PLANNING TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES strategies for obtaining and using resources to achieve

those goals.
THE NATURE OF PLANNING
There are many instances when the managers
are overwhelmed by various activities which at times
becloud his judgment. This must be expected since
anybody who is confronted by several situations
happening simultaneously will loose sight of the more
important concerns. To minimize mistakes in decision
making, planning is undertaken.
In strategic planning, the whole company is
considered, specifically its objectives and current
resources. The output of strategic planning is the
strategic plan which spells out “the decision about long
range goals and the course of action to achieve these
goals.”
INTERMEDIATE PLANNING

A plan which is the output of planning,
provides a methodical way of achieving desired
results. In the implementation of activities, the plan
serves as a useful guide. Without the plan some minor
tasks may be afforded major attention which may, later
on, hinder the accomplishment of activities.
PLANNING DEFINED
NICKELS AND OTHERS
• refers to the management function
that involves anticipating future trends and
determining the best strategies and tactics to achieve
organizational activities.
ALDAG AND STEARNS
• “the selection and sequential
ordering of tasks required to achieve an organizational
goal.”
-refers to the process of determining the
contributions that subunits can make with allocated
resources.
Under intermediate planning, the goals of a
subunit are determined and a plan is prepared to
provide a guide to the realization of the goals. The
intermediate plan is designed to support the strategic
plan.
OPERATIONAL PLANNING
-refers to the process of determining how
specific tasks can best be accomplished on time with
available resources. This type of planning is a
responsibility of lower management. It must be
performed in support of the strategic plan and
intermediate plan.

COLE AND HAMILTON

• “deciding what will be done, who will

do it, where, when and how it will be done, and the
standards to which it will be done.”

PLANNING AT VARIOUS MANAGEMENT LEVELS

• Top management level – strategic planning

• Middle management level – intermediate planning

• Lower management level – operational planning

STRATEGIC PLANNING

-refers to the process of determining the major

goals of the organization and the policies and
THE PLANNING PROCESS
The Planning Process
The process of planning consists of various
steps depending on the management level that
performs the planning task. Generally, however,
planning involves the following:
1. setting organizational, divisional, or unit goals
2. developing strategies or tactics to reach those goals
3. determining resource needed and
4. setting standards.
Setting Organizational, Divisional, or Unit Goals
• Goals may be defined as the precise
statement of results sought, quantified in time and
magnitude, where possible.
Developing Strategies or Tactics to Reach Goals
After determining the goals, the next task is to
devise some means to realize them. The ways to realize
the goals are called strategies and these will be the
concern of top management. The middle and lower
management will adapt their own tactics to implement
their plans.
A strategy may be defined as “a course of
action aimed at ensuring that the organization will
achieve its objectives”.
Determining Resources Needed
When particular sets of strategies or tactics
have been devised, the engineer management will,
then, determine the human and nonhuman resources
required by such strategies and tactics. Even if the
resource requirements are currently available, they
must be specified.
The quality and quantity of resources needed
must be correctly determined. Too much resources in
terms of either quality and quantity will be wasteful.
Too little will mean loss of opportunities for maximizing
income.
To satisfy strategic requirements, a general
statement of needed resources will suffice. The specific
requirements will be determined by the different units
of the company
Setting Standards
The standards for measuring performance may
be set at the planning stage. When actual performance
does not match with the planned performance,
corrections may be made or reinforcements for the
purpose.
A standard may be defined as “a quantitative
or qualitative measuring device designed to help
monitor the performance of people, capital goods, or
processes.
TYPES OF PLANS
Plans are of different types. They may be
classified in terms of functional areas, time horizon,
and frequency of use.
Functional Area Plans
1. Marketing Plan – this is the written document or
blueprint for implementing and controlling an organization’s
marketing activities related to a particular marketing
strategy.
2. Production Plan - this is the written document
that states the quantity of output a company must produce
in broad terms and by product family.
3. Financial Plan – it is a document that summarizes
the current financial situation of the firm, analyzes financial
needs, and recommends a direction for financial activities.
4. Human Resource Management Plan – it is a
document that indicates the human resource needs of a
company detailed in terms of quantity and quality and based
on the requirements of the company’s strategic plan
PLANS WITH TIME HORIZON

Plans with time horizon consist of the following:

1. Short Range Plans – these are plans intended to

cover a period of less than one year. First-line
supervisors are mostly concerned with these plans.

2. Long Range Plans – these are plans covering a time

span of more than one year. These are mostly
undertaken by middle and top management.

