Control in management

The meaning of the control

 An
important feature of the people-organization relationship is management control
and power. Control systems exist in all spheres of the operations of the
organization and are necessary part of the process of management. The manager
needs to understand the nature of power and control in order to improve
organizational performance. Control is аn integral part of the process of
management.

 Management
control is primarily а process fоr
motivating and inspiring people to perform organization activities that will
further the organization‘s goals. It is also а process
for detecting and correcting unintentional performance errors and intentional
irregularities, such as theft or misuse оf resources.

 
Control
is also often associated with the act of delegation. However, this does not
imply that control is undertaken only bу the manager. The person to whom the
task is delegated саn also often effectively identify and operate day-to-day соntrols.

 The
process of control is at the centre of the exchange between the benefits that
the individual derives from membership of аn organisation and the costs of such
benefits.

   Unfortunately, 'control' often has аn emotive
connotation and is interpreted in а nega­tive manner to suggest
direction or command bу the
giving of orders. Control
systems are concerned with the regulation of behaviors. People mау bе suspicious
of control systems and see them as emphasizing punishment, аn indication of authoritarian
management, and а means of exerting pressure and maintaining disci­pline.

This
is too narrow аn interpretation. There is far more to control than simply а
means of restricting behavior or the exercise of authority over others. Control
is not only а function of the formal organisation and а hierarchical structure
of authority. It is also а feature of organizational behavior and а function of
interper­sonal influence.

 Control is а general
concept which is app1ied to both individual behavior and organizational
performance.

      Behavioral aspects of
the control.

  
People are the integral element of the control and all other stages of
management. Therefore developing the process of the control the manager should
consider behavior of people.

Individual behavior. Control саn stand
for reliabi1ity, order and stability. Whenever а person inquires 'I
would like to know how well I аm doing', this in effect саn bе seen as
asking for соn­trol. Members
of staff want to know what is expected of them and how well they are
performing. This
places emphasis оn the exchange of information, and feedback and comparison of
actual resu1ts against planned targets. Control is а basis for training needs,
the motivation to achieve standards and for the development of individuals.

Organizational performance.  At the
organizational level, management need to exercise 'control' over the behavior
and actions of staff in order to ensure а satisfactory level of performance.
Managerial control systems are а means of checking progress to determine
whether the objectives of the organisation are being achieved.

 
Control completes the cycle of managerial activities. It involves the planning and
organisation of work functions, and guiding and regulating the activities of
staff. Control provides а check оn the execution of work and оn the success or
failure of the operations of the organisation.

 
The whole purpose of management control is the improvement in performance at
both the individual and organizational level.

 
Certainly, the circumstance, that the control renders strong and direct
influence on behavior, should not cause any surprise. Frequently managers deliberately
and intentionally make control process obvious to affect the behavior of
employees and to force them to direct their efforts on the achievement of the
purposes of the organization. Unfortunately the majority of managers well know
that the process of the control can be used for rendering positive influence on
behavior of employees, some of them forget about possibility of the control to
cause unpredictable failures in behavior of people. These negative events
frequently are collateral results of the monitoring system. The control
frequently makes strong influence on organizational performance. Unsuccessfully
designed monitoring systems can make behavior of workers focused on system,
i.e. people will aspire to satisfy the requirements of the control instead of
achievement of objects of the organization. Such influences can lead also to
deliver the incorrect information. The problems arising during the monitoring
is possible to avoid by setting intelligent comprehensible standards of the
control, establishing bilateral connection, setting intensive but achievable
standards of the control, avoiding the excessive control, and also rewarding
for the achievement of the  standards.

Elements of a
control                  

Whatever
the nature of control and whatever forms it takes there are five essential ele­ments
in а
management control system:

•  planning what is desired;


•  establishing
  standards of performance;


•  monitoring
  actual performance;


•  comparing actual achievement against the planned
  target


•  rectifying and taking corrective action.

    Planning what is desired
involves clarification of the aims to bе achieved. It is im­portant that
people understand exactly what should hарреn and what is
required of them. This
requires that objectives and targets are specified clearly, particularly key
activities, and given some measurable attribute. Planning provides the
framework against which the process of control takes place.

 
Related to planning is the establishment of defined standards of
performance against which the level of success саn bе
determined. This requires realistic measure­ments bу which
the degree and quality of goal achievement саn bе determined. There саn bе nо control
without them. Objectives and targets, and standards of performance, should bе stated
clearly and communicated to those concerned, and to those who are subject to
the operation of the control system.

  
Тhе third
element of control is the need for а means of monitoring actual
per­formance. This
requires feedback and а system of reporting information which is accurate,
relevant and timely, and in а form that enables management to highlight
deviations from the planned standard of performance. Feedback also provides the
basis for decisions to adjust the control system, for example the need to
revise the original plan. Feedback should relate to both the desired
end-results and the mеаns designed to achieve them.

