THE SYSTEMS CONCEPT

Every practicing manager knows form experience that whatever actions and decisions he takes, in any particular area of activity, have results which extend well beyond that specific activity. The impact of decisions in some cases affects the whole organization and even external environment. A simple decision to throw out an inefficient, lazy worker can trigger off union activity which can, in extreme situations, even result in strike. For example, in a company who are selling blinds, vertical blinds and roman shades products. The marketing person who is not able to complete the given targets to them, a manager is supposed to remove such under performing marketing team member.  

The situation may become so hot that the union forces the neighboring units also to join the strike. Thus when a manager takes a decision he never views its impact in isolation but tries to understand and anticipate its repercussions on the entire organization and the environment. The manager understands that his organization is a totality of many, inter-related, inter-dependent parts, and put together for achieving the organizational objectives. This is a nutshell is the very essence of the systems concept. In Term life insurance Company who is selling providing Instant Life Insurance Rates online, if their agents are working with good performance and targeted output, it is in favors of company to remove them from team. 

A system is defined as a sum total of individuals but inter-related parts (sub-systems), and is put together according to a specific scheme of plan, to achieve the pre-stated objectives.

 

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS SOCIETY-1

The pattern and extent of rainfall is changing, leading to frequent droughts in widespread areas. Rare species of animals, birds and plants have become extinct in the wake of the destruction of their natural habitat. People are deprived of their traditional means of livelihood and the rich cultural heritage is destroyed for ever.

All this does not imply that there should be no factories, industry or no economic development. Certainly we need development, economic as well as ecological and environmental. The solution lies in matching economic development with development of the environment. When a firm puts up its factory it must also install a plant for treating and disposing of its industrial waste. When timber merchant cuts 15 trees he must plant at least that many new saplings. Offices who want to use roller shades and woven wood shades and other blinds it looks good if they plan that many new plants in their areas. Nature’s resources are limited. When we consume them faster than they can be replenished or provided anew, it is our responsibility to ensure that our children inherit a world which is healthy, green and safe for all living creatures. 

It is your responsibility as a manager to make sure that the operations of your firm do not in any way obstruct, disturb, disrupt or destroy physical structures (historical buildings, monuments), the flora and fauna, and animal and human life.

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS GOVERNMENT

It is wholly the responsibility of the manager to ensure that the constitution and operations of the firm are within the legal framework as specified by the government. This legal framework may vary, depending upon the nature of ownership of firm (proprietory, partnership, private limited, joint stock, Indian or foreign, etc.), size of the firm, and specific industry within which the firm operates. The government has laid down specific industry within which the firm operates. The government has laid down specific rules, guidelines and norms which impinge upon the firm right form the stage of its inception.  

For Blinds Company who manufactures roller shades, there are specific rules and guidelines and norms from government than for term life insurance agents. The governments’ rules and regulations, norms are made for different types of business and different type of size of industry. It changes with the type, size and category change. 

There be as a responsible manager you must ensure that your company is operating well within the legal framework and is fulfilling all its obligations towards the government. Whether it is a matter of posting a copy of the company balance sheet to the Registrar of Companies or setting up a joint venture in a foreign country, the actions must not violate the laws and regulations. 

The second area of discharging your responsibility towards the government is in the matter of paying regularly and fairly all taxes, dues and duties. The recent raids on large industrial groups are an attempt on the part of the government to unearth unpaid taxes and undeclared assets. A manager who acts in a responsible manner will be ensuring that his firm never has to face such a situation. The manager must strive to make firm a model corporate citizen.

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS UNION-1

The union will always bargain with you for the maximum benefit. As a manager you should not try to block this bargaining process but aid it by providing the union with the correct facts and figures about costs and profits and thus aim for a realistic, workable agreement which suits both the parties. 

Besides providing the correct information you should attempt to involve the union in the process of managing the firm. You can do this by inviting representatives of the union to sit on the management board. This is known as participative management. The chairman of Japan’s Matsushita Electric Company often makes this little speech to his workers about participative management: 

“Don’t think I run this company. Each of you has a part to play in its management. We need the ideas, skill and knowledge of everyone to make a reservoir of wisdom for more efficient operation, better product and service quality, and effective management. We have a good future if we can work that way.” 

The basic requirement for encouraging participative management is the manager’s positive attitude and creation of an atmosphere which encourages free and frank exchange of views among employees and management.

