Chapter 6

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Mic

Cards (9)

Planning 
The most basic of all managerial functions. Deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it and who is to do it. Provides the bridge to take us from where we are to where we want to go.
Plan 
A predetermined course of action that includes searching for possibilities of future problems, using techniques to handle uncertainty, requiring reflective thinking and imagination, based on facts not emotions/wishes, and the other management functions depend on it
Why do we make plans?
To develop a clear concept of the organization, to create a desired future, to give the organization direction and focus its activities, to anticipate and respond to changing environments, to examine the organization's strengths and weaknesses, to develop a consensus among the guiding members
Types of Plans 
Functional area plans (marketing, production, financial, HR)
Plans with time horizon (short-range, long-range)
Plans with varied frequency of use (standing plans - policies, procedures, rules; single-use plans - budgets, programs, projects)
The Planning Process 
1. Setting organizational/divisional/unit goals
2. Developing strategies/tactics to reach goals
3. Determining resources needed
4. Setting standards
Important principles in planning include the primacy of planning, flexibility of planning, contribution to purpose and objectives, pervasiveness of planning, efficiency of plans, and the principle of planning
Decision Making 
The process of choosing and selecting the best possible alternatives. Decisions are useless unless they are acted on or implemented.
Types of Decisions 
Programmed decisions (highly structured with predetermined decision rules)
Non-programmed decisions (unstructured with no clear procedures)
Basic Decision-Making Process 
1. Identify the problem
2. Gather information about the problem
3. Develop alternative solutions
4. Analyze the alternatives
5. Select the best alternative
6. Implement the alternative
7. Evaluate the decision