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Author Topic: Advice on a Management Essay  (Read 4986 times)  Share 

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Odette.

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Advice on a Management Essay
« on: September 07, 2008, 09:40:20 pm »
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Would anyone be able to take a look at my Management essay? I know I'm not the best at English, so some help would be appreciated.
Here it is:
Topic: Describe the continuum of boss- (authoritarian) and subordinate-centred
(democratic) behaviours. Identify situations in which you have seen a democratic
leader in action and situations in which you have seen an authoritarian one at
work. How did followers react? Did situational factors make a difference to
followers’ reactions?


Managers employ a certain style when it comes to their decision making and their relationships with their employees. The style that is used will usually depend on a number of factors such as: The manager’s personality, their skills, skill levels of employees, the nature of the workplace, the time that is available, and any changes to the environments in which they operate; internal and external.
Authoritarian behaviour in the workplace described as management making decisions alone, authority being centralised (power and authority are given to one entity) and the communication is one way from the manager down (Management -> Employees). In contrast, democratic behaviour in the workplace is described as management and employees make decisions together, authority is decentralised (power and authority is dispersed among all entities) and the communication is two ways (Management <-> Employees). 
There are a number of instances where management will adopt an authoritarian style of management, for example in the case of an emergency, where someone has been injured, or in a training session where employees have no idea of the tasks at hand, etc. On the other hand there are also a number of instances where management will adopt a democratic style of management, for example, when deciding on a new product to introduce, with a group of specialists in marketing and finance, or when there is a change in the organisation’s production process, management and subordinates need to work together effectively to ensure the change from the old to the new process is successful.

Authoritarian behaviour, as mentioned above, is behaviour in the workplace that describes managers who make their decisions alone, without consulting subordinates.  Power and authority is given only to managers, lines of authority are clear for everyone.  There seems to be a consistency in decisions and there tends to be one way communication between managers and subordinates, from the top down.
The advantages of authoritarian behaviour are: decisions can be made quickly, lines of authority are clear, responsibility is clearly established, those making decisions are held accountable. It suits a hierarchical structure, works in times when hard decisions have to be made quickly, i.e. hospitals and bush fires and often clear directions are given.
The disadvantages of authoritarian behaviour are: employee input is not taken into account when decisions are made; employee skills are not utilised, and difficult to manage in this manner.  Employee motivation is limited, and workers may resent being ordered around, leading to decreased morale and productivity.
An example of where an authoritarian behaviour would be effective would be in an emergency situation where there was a fire; management would need to make an important decision quickly.  There is no time to consult every working member of the organisation, and there are many lives at stake, so they would need to adopt an authoritarian behaviour, undertake any procedures that they may need to do before evacuating the building themselves, such as turning machinery off, gathering important information, warning neighbouring organisations or residents, making sure everyone evacuates the premises safely, and then call the fire brigade, along with an ambulance to ensure everyone is alright.
Then possibly the next day or week, etc, the organisation will need to sort out what to do with the insurance company, and then they may need to speak to suppliers and customers, notifying them of what happened, reordering stock, etc, and then start on production again, and possibly counselling sessions for subordinates, as it is a traumatic event.  An organisation normally has emergency plans already on hand, usually with an authoritarian behaviour; just in case such instances occur, to avoid any harm to employees and management.

Democratic behaviour, as mentioned earlier, is a behaviour in which both management and subordinates work together as a team to make decisions together.  Employees and managers make decisions in consultation, two way communication between managers and employees, and there is an emphasis on team work and a group based decision.  Also, this can be one style where employees have some input into decisions. The final decision still lies with management, however, depending on how lenient managers are and how experienced and knowledgeable their employees are.
The advantages of democratic behaviour are: decisions are made by those with skill and experience, and are usually the best possible course of action, employee skills and expertise are used, employee potential is developed.  It can boost morale if employees feel that they are a real part of the process, leading to an increase in productivity, high levels of ownership as the employees make decisions for themselves.  This works well for middle or lower level decisions particularly about issues that directly impact on the workers.
Disadvantages of democratic behaviour are: it can be very time-consuming, and cause conflict between workers.  Not all workers want to be involved in decision making they may resent being part of the process, and they may lack the experience and knowledge, leading to an ineffective decision being made.
An example of where democratic behaviour would be effective is when management needs to make a decision of how to set out their production process, say in a manufacturing company, due to difficulty with the current one. This would be effective because there normally is a long period of time to discuss with subordinates the best possible solution, and seeing that subordinates are down in production they know what the problem is, so consulting with them would be useful.
Management may need to change some of the processes of the company, although they may not be able to change the layout of everything.  Careful planning would need to have been carried out to ensure that the positioning of the machinery allowed for the most efficient production of products as it is rather difficult to change the position of the machinery.  By allowing for subordinate input, this reduces the number of subordinates that refuse the decision and resent it, and they can see that their opinion is valuable and that they are not only in there to work and leave.

Other examples of where authoritarian and democratic behaviours can be adopted by management shall be discussed here.
Another example of where management could an authoritarian behaviour is when there happens to be a number of staff members who are inexperienced, and lack the knowledge on how to use a particular software, and management is running a training session on how to use the new software. They would need to adopt this type of behaviour because employees have no knowledge of how to use the software, so they will be willing to listen to management, although they would need to be given reasons why they will need the new software and not the old one.  Other than that, they’d be willing to accept instruction as they can see how their skills and knowledge base is being expanded.
The situational factors probably would make a difference in that if staff was experienced and management were instructing them on how to use certain applications in the software, they may not like the idea of being told how to do their job, seeing as they do know how to use the software.  In this case it would be more accepted by the majority of staff to use a democratic style.
Another example of where management could adopt a democratic behaviour is when a decision needs to be made about employment conditions. Management would need to consult with employees to assess what the role of the employee is and what the needs of the employee and management are, and find some sort of compromise, to be able to discuss the best possible conditions.
In this case, management and employees are able to present their needs and discuss terms and conditions, and essentially both parties will be happy, and more accepting of the outcome. The situational factors probably would make a difference, because if management decided on the terms and conditions it may have been in management’s best interest and the employee may resent the terms and conditions set out.

In conclusion, management will adopt a particular management style that they see appropriate in a particular situation, whether it is authoritarian or democratic behaviour depends on a number of factors, some of them being: the time available to make the decision, the urgency of the decision, the manager’s personality, the employees, and the resources available, etc.
Authoritarian behaviour is useful when a decision needs to be made quickly, in a hierarchical structure, when employees lack the knowledge and skills to make the decision, when it comes to the future goals of the company, etc.
Democratic behaviour is useful when a decision needs to be made in middle or lower level management that impacts employees, when a lot of thinking needs to go into the decision being made and employees have the knowledge and skills needed to assist the decision-making process. The situation itself also determines how likely the employees will accept the decision being made, and their reaction to the decision making process and behaviour adopted by management.
« Last Edit: September 08, 2008, 09:44:06 am by Odette. »

Odette.

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Re: Advice on a Management Essay
« Reply #1 on: September 08, 2008, 09:43:10 am »
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Anyone? Dx

Keitaro26

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Re: Advice on a Management Essay
« Reply #2 on: September 08, 2008, 05:50:48 pm »
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Anyone? Dx

I thought I already looked at this for you?

Odette.

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Re: Advice on a Management Essay
« Reply #3 on: September 09, 2008, 03:11:58 pm »
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Anyone? Dx

I thought I already looked at this for you?

Well I needed a second opinion x3 Never mind anyways looks like no one could be bothered reading it.