Effective Management Control: Marshalling your troops
Human resources form the backbone of any firm and it is of utmost importance they work collectively in achieving the ultimate objective. Organisations are a collective entity of various kinds of people. Employees form a diverse and dynamic part of the functioning of any business where diversity management plays a pivotal part. But people come from different cultural backgrounds, different ideologies, different educational qualifications and even have a difference of opinion. Thus, it becomes important to hold the reins together. And thus one of the most pivotal aspects of managing an organization is effective control.
Control is checking and verifying actual performances against actual standards for progress and results. There can be two distinct type of control. One is control of the processes and the other is having a control or command over the man power. Effective control not only means channelizing all resources in the correct direction but also leads to reduction of malpractices and wastage. Control should be exercised on not only on the subordinates but on every employee to avoid any mismanagement or malpractices.
Control can be described by a simple step of basic processes. The first aspect of control is the establishment of standards across the organization or industry. By defining a minimum standard, there is a protocol and guideline which employees have to be bound by for achieving maximum effectiveness. The next part of control is measurement of performance of the employee. This is the most critical part of control. Management should consider all possible perspectives while evaluating or judging an employee. The market scenario, complexity of the project, contribution in terms of value etc are some points which must be taken into consideration before passing a judgment over the performance of an employee. The next step in exercising a control is comparison of the performance of an individual with the standards which are set. This gives a relative performance of the person as compared to not only colleagues but also as compared to the industry standards. Once a comparison is made, taking a corrective action for making improvements is the final step. Thus, following these basic steps would ensure better control over the resources in an organization.
There are several techniques which are implemented in order to ensure effective control. Basic control can be exercised by observation of day to day activities, analyzing reports and by evaluating management by objectives. Other technical ways for effective control are by using models like MIS, audit, Performance Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) and critical path method (CPM). Controlling employees can also be conducted by performance appraisal and controlling financials can be undertaken by budgetary control. Thus, keeping a check on utilization of resources becomes a critical part in succeeding in an organization.
Monitoring attitude and behavior of people in any unit is pivotal. In sports, it the responsibility of the coach and captain to exercise control over the players so as to bring about a discipline in training. In the army too, it is the responsibility of the commander to not only motivate his subordinate soldiers, but to also keep them focused and disciplined by exercising his authority to bring about the maximum effort from them.
The world is a competitive battleground for business entities that are constantly fighting each other in order to stamp their authority. Branding, marketing etc are all important aspects. But at the end of the day, the human resources are a company's biggest assets. And to make sure that all employees combine to form a collective unstoppable force, the trump card is to have an effective control.
