суффикс – ly) – тесно (например, тесно связанный с чем –либо)
5 successfully (суффиксы –ful; -ly) - успешно
Примеры словообразования путем соединения нескольких слов
1 team-building – создание команды
2 management – making – осуществление управления
4 stakeholder – заинтересованная сторона
5 third- world countries – страны третьего мира
6 downstream – вниз по течению
Совпадение форм
1 change – 1.изменять; 2.изменение
2 check – 1.проверять; 2.проверка
3 plan – 1.план; 2.планировать
4 impact – 1.столкновение; 2.прочно укреплять
5 kind – 1.вид; 2.добрый
I. INTRODUCTION
II. MANAGEMENT. KINDS OF THE PURPOSES
III. STRATEGIC PLANNING
1. Essence, functions of strategic planning
2. The purposes of the organization
3. An estimation and the analysis of an environment
4. Administrative research of internal factors of firm
5. Studying strategic alternatives and a choice of strategy
IV. THE CONCLUSION
V. The LIST of the USED LITERATURE
The problem of the enterprise will be to master the new markets, to satisfy needs of clients. Simultaneously she is also a problem of a management, management. Successes and failures of the enterprise is first of all successes and failures of management. If the enterprise works badly, unprofitably, his new owner changes not workers, and a management. Management means the organization of work of collective. Work at the enterprise should be organized so that she in the maximal degree corresponded to needs of employees and allowed to speed up their work and to raise its efficiency. Making of any decisions, managers should mean constantly not only high profitability of firm, but also a problem of existence of the employees, and also consumers for the sake of which the firm exists also which satisfaction of needs really is caused with necessity of functioning of firm and work of its managers. Any accepted decision should testify in long prospect to economic advantage of the enterprise. Well, and that yields good results only at present time and for the near future, and in the separate period threatens existence of the enterprise, it is necessary to regard as erroneous. Maintenance of existence of firm in the market can be counted the main task of management. In this connection to strategic management in his work is attached great importance.
Management is an independent kind of professionally carried out activity directed on achievement during any economic activities of firm, working in the market conditions, the certain planned purposes by rational use material and a manpower. Here the firm is guided by demand and needs of the market; constantly aspires to increase of a production efficiency, i.e. to reception of optimum results with smaller expenses, aspires to the economic independence providing freedom of decision-making by that who bears the responsibility for an end result of activity of firm.
The concept of management as includes constant updating of the purposes and programs depending on a condition of the market (and results of this activity are shown already in the market during an exchange) and necessity of use of modern information system with computer technics.
Management - as assumes an independent kind of professional work, that the manager is independent of the property on the capital of firm in which it works. Work of the manager is the productive work arising in conditions of a combination of hi-tech manufacture with a high level of specialization of workers, providing communication and unity of all production.
Any situation arising in managerial process, is a problem for the manager and demands from him decision-making and, in particular, concerning change of the purposes and the program of actions. It concerns both intrafirm manufacture, and production management and management of the personnel. Any administrative decision grows out a feedback with the market and other elements of an environment.
Administrative decisions are accepted on the basis of the information received and processable during preparation of decisions. The administrative decision is subject to realization and the control over his execution. The manager should not only choose measures of influence and means of the control, but also to consider variants of decisions concerning their practical practicability in given concrete conditions. Process of functioning of a control system includes work on its perfection and rationalization as modern management is based on rational ways of decision-making.
To the problems decided in management, concern: 1) definition of specific goals of development of firm; 2) revealing of a priority of the purposes, their sequences and sequence of the decision; that is development of strategy of development of firm: economic problems and ways of their decision; 3) development of system of actions for the decision of planned problems for the various time periods; definition of necessary resources and sources of their maintenance; 4) an establishment of the control over performance of problems.
Management depending on kinds and can be divided sequences of activity into 3 stages: 1) strategic management (includes development of the purpose of management, forecasting as a prediction of results of development, forward planning as system of the measures necessary for overcoming of a deviation of predicted results from the established purpose); 2) operative management (activity on realization of the above-stated measures); 3) the control (includes the analysis of the achieved results - a feedback - and acts as a starting point of a new cycle of management).
Development of economic policy of firm assumes definition of the purposes of activity of firm and strategy of its development on the nearest and distant prospect, proceeding from potential opportunities of firm and security its corresponding resources. By development of strategic positions of firm usually use the certain parameters, as qualitative - reference points - more remote purpose, and quantitative - tasks.
