Winter 2017

BBA Semester 6

BBA602: Management Development and Skills

Q1. What do you mean by Directing? Explain the principles of Directing.

Directing is a managerial function performed by the top level officers in the management. It
means all decisions taken thereof should be implemented properly. Every manager gives
direction to subordinates and vice versa, every subordinate gets direction from the
respective manager.

Direction is a vital function of management as it is concerned with action and not thought. It
is the process of instructing, guiding, supervising and motivating people towards the
accomplishment of organizational goals. It is an actual performance of people that is guided
towards achieving common goals.

Principles of Directing
Generally, it is the manager’s task to understand the needs, motives and attitude of
subordinates and should be able to change strategies accordingly. The following principles
may be helpful in achieving successful direction:

1. Principles of directing objectives: This principle means that subordinates should be

made aware of their roles in the accomplishment and given a clear understanding of the
objectives of the given direction.

2. Principles of unity of command: This principle states that subordinates should receive
all orders and instructions vectored through only one superior. It is necessary because no
one can report to two bosses at the same time.

3. Principles of direct supervision: Direction is most effective when it is done face-to-face

with subordinates. It helps in generating immediate feedback, removing doubts and
facilitating communication.

4. Principles of harmonising objectives: An organization functions best when individual

goals are in harmony with organization goals.

5. Principles of effective leadership: This principle necessitates managers to adopt an

appropriate style of leadership to make direction effective. Managers must be able to alter
styles as per needs.

6. Principles of communication: The higher-ups must ensure that plans and

responsibilities are fully understood by subordinates. A two-way communication system is
the essence of direction which helps in providing a free flow of ideas, information
suggestions, complaints grievances etc.

7. Follow up: Direction is ineffective unless a strong feedback is given which in turn creates
a follow-up mechanism. Managers must give directions as soon as feedback is received.

Q2. What is Creative Thinking? Discuss the importance of Creative thinking. Explain
the process of Creative Thinking.

Critical thinking emphasizes analysis and understanding of how people assert themselves,
give explanations, derive solutions, select the right path to tread on and move away from the
wrong one. On the other hand, creative approach moves towards exploring ideas, finding
alternatives, various solutions and generating possibilities.

Importance of Creative Thinking

Creativity is not an acquired science, but is rather an essential part of our daily lives.
Importance of creativity can be observed from the feedback received from the people while
they respond to situations. Creativity is evident in every aspect of our lives.
 Creativity is the ability of a person to produce an idea not existing before. It also
refers to an individual’s ability to create new things using or combining the prevailing
ideas.
 Creativity is an attitude. It is the ability to adopt change, willingness to explore ideas
and seeking novel possibilities and alternatives.
 Creativity is a process wherein people put hard work into exploring newer
alternatives and ideas to arrive at solutions.

Process of Creative Thinking

(i) Evolution: Evolution is the process that represents gradual improvement and growth, and
it represents gradual development. It implies that by combining the existing ideas; a new
entity can be evolved. The creation of new entity is labeled as creativity.

(ii) Synthesis: This is a process which suggests combination of two or more thoughts to
create an entirely new thought. For instance, people observed that it is difficult to sit for a
long time in a theatre without having something to eat, so the idea of serving snacks was
born. Later on, they observed that people want to enjoy their weekdays by going out of their
homes, where they can eat, watch a movie, purchase necessary items and so forth.
Henceforth, the idea of a mall emerged wherein there would be foodcourts, shops and
theatres, all under one roof.

(iii) Revolution: Revolutionary ideas are entirely different from the existing ideas. An
individual in the evolutionary state of thinking would resort to several ideas in order to further
improvise upon them.

(iv) Reapplication: Reapplication method implies viewing old or the existing application in a
creative manner. An individual here applies ‘out of box’ thinking. The new approach would
lead to something that was not previously realized in the same situation or similar set of
circumstances.

