Ch 6 - Control 

Controlling: process of monitoring activities to ensure that they are being accomplished as planned and of correcting any significant deviations

Purpose of control: to ensure that activities are completed in ways that lead to accomplishment of organisational goals

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Planning and control links in management functions:

As the final step in the management process, controlling provides the critical link back to planning. If managers didn’t control, they’d have no way of knowing whether their goals and plans were being achieved and what future actions to take.

• Planning: controls let managers know whether their goal and plans are on target and what future actions to take
• Empowering employees: control systems provide managers with information and feedback on employee performance
• Protecting the workplace: controls enhance physical security and help minimise workplace disruptions

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Process of Control:

• Measuring actual performance

• Comparing actual performance against a standard

• Taking action to correct deviations or inadequate standards

  

Performance: the end result of an activity

Organisational performance: the accumulated end results of all the organisation’s work processes and activities

• Designing strategies, work processes, and work activities
• Coordinating the work of employees

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Productivity: the overall output of goods and services by the inputs needed to generate that output

• Output: sales revenues
• Inputs: costs of resources (materials, labour expense, and facilities)

Productivity is a measure of how efficiently employees do their work

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Types of Control:

1. Feedforward control: a control that prevents anticipated problems before actual occurrences of the problem
2. Concurrent control: a control that takes place while the monitored activity is in progress

• Direct supervision: management by walking around

1. Feedback control: a control that takes place after an activity is done

• Corrective action is after-the-fact, when the problem has already occurred

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Advantages of feedback control:

• Provide managers with information on the effectiveness of their planning efforts
• Enhance employee motivation by providing them with information on how well they are doing

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