 
Next, it is necessary to compare actual performance against planned
targets. This
requires а means of interpreting and evaluating information in order to give
details of progress, reveal deviations, and identify probable causes. This
information should bе fed
back to those concerned to let them know how well they are getting оn.

  
The final element of а
management control system is the taking of corrective action to
rectify the situation which has led to the failure to achieve objectives or tar­gets,
or other forms of deviations identified. This requires consideration of what саn bе done
to improve performance. It requires the authority to take appropriate action to
correct the situation, to review the operation of the control system and to таке аnу
necessary adjustments to objectives and targets or to the standards of
performance.

                            
Forms of
control

·    
Control
is far-reaching, it саn serve а number
of functions and саn Ье
manifested in а number
of different forms.

·    
Control
systems саn focus оn the
measurement of inputs, outputs, processes or the behavior of people.

·    
Controls
саn Ье
concerned with general results or with specific actions.

·    
Controls
саn Ье
concerned with an evaluation of overall performance of the organization as а whole
or with major parts of it. This requires broadly based standards of performance
and remedies for corrective action. Total quality control, concerned with аН areas
of the organization, саn Ье seen as
part of Total Quality Management programmes.

·  
Controls
саn Ье
concerned with the measurement and performance of day-to-day operational
activities. This calls for more specific standards of performance and speedy
corrective action

Some authors identify three main
forms of control:

   
Direct control Ьу orders, direct
supervision and rules and regulations. Direct controls mау Ье
necessary, and more readily acceptable, in а crisis situation and during
training. But in organizations where people expect to participate in decision
making, such forms of control mау Ье
unacceptable. Rules and regulations which are not accepted as reasonable, or at
least not unreasonable, will offer some people а challenge to use
their ingenuity in finding ways round them.

      Control through standardization
and specialization. This is achieved through clear definition of the
inputs to а job,
the methods to Ье used
and the required out­puts. Such bureaucratic control makes clear the parameters
within which one сапact and
paradoxically makes decentralization easier. Provided the parameters are not
unduly restrictive they сап
increase the sense of freedom. For example, within clearly defined limits which
ensure that one retail chain store looks like another, individual manager’s тау have freedom
to do the job as they wish.

  
Control through influencing the way that people think about what they should do. This is
often the most effective method of exercising control. It mау Ье
achieved through selective recruitment of people who seeт likely
to share а similar
approach, the training and socialization of people into thinking the organization’s
way,
and  through
peer pressure. Where ап organization
has а very
strong culture, people who do not fit in, or learn to adapt, are likely to Ье pushed
out, even though they mау appear
to leave of their own volition.

     
Characteristics
of an effective control

People’s
behavior, naturally, is not the unique factor determining efficiency of the
control. In order to achieve the purposes of the organization the control
should possess several important characteristics:

-  
It
must be understood by those involved in its operation.

-  
Controls
should conform with the structure of the organization and be related to
decision centers responsible for performance. Information should Ье supplied
to those managers who have the responsibility for specified areas of activity
and who are сараЫе of
using this information to evaluate the degree of success in achievement of objectives:
for example, the cause of excess expenditure in а manufacturing
operation.

-  
An
effective control system should report deviations пот the
desired standard of performance as quickly as possible. Ideally, indications of
likely deviations should Ье discovered
before they actually occur.

-  
control
system should draw attention to the critical activities which are
important to the success of the organization. An unnecessary number of
controls over comparatively unimportant activities are uneconomic and time-consuming;
they сап have а demoralizing
effect оп staff
and тау
possibly resu1t in lack of atten­tion to the key control points.

-  
То Ье
effective, а control
system must Ье flexible.
It must yield information which is not influenced Ьу changes
in other factors unconnected to the purpose of the control system.
Control systems should Ье
designed to improve the operations of the organization and Ье
adaptable to changing environmental circumstances.

-  
The
control system should Ье
consistent with the objective of the activity to which it relates. In addition
to locating deviations from the planned standard of performance, the control
system should Ье
sophisticated enough to indicate ways in which performance сап Ье
improved

-  
Control
systems should themselves Ье subject to а continual review
to ensure that they are effective and appropriate in terms of the results they produce.
They should not Ье too
costly or elaborate, but should satisfy the characteristic features.

                      Conclusion.

      The
control is effective if it has strategic character, is aimed at achievement of
concrete results, and is duly, flexible, simple and economic.

     When
the organizations carry out the business in the foreign markets, function of
the control gets an additional degree of complexity.

    The
control over the international scale is especially difficult business because
of the big number of various spheres of activity and communication barriers.
Productivity of the control can be improved, if переодuческu to carry
out meetings of responsible heads in headquarters of the organization and
abroad. It is especially important to not make foreign managers the responsible
for the decision of those problems which do not depend on them.

 
Control system can help fulfill peoples need at work and their presence may be
welcomed. Often control over behavior is resented and perceived as a threat.
The manager should, therefore, enlist the co-operation of control systems. The
effective function of control systems is influenced by: motivation of staff;
the operation of groups and the informal organization; organization structure;
leadership style and systems of management.