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS INDUSTRY AND COMPETITION-2

Today we continue our discussion on Responsibility towards Industry and Competition. Healthy competition encourages firms to improve their performance and nurtures progress and it is the responsibility of each firm to ensure that the competition it indulges in is fair and ethical. Resorting to unfair practices, trying to push out other firms on the basis of political influence or financial strength may yield some short-term gains but will eventually tarnish the image of the entire industry. All you actions must be guided by concern for the stability and prosperity of the industry.

A firm fulfils a need or needs of the society. It exists within the society and has a two-way interaction with it. It seeks inputs in the form of money, men, materials, machines, technology from the society and processes then to produce goods and services for consumption by the society.

Still today already we have discussed on different types of marketing relation with various society segments like responsibility towards customer, responsibility towards shareholders, responsibility towards employees, responsibility towards suppliers, responsibility towards distributors and retailers, responsibility towards industry and competitions. We will talk on other society segments like responsibility towards union, responsibility towards government, responsibility towards society etc…. in next posts.

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS INDUSTRY AND COMPETITION-1

Other firms within the industry are your competitors in the market place but are your associates when you have to lobby for or represent and an industry and not as individual firms. Most industries have their own associations at the local, regional, national and international level. The objectives of organizing such bodies are to protect and promote the interests of the industry, seek concessions from government and represent against any discrimination, and provide a forum for sharing and disseminating information on the latest technological and market trends. 

As a manager it is your responsibility to register your firm as a member of your industry association and comply with all its rules and regulations. The information which you provide to your association must be correct so that the association can improved technology you may consider sharing it with other fellow firms. 

All industry associations are voluntary bodies formed with the idea of providing support to individual firms within the industry. The onus of successfully managing the association is on all managers of individual firm members. You must be always willing to step forward and take an active responsibility in the association. It may impinge on your already tight schedule but it is good to remember that the interests of your firm are best served when the interests of the industry as a whole are served. 

blinds, roller shades, woven wood shades

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS DISTRUBUTORS AND RETAILERS-2

Today we continue our talk on responsibility towards distributor ands retailers. The company had to absorb the increased cost of the heavier carton, but it was more than compensated by the fact that return of stock sharply declined and the distributors had no more cause for complaints. A television marketing company provides service engineers to all its outstation distributors for testing each TV before it is dispatched onwards for dale. This adds an extra cost but ensures that the distributors and retailers receive sets which are trouble-free. 

The distributors and retailers who sell your products are in it for business and they must earn a fair return. Apart from the fixed percentage which you provide to your dealers, target based incentives, commissions and rewards will motivate your dealers to push your products harder. Providing support to the dealers by way of extending credit, sharing promotion cost, after sales service and help for decorating the showroom also form part of your responsibility. You must also nurture and maintain cordial relationship with all your dealers. Many companies hold regular dealer meets in an attempt to build up dealer relations for better corporate gains.

RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS SUPPLIERS-2

Today we continue our talk on responsibility towards suppliers. The manager’s responsibility towards suppliers of funds, i.e. banks and other financial institutions is that not only he has to make the interest payments, but make the repayment on time as per the agreed repayment schedules.  

By doing so the firm is not only helping the bank but also helping itself because the health of the bank will determine the health of the firm and vice versa. An added dimension of responsibility towards the banks is that the manger must provide accurate and complete information about the various facets of its business when applying for financial assistance. This will help the bank in assessing the risk and return potential of your project and determine the amount of loan it can sanction. 

Advertising agencies supply creative inputs used in promoting your company’s products. Since their services are not of a very tangible nature, most firms have the tendency to postpone or delay making their payment. As a responsible manager you must check against this tendency. Advertising agencies after all, run a business, like any other, and are your suppliers, and a payment delay from your end puts undue pressure on them and affects the efficiency of their operations.

RESPONSIBILOITY TOWARDS SHAREHOLDERS-1

Stockholders are granted special privileges depending on the class of stock, including the right to vote (usually one vote per share owned, but sometimes this is not the case) on matters such as elections to the board of directors, the right to propose shareholder resolutions, the right to share in distributions of the company’s income, the right to purchase new shares issued by the company, and the right to a company’s assets during a liquidation of the company.

Except in the case of a proprietorship firm where the capital is fully contributed by the proprietor, in all other companies, capital is collected from a variety of sources. The sources may be friends and relatives of the owners, financial institution and, in case of public limited companies, individual members of the public. All those people who contribute capital to firm are known as its shareholders.

