Functions of Managment

Management is a process by which the goals of an organization are achieved by working with the people and other resources available to an organization. Managers are the leaders of an organization. It is the job of the managers to lead and motivate their respective teams to accomplish the job promptly using the least resources possible. Exceptional managers know how their team interacts with each other, how products are made, and how the customer is treated. The strengths of the exceptional manager can be viewed in the four functions of management. These four functions are planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. This paper reviews the four functions of management and how they are employed at Lockheed Martin.

Planning

Planning is specifying the goals to be achieved and deciding in advance the appropriate actions needed to achieve those goals (Bateman & Snell, 2009). Lockheed Martin uses long range and annual planning to determine corporate targets. The strategies for the company plans what each particular department will be doing the whole year. How to get customers involved in their company, and the criteria that will be used to determine the success of the company. Planning involves not only the executive managers but also the management of each corporate segment, midlevel managers, and the employees under their control.

Organizing

Lockheed Martin uses organizing to put the required resources in the right location to meet the needs of the corporation. Organizing is assembling and coordinating the human, financial, physical, informational, and other resources needed to achieve goals (Bateman & Snell, 2009). Lockheed Martin starts with ensuring that there are sufficient funds available each year for the company to operate. Each of the four business segments of the corporation work with each other to make sure that the goals of the corporation are met each year. This past year Lockheed Martin created the Executive Office of the Chairman, which includes the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer (Lockheed Martin, 2012). Using this structure the company stays closely aligned on operational and functional matters as events happen. This allows the company to act interchangeably and decisively to meet customer needs and expectations (Lockheed Martin, 2012). Using this organizational structure allows the company to align their business strategy with executing current and future programs. This structure also provides flexible resource management and cost certainty for customers.

Leading

Leading is stimulating people to be high performers. This includes motivating and communicating with employees, individually, and in groups. Leading involves daily contact with employees, guiding, and inspiring them to achieve team and company goals. Leading takes place in teams, departments, and divisions as well as at the top of a large organization (Bateman & Snell, 2009). This starts with the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lockheed