Question 4

Planning is the most important function of management.

What is planning? Planning is looking ahead and charting a course
of action to be followed. Planning is dynamic and takes into
consideration the human perspective as well as physical resources
of the organization.
The Supervisors basic role is to plan the day-to-day activities of the
workers. This is done by dividing them based on their roles, skill and
aptitude. Once this is done the physical aspect of the organization
is considered. This entails anything which would make the work
environment more conducive to work.
The Supervisor must lead and influence his subordinates by giving
them guidelines and instructions to achieve the goals of the
organization.
The Supervisor must find ways to motivate the
employees and seek to give incentives whether monetary or nonmonetary to reward when targets are met.
Once the Supervisor knows the goals and objectives of the
organization, it makes it easier for him/her to plan how best to
achieve these goals. This planning involves ensuring that the right
persons are doing the job, all of the necessary equipment is there to
ensure completion of the tasks.
The Supervisor must also have contingency plans in the event of
unplanned disruption of work, e.g. power outage. If the electricity
goes off then there must be a backup plan for ensuring that the
customers are still served with little disruption. This may include
resorting to manual invoicing, receipts, etc. The Supervisor must
also ensure that once all systems are up and running that the data
which was manually created is input into the computer to ensure
that all information is captured to ensure accurate reporting.
A supervisor can be considered the backbone of the company. They
make the difference between meeting production targets and
missing them because they motivate the staff. For a supervisor to
be effective he/she must have great communication skills, must be
resourceful (make things happen when confronted with obstacles),
be flexible with the changes in the business, be respectful and
attentive to team stresses, just to name a few.
The Supervisors role in organizational planning benefits the
subordinate, supervisor and the organization as well.

Supervisors can be considered the glue that holds the organization

together because they get information from top management,
interpret it and plan how best to implement it to subordinates. As
long as the supervisor is functioning as he/she should be all the
necessary information will be disseminated, plans made, put into
action and the results will reflect the goals and objectives of the
organization.

Question 6
Organizational structure means the pattern of relationships within
the group. It will include hierarchy, roles and responsibilities and it
also incorporates peoples attitudes and perceptions.
Goals and objectives provide organizations with a blueprint that
determines a course of action and aids them in preparing for future
changes. For each goal that is set by an organization, objectives
are also set. An objective is a short-term target with measureable
results. Without clearly defined goals and objectives, organizations
will have trouble coordinating activities and forecasting future
events.
Goals and objectives must be set first in order for an organizational
structure to be developed. This is because the organization has to
be structured in a manner which is necessary to attain and hopefully
surpass the goals and objectives of the organization.
Having the right persons in the right place in the organization
structure especially in Supervisory positions, will ensure that the
goals and objectives set are attained. The old adage of think before
you act or speak is very relevant to organizations.
Organizations have to think set goals and objectives and then act
set up the organizational structure in order to pave the way to
success.
B)
When organizations set goals, it shows the employees what the
organization has as its priority. Employees then know what their
focus should be for the next month, quarter or year. This way they
too will be able to prioritize their projects especially if there is a
reward for them in meeting the goals. If goals are tied to other

external awards, such as group recognition or rewards, it can further

improve the level of motivation in the organization.
It is more important in todays modern day organization to have
objective setting than ever before. This is due to the fact that
businesses are now more competitive than in the past. Years ago
you may have found less than five insurance companies in Barbados
but there are possibly one hundred now. Without setting objectives,
the company will remain stagnant and lose business and eventually
fold.
Todays society is very dynamic and organizations have to keep up
with these changes to ensure they are competitive or that their
standards are such that others want to reach their standards.
Keeping well abreast of technological changes, changes to laws and
international standards will also impact the modern day organization
as most business now also compete internationally.
Without objective setting in this modern era, organizations will
struggle and employees who are keeping with current news, trends,
etc. may decide to leave the organization to one they see as more
forward thinking. This move will most definitely lead to failure of
the organization. Based on this organizations have to set objectives
in order to survive in this modern day.