MENTZBERG (Management Roles)

-10 Managerial Roles-

- Figurehead - Leader
- Liaison - Monitor
- Disseminator - Spokesperson
- Entrepreneur - Disturbance handler
- Resource Allocator - Negotiator

INTERPERSONAL
1- Figurehead:
All social, inspirational, legal, and ceremonial obligations. In this light, the manager is seen as
a symbol of status and authority.

Ex. Managers in the figurehead role attend social events where they promote their company.

Ex. Greeting a potential business client and giving a tour.

2- Leader:
The one who builds relationships with employees and communicates with, motivates, and
coaches them.

Ex. A manager sets a goal for the team and communicates his expectations, making sure that
people understand them. He monitors their progress and provides feedback and resources if
needed.

3- Liaison (Channel of the Communication):

The manager makes contacts outside his chain of command.
The Liaison role is devoted to building up the manager’s external information system:
informal. private, verbal, and effective.

Ex. A manager coordinates with people inside the company, as well as coordinating work
between the company’s units.

Ex. A manager coordinates with people outside the organization, such as buyers, suppliers,
and strategic partners.

Ex. Manager-client-employee interaction. A manager communicates with a client to see what

the client's needs are, providing this information to the employees after the fact.

INFORMATIONAL
4- Monitor:
 The manager collects and sorts out information which is used to build up a general
understanding of the organization and its environment as a basis of decision-making.

Ex. Seeking customer feedback to see how exactly you can improve your products or
services.

Ex. Monitoring industry trends, like products made by competitors or government regulatory
changes, to meet standards and stay on track.

5- Disseminator:
The one who transmits information internally or externally obtained from internal or external
sources.

Ex. A one-on-one conversation between a manager and an employee where a certain issue is
discussed.

Ex. Developing a proposal for a new product design, submitting it to upper management for
approval, and providing it to the employees so that they can get familiarized with it.

6- Spokesperson:
Managers transmit information to various external groups by acting in a PR capacity,
lobbying for the organization, and informing the public about the organization’s performance,
plans, and policies.

Ex. A manager attends the annual shareholders’ meeting, informing the attendees about the
results her team has achieved this year and presenting statistics.

Ex. A manager speaks on behalf of the company at a conference.

Ex. Division leaders talk to other division leaders, informing them about strategies and
resource requirements.

Ex. CEOs meet with investors or government officials to give them information about the
company which they may find useful. This way, they can persuade investors that their
company is pursuing a good strategy and raise some capital.

DECISIONAL
7- Entrepreneur:
The entrepreneur role involves responsibilities related to organizing and running business
processes. These responsibilities may include solving problems and developing and
 implementing new ideas or strategies. As an entrepreneur, your ideas or decisions often
promote innovative solutions that move the organization forward.

Ex. A manager decides to use social media to increase sales.

Ex. A manager reorganizes a weak department or uses mergers or acquisitions.

8- Disturbance Handler:
When your organization or team faces unexpected challenges, you take the role of a
disturbance handler to help manage the issue.
Someone who deals with unexpected events and operational breakdowns.

Ex. When two members of a team have a conflict, it’s the manager’s responsibility to help
them resolve it.

9- Resource Allocator:
Responsible for allocating organizational resources of all kinds and making or approving all
significant organizational decisions.

Ex. A manager divides funding between the departments of his organization, based on their
current and future needs.

Ex. A marketing manager divides funding between media advertising and promotions.

Ex. A resource manager distributes project workload across people.

10- Negotiator:
Responsible for representing the organizations at major negotiations.

Ex. A manager negotiates pricing, delivery, and design with customers.

Ex. A manager negotiates over access to capital and personnel with seniors.

KATZ’S ESSENTIAL MANAGEMENT SKILLS

Robert Katz identifies three types of skills that are essential for a successful
management process.

What is Katz’s Three-Skill approach?

It is a theory that categorizes and articulates the competencies required for management by
hierarchy and skill level. The framework divides managers into three levels: first-line
management, middle management, and top management. In addition, necessary business
skills are divided into three categories: technical skills, human skills, and conceptual skills.

Top Management (CEO/COO):

Top management includes the chief executive officer (CEO), chief operating officer (COO),
chairman, president, and vice president. Since they are involved in determining management
policies and strategies, they have few opportunities to give specific instructions in the field.

Middle Management:
Middle management applies to positions such as general managers, section managers, area
managers, and branch managers. They are required to understand the decisions of top
management, communicate them to first-line management, and facilitate the execution of
business operations.

First-Line Management (Supervisory):

First-line management includes section managers, chiefs, and other on-site supervisors. They
can supervise members based on instructions from middle management and are involved in
on-site operations. Even employees without a position are treated as first-line management if
they are assigned as project leaders, etc.

Three Skills

Technical Skills:
Technical skills are specialized knowledge and skills to perform specific tasks. Also referred
to as business execution skills, these skills include computer skills, bookkeeping and language
qualifications, product knowledge, and the ability to propose services. Compared to the other
two skills, technical skills tend to be more relevant to the workplace.

Human Skills:
 Human skills are signified as interpersonal skills. It represents the ability to build good
relationships not only with people in the workplace including superiors and subordinates, but
also with customers, consumers, and all other parties involved in work. It consists of elements
such as leadership, communication, presentation, and active listening skills.

Conceptual Skills:
Conceptual skills are the skills to understand the bottom lines and make appropriate decisions.
It can be said to be the ability to objectively analyse all events that need to be addressed, such
as problems that occur in organizational operations and changes in the market, and to find
effective approaches. Personnel with high conceptual skills have the following abilities.

 Logical thinking
 Lateral thinking
 Critical thinking
 Multifaceted view
 Intellectual curiosity
 Spirit of Inquiry
 Application ability
 Flexibility
 Receptivity, etc.

TECHNICAL HUMAN CONCEPTUAL

- Business - Advanced
strategy negotiation
development. skills.
- Business Plan - Organizational
TOP MANAGEMENT development. development.
- Financial
Management.
- Risk
Management.
- Analysis of - Leadership. - Critical
financials. - Teaching. Thinking.
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT statements & - Coaching. - Problem-solving
(Executives & Managers) other figures. ability.
- Market - Planning ability.
analysis.
- Computer - Communication
 FIRST-LINE skills. skills.
- Business - Listening skills. - Logical thinking.
MANAGEMENT email. - Followership.
(SUPERVISORY) - Harassment.

LUTHANS STUDY OF MANAGERIAL ACTIVITY

 Four types of managerial activity:

1- Traditional Management:
(Decision making – Planning – Controlling).

2- Communication:
Exchanging routine information and processing paperwork.

3- Human Resource Management:

(Motivating – Disciplining – managing conflict – staffing –
training).

4- Networking:
(Socializing – politicking – Interacting with others).
This activity involves socializing, politicking, and interacting with
outsiders.

…
It was found that successful managers spent more time and effort in
socializing, interacting, and networking.
They did not spend much time on traditional management activities
or human resource management activities (Luthans, 1988).

The average manager, successful manager, and effective manager

are not the same thing.