Directing
Directing is about the actuation of the methods to work efficiently to achieve the set organizational objectives. The function goes beyond organizing the employees to their specific roles and involves ensuring they are able to perform the tasks through a variety of means. Directing in essence is looking after productivity and ensuring productivity is going up instead of decreasing.Directing has an important role in an organization as it helps strengthen the operatio-nal capability of the organization. It does so by ensuring the different parts of the organization are working better. Directing is a bridge between the operational needs and the human requirements of its employees.
Direction has got following characteristics:
- Pervasive Function – Directing is required at all levels of organization. Every manager provides guidance and inspiration to his subordinates.
- Continuous Activity – Direction is a continuous activity as it continuous throughout the life of organization.
- Human Factor – Directing function is related to subordinates and therefore it is related to human factor. Since human factor is complex and behaviour is unpredictable, direction function becomes important.
- Creative Activity – Direction function helps in converting plans into performance. Without this function, people become inactive and physical resources are meaningless.
- Executive Function – Direction function is carried out by all managers and executives at all levels throughout the working of an enterprise, a subordinate receives instructions from his superior only.
- Delegate Function – Direction is supposed to be a function dealing with human beings. Human behaviour is unpredictable by nature and conditioning the people’s behaviour towards the goals of the enterprise is what the executive does in this function. Therefore, it is termed as having delicacy in it to tackle human behaviour.
A few philosophers call Direction as “Life spark of an enterprise”. It is also called as on actuating function of management because it is through direction that the operation of an enterprise actually starts.
