FUNDAMENTALS OF MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER 1 HANDOUT – INTRODUCTION TO MANAGEMENT

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Course: Fundamentals of Management

Textbook: Contemporary Management – Gareth R. Jones (9th ed.)
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1. LEARNING OUTCOMES OF CHAPTER 1

After completing Chapter 1 – Introduction to Management, you will be

able to:

1. Explain basic management concepts: organization, management,

efficiency, effectiveness, performance.

2. Describe the four functions of management: planning, organizing,

leading, controlling (P–O–L–C).

3. Distinguish among levels of management: top, middle, first-line, and

team leaders.

4. Explain basic managerial skills (technical, human, conceptual).

5. Describe common managerial roles (interpersonal, informational,

decisional).

Tip for study: Underline or highlight the outcomes you feel least
confident about.
Focus your revision on those parts.

2. CHAPTER INTRODUCTION & HOOK

Management is all around you – not only in big companies.

 A café near your university,

  A student club,

 A small online shop on Shopee,

 A non-profit organization.

All of them need someone to:

 Decide what to do,

 Organize people,

 Motivate members,

 Check results.

That “someone” is a manager – even if the title is “owner,” “leader,” or

“class monitor.”

In this chapter, you will learn:

 What management really means (not just “being the boss”).

 What managers actually do each day.

 How different levels of managers are responsible for different things.

 Why skills (not only titles) matter for effective management.

By the end, you should be able to answer:

“What is management?”
“What do managers do?”
“Which management skills do I already have, and which do I need to
develop?”

TOPIC 1 – GOALS, CONCEPTS & FUNCTIONS OF MANAGEMENT

3. LEARNING OUTCOMES OF TOPIC 1

After Topic 1, you will be able to:

1. Define organization and management.

2. Explain organizational performance, efficiency, and

effectiveness.
 3. Describe the four functions of management (planning, organizing,
leading, controlling).

4. CONTENT – TOPIC 1: BASIC MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

4.1. What Is an Organization?

 Organization:

A group of people who work together in a structured way to achieve

common goals.

Examples:

 A company (Vinamilk, Viettel, Grab).

 A hospital or school.

 A student club or volunteer group.

Key points:

 People cooperate.

 There is some structure (roles, rules, activities).

 There are goals (profit, service, learning, social impact, etc.).

4.2. What Is Management?

 Management:

The process of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling an

organization’s resources to achieve its goals effectively and efficiently.

 Manager:

A person who coordinates and oversees the work of others so that

organizational goals can be achieved.

Managers:

 Do not (only) work with machines or documents.

 Work mainly with people and decisions.

4.3. Organizational Performance, Efficiency & Effectiveness

 Organizational performance:

How well an organization achieves its goals and how well it uses its
resources.

Two key dimensions:

1. Effectiveness – “Are we doing the right things?”

o Degree to which an organization achieves its goals.

o Example: A university is effective if students graduate and get

good jobs.

2. Efficiency – “Are we doing things in the right way?”

o Using the least amount of resources (time, money, materials)

to produce outputs.

o Example: A factory is efficient if it produces many high-quality

products with minimal waste.

Ideal situation:
High effectiveness and high efficiency.

4.4. The Four Functions of Management (P–O–L–C)

Managers use four basic functions:

1. Planning

o Setting goals and deciding how to achieve them.

o Example: Decide to increase sales by 15% in one year; choose

strategies to do it.

2. Organizing

o Arranging people and resources to carry out the plan.

o Example: Create departments, assign tasks, design jobs.

3. Leading

o Influencing, motivating, and communicating with people.

o Example: Inspire employees, resolve conflict, guide teams.

 4. Controlling

o Monitoring performance and taking corrective action when

needed.

o Example: Compare actual results with goals; fix problems.

You will study each function in more detail in later chapters:

 Planning (Chapter 4)

 Organizing (Chapter 5)

 Leading (Chapter 6 & 9)

 Controlling (Chapter 7)

TOPIC 2 – LEVELS, SKILLS & ROLES OF MANAGERS

5. LEARNING OUTCOMES OF TOPIC 2

After Topic 2, you will be able to:

1. Distinguish among levels of management (top, middle, first-line,

team leaders).

2. Explain the three basic types of managerial skills: technical, human,

conceptual.

3. Describe common managerial roles (interpersonal, informational,

decisional).

6. CONTENT – TOPIC 2: WHAT MANAGERS DO

6.1. Levels of Management

Organizations usually have several levels of managers:

1. Top managers

o Examples: CEO, general director, vice president.

o Responsibilities:
  Set overall goals and strategy for the whole
organization.

 Make big decisions (enter new markets, invest in new

technology).

 Represent the organization to outside stakeholders

(government, media, investors).

2. Middle managers

o Examples: department heads, division managers, branch

managers.

o Responsibilities:

 Translate top managers’ strategy into specific plans and

projects.