Between these parameters there is an interrelation: strategy, developed top-level, becomes the purpose and a reference point in local control links. In this connection it is necessary to distinguish.
* The PURPOSES the GENERAL. Reflect the concept of development of firm and are developed on long prospect and define the basic directions of the program of development of firm. Here there is a ranging by a principle of a priority under the following scheme: а) Maintenance of the maximal profitability at an available set of kinds of the activity, determined by the following parameters: a sales volume, a level and rate of return, rates of an annual gain of a sales volume and the profit, the income on one action, a share in the market, structure of the capital, a level of the dividend, the sum of the paid salary, a degree of quality of production; b) Maintenance of stability of position of firm as the purposes of a global policy on the following directions: charges on research and development of new products; potential of competitiveness; an investment policy; personnel selection; the decision of social questions; c) Development of new directions of the development, new kinds of activity of firm that assumes development of a structural policy, vertical integration, purchases and merges; development of information systems; definition of concrete firms which actions are subject to purchase; development of new kinds of products.
The SPECIFIC PURPOSES. Are developed within the framework of overall aims by the basic kinds of activity in each industrial branch of firm and can be expressed in quantitative and quality indicators: a) Definition of profitability on each separate division acting as the center of the profit. The profit level can be established in absolute parameters (usually in currency of the country of basing) and as planned targets on every year or on the end of the scheduled period. Paramount value is given to rate of return. At calculation of this parameter on the invested capital last is defined differently: 1) own capital minus obligations; 2) own means plus long-term a duty; 3) the basic means minus amortization. b) Other specific purposes. Are characterized under the purposes and are usually established not only in absolute planned targets, but also by definition of directions of development in functional areas (on marketing, in the field of scientific researches and development, on manufacture, in the field of the finance; c) The purposes of branches and the affiliated companies, formed by usually parent company, are reduced to the following: increase in sales and rates of growth of the company; increase of a share of the company in the market; growth of the profit; the contribution of branch to development of economy of a host country (growth of export, growth of a share of the local market in supply of branch by raw material and semifinished items).
At the present stage of development growing value gets perfection of economic methods of management. In this connection the increasing value is given to development of global strategy of the firm based on long-term and stable orientation of manufacture of concrete kinds of production on the certain markets, i.e. strategic planning.
The concept "planning" includes definition of the purposes and ways of their achievement. In the West planning of activity of the enterprises is carried out on such important directions, as selling, the finance, manufacture and purchases. Thus, certainly, all private plans are interconnected among themselves.
Process of planning passes four stages: * development of overall aims; * definition of the concrete, detailed purposes for set, rather short period of time (2,5,10 years); * definition of ways and means of their achievement; * the control over achievement of objects in view by comparison of planned targets with actual.
Planning always is guided by the data of the past, but aspires to define and supervise development of the enterprise in the long term. Therefore reliability of planning depends on accuracy and correctness of accounting calculations of the past. Any planning of the enterprise is based on the incomplete data. Quality of planning in the greater degree depends on an intellectual level of competent employees, managers. All plans should be made so that it was possible to make changes to them, and plans were interconnected with available conditions. Therefore plans comprise the so-called reserves differently called " extra charges of safety ", however too big reserves do plans inexact, and small entail often changes of the plan. In a basis of scheduling on concrete directions of industrial sites of the enterprise separate problems which are defined both in monetary, and in quantity indicators are put. Thus planning should make a start from so-called bottlenecks: recently it is selling, the finance or a labour.
Strategic planning represents a set of actions and the decisions undertaken by a management which conduct to development of specific strategy. These strategy are intended to help the organizations to reach the purposes. Process of strategic planning is the tool, assisting to provide a basis for operation of business. His problem will be, that in a sufficient measure to provide innovations and changes in the organization of the enterprise. So, allocate four basic kinds of administrative activity within the framework of process of strategic planning: * distribution of resources, basically limited, such as funds, administrative talents, technological experience; * adaptation to an environment (all actions of strategic character which improve attitudes of the company with its environment. Here it is necessary to reveal possible variants and to provide the effective adaptation of strategy to surrounding conditions. Such activity can pass by perfection of industrial systems, interaction with the government and a society as a whole, etc.); * internal coordination (coordination of strategic activity for display strong and weaknesses of firm with the purpose of achievement of effective integration of internal operations); * comprehension of organizational strategy (realization of regular development of thinking of managers by formation of the organization which can study on the last strategic mistakes, i.e. ability to study on experience).