PLANS ACCORDING TO FREQUENCY OF USE

According to frequency of use, plans may be classified

as:

1. Standing plans – these are plans that are use again

and again, and they focus on managerial situations that
recur repeatedly.

2. Single-use plans – these plans are specifically

developed to implement courses of action that are
relatively unique and are unlikely to be repeated.

STANDING PLANS

Standing plans may be further classified as follows:

1. Policies – they are broad guidelines to aid managers at

every level in making decisions about recurring situation or
function.

2. Procedures – they are plans that describe the exact series

of action to be taken in a given situation.

3. Rules – they are statements that either require or forbid a

certain action.

SINGLE-USE PLANS

Single-use plans may be further classified as follows:

1. Budget – is a plan which sets forth the projected

expenditure for a certain activity and explains where the
required funds will come from.

2. Programs – is a single use of plan designated to

coordinate a large set of activities.

3. Project – is a single use plan that is usually more limited in

scope than a program and is sometimes prepared to support
a program.
ORGANIZING TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES
• The engineer manager needs to acquire
various skills in management, including those for
organizing technical activities. In this highly competitive
environment, the unskilled manager will not be able to
bring his unit, or his company, as the case may be, to
success.
• Even today, skills in organizing contribute
largely to the accomplishment of the objectives of many
organization, whether they are private business or
otherwise.
REASONS FOR ORGANIZING
Organizing is undertaken to facilitate the
implementation of plans. In effective organizing, steps
are undertaken to breakdown the total job into more
manageable man-size jobs.
STRUCTURES
-The arrangement or relationship of positions
within an organization.
PURPOSE OF THE STRUCTURES
• It defines the relationships between tasks
and authority for individuals and departments.
• It defines formal reporting relationships, the
number of levels in the hierarchy of the organization,
and the span of control.
• It defines the groupings of individuals into
departments and departments into organization.
• It defines the system to effect coordination
of effort in both vertical (authority) and horizontal
(task) directions.
WHEN STRUCTURING AN ORGANIZATION, THE
ENGINEER MANAGER MUST BE CONCERNED WITH THE
FOLLOWING:
• Division of Labor – determining the scope of
work and how it is combined in a job.
• Delegation of authority – the process of
assigning various degrees of decision making authority
to subordinates.
• Departmentation – the grouping of related
jobs, activities, or processes into major organizational
subunits.
• Span of control – the number of people who
report directly to a given manager.
• Coordination – the linking of activities in the
organization that serves to achieve a common goal or
objective.
THE FORMAL ORGANIZATION
After a plan is adapted, management will
proceed to form an organization to carry out the
activities indicated in the plan. The formal organization
is “the structure that details lines of responsibilities,
authority, and position.”
THE FORMAL STRUCTURE IS DESCRIBED BY MANAGEMENT
THROUGH:
• Organization chart – diagram of the organization’s
official positions and formal lines of authority.
• Organizational manual – provides written
descriptions of authority relationships, details the functions
of major organizational units, and describes job procedures.
• Policy Manual - describes personnel activities and
company INFORMAL GROUPS
• Formal Organizations require the formation of
formal groups which will be assigned to perform specific
tasks aimed at achieving organizational objectives. The
formal group is a part of the organization structure.
• There are instances when members of an
organization spontaneously form a group with friendship as
a principal reason for belonging. This group is called an
informal group. It is not part of the formal organization and it
does not have a formal performance purpose.
• Informal groups are oftentimes very useful in the
accomplishments of major tasks, especially if these tasks
conform with the expectations of the members of the
informal groups.
TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES
1. FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION – Function
organization structures are very effective in smaller
firms, especially “single- business firms where key
activities revolve around well- defined skills and areas
of specialization”
2. PRODUCT or MARKET ORGANIZATION – With its
feature of operating by divisions, is “appropriate for a
large corporation with many product lines in several
related industries”
Advantages:
• The organization is flexible and responsive to change.
• The organization provides a high concern for customer’s
needs.
• The organization provides excellent coordination across
functional departments.
• There is emphasis on overall product and division goals.
• The opportunity for the development of general
management skills is provided.
Disadvantages:
• There is a high possibility of duplication of resources across
division.
• There is less technical depth and specialization in divisions.
• There is poor coordination across division.
• There is less top management control.
• There is competition for corporate resources.
3. MATRIX ORGANIZATION - According to Thompson