 Coordinate activities across departments.

 Supervise first-line managers.

3. First-line managers (supervisors)

o Examples: team leaders, shift supervisors, unit coordinators.

o Responsibilities:

 Directly supervise non-managerial employees.

 Manage day-to-day operations.

 Solve immediate problems at the operational level.

4. Team leaders / project managers

o Coordinate the work of a small group or project team.

o May not have formal authority over salaries or hiring, but

influence performance.

Note: In small organizations, one person may play several roles (owner, top
manager, and sometimes first-line supervisor).

6.2. Managerial Skills

Effective managers need several types of skills:

 1. Technical skills

o Ability to use specific knowledge, techniques, or tools of a job or

profession.

o Example: accounting skills, programming skills, design skills.

o More important at lower levels (first-line managers).

2. Human skills (interpersonal skills)

o Ability to work well with other people:

 Communicating, listening, motivating, leading, resolving

conflicts.

o Important at all levels of management.

3. Conceptual skills

o Ability to see the organization as a whole and understand how

parts are connected.

o Ability to think strategically, analyze complex situations.

o Very important at top management level.

Over time, as managers move up:

 Technical skills become relatively less important.

 Conceptual skills and human skills become more important.

6.3. Managerial Roles (Mintzberg)

Henry Mintzberg described what managers do using managerial roles,

grouped into three categories:

1. Interpersonal roles

o Dealing with people and relationships.

o Examples:

 Figurehead – representing the organization at ceremonies

and events.

 Leader – motivating and encouraging employees.

  Liaison – building networks and contacts outside the unit.

2. Informational roles

o Receiving, collecting, and sharing information.

o Examples:

 Monitor – scanning environment, reading reports.

 Disseminator – sharing information with team members.

 Spokesperson – giving information to outsiders.

3. Decisional roles

o Making important choices.

o Examples:

 Entrepreneur – initiating change and innovation.

 Disturbance handler – dealing with crises and conflicts.

 Resource allocator – deciding how to use money, people,

equipment.

 Negotiator – negotiating with other organizations,

departments, or staff.

In real life, a manager often plays several roles at the same time.

7. KEY TERMS (GLOSSARY)

(Key terms are in bold + italics)

Term Short Explanation (EN)

Group of people working together to achieve

Organization
common goals

Process of planning, organizing, leading, and

Management
controlling resources

Person who coordinates and oversees the work of

Manager
others

Organizational How well an organization achieves its goals

Term Short Explanation (EN)

performance

Degree to which goals are achieved (“doing the

Effectiveness
right things”)

Using resources well with minimal waste (“doing

Efficiency
things right”)

Planning Setting goals and deciding how to achieve them

Organizing Arranging people and resources to implement plans

Influencing and motivating people to work toward

Leading
goals

Monitoring performance and taking corrective

Controlling
action

Managers responsible for overall direction of the

Top managers
organization

Middle managers Managers between top and first-line levels

Managers who directly supervise non-managerial

First-line managers
employees

Person who coordinates work of a small group or

Team leader
project

Ability to perform specific job tasks using

Technical skills
specialized knowledge

Human skills Ability to work well with other people

Ability to see the organization as a whole and think

Conceptual skills
strategically

Specific set of behaviors associated with a

Managerial role
manager’s job

Interpersonal roles Roles involving relationships with others

Informational roles Roles involving receiving and sharing information

Decisional roles Roles involving making decisions and choices

Students can highlight or underline these terms for revision.

8. REVIEW QUESTIONS (FOR SELF-STUDY)

Part A – Core Concepts

1. In your own words, what is management?

How is it different from simply “being the boss”?

2. What is an organization?
Give one example of an organization you know (business, school, club,
etc.) and identify its goals.

3. Explain the difference between effectiveness and efficiency.

Can an organization be efficient but not effective? Give an example.

4. List and briefly describe the four functions of management (P–O–L–

C).

Part B – Levels, Skills, Roles

5. Describe the main responsibilities of:

o Top managers

o Middle managers

o First-line managers

6. Explain the difference between technical skills, human skills, and

conceptual skills.
Which skills are most important for:

o First-line managers?

o Top managers?

7. What are interpersonal roles, informational roles, and decisional

roles?
Give one example of each.

Part C – Application / Short Scenarios

8. You are the leader of a student group project.

 o In which situations are you using the planning function?

o In which situations are you using organizing, leading, and

controlling?

9. A small café owner hires, schedules, trains staff, greets customers, and
checks daily sales reports.

o Identify at least three managerial roles the owner is playing.

o Which managerial skills are especially important for this job?

10. Think about a club or group you belong to.

o Who is the “top manager”? Who would you consider “middle” or

“first-line” managers (if any)?

o How do they show human skills and conceptual skills?

11. Imagine you want to become a manager in the future.

o Which skills do you already have?

o Which skills do you want to develop more during your time at

university?