Strategy represents a detailed all-round comprehensive plan. It should be developed more likely from the point of view of prospect of all corporation, instead of the concrete individual. Seldom when the founder of firm presumes to combine personal plans from strategy of the organization. Strategy assumes development of the proved measures and plans of achievement of the planned purposes in which the scientific and technical potential of firm and its industrial-marketing needs should be taken into account. The strategic plan should be proved by extensive researches and the fact sheet. Therefore it is necessary to be engaged constantly in gathering and the analysis of huge quantity of the information on branches of a national economy, the market, a competition, etc. Besides the strategic plan gives to firm definiteness, individuality which allow it to involve the certain types of workers and help to sell products or services. Strategic plans should be developed so that they remained not only complete during long time, but also kept flexibility. The general strategic plan should be considered as the program directing activity of firm during the long period of time, in view of constant updatings in connection with constantly varying business and social conditions.
Strategic planning in itself does not guarantee success, and the organization creating strategic plans, can fail because of mistakes in the organization, motivation and the control. Nevertheless formal planning can create a number of essential favorable factors for the organization of activity of the enterprise. The knowledge of that the organization wants to reach, helps to specify the most suitable ways of action. Making of the proved and systematized scheduled decisions, the management reduces risk of acceptance of the wrong decision because of erroneous or a unreliable information about opportunities of the organization or about an external situation. Planning helps to create unity of an overall aim inside the organization.
Formation of the strategic plan represents careful, regular preparation for the future, carried out by the top management: 1.) the Choice of mission. Formation of the purposes (long-term, intermediate term, short-term). 2.) Development of providing plans (a policy, strategy, procedures, rules, budgets).
One of the most essential decisions at planning is the choice of the purpose of the organization. The basic overall aim of the organization is designated as mission, and all other purposes are developed for its realization. Value of mission cannot be exaggerated. The produced purposes serve as criteria for all subsequent process of acceptance of administrative decisions. If heads do not know the basic purpose of the organization they will not have a logic reference point for a choice of the best alternative. As a basis only individual values of the head that would lead to disorder of efforts and an illegibility of the purposes could serve. Mission details the status of firm and provides a direction and reference points for definition of the purposes and strategy on various levels of development. Formation of mission includes: * finding-out by what enterprise activity is engaged firm; * definition of working principles of firm under pressure of an environment; * revealing of culture of firm.
In mission of firm for creation of clientele the problem of definition of basic needs of consumers and their effective satisfaction also enters into support of firm in the future.
Frequently heads of firms consider, that their basic mission - reception of the profit. Really, satisfying any internal need, the firm finally can survive. But, to earn profit, it is necessary for firm to watch Wednesday of the activity, taking into account thus valuable approaches to concept of the market. Mission represents extreme value for the organization, it is impossible to forget about values and the purposes of the top management.
The general firm purposes are formed and established on the basis of the general mission of the organization and the certain values and the purposes by which the top management is guided. * the Concrete and measurable purposes (it allows to create precise base of readout for the subsequent decisions and estimations of a course of work). * Orientation of the purposes in time (here it is necessary to understand not only, that the firm wants to carry out but also when the result should be achieved). * Achievement of the purpose (serves increase of efficiency of the organization); the establishment of difficultly achievable purpose can lead to catastrophic results. The supporting mutually purposes (actions and the decisions necessary for achievement of one purpose, should not prevent achievement of other purposes).
The purposes will be a significant part of process of strategic management only in the event that the top management correctly will formulate them, is effective institutsionaliziruet, will inform on them and stimulates their realization in all organization.
After an establishment of the mission and the purposes the administration begins a diagnostic stage of process of strategic planning. On this way a first step is research of an environment: * an estimation of the changes influencing various aspects of the current strategy; * definition of the factors representing threat for the current strategy of firm; the control and the analysis of activity of competitors; * definition of the factors representing more of an opportunity for achievement of the general firm purposes by updating of plans.