(v) Changing direction: It implies viewing or perceiving things and ideas from a different
perspective. This perception will undoubtedly lead to something creative. Problems come up
several times, but every time they cannot be resolved with the same solution.

Q3. Explain the concept of Time Management. Discuss the Steps involved in Time
management.

Time management is not a new concept; it has been in practice from the time ofthe sages,
who used to divide the day into different parts, with each part dedicated to a different task,
such as the mornings dedicated to prayer and exercise because of low temperatures and
peaceful surroundings, afternoons dedicated to siesta and evening dedicated to study and
discourse. The corporate world realizes the importance of time management acutely
because all teams work on their projects under stringent deadlines and have to prioritize and
set goals effectively, which is indeed the crux of time management.

Steps in Time Management

Time management is a technique that one needs to practice daily. For managers especially,
who are not only managing their own time but assigning tasks to the entire time, effective
time management is essential. Though it is difficult to cope with the quick passage of time,
the most precious resource, yet one can manage it effectively by putting the following steps
into practice:

1. Relax and remain composed: You must understand that everything can never be
finished at once. Therefore the first step is to stay calm, think fora moment and think clearly,
because even the easiest situations may worsen if addressed without having a proper plan
in place.

2. Construct a plan and follow it: The second step is to create a plan and then follow it
rigidly and honestly. This not only helps you to deal with a problem from a position of being
prepared for it but also keeps your focus maintained on objectives that are important and do
not allow you to deviate. Set time limits for every task that you need to perform.

3. Delegate assignments: Being human, we are born with certain limitations and one of
them is that we can only be present in one place at a time. Nobody can be omnipresent, and
nobody can know everything or accomplish all tasks singlehandedly. Hence, the concept of
delegation is significant. Delegation helps managers save precious time, which they can use
to be involved in other activities that are more important, such as planning and organizing for
the entire team.
Q4. Suppose you have joined as a Manager in an organization and you are asked to
negotiate on a particular issue. What according to you are the principles of
Negotiation? Explain the steps in the process of negotiation.

Principles of Negotiation

The twelve basic principles of negotiations given by Marvin Gottlieb and William J. Healy in
their book Making Deals: The Business of Negotiating are:

 The greatest failure in negotiation is failing to negotiate.

 The most important person to know in a negotiation is yourself.
 Everyone has power in negotiation.
 Single-issue bargaining leaves both parties unsatisfied.
 Urgency drives decisions. In other words, people are driven to take quick decisions in
pressure situations.
 Agreement is the end; trading off is the means.
 Even in a collaborative environment, best results are obtained by keeping the other
party on a ‘need to know’ basis.
 The value of something is always in the eye of the beholder.
 Success in negotiation is directly related to the amount and kind of preparation
preceding the negotiation.
 The ability to walk away or select another alternative to a negotiated agreement puts
a negotiator in a very strong position.
 Even when two sides are far apart on major issues, there are always things they can
agree upon.
 Meaningful negotiation involves conflicts. The person who has a strong need to be
liked, or who tends to avoid conflict, is likely to be at a disadvantage.

Steps of Negotiating

Negotiation provides great help in increasing the output of the workers and thus results in
increased productivity of the organization. The process of negotiation can be divided into
four phases:

1. The preparation phase: A basic preparatory phase in which you recognize and prioritize
the purposes. This is when you must arrange all information as needed while negotiating
and decide the lowest deal that you would accept willingly.

2. The debating phase: This is an argumentative phase wherein you express what you
want and attempt to identify what the other party is looking for. Frame open questions and
be open to listen to the other person as well. Try hard to identify the limits to which the other
person is willing to move from his/her stand.

3. The proposal stage: In this stage you propose and receive the proposed offers by the
opposite party.
4. The bargaining phase: This is when you actually start negotiating. Accept and confirm
details agreed upon and conclude it positively by looking ahead.

Q5. Discuss the qualities required to become an effective leader.

A leader should have specific leadership qualities so as to provide effective leadership.

