Functions of Management - Spawar Systems Center Pacific

Functions of Management Paper

This paper will examine the four fundamental keys to successful management and describe how these principals are applied at SPAWAR SYSTEMS CENTER PACIFIC (SSC PACIFIC). Management in every business must apply the aforementioned fundamentals to create a healthy productive high powered organization. The four functions of management fundamentals are planning, organizing, leading, and controlling

Planning is defined by the text as "Specifying the goals to be achieved and deciding in advance the appropriate actions needed to achieve those goals" (Bateman, 2009). Planning can be the most important stage in the function of management. During the planning stage the foundation of the company's business strategy is laid. This stage includes reviewing situations, defining resources, determining objectives, and goal setting. At SSC PACIFIC our planning team includes every member of our division. Our division, the Installation Management Organization (IMO) believes that "A plan executed by a person/team that had no input to the plan itself, is no plan at all". The management planning team goal is to improve the relationship between staff, and residents are set as long-term and short-term goals (Erven, 2010, p. 10).

Another function of management is organizing. Organizing develops and coordinates the human, financial, physical, informational, and other resources needed to achieve goals of the team (Bateman, 2009). For employees to work together efficiently, and maintain a consistent flow, teams are assembled based on their experience and expertise of individual. Good organizations allow managers to make good use the resource available, attract quality personnel, and create conditions that promote employees to excel. At SSC PACIFIC management attracts the very finest brilliant, young minds by offering positions working in cutting-edge facilities, by working at the tip of sword in defense electronics and software development.

The third function of management is leading. The best leaders inspire their employees to work at the highest level attainable. Leaders should be able to motivate, direct, inspire and command respect. Effective leadership will motivate people within the organization to use intelligence and experience to provide inventive new ideals to accomplish management's goals. Good leaders will also mentor their subordinates and peers in ways that not only provide value to the individual at work but also on a personal level. The IMO provides an environment that promotes hard work and personal achievement. We create this environment by nurturing employee creativity and recognizing and growing the leadership qualities in junior personnel.

The final function of management is control, and this function is performed through organizations hierarchy. Mid to upper level members of the management team will monitor and correct (as