NATURE, SCOPE AND CHARACTERISTICS OF MANAGEMENT

·           Management is goal-oriented. Management is goal oriented activity which means the efforts and activities should be directed towards the attainment of pre-determined objectives. These objectives are the ends towards which all the management activities are systematically directed. Without knowing and directing our efforts towards these goals there can’t be any management.

·           Management is social process:- management is a social process as it deals with people, it deals with how to integrate the human effort in achieving targets efficiently through coordination and cooperation. Organizations have to use the resources for the benefit of the society at large.

·           Management is a distinct and universal process. Management is a distinct process which means it can be defined in terms of certain steps or stages. We can define the process of management which consists of the functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling. The process of management involves decision-making and putting them into action. These functions are performed by the managers at all levels of
organization and in all types of institutions. The management is universal process as its basic principles are universal in character which means can be applied at any level any area and in any situation, can be applied in different organizations and also in our day to day personal or professional life.

·                  Management is a continuous process. The management is a continuous process as long as we keep having targets to be achieved and an on-going process and a never-ending process, because every activity is done to achieve a target once the target is achieved we define new targets hence the process becomes cyclic in nature so becomes continuous.

·                  Management is an integrative process. The management integrates the available resources and directs them in to achievement of the desired outcome. The major objective is to achieve these goals in most efficient and effective manner. Of all resources, the human resources are the most precious and difficult to manage. And a good management is able to make synergies out of human and non human resources by integrating their efforts in the most suitable manner.

·    Management is intangible.  Management is intangible as it is not seen as a thing or a material it is experiential in nature which means we can feel its presence in the form of results such as efficient organizational structures, better and informed decisions, increased productivity, and heightened morale and motivation of employees. So management is intangible and can be felt by employee satisfaction, wealth creation etc.

·             Management is contingent. Management is contingent as there is no best way of doing things and each application or decision is based on the situation.  A manager must take into account the prevailing situation to solve a particular problem.

·             Management is multi-disciplinary. Management techniques, principles
and theories are drawn from other disciplines of knowledge like sociology, psychology, engineering, anthropology, statistics etc. management depends upon wide knowledge and practices derived from various disciplines. Management as a field of study has grown taking the inputs of so many other disciplines.

·             Management is a dynamic function. Management is a dynamic function
of any organization as it keeps on changing to meet the requirements of the organization and at the same time change the organization to the requirement of the business environment. Management sometimes has to work to alter the business environment also. So we can say that management is a dynamic function which makes it more capable to face the challenges brought about by economic, social, political, technological or international factors.

·      Management is system of authority:- management is distribution and use of authority in designating task allocating resources so as to achieve the targets, according to Drucker” management is a multipurpose organ that manages a business, manages managers and manages workers and work” managers at higher level have more authority than others.

·             Management is both a Science and an Art. Management has an organized body of knowledge "which contains certain universal truths". So it is called a science. Management refers to a distinct class of activities about which knowledge can be obtained and skill in its application acquired. As an art, management implies to the ability and skill of a manager in applying these principles of management and achieving the targets through a team of people and resources available to them.

·             Management is all pervasive. Management function is all pervasive which means we can apply the principles of management in all areas and levels of organization. Management is present in all the activities and department of the organization, and on a broader sense we can say that no function can be done without management.

·             Management is for economic resource management is a factor of production like the money, material, machine, manpower etc, as the success and productivity of any organization depends on the quality of management, this is the reason even when a smaller organization with lesser other resources are performing better than bigger lot as the management is more efficient and effective in the market place.