Management is the process of overseeing and coordinating the activities of an organization in order to achieve its goals. This involves making decisions and implementing plans to direct the use of the organization’s resources in the most effective way possible. Management is a fundamental function that is necessary for all organizations, regardless of their size or type. Effective management is essential for ensuring that an organization operates efficiently and effectively.
Management functions are the activities or tasks that are carried out by a management team or position in order to create value for an organization. In an academic context, these functions are often presented as a set of four or five categories, such as planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling. However, other functions, such as communication, may also be important for effective management. A more comprehensive list of management functions may include additional activities such as decision-making, problem-solving, and innovation. Overall, the specific management functions that are required will vary depending on the needs and goals of the organization.
The following is a list of important management functions.
| Administration | Benchmarking |
| Budget Control | Budget Planning |
| Business Analysis | Business Improvement |
| Business Optimization | Business Processes |
| Communication | Compliance |
| Cost Control / Reduction | Customer Relationships |
| Decision Making | Delegation |
| Directing Employees | Efficiency Use of Resources |
| Employee Feedback | Employee Performance |
| Estimates | Financial Controls |
| Forecasting | Goal Setting |
| Handling Issues | Internal Controls |
| Investor Relations | Knowledge Development |
| Knowledge Sharing | Management Accounting |
| Negotiation | Organization |
| Organizational Structure | Partner Management |
| Policy | Problem Solving |
| Procedures | Procurement |
| Project Management | Recruiting |
| Reporting | Resource Utilization |
| Responsibility & Accountability | Risk Control |
| Risk Identification | Risk Mitigation |
| Role Planning | Strategy Planning |
| Supervising Employees | Team Culture |
| Training | Work Coordination |
| Work Productivity | Working Conditions |
The following are important management skills.
| Accountability | Analysis |
| Asset Management | Automation |
| Benchmarking | Business Processes |
| Communication | Compliance |
| Continuous Improvement | Control |
| Direction | Ethics & Principles |
| Financial Management | Forecasting & Estimates |
| Goal Planning | Human Resource Management |
| Internal Controls | Issue Clearing |
| Knowledge Management | Leadership |
| Measurement | Negotiation |
| Organizational Structure | Organizing |
| Performance Management | Planning |
| Policies & Procedures | Procurement |
| Recruiting | Relationship Management |
| Reporting | Research & Development |
| Risk Management | Stakeholder Management |
| Strategy | Transparency |
The following are common examples of management tasks.
| Benchmarking | Budget Administration |
| Business Analysis | Business Cases / Plans |
| Business Continuity Planning | Business Experiments |
| Business Measurements | Business Process Design |
| Coaching / Mentoring | Compliance Implementation |
| Compliance Reporting | Conflict Resolution |
| Contract Administration | Customer Advocacy |
| Customer Relationship Management | Data Analytics |
| Decision Making | Delegation |
| Direction & Control | Document Management |
| Employee Communication | Exception Handling |
| Feedback | Financial Analysis |
| Gap Analysis | Goal Setting |
| Governance Meetings | Influencing |
| Internal Controls | Interviewing |
| Investor Communication | Issue Clearing |
| Knowledge Communication | Knowledge Development |
| Knowledge Management | Meeting Facilitation |
| Meeting Management | Metrics |
| Negotiation | Onboarding |
| Operations Analysis | Organizational Structure |
| Partner Management | Partner Relationships |
| Performance Reviews | Pilots |
| Presentations | Prioritization |
| Problem Solving | Process Implementation |
| Process Monitoring | Process Optimization |
| Procurement | Product Launch |
| Product Management | Project Management |
| Project Oversight | Project Planning |
| Project Sponsorship | Prototypes |
| Public Relations | Public Speaking |
| Quality Assurance | Quality Control |
| Quality Planning | Recruiting |
| Reporting | Requirements Development |
| Research & Development | Resource Planning |
| Restructuring | Retrenchment |
| Risk Identification | Risk Management |
| Scenario Planning | Scheduling |
| Stakeholder Communication | Stakeholder Management |
| Standards Compliance | Strategy Planning |
| Team Culture | Training |
| Work Review | Work Supervision |
| Workflow |
