What is management?
Management is an important subject for BBA, MBA and other business program in university level. It may be defined in many different ways. Many eminent authors on the subject have defined the term “management”, some of these definitions are reproduced below:
According to Lawrence A Appley, “Management is the development of people and not the direction of things”.
According to Joseph Massie, “Management is defined as the process by which a co-operative group directs action towards common goals”.
In the words of George R Terry, “Management is a distinct process consisting of planning, organising, actuating and controlling performed to determine and accomplish the objectives by the use of people and resources”.
According to James L Lundy, “Management is principally the task of planning, co-ordinating, motivating and controlling the efforts of others towards a specific objective”.
In the words of Henry Fayol, “To manage is to forecast and to plan, to organise, to command, to co-ordinate and to control”.
According to Peter F Drucker, “Management is a multi-purpose organ that manages a business and manages managers and manages worker and work”.
In the words of J.N. Schulze, “Management is the force which leads, guides and directs an organisation in the accomplishment of a pre-determined object”.
In the words of Koontz and O’Donnel, “Management is defined as the creation and maintenance of an internal environment in an enterprise where individuals working together in groups can perform efficiently and effectively towards the attainment of group goals”.
According to Ordway Tead, “Management is the process and agency which directs and guides the operations of an organisation in realising of established aims”.
According to Stanley Vance, “Management is simply the process of decision-making and control over the actions of human beings for the express purpose of attaining pre-determined goals”.
According to Wheeler, “Business management is a human activity which directs and controls the organisation and operation of a business enterprise. Management is centred in the administrators of managers of the firm who integrate men, material and money into an effective operating limit”.
In the words of William Spriegel, “Management is that function of an enterprise which concerns itself with the direction and control of the various activities to attain the business objectives”.
In the words of S. George, “Management consists of getting things done through others. Manager is one who accomplishes the objectives by directing the efforts of others”.
In the words of Keith and Gubellini, “Management is the force that integrates men and physical plant into an effective operating unit”.
According to Newman, Summer and Warren, “The job of management is to make cooperative endeavour to function properly. A manager is one who gets things done by working with people and other resources”.
According to John F M, “Management may be defined as the art of securing maximum results with a minimum of effort so as to secure maximum results with a minimum of effort so as to secure maximum prosperity and happiness for both employer and employee and give the public the best possible service”.