Trial Essay - What do Managers do

Introduction
Plan, Coordinate, Organise and Control. These are the four typical notions that were introduced
first by a French industrialist named Henri Fayol in 1916, (Mintzberg, 1989), that described the role
of a typical manager. A description still synonymous to a managers role in the 21st Century.
Although according to observations and findings of a manager at work by (Mintzberg, 1989)
painted a rather different picture, suggesting that at times it wasnt so relatable to the widely used
four key notions that tends to be the common description of a managerial role.
In this essay, a role of a manager will be talked about more in depth to gain a better understanding
and a broader view of a managers role in an organisation. To gain a further critical perspective, the
various factors in a managers work sphere that influences the things they actually do and how the
roles vary from one manager to another, will be touched upon. Furthermore, the essay will also
attempt to depict a picture of a competent manager working in the 21st century era.

1. The role of managers

In (Mintzberg, 1989), the scope of a managerial role is widened, contrary to Henri Fayols narrow
belief of managerial roles, through his observations and findings which summarise into 10 key
roles grouped in 3 different main classes; Interpersonal roles, Informational roles and decisional
roles. (Naylor, 2003), uses the Mintzberg 10 key managerial roles model to depict a more
transparent and structural overview of a managers role that leads to suggest that managers have
a variety of functions such as being a spearhead of an organisation, being the key link between
departments in an organisation, being the focal point for information to the outside world, allocating
various resources in a manner best suited to enhance and further the interests of the organisation
and being an arbitrator in situations that have a need for one (Naylor, 2003). Figure 1 illustrates all
the 10 key roles that H.Mintzberg concluded through his findings. Furthermore, a study done on a
sample of managers by Hemphill mentioned in (Mintzberg, 1997) points out some key roles that
managers carry out and which could be identified as managerial roles. Figure 1.1 illustrates all the
factors which provides a more in-depth picture of what managers do at different levels in an
organisation.

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Figure 1 - Mintzbergs 10 key roles (Naylor, 2003)

Fig 1.1 - Hemphill Study (Mintzberg, 1997)

Roles

Explanation

Supervision of work

Motivation of subordinates, planning, organising

work of others, efficiency of operation, maintenance
of a work force

Business Control

Cost reductions, preparation of budgets,

determining goals, enforcement of regulations.

Technical concerns with products and Markets

Development of new business, activities of

competitors, networking with customers

Human, community & Social affairs

maintaining company goodwill and participation in

the community affairs, speaking to the public

Long range planning

concerns over company future and works towards it,

normally does not get involved in routine roles, less
direct supervision

Exercise of Power and Authority

Making decisions on important matters, keeps

informed about company performance, interpreting
policy

Business Reputation

Looking after Product quality, public relations

Preservation of Assets

Capital expenditures, taxes, concerned with loss of

company money, assets valuation, preservation.

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1.2. Factors defining the scope of managerial roles

The 10 roles that Mintzberg proposes as an alternative to Henri Foyols theory, is broad but
subjective to various factors. These factors contribute to how the managerial roles for each
manager are shaped and vary. Inside the managers work sphere, the environment of a particular
organisation where customers tend to be the key differentiator around which the environment is
formed (Massie and Douglas, 1981) such as the image of an organisation and the culture of the
organisation to depict a certain conception about their organisation to their customers. This leads
to organisations insisting managers to adopt and follow a certain lifestyle and behaviour, which
eventually reflects into their process of management and adopting different roles that vary with
different managers in different industries which have a different set of ideologies and traditions
(Massie and Douglas, 1981). Another key factor that plays a pivotal role is managerial freedom.
According to (Open University, 2016), the evidence of freedom to manage in an organisation can
be established by exploring the demands of the job and the limitations of the job.
The more the limitations such as organisations bound under legal obligations, technological effects
and certain organisational bureaucracies, reshape the work of managers and how they approach
their job role. An organisation with a less bureaucratic approach could consist of managers with
more freedom to be creative with their decision making and have flexibility in their managerial role.
Another aspect that defines a managers decision making, what roles they undertake is their style
of management. Understanding the style of management often gives us an understanding of how
managers in similar situations act differently (Naylor, 2003). (Naylor, 2003) further identifies the 4
common styles; Directive - authoritarian and generally dispassionate when making decisions;
Analytical - control oriented and intellectual; Conceptual - personal, adaptive, flexible and
Behavioural - more supportive, sociable and friendly (Naylor, 2003). These management styles
also define the way managers conduct themselves in an organisation, defining the perception of a
specific manager in the organisational hierarchy. Often, adapting a wrong management style to a
specific situation ensues in a negative perception of a manager among its subordinates and
negative outcomes resulting in an unwanted and inevitable decrease in productivity.

1.3 A competent manager in the 21st Era

In todays modern era, with the involvement of technologies in organisations that evolve constantly
and a constant change in markets due to global market volatility, managers need to be up to date
and current at most times and take robust and long lasting decisions. According to (Naylor, 2003),
a good manager needs to able to adapt and work under pressure when situations isnt always
straight forward. A good manager must act astutely under uncertain situations, recognising gaps in
knowledge whilst making decisions (Naylor, 2003). A manager needs to be aware at all times of
not just their own agenda but even the agenda of others, have several contingency plans and be
politically aware. An awareness of the timing of decisions made, sequencing of events, being a
good interpreter and judgement of relevant information is of paramount importance, given the era
of information overload in most industries.

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A good manager should be able to multi task and communicate effectively within organisations and
even be persuasive and sometimes manipulative to justify their decisions and decision making for
the greater good of the organisation (Naylor, 2003). With organisations expanding globally,
managers in the 21st era, need to be aware of cultural differences to able to manage diversity and
still work in synergy.

1.4 Conclusion
A manager therefore has a variety of roles that many management researches carried along the
years tend to conclude. These roles vary for each manager and are subjective based on their
specific environment and management styles. An unknown and ever-changing environment in the
modern era, a managers role becomes even more important and broadened therefore, to be a top
manager, managers need to be always well informed about its environment and flexible to be able
to make quick effective decisions that keep the organisation functioning in volatile and ever
changing markets.

1.5 References
Massie, J.L. and Douglas, J. (1981) Managing: A contemporary introduction. 3rd edn.
United States: Prentice-Hall.
Mintzberg, H. (1989) Mintzberg on management: Inside our strange world of
organizations. 7th edn. New York: Hungry Minds Inc,U.S.
Mintzberg, H. (1997) The nature of managerial work. New York: Prentice Hall.
Naylor, J. (2003) Management. 2nd edn. New York: Financial Times/ Prentice Hall.
Open University (2016) Managing and managing people. Available at: http://
www.open.edu/openlearn/money-management/management/leadership-andmanagement/managing-and-managing-people/content-section-5 (Accessed: 17
November 2016).

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