Dear Friends,
May this Dussehra light up for you
The hopes of happy times
And dreams for a future full of smiles
Wish you all a happy Dussehra!
In this special Dussehra Edition it is our endeavor to take the First-line managers to a higher plane – helping them to prepare for the future.
We are introducing them to the principles of ‘Management by Exception’, which encourages the management to devote its time to study only those situations in which actual results are at significant variance from planned results. This will be a good management skill to acquire and apply.
Towards the end, we have the stimulators and managerial quotes.
Your valuable suggestions and inputs are solicited.
Vivek Hattangadi
Editor
Telephone – 079-26601479
Management by Exception |
Time management is a very crucial for senior managers. Managers who use time management techniques routinely are professionally very successful. Those who use these skills will be able to function exceptionally well, even under severe pressure. Managers can then say goodbye to the often intense stress of work overload. At the heart of time management is a vital shift in focus - Concentrate on results, not on being busy.
Management by Exception is powered by trust and is in deep contrast to micromanagement. Micromanagement is a management style where a manager minutely observes and controls the work of their subordinates. Generally, it used as an uncomplimentary term. Instead of giving general instructions on smaller tasks, while supervising larger concerns, the micromanager monitors and assesses every step. They do this because either they are control-obsessed, or do not trust their people. Micromanager’s can disempower their subordinates and can ruin their confidence, hurt their performance, even frustrate them to the point where they quit.
Micromanagers start by correcting minute errors instead of looking at the big picture. Some may even take back delegated work before it is completed if they find a mistake in it. Micromanagers dissuade others from taking decisions without consulting them.
Management by Exception was a principle conceived by Fredrick Taylor in 1911. He wrote: “Under the exception principle, the manager should receive only condensed, summarized and invariably comparative reports covering, however, all the elements entering into management and even these summaries should all be carefully gone over by an assistant before they reach the manager.”
Why is management by exception different? Management by exception is a process by which top management can do away with routine and irrelevant information. It initiates a system of feedback and reporting any extraordinary situation or circumstance that would be out of the scope of the juniors who may lack the expertise in important matters. Only information that indicates a substantial deviation of actual performance from planned results is brought to the management’s notice. The objective is to facilitate management's focus on really important tasks.
In other words, management by exception is a management style where managers only intervene when subordinates fail to meet their standards of performance.
Management by exception is now very popular concept with effective managers. Undoubtedly the reasons are clear to all. This is a management style where managers do as little as possible, instead they delegate it to people below them - only to step in when they absolutely necessary.
This concept is based on the fact that our managers should not be babysitters, but devote time in going only into those situations in which actual results differ significantly from planned results.
This raises an important issue: What should managers be doing when they are not looking into situations that diverge considerably from planned results?
At the risk of being repetitive: rather than controlling and monitoring every move of their subordinates, a manager should encourage, and set a direction, then only step in if there is a big deviation from it. In the meantime, they should be planning future paths for their employees to follow.
Deciding what constitutes an exception is an exercise in itself. It means selecting the key events and measures which will show up good, bad or indifferent results and indicate whether or not the performance is going as per the plan.
How senior and top managers can make the most of their time |
Prepare a data bank of people better than us – we do not know when we may require them |
To conclude if the people employed are responsible enough to move forward, and work toward company goals without constant prodding and supervision, then Management by Exception is an excellent choice of style.
Stimulators
- How will you respond when ‘good performance’ itself is an exception?
- How will you use this principle for self-development?
- Please do share your experience after using this principle.
Pearls of Wisdom |
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