According to Henry Fayol, a leader exhibits the following qualities:

 Physical strength and fitness

 Mental vigour and energy
 Courage to accept responsibility
 Steady, persistent thoughtful determination
 Sound general education
 Capacity for foresight and the art of handling a team

An effective leader displays the following main qualities:

1. Physical strength and fitness: A leader must exhibit physical strength and stamina. He
should have the capacity to work for longer hours than others. With these traits, he will be
able to work meticulously and supervise the work of his subordinates.

2. Mental vigour: The leader should also demonstrate intelligence and zeal, which would
enable the leader to withstand pressure and finish the work timely.

3. Self confidence: A leader should demonstrate a great deal of self confidence in the
actions and decisions they have taken in order to achieve goals and objectives.

4. Courage: This is a quality which enables a person to overcome danger or difficulty. It also
includes the ability to take the onus for decisions and actions. According to Winston
Churchill, ‘Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees
all others.’ No faith, hope, aspiration etc. can be transformed into realities without courage;
Therefore, a leader should be courageous enough to face tough situations, even those
seemingly beyond control, at times.

5. Ability to inspire: An effective leader is one who has the ability to inspire.
Hence, a successful leader must be capable of influencing people through their own ideas,
actions and behaviour.

6. Vision and foresight: A leader must possess the qualities of sharp vision and foresight.
They should be able to foresee the trends of events to follow in future. This quality, in turn
prepares the leader to face future challenges and consistently make sound judgments.
7. Tact and humour: A leader should be tactful when dealing with people and situations and
must possess a sense of humour. Such qualities enable the leader to ensure that the targets
are achieved and work completed without any hassles and easily.

8. Self-control: Another important trait of a leader is self control. According to Lao Tzu, ‘he
that controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.’ A
great business leader will always have self imposed controls because effective leadership
can never be accomplished without self control. Most important of all, a successful business
leader makes decisions from his head and keeps his emotions under control.

Q6. Write a short note on the following:

a) Impact Analysis
b) Catwoe Analysis

a) Impact Analysis
Impact analysis is a challenging exercise carried out in order to capture and structure all the
potential consequences of a decision at first and secondly to ensure that they are managed
appropriately. Larger or more risky decisions call for experienced people, ideally from
different functional backgrounds within the organization to do the analysis instead of one
single individual to make the entire effort. The following steps may help you to conduct an
effective impact analysis:

1. Prepare for impact analysis

The first step is to employ a team of experienced professionals, helping those to access the
right information sources. Everyone involved in the assessment must be clearly briefed with
the proposed solutions and problems intended to be addressed.

2. Brainstorm the major areas affected

It is an exercise to recognize the areas that are majorly affected by a decision. It helps to
predict what departments or workforce in the line would it affect and what consequences it
may bring.

3. Evaluate impacts

Work out the possibilities of all negative and positive impacts that a decision may cause
along with their intensity and size. Evaluating the consequences of the decision in the end is
also of great importance.

b) Catwoe Analysis
Catwoe analysis is a method where the problem solving process is effectualized by
preparing an exhaustive and comprehensive report based on various perceptual
experiences and solutions pertaining to a problem. The report of the Catwoe analysis
consists of answers related to the following 6 elements:
 Client or Customers: They are the final stakeholders or the end-points of any
organization and either benefit or suffer losses whenever the system or a process
changes. Therefore, this analysis in the first place, recognizes people who would be
affected and analyses how a particular change or problem would affect them.

 Actors: The second step in the process is to identify the change provokers, usually
employees.

 Transformation: It is that change which the system or the process would cause.
This also requires to list out the inputs and the nature of change that would convert
these inputs into outputs.

 Weltanschauung: Otherwise means ‘worldview’. The analysis of this element

considers the process or the system in its wider context and highlights the positive
and negative impact on the overall business of an organization.

 Owner: It refers to the person who owns the decision, project, enterprise or an
organization, or owns the authority to run the business.