Strickland, “is a structure with two (or more) channels
of command, two lines of budget authority, and two
sources of performances and reward” Higgins declared
that the “the matrix structure was designed to keep
employees in a certain pool and to allocate them to
various projects in the firm according to the length of
time they were needed.”
TYPES OF AUTHORITY
• LINE AUTHORITY – a manager’s right to tell
subordinates what to do and then see that they do it.
• STAFF AUTHORITY – a staff specialist’s right to
give advice to a superior.
• FUNCTIONAL AUTHORITY – a specialist’s right to
oversee lower level personnel involved in that specialty,
regardless of where the personnel are in the organization.
• LINE DEPARTMENTS
-perform tasks that reflect the organization’s
primary goal and mission. In a construction firm, the
department that negotiates and secures contracts for the
firm is a line department. The construction division is also a
line function.
• STAFF DEPARTMENTS
-include all those that provide specialized skills in
support of line departments. Examples of staff departments
include those which perform strategic planning, labor
relations, research, accounting, and personnel. Staff officers
may be classified into the following:
• PERSONAL STAFF
– those individuals assigned to a specific manager
to provide needed staff services.
• SPECIALIZED STAFF
– those individuals providing needed staff services
for the whole organization.
THE PURPOSE OF COMMITTEES
When certain formal groups are deemed
inappropriate to meet expectations, committees are
oftentimes harnessed to achieve organizational goals.
Many organizations, large or small, make use of
committee.
A committee, as described by Millevo, is “often
staffed by top executives from marketing, production,
research, engineering, and finance, who work part –
time to evaluate and approve product ideas.”
COMMITTEES MAY BE CLASSIFIED AS FOLLOWS:
• Ad hoc committee – one created for a short-term
purpose and have a limited life. An example is the
committee created to manage the anniversary
festivities of a certain firm.
• Standing committee – it is relatively permanent
committee that deals with issues on an ongoing basis.
An example is the grievance committee set up to handle
initially complaints from employees of the organization.
STAFFING THE ORGANIZATION
After setting up the organizational structure
that has been decided to best serve the interest of a
certain firm, the next move that has to be made is to fill
up the identified positions with the most qualified
persons available. Organizations are very sensitive to
whatever staffing errors are made. Placing the wrong
person in a highly specialized position like quality
control, for instance, may bring untold damages to the
firm. Yet, this refers to single error only.
WHAT IS STAFFING?
The manager must be concerned with putting
the right persons in various positions within his area of
concern. Staffing may be defined as “the management
function that determines human resource needs,
recruits, selects, trains, and develops human resources
for jobs created by an organization.” Staffing is
undertaken to match people with jobs so that
realization of the organization's objectives will be
facilitated.
THE STAFFING PROCEDURE
The staffing process consists of the following
series of steps:
1. Human resource planning
2. Recruitment
3. Selection
4. Induction and Orientation
5. Training and Development
6. Performance appraisal
7. Employment decisions (monetary rewards,
transfers, promotions and demotions) and
8. Separation
*HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING
The planned output of any organization will
require a systematic deployment of human resource sat
various levels. To be able to do this, the manager will
have to involve himself with human resource planning.
This will be done in conjunction with the efforts of the
human resource officer, i.e., if the company has one.
Human resource planning may involve three activities,
as follows:
1. Forecasting – which is an assessment of future
human resource needs in relation to the current
capabilities of the organization.
2. Programming – which means translating the
forecasted human resource needs to personnel
objectives and goals.
3. Evaluation and Control – which refers to monitoring
human resource action plans and evaluating their
success
METHODS OF FORECASTING
The forecasting of manpower needs maybe
undertaken using any of the following quantitative
methods.
1. Time series Methods – which use historical data to
develop forecasts of the future.
2. Explanatory, or casual models – which are attempts
to identify the major variables that are related to or
have caused particular past conditions and then use
current measures of these variables to predict future
conditions.
The three major types of explanatory models are as
follows:
a. Regression models
b. Econometric models – a system of
regression equations estimated from past time-series
data and used to show the effect of various
independent variables on various dependent variables.
c. Leading indicators – refers to time series
that anticipate business cycle turns.
3. Monitoring methods – are those that provide early
warning signals of significant changes in established
patterns and relationships so that the manager can
assess the likely impact and plan responses if required
RECRUITMENT
Recruitment refers to attracting qualified
persons to apply for vacant positions in the company
so that those who are best suited to serve the company
may be selected.
SOURCE OF APPLICANTS
1. The organization’s current employees. Some of the