The analysis of an environment helps to supervise external in relation to firm factors, to receive the important results (time for system engineering the early prevention on a case of possible threats, time for forecasting opportunities, time for scheduling on a case of unforeseen circumstances and time for development of strategy). For this purpose it is necessary to find out, where there is an organization where she should be in the future and that for this purpose should make a management. And opportunities with which the firm collides, it is possible to allocate threats into seven areas: 1. Economic forces. Some factors in an economic environment should be diagnosed and estimated constantly since the condition of economy influences the purposes of firm. These are rates of inflation, the international balance of payments, occupation levels, etc. Each of them can represent either threat, or a new opportunity for the enterprise. 2. Political factors. Active participation of enterprise firms in political process is the instruction on importance of a state policy for the organization; hence, the state should watch normative documents of local bodies, authorities of subjects of the state and the Federal Government. 3. Market factors. The market environment represents constant danger to firm. To the factors influencing successes and failures of the organization, distribution of incomes of the population, a level of a competition in the branches, changing demographic conditions, ease of penetration on the market concern. 4. Technology factors. The analysis of the technological environment can take into account at least changes in "know-how", application of the COMPUTER in designing and granting of the goods and services or successes in technology of a communication facility. The head of any firm should watch not undergoing to " a shock of the future ", destroying the organization. 5. Factors of a competition. Any organization should investigate actions of the competitors: the analysis of the future purposes and an estimation of the current strategy of competitors, the review of preconditions concerning competitors and branches in which the given companies function, the profound studying strong and weaknesses of competitors. 6. Factors of social behaviour. These factors include varying attitudes, expectations and customs of a society (a role of business, a role of women and national minorities in a society, movement in protection of interests of consumers). 7. The international factors. The management of the firms working in the international market, should estimate and supervise constantly changes in this wide environment.
The analysis of an environment allows the organization to create the list of dangers and opportunities with which she collides this Wednesday. For successful planning the management should have full representation not only about essential external problems, but also about internal potential opportunities and lacks of the organization.
The management of the firm should find out, whether the firm possesses internal forces to take advantage of external opportunities, and whether there are at it weaknesses which can complicate the problems connected to external dangers. This process refers to as administrative inspection. It represents a methodical estimation of functional zones of the firm, intended for its revealing strategically strong and weaknesses. Inspection includes such functions, as marketing, book keeping, operations (manufacture), human resources, culture and an image of corporation. At inspection of function of marketing it is necessary to pay attention to seven areas of the analysis: 1) competitiveness and a desirable share of the market in percentage to his general capacity, being the essential purpose for the company; 2) variety and quality of assortment of products which are constantly supervised and estimated by the top management; 3) market demographic statistics, the control over changes in the markets and in interests of consumers; 4) market researches and development of the new goods and services; 5) preselling and after the selling servicing being one weak places in business; 6) effective selling, advertising and promotion of the goods (the aggressive, competent group of people which market the goods, can appear the most valuable condition of firm; creatively directed advertising and promotion of the goods serves as good addition to assortment of products); 7) profit (anything, even the best, does not appear worth if in result there is no profit).
The analysis of a financial condition can benefit to firm to reveal already available potential internal weaknesses of the organization in comparison with its competitors.
For a long survival of firm the continuous analysis of management of operations is rather important. During inspection strong and weaknesses of function of management of operations it is necessary to pay attention to the following questions: whether 1. The firm can sell the goods or services under lower price, than its competitors? If is not present, why? 2. The firm has what access to new materials? On how many suppliers she is fastened? 3. What equipment in firm? 4. Whether purchases are designed for decrease in size of material stocks and time of realization of the order? Whether there are adequate mechanisms of the control over entering materials and leaving products? 5. Whether production of firm is subject to seasonal fluctuations of demand? If so as it is possible to correct an existing situation? 6. Whether the firm can serve those markets which its competitors cannot serve? 7. Whether the firm possesses the effective and productive monitoring system of quality? As far as process of manufacture is effectively planned?
Sources of the majority of problems in the organization are covered in human resources. Here it is necessary to take into account: type of employees, competence and preparation of a management, system of compensations, continuity of supervising posts, preparation and improvement of professional skill of employees, losses of leading experts and their reasons, quality of products and work of employees. The culture of firm (an atmosphere or a climate in the organization) is used for attraction of workers of separate types and for stimulation of the certain types of behaviour. Image of corporation is created with the help of employees, clients and public opinion. The culture and an image of firm are supported or weaken under action of reputation of the company.
