Developing Managers in Business Essay Example for Free

Developing Managers in Business EssaySuccess in the knowledge economy comes to those who know themselves, their strengths, their values, and how they best perform (Peter Drucker)The main assume of this report is to focus on a limited management development programme and by identifying how it works to determine whether it has been effective in developing the managing director for its business. The report looks at how certain management development programmes have been utilize to become gear/duty manager for a particular organisation.It identifies a rate of formal and informal nestlees that have been used to ensure effective outcomes. It also includes examining the main external and internal factors that have influenced management development. Further more than the report identifies either shortcomings and changes that are required to improve the process of developmental management. The main method used to conduct this report was obtaining first hand information from a shi ft/duty manager at a local food industry however, relevant literature resources have also been used to support views, evaluations and recommendations made.Rosemary Stewart who has been tell for studies of organisations and managers in action. Based on Managers and their Jobs, (1967/1987) identified four approaches to defining the term management. Theses are as follows1. Theoretical approach this is found on the development of theories of management, utilise approaches focused on political, economical, sociological, psychological or anthropological theory and philosophy.2. Descriptive approach has been given a very simple definition, the job that managers and supervisors do.3. Comparative approach based on the hierarchical organisation and structure within an organisation, also focused on comparison and evaluation methods4. Action-based approach this focuses more on the management that those defined as managers spend their time management as the activities carried out by mana gersWhat is management development? According to Lessem, R (1990) developmental management is human-centred in essence in other words the developmental manager values the whole team and values them for their inter-dependence. In order to fully infer the concept of management development it is essential to know of its historical roots. In the workplace individuals and managers unaware of certain behaviour patterns will unintentionally damage their face-to-face effectiveness. When a manager understands the unique differences between individuals then they are in a more powerful smear. They are better able to manage, understand, and lead concourse towards higher level of productivity, lower frustration, higher morale, and better retention rates.The type of management development programme focused on in this report is base management training from shift/duty managers. The course itself was split into residential and in-store training with a mentor. The total residential training las ted for eight days at a national training centre and head office. The time limit given to complete the modules specified for this particular programme was cardinal weeks, in-store with a mentor. However, twelve weeks being a rough guide as some required more time and candidates regularly completed the modules outside this limit.The course was tailored not only for pile with experience but also for example graduates who would have had little or no experience in managing a shift. However, as this particular programme was centred towards the duty manager level its main focus was around people management, whereby it would deal with provide motivation levels, training, receiving and giving feed back, appraisals etc, rather than veridical business management i.e. managing a profit and loss account.There were seventeen modules that needed to be completed, below is a table explaining briefly what these modules wereModulesProgramme1-3 taste and Getting Started. (was completed during resi dential)4-5Cleanliness, Sanitation and Food Safety. Begins by canonic training as would be for all members of staff within the organisation, then becomes more gnarled in how to effectively manage a team to ensure food rubber and cleanliness standards are high as they are constantly recoverd and monitored.6-7Safety, certification and Crisis centering. How to ensure the safety of staff and customers on shift, including health and safety. Basically teaches the manager how to deal with anything from a power cut to an armed robbery.8-9Product Excellence. Begins quite basic as to how to identify an out of date product, then becomes more in depth regarding basic stock control, ordering procedures etc.10-12Basic Human resource and Labour Management. Dealt with how to effectively manage a team, including exercises on legal responsibilities of a manager with regards to discrimination, grievance procedures and disciplinary action as well as staff training issues, coaching, how to motiva te a team and managing cost of labour on a shift-to-shift basis.13Service Recovery. How to prevent, anticipate and deal with customer complaints and how to effectively expose and analyse team member performance to reduce the risk of a complaint.14Opening the Restaurant.15Shift Change.16Closing the Restaurant.The above 3 points (14-16) are self explanatory. Trainee managers were expected to work through these whilst observing the mentor complete the tasks in order to see how the aspect of previous modules were put into intrust for example stock control, security, cost of labour etc.17Floor Management. Dealing with problems prior to them becoming formal complaints or even accidents. This included the get into of eight walk, prioritising new unexpected tasks and team member recognition.The modules were very general, however, before putting theory into practice observation played a vital role, whereby trainees were to observe their mentors completing certain tasks in order to learn how to tailor tasks to suit the environment. Upon completing the training at that place was a test followed by an interview with the arena Manager in which the test results were discussed and the standards of completed modules were assessed.The informal approaches used whilst completing the management development programme was the mentor advising best practices for within the restaurant. The formal approaches used were the completion of modules and work books as well as observations where two candidates were observing the mentor and the mentor observing the candidate. The programme in itself prepared the trainees for a position as duty manager. The programme was learner centred and in some cases lack of motivation or resources meant that it lasted longer than the original given deadline of twelve weeks.There were both external and internal factors that influenced the development of duty/shift managers working. The main external factors were that being a food preparation industry, there were many laws and government regulations pertaining to food, safety and obviously regulations for health and safety and employment laws that needed to be learned and put into practice. The main internal factors that influenced management development were the standards set by the ships company which every manager and team member were expected to have extensive knowledge of.This covered every aspect of the business from the way tables were set to provide standards to dealing with complaints in a professional manner, which involved more in depth training for management trainees. Although the training provided to trainee managers was quite extensive, practical experience gained via mentors seemed more knowledgeable, as stated quite clearly in the quote below from a previous trainee manager I feel that I learned a lot from the course, the modules and the work books as it introduced me to a lot of legal aspects of the food industry which I would not have learned otherwise, but I comprise that I learned more from the time spent with my mentor about how to be a manager that team members respected.As recognised by A.Mumford (1993) there are five stages in the evolution of thought about what managers do these are1 The generalisation stage2 The scientific stage3 The management by accusatory stage4 The contingency/ realistic stage5 The competency stage..Many organizations are turning to behaviour assessments and personality trait testing for both hourly workers and managers. Back in the late 90s, only 5 percent of 500 companies used some type of assessment. Today, that figure is climbing to 65 percent. A stratum 2000 study by American Management Association showed nearly half of 1,085 employers polled use at least one assessment in their interviewing process.Assessments can serving* Individuals identify their strengths, know which jobs they are best suited for, and design a development plan to overcome shortcomings.* HR managers predict a job applicants sup remacy before they are hired.* Business owners understand the temperament and work expressive style of individual employees and managers.* Supervisors can give performance feedback to people in a style they understand and accept for improving performance and accelerating professional development.* People enhance communication, understanding, and improve personal relationships.* Sales managers select, hire, develop, and motivate super sales people.For example a company would use the assessment process to improving their hiring and recruitment process. If for instance, previously they made decisions based on the candidates resume and then hired the person based on their gut reaction. Once hired, many of these new people created friction, had bad work ethics, and their attitudes had a negative impact on their co-workers.ConclusionDeveloping people is less expensive than firing them. By understanding behaviour differences an organization can align an employees motivations with the comp anys mission. Assessments also help individuals reduce conflict and get on better. Furthermore, co-workers appreciate each persons unique strengths and abilities. With this knowledge organizations and managers can maximize the abilities of their workforce in ways to help make all employees star performers.References Lessem, R. (1990) Developmental Management principles of holistic business Oxford, Basil Blackwell Managers and their Jobs (Penguin, 1977, new edition 1988) The Reality of Organisation (Penguin, 1972, new edition 1986) The Diversity of Management 1994.