organization’s current employees may be qualified to
occupy positions higher than the ones they are
occupying. They should be considered.
2. Newspaper and Advertising. There are at least three
major daily newspapers distributed throughout the
Philippines. Readership is higher during Sundays.
3. Schools. These are good sources of applicants.
Representatives of companies may interview
applicants inside campuses.
4. Referrals from employees. Current employees
sometimes recommend relatives and friends who may
be qualified.
5. Recruitment firms. Some companies are specifically
formed to assist client firms in recruiting qualified
persons. Examples of these companies are the SGV
Consulting and John Clements Consultants, Inc.
6. Competitors. These are useful sources of qualified
but underutilized personnel.
SELECTION
Selection refers to the act of choosing from
those that are available the individuals most likely to
succeed on the job. A requisite for effective selection is
the preparation of a list indicating that an adequate
pool of candidates is available.
WAYS ON DETERMINING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF A
JOB CANDIDATE
1. Application Blanks - The application blank provides
information about a person's characteristics and after
reading the application blank, the evaluator will have
some basis on whether or not to proceed further in
evaluating the applicant.
2. References - References are those written by
previous employers, co-workers, teachers, club officers,
etc... Their statements may provide some vital
information on the character of the applicant.
3. Interviews - Information may be gathered in an
interview by asking a series of relevant questions to
the job candidate.
4. Testing - This involves an evaluation of the future
behavior or performance of an individual.
 TYPES OF TESTS
1. Psychological Tests – which is “an objective,
standard measure of a sample behavior.” It is classified
into:
a. Aptitude test – one used to measure a
person’s capacity or potential ability to learn.
b. Performance Test – one used to measure a
person’s current knowledge of a subject.
c. Personality Test – one used to measure
personality traits as dominance, sociability, and
conformity.
d. Interest Test – one used to measure a
person’s interest in various field of work.
2. Physical Examination - a type of test given to assess
the physical health of an applicant.
INDUCTION AND ORIENTATION
IN INDUCTION - the new employee is provided with
the necessary information about the company.
IN ORIENTATION - the new employee is introduced to
the immediate working environment and co-workers.
The new employee also undergoes the “socialization
process” by pairing him with an experienced employee
and having one-on-one discussion with the manager
TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
If the newly-hired (or newly-promoted employee is
assessed to be lacking the necessary skills required by
the job, training becomes a necessity.
Training refers to the “learning that is provided in
order to improve performance on the present job.”
Training programs consist of two general types, namely:
1. TRAINING PROGRAMS FOR NON MANAGERS
This type of training is directed to
Nonmanagers for specific increases in skill and
knowledge to perform a particular job. The four
methods under this type are:
1. On-the-job Training – where the trainee is placed in
an actual work situation under the direction of his
immediate supervisor, who acts as trainer.
2. Vestibule school – where the trainee is placed in a
situation almost exactly the same as the workplace
where machines, materials, and time constraints are
present.
3. Apprenticeship Program – where a combination of
on-the-job training and experiences with classroom
instruction in particular subjects are provided to
trainees.
4. Special Courses – are those taken which provide
more emphasis on education rather than training.
Examples are those which concern specific uses of
computer like computer-aided design and building
procedures
2. TRAINING AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS FOR
EXECUTIVES
The training needs of managers maybe
classified into four areas: decision-making skills,
interpersonal skills, job knowledge, and organizational
knowledge
The decision-making skills of the manager may
be enhanced through any of the following methods of
training:
1. In-basket – where the trainee is provided with a set
of notes, messages, telephone calls, letters, and
reports, all pertaining to a certain company situation.
2. Management games – is a training method where
“trainees are faced with assimilated situation and are
required to make an ongoing series of decisions about
the situation.”
3. Case studies – this method present actual situations
in organizations and enable one to examine successful
and unsuccessful operations. It emphasizes “the
manager's world, improves communication skills, offers
rewards of solving a mystery, possess the quality of
illustration, and establishes concrete reference points
for connecting theory with practice.”
THE INTERPERSONAL COMPETENCE OF THE MANAGER
MAYBE DEVELOPED THROUGH ANY OF THE
FOLLOWING METHODS:
1. Role-playing – is a method by which the trainees are
assigned roles to play in a given case incident. They are
provided with a script or a description of a given
problem and of the key persons they are to play. The
purpose of this method is to improve the skill of the
trainees in human relations, supervision, and
leadership.
2. Behavior modeling – this method attempts to
