Page 121 - DEDU503_EDUCATIONAL_MANAGEMENT_ENGLISH

Unit 9: Controlling and Staffing: Process, Means and New Practices, Group Dynamics and Motivation

9.7 Importance of Staffing Notes

1. Key to other managerial functions : Staffing function is very closely related to other managerial
areas of the business. It greatly influences the direction and control in the organization. The
effectiveness of other managerial functions depends on the effectiveness of the staffing function.
2. Building healthy human relationships : Staffing function helps to build proper human
relationships in the organization. Smooth human relations is the key to better communication
and co-ordination of managerial efforts in an organization.
3. Human resources development : Skilled and experienced staff is the best asset of a business
concern. The staffing function helps developing this asset for the business. It inclucates the
corporate culture into the staff which in turn ensures smooth functioning of all the managerial
aspects of the business.
4. Long Term effect : Staffing decisions have long term effect on the efficiency of an organization.
Qualified, efficient and well motivated staff is an asset of the organization. Staffing function
assumes special significance in the context of globalization which demands high degree of
efficiency in maintaining competitiveness.
5. Potential contribution : Staff selection should be based on the ability of the prospective employees
to meet the future challenges that the organization need to address. Therefore the potential
contribution of the staff in their anticipated future roles should also be taken into account in
staff selection.

9.8 Current Trends in Controlling and Staffing

(1) Pre-action controls : These are preventive measures aimed to check problems before their
emergence. They are also known as pre-controls. Financial budgets and schedules are forms of
pre-action control. This is because when you know your financial resources, working within
them will be a control. The same applies for schedules.
(2) Feedforward control (also called Preliminary control) : In this system problems or deviations
are anticipated before the operation of the task starts. Hence it has a close relationship with
planning. In this control mechanism, managers identify the issues and the prospective action
plans to meet the anticipated problems. For example, you are a tour operator. You ought to
know in a year which particular season would have more tourist inflow and during which
season the inflow would be less for the particular destination that you are packaging and
selling. In anticipating the problems you may come across during the peak period, you would
develop a proper mechanism to meet any anticipated problems. Feedforward control is
essentially to alert managers about the probable hurdles that may affect the accomplishment
of predetermined targets.
(3) Concurrent control (also known as Steering control) : This is an approach to control the work
while it is being performed. Concurrent control system ensures the accomplishment of work
according to a laid down plan and takes necessary corrective steps before any major damage is
done or in case there are deviations. For example, each evening a floor supervisor in a restaurant,
moves from the customer area, to the kitchen, to the cashier area. He monitors all activities in
order to ensure customer satisfaction and takes necessary steps as and when required. For the
effectiveness of steering control a manager must obtain the information on time and it should
be accurate. Generally, steering control methods are most widely used because they provide
tools for corrective action while the work is in progress.
(4) Feedback control (also called Post action control) : After the completion of a task, review is
made to see whether the desired result has been achieved or not. Feedback control provides
information about whether the goals of the organisation are met or not. This information can
be used for deciding the future action plan of an organisation. It is often used as a basis for
evaluating and rewarding employees also.

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