Definition of management by eminent authors

Management may be defined in many different ways. Many eminent authors on the subject have defined the term “management”, some of these definitions are reproduced below:

• According to Lawrence A Appley – “Management is the development of people and not the direction of things”.
• According to Joseph Massie – “Management is defined as the process by which a cooperative group directs action towards common goals”.
• In the words of George R Terry – “Management is a distinct process consisting of planning, organising, actuating and controlling performed to determine and accomplish the objectives by the use of people and resources”.
• According to James L Lundy – “Management is principally the task of planning, coordinating, motivating and controlling the efforts of others towards a specific objective”.
• In the words of Henry Fayol – “To manage is to forecast and to plan, to organise, to command, to co-ordinate and to control”.
• According to Peter F Drucker – “Management is a multi-purpose organ that manages a business and manages managers and manages worker and work”.
• In the words of J.N. Schulze – “Management is the force which leads, guides and directs an organisation in the accomplishment of a pre-determined object”.
• In the words of Koontz and O’Donnel – “Management is defined as the creation and maintenance of an internal environment in an enterprise where individuals working together in groups can perform efficiently and effectively towards the attainment of group goals”.
• According to Ordway Tead – “Management is the process and agency which directs and guides the operations of an organisation in realising of established aims”.
• According to Stanley Vance – “Management is simply the process of decision-making and control over the actions of human beings for the express purpose of attaining predetermined goals”.
• According to Wheeler – “Business management is a human activity which directs and controls the organisation and operation of a business enterprise. Management is centred in the administrators of managers of the firm who integrate men, material and money into an effective operating limit”.
• In the words of William Spriegel – “Management is that function of an enterprise which concerns itself with the direction and control of the various activities to attain the business objectives”.
• In the words of S. George – “Management consists of getting things done through others. Manager is one who accomplishes the objectives by directing the efforts of others”.
• In the words of Keith and Gubellini – “Management is the force that integrates men and physical plant into an effective operating unit”.
• According to Newman, Summer and Warren – “The job of management is to make cooperative endeavour to function properly. A manager is one who gets things done by working with people and other resources”.
• According to John F M – “Management may be defined as the art of securing maximum results with a minimum of effort so as to secure maximum results with a minimum of effort so as to secure maximum prosperity and happiness for both employer and employee and give the public the best possible service”.
• In the words of Kimball and Kimball – “Management embraces all duties and functions that pertain to the initiation of an enterprise, its financing, the establishment of all major policies, the provision of all necessary equipment, the outlining of the general form of organisation under which the enterprise is to operate and the selection of the principal officers. The group of officials in primary control of an enterprise is referred to as management”.
• In the words of E.F.L. Brech – “Management is a social process entailing responsibility for the effective and economical planning and regulation of the operations of an enterprise, in fulfilment of a given purpose or task, such responsibility involving: (a) judgement and decision in determining plans and in using data to control performance, and progress against plans; and (b) the guidance, integration, motivation and supervision of the personnel composing the enterprise and carrying out its operations”.
• According to E. Peterson and E.G Plowman – Management is “a technique by means of which the purpose and objectives of a particular human group are determined, classified and effectuated”.
• According to Mary Cushing Niles – “Good management or scientific management achieves a social objective with the best use of human and material energy and time and with satisfaction for the participants and the public”.

From the definitions quoted above, it is clear the “management” is a technique of extracting work from others in an integrated and co-ordinated manner for realising the specific objectives through productive use of material resources. Mobilising the physical, human and financial resources and planning their utilisation for business operations in such a manner as to reach the defined goals can be referred to as “management”. If the views of the various authorities are combined, management could be defined as “a distinct ongoing process of allocating inputs of an organisation (human and economic resources) by typical managerial functions (planning, organising, directing and controlling) for the purpose of achieving stated objectives namely – output of goods and services desired by its customers (environment). In the process, work is preformed with and through personnel of the organisation in an ever-changing business environment”.

Categories: Human Resource and Organizational Behaviour