influence the trainee by “showing model persons
behaving effectively in a problem situation.” The
trainee is expected to adapt to the behavior of the
model and use it effectively in some instances later on.
3. Sensitivity Training – under this method, awareness
and sensitivity to behavioral patterns of oneself and
others are developed.
4. Transactional analysis – is a training method
intended “to help individuals not only understand
themselves and others but also improve their
interpersonal communication skills.
IN ACQUIRING KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE ACTUAL JOB
MANAGER IS CURRENTLY HOLDING, THE FF. METHODS
ARE USEFUL:
1. On-the-job Experience – this method provides
valuable opportunities for the trainee to learn various
skills while actually engaged in the performance of a
job.
2. Coaching – this method requires a senior manager
to assist a lower level manager by teaching him the
needed skills and generally providing directions, advice,
and helpful criticism. The senior manager must be
skilled himself and have the ability to educate;
otherwise the method will be ineffective.
3. Understudy – under this method, a manager works
as assistant to a higher-level manager and participates
in planning and other managerial functions until he is
ready to assume such position himself. Once in a while,
the assistant is allowed to take over.
IN AN ATTEMPT TO INCREASE THE TRAINEE’S
KNOWLEDGE OF THE TOTAL ORGANIZATION,
EXPOSURE TO INFORMATION AND EVENTS OUTSIDE
OF HIS IMMEDIATE JOB IS MADE. IN THIS REGARD THE
FF. METHODS ARE USEFUL:
1. Position rotation – under this method, the manager
is given assignments in variety of departments. The
purpose is to expose him to different functions of the
organization.
2. Multiple management – this method is premised on
the idea that junior executives must be provided
means to prepare them for higher management
positions. To achieve this, a junior board of directors is
created consisting of junior executives as members. The
board is given the authority to discuss problems that
the senior board could discuss. The members are
encouraged to take a broad business out look rather
than concentrating on their specialized lines of work.
Performance Appraisal
Performance appraisal is the measurement of
employee’s performance. The purpose for which
performance appraisal is made is as follows:
1. To influence, in a positive manner, employee
performance and development;
2. To determine merit pay increase;
3. To plan for future performance goals;
4. To determine training and development needs;
5. To assess the promotional potential of employees.
WAYS OF APPRASING PERFORMANCE
An employee’s performance may be measured using
any of the following methods:
1. Rating scale method – where each trait or
characteristic to be rated is represented by a line or
scale on which the rater indicates the degree to which
the individual possesses the trait or characteristic.
2. Essay method – where the evaluator composes
statements that best describe the person evaluated.
3. Management by objectives method – where specific
goals are set collaboratively for the organization as a
whole, for various subunits, and for each individual
member.
4. Assessment center method – where one is evaluated
by persons other than immediate superior. This
method is used for evaluating managers.
5. Checklist method – where the evaluator checks
statements on a list that are deemed to characterize
an employee’s behavior or performance.
6. Work standards method – where standards are set
for the realistic worker output and later on used in
evaluating the performance of nonmanagerial
employees.
7. Ranking method – where each evaluator arranges
employees in rank order from the best to the poorest.
8. Critical-incident method – where the evaluator
recalls and writes down specific (but critical) incidents
that indicate the employee’s performance. A critical
incident occurs when employee’s behavior results in
unusual successor failure on some parts of the job.
4. Demotion – this is a movement from one position to
another which has less pay or responsibility attached
to it. Demotion is used as a form of punishment or as a
temporary measure to keep an employee until he is
offered a higher position.
SEPARATION
Separation is either a voluntary or involuntary
termination of an employee. When made voluntarily or
involuntarily termination of employee. When made
voluntarily, the organization’s management must find
out the real reason. If the presence of defect in the
organization is determined, corrective action is
necessary. Involuntary separation (or termination) is
the last option that the management exercises when
an employee’s performance is poor or when he/she
committed an act violating the company rules and
regulations. This is usually made after efforts fail to
produce positive results

EMPLOYMENT DECISIONS

After evaluating the performance of employees

(managerial or otherwise), the management will now be
ready to make employment decisions. These may
consist of the following:

1. Monetary rewards – these are given to employees

whose performance is at par or above standard
requirements.

2. Promotion – this refers to a movement by a person

into a position of higher pay and greater
responsibilities and which is given as a reward for
competence and ambition.

3. Transfer – this is the movement of a person to a

different job at the same or similar level of
responsibility in the organization. Transfers are made
to provide growth opportunities for persons involved or
get rid of a poor performing employee.