Having resulted internal forces and weaknesses in conformity with external threats and opportunities, the management is ready to a choice of corresponding strategic alternative.
Development of strategy is carried out top-level managements and based on the decision of the above described problems. At this stage of decision-making it is necessary for manager to estimate alternative ways of activity of firm and to choose optimum variants for achievement of objects in view. On the basis of the lead analysis during development of strategy there is a formation of strategic thinking by discussion and coordination with the administrative linear device of the concept of development of firm as a whole, the recommendation of new strategy of development, a formulation of projects of the purposes, preparation of instructions for long-term planning, development of strategic plans and their control. Strategic management assumes, that the firm defines the key positions on prospect depending on prioritetnosti the purposes. Before firm four basic strategic alternatives cost: the limited growth, growth, reduction and a combination of these strategy. To the limited growth adhere the majority of the organization in the advanced countries. The establishment of the purposes is typical of him from achieved, the corrected associations of firms in in any way not connected branches. Most less often heads choose strategy of reduction. In it the level of the pursued purposes is established below achieved in the past. For many firms reduction can mean a way of rationalization and reorientation of operations. In this case some variants are possible: * liquidation (full sale of material stocks and actives of the organization); * deduction superfluous (branch firms of some divisions or kinds of activity); * reduction and reorientation (reduction of a part of the activity in attempt to increase the profit).
To strategy of reduction resort more often in that case when parameters of activity of the company continue to worsen, at economic recession or it is simple for rescue of the organization. Strategy of a combination of all alternatives will be the large firms actively working in several branches adhere.
Having chosen the certain strategic alternative, the management should address to concrete strategy. An overall objective - a choice of strategic alternative which will as much as possible raise long-term efficiency of the organization. For this purpose heads should have the precise concept of firm divided by all and its future. Adherence to a concrete choice frequently limits the future strategy, therefore the decision should be exposed to careful research and an estimation. The strategic choice is influenced with various factors: risk (the factor of a life of firm); knowledge of the last strategy; reaction of owners of actions which frequently limit flexibility of managements at a choice of strategy; the factor of time dependent on a choice of the necessary moment. Decision-making on strategic questions can be carried out on different directions: " from below upwards ", " from top to down ", in interaction of two above-named directions (strategy is developed during interaction between the top management, scheduled service and operative divisions).
Formation of strategy of firm as a whole gets the increasing value. It concerns prioritetnosti decided problems, definition of structure of firm, validity of capital investments, coordination and integration of strategy.
For the enterprise of any pattern of ownership and any scales of economic activities management of economic activities, definition of strategy, and as planning is essential. Now heads of the enterprises are compelled to make economic decisions in conditions of uncertainty of consequences of such decisions, besides at lack of economic, commercial knowledge and a practical operational experience of new conditions.
Many economic zones in which the enterprises work, are characterized by the raised risk since there is no sufficient knowledge of behaviour of consumers, positions of competitors, about a correct choice of partners, there are no reliable sources of reception of commercial and other information. Except for that many managers do not have experience in management of firms in market conditions. In marketing activity of the enterprises there is a set of problems. Heads of the enterprises making final or intermediate production, feel restrictions on the part of solvent demand of the population and enterprises-consumers. The question of selling has come in sphere of the direct control of a management of the enterprises. As a rule, state enterprises had no and have no qualified employees of service of selling. Now almost all the enterprises have realized importance of the marketing program. The majority of them should solve tactical questions since many have already faced a problem of overstocking of warehouses the production and sharp falling of demand for it. Has remained strategy of selling of production in the market is not clear. Trying to change the assortment, many enterprises making products of industrial purpose, start to pass to consumer goods. If production of industrial purpose in some cases of the enterprise develop also the divisions consuming this production is issued. Reconstructing assortment, the enterprises began to predict beforehand selling and to find consumers of production.
Heads at a choice of consumers take into account: direct contact, communication with the end user, solvency of the customer. For the enterprise search of new consumers, development of the new markets (the part of heads searches new consumers independently) became rather actual.
Also the new phenomenon - mutual relations of the enterprises with new commercial structures which frequently are engaged in realization of a part of production of the enterprise is noticed, and other part comes true on old channels. Besides the enterprise can address to firm on all complicated questions of maintenance of manufacture.
Thus, management and strategic management of activity of the enterprise are necessary in any sphere of economic activities.
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