The prime responsibility of the manager is to ensure the security of the shareholders’ capital. The manager must ensure that the firm dose not become bankrupt or it is faced with a situation where the shareholders’ capital is endangered. In other words, the manager must, at least, ensure the survival of the firm.  

ref: wikipedia, window blind store, premierinns

COPING WITH INCREASING LEVELS OF ASPIRATION

Improvement in information technology is resulting in an increasing trend towards democratization of the society. People in one part of the world know more about peoples and events in other parts of the world. Similarly, people belonging to one socio-economic segment of society know more than ever before the life styles of people in higher socio-economic segments. Exposed to a better quality of life and a better life style, people from the lower economic segments, especially the younger people, aspire to the same kind of life style.

 

A manager must bear this fact in mind while dealing with blue-collar workers because there is bound to be a vast gap between their levels of aspiration and reality. If the manager is ignorant and insensitive to this gap, the workers’ resentment and frustration is bound to spoil over in ways which can prove disruptive and destructive to the firm’s working.

 

You, as the manager, must understand the nature of aspiration of your workers and try to fulfil them, as far as possible, within the framework of the company and the worker’s job. Giving more autonomy, responsibility, money, status and enhancing the worker’s sense of self-esteem through participation in management decisions can channelise his latent or potential resentment towards more productive ends.

Coping with growing Technological Sophistication -2

We are talking manager’s role. As a manager he/she is suppose to go with growing technological changes and sophistication. We were talking on technological changing and adoption of technological sophistication by manager. Robots are also being used in manufacturing which requires handling of bulky and dangerous materials. All these changes in production techniques have forced managers to find ways and means of relocating the workers rendered redundant.

 

Simply laying off is not always the best solution as it can involve a very high compensation cost. Moreover, in many countries because of the government’s political ideology or cultural values (as in Japan where the concept of employment with a company is life-long), laying off workers is not permissible.

 

The use of computers in business has totally changed the way that managers make decisions. Managers today not only have access to more updated information but also better information which can improve quality of their decisions. For example a manager of online business company is using seo web design service to have professional layout Moreover, with electronic data processing managers can use complex statistical and mathematical models and tools to study the possible impacts of their decision.

 

All this helps lessen the degree of risk by reducing the level of uncertainty. However, access to more information place the onus on the manager to define what the relevant information that he needs is and also ensure that the benefit derived from the information which receives is greater then the cost incurred in collecting and processing it.

Purposeful Direction To The Firm

Role of Manager we are talking here. We understand Task of Professional Manager. A manager in insurance industry need to study and understand different insurance software available in the market and need to select the best one like Insurance CRM Software and Insurance SFA software from agency management software provider.

A manager can be compared to the captain of a ship who has first to set the course to reach the destination and then steer the ship along the course. Similarly, a manager has to, first of all, set objectives which the firm must achieve. Objectives provide the direction in which the firm must move. Having decided upon the objectives, the manager must constantly monitor the progress and activities of the firm to ensure that it is moving in the desired directions. This is the first and foremost task of every manager.

 

If you are a part of the top management team then you will be very actively involved in this task through the process of defining the mission and objectives for the entire organization. If you are a manager reporting to the top manager, it is your task to see that the actions of the people who work for you in your department or division are in the desired direction. It is your task as a manager to prevent all such actions which take your company away from the direction set by the top management.

ref: Insurance CRM & SFA Software, Insurance Agency Management Software, Agents web world

Task of a Professional Manager – 1

Role of Manager we are talking here. A manager is required to get targeted results set up with agency management system. Manager can use different crm and sfa software to perform his role.

A professional Manager may have learnt the necessary skills and gained competence from his experience. The second characteristic of a professional manager is that his primary concern is the organization or the company with which he works. This is true whether the manager works for a private or public sector or a multinational company; whether he is the executive director or the personnel manager reporting to the executive director. The professional manager always has his company’s overall perspective in his mind and all his actions are guided by the company’s objectives.

The third and the most im portent characteristic of a professional manager is that he is responsible for performance. Managing involves collecting and utilizing resources (money, men, materials and machines) in the most optimal manner for achievement of dome pre-determined objectives or results. It is the professional manager’s responsibility to utilize resources to produce the require results.

Responsibility and performance are really the key words in defining a manager’s role. Performance implies action and action necessitates taking specific steps and doing certain tasks. Let us take up  the  various tasks which a manager is expected to do to produce results.

 

ref: agency management system, insurance crm software