Summary
Summary PUB3701 PUBLIC MANAGEMENT SKILLS
- Course
- Institution
PUBLIC MANAGEMENT SKILLS
[Show more]
6 reviews
By: Sisipo • 2 year ago
By: sdyerrie • 5 year ago
Informative
By: devaranilingham • 6 year ago
By: zeldad • 6 year ago
Hi what can I do to improve the notes as you gave me 3 stars
By: aking587 • 6 year ago
By: Maybs • 6 year ago
By: Damish • 6 year ago
Seller
Follow
zeldad
Reviews received
Content preview
zSTUDY UNITS 1 TO 17
STUDY NOTES FOR
PUB3701
FINAL VERSION
ZELDA D
2017
UNISA
,STUDY UNIT 1
MANAGEMENT AND MANAGERS
How do managers differ from operational officials?
People who work in an institution can be divided into two main categories, namely managers and
operational officials. Not everyone who works in an institution is a manager.
The basic difference between operational officials and managers is that operational officials are
those people who are directly involved in performing a task and do not have the responsibility to
supervise the work of others, for example employees who process applications for car licence
renewals. In contrast, the management of an institution refers to the individuals or groups of
individuals who guide the tasks performed by others; in other words, managers are people who have
subordinates and are responsible for ensuring that the activities of subordinates are aimed at
realising the objectives of the institution.
A person who has the necessary authority to guide and direct the tasks performed by others belongs
to the management of the institution and is therefore in a position of authority. It is the attachment
of authority to certain positions within an institution that makes it possible to distinguish between
managers and operational officials.
CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE MANAGERS
They are leaders with vision and judgement to identify and do the right things. They
participate actively and communicate their vision to their subordinates.
They create a pleasant work environment and place their subordinates in positions that
make it possible for them to succeed. They also give direction and support.
They work with and through other people. They utilise the skills and abilities of subordinates
by getting them to perform the tasks necessary to realise the stated objectives.
They provide the opportunities and encouragement for subordinates to achieve improved
performance.
They use limited resources optimally. They prioritise objectives or projects and allocate
resources in a balanced manner so as to achieve the best results with the limited resources.
How can managers be classified?
• The lowest level of management is filled by the junior managers, who are usually referred to as
supervisors. Junior management includes positions such as assistant directors and other senior
officials. Incumbents of these posts are responsible for directing the daily tasks of operational
officials.
• Middle management covers positions such as directors and deputy directors. Middle managers are
responsible for setting out in detail the objectives of top- level managers.
• Top-level managers or senior managers such as directors-general, deputy directors-general and
2
chief directors are responsible for directing the pursuit of the objectives of political representatives
Page
such as ministers.
CREATED BY ZELDA D FOR PUB3701 FOR 2017
,WHAT IS MANAGEMENT AND WHAT DO MANAGERS DO?
Management is seen as a continuous and integrated process whereby certain individuals with
authority ensure institutional goal-setting and optimum realisation of objectives. The fundamental
concept is that certain individuals, as the management of an institution, are responsible for
management. Moreover, management takes place in a purposeful, institutional and organisational
environment. For optimum realisation of institutional objectives, management has to possess
certain skills.
The five main facets of management, in theory as well as in practice. These five facets briefly entail
the following:
• Management is a particular group of individuals in an institution.
• Management is an ongoing and integrated process.
• Management entails responsibility.
• Management takes place within an organisational context.
• Management is a skill.
Management as a particular group of individuals in an institution
In any work situation where two or more people purposefully work together in pursuit of particular
objectives, someone will have the necessary authority to define the objectives and to ensure that
the work is carried out effectively and efficiently in order to ensure optimum realisation of such
objectives.
It should be clear that we regard management as those individuals or groups of individuals who are
individually and collectively responsible and who have been granted the necessary authority to
ensure that work takes place constructively. It also implies that this group of individuals is expected
to ensure, in some way or another, that the human and material resources, as well as time, are used
as effectively and efficiently as possible to ensure optimum realisation of the objectives. This brings
us to management as a process.
Management as an ongoing and integrated process
“Integrated process” covers all those integral and directional activities that fall within the scope of
responsibility of the management of an institution. These activities include the performance of
certain management functions (leadership, planning, decision-making, organisation and control) and
the utilisation of management aids, such as systems analyses and network programming aimed at
pursuing and bringing about optimum resource utilisation, goal realisation and time utilisation in an
ongoing manner. (The management functions and management aids are aimed at giving direction in
the institution.)
Management should be viewed in a broader perspective, where the emphasis is not only on the
management functions or the management aids or optimum utilisation of resources and time and
goal-setting and goal realisation. Management should be seen as an integrated and continuous
process that includes all these aspects and which falls within the scope of the responsibility of
3
certain individuals in an institution.
Page
CREATED BY ZELDA D FOR PUB3701 FOR 2017
, Management as a responsibility
It now seems to be clear that certain individuals are responsible for management in an institution. It
is important to note that not everybody in an institution is charged with this responsibility. In simple
terms, management – as a group of individuals – has the authority and responsibility for ensuring
that all the activities of the particular institution, therefore both line and staff functions, take place
in an integrated and purposeful manner. They are also responsible for setting objectives and for
adapting these according to circumstances and to ensure, individually as well as collectively, that the
objectives are constantly pursued and realised in an optimum manner.
Management in an organisational context
The reference to a particular group of individuals in an institution who have been given the authority
and the responsibility to ensure optimum performance and goal-setting and realisation of objectives
shows explicitly that management does not take place in a vacuum, but rather in an institutional and
organisational environment. Any institution that has been established and involves people working
together in an organised manner to realise institutional objectives has an organisation. Such
organisation is a product of the organising function and essentially consists of a network or structure
of relationships characterised by a particular hierarchy of authority, division of functions, posts
structure and communication network. For the purposes of management in an organisational
context, the hierarchy of authority is especially important. Such a hierarchy usually divides those
who make decisions from those who carry out decisions. As soon as decision-making is linked to
authority over one or more subordinates, it means, for our purposes, that such a person belongs to
the management of the institution. We can therefore see that management in an organisational
context centres on decision-making powers as well as control over other people.
Responsibility, as a dimension of management, is also important. Because the organisational
hierarchy of an institution involves the distribution and division of authority among various
positions, as well as levels of positions, we can identify certain positions and levels of authority.
Management as a skill
In order to perform the task of management successfully, managers need to possess various skills.
Although the skills required vary from one level of management to the next, all managers,
irrespective of the level of management at which they function, require people skills and technical
skills, among others, for optimum goal realisation. People skills refer to the ability to work with
people, to understand their behaviour and to motivate them. Technical skills refer to the ability to
utilise resources or techniques in a specialised field. The skills required of a manager are discussed in
theme 2. These skills also relate to the integrated management process referred to earlier. For
example, skills such as innovation, programming and control relate to the planning function of
management. Rational decision-making may be linked to the decision-making function. Similarly,
staff motivation, communication, conflict management and the ability to adapt to change may be
regarded as leadership skills.
Is the task of managers generic?
We accept specific similarities between the two sectors, subject to the following reservations, which
4
should be taken into account when comparing public management and management in the private
Page
sector:
CREATED BY ZELDA D FOR PUB3701 FOR 2017
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller zeldad. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $3.32. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
50843 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now