Page 143 - DMGT402_MANAGEMENT_PRACTICES_AND_ORGANIZATIONAL_BEHAVIOUR

Management Practices and Organisational Behaviour

Notes 7.1 Concept of Control

Control is the process through which managers assure that actual activities conform to planned
activities. According to Breach, "Control is checking current performance against predetermined
standards contained in the plans, with a view to ensuring adequate progress and satisfactory
performance."
According to George R. Terry, "Controlling is determining what is being accomplished i.e.,
evaluating the performance and if necessary, applying corrective measures so that