Role of Managers

Managers perform the complex task of unifying labour and other resources to achieve organizational goals. In the process, they deal with superiors, subordinates and factors affecting the external and internal organizational environment. They make best use of their position to increase organizational adaptability to environment so that organization can survive in the era of tough competition.

In 1973, Henry Mint berg took a study of the nature of managerial work. He studied the activities of five practicing chief executives and identified 10 basic roles (categorized under three broad headings which managers perform. These roles are:

1. Inter-personal Roles
2. Informational Roles
3. Decisional Roles

1. Inter-Personal roles:

The need for these roles arises because managers constantly interact with their superiors, peers. Subordinates and the outside parties. Unless he is a role model to these parties, He cannot be called a successful manager. The three main inter-personal roles are:

(a) Manager as the figurehead:

The manager occupies an official position and performs the duties of signing certain documents, making speeches, receiving official visitors and other duties of legal and social nature.

(b)Manager as the leader:

 He looks after the interests of his subordinates and solves their psychological and work-related problem. He lays down the goals for his followers, co- ordinates their individual goals with the organizational goals, motivates his followers to accomplish those goals and creates a feeling of enthusiasm. Loyalty and confidence amongst them for achieving the said goals.

(c) Manager as the liaison:

 The manager acts as an integrating force for different groups (superiors and subordinates and people working at the some level) within the organization and for the with the outside world (such alas society, consumers, Government, trade unions etc.)

2. Informational roles:

 An organization deals with people within and outside the organization. For this, the manager keeps himself informed about the activities and happenings in the internal and external environment. In this context, he performs the following three roles.

(a)Managers as monitors:

To keep themselves well informed of the internal and external organizational environment, managers monitor the activities of the organization by reading journals and periodicals. They solve the problems according to the situation. They also collect information about their environment through liaison work and conduct tours so that organization works effectively within the environmental constraints.

(b)Managers as disseminators:

The information that managers collect as monitors is transmitted to members of the organization. This is done through formal and informal interaction of managers with their subordinates; by holding meetings or by circulating notices and circulars.

(C)Managers as spokespersons:

Managers act as a link between their superiors and subordinates and also between the external and the internal organizational environment.The instruction and ordinances issued by superiors are passed to the subordinates and reactions and problems of subordinates are communicated to the superiors.

Changes in plans. Policies and procedures of the organization are also intimated to the outside world. Thus, a communication network is created by managers between different sections of society (environment) and the organization.

3. Decisional roles:

After collecting the information from internal and external sources, managers use this information to solve problems in different situations. The main decisional roles performed by manager are:

(a)Managers as entrepreneurs:

Managers think of new ideas for development of the organization and implement them within the framework of resources. It may require changes in products. Processes, technology etc. which may not be easy to make. It is possible for managers to do so only through innovations.

(b)Managers as disturbance handlers:

Managers deal with disturbances in and outside the organization by reviewing the situation and making strategies to solve them. There may be problems such as firing of employees by the superiors or demanding higher wages by the employees or facing tough situation with the customers or suppliers which need active role of the manager as disturbance handler to solve them.

(c) Managers as resource allocates:

Managers allocate the none tart anted non-monetary resolves to various activities of the organization in the order of their priority so that organizational goals can be achieved efficiently.

(d)Managers as negotiators:

They mediate between organization and employees. In case of conflict, they work in the interest of both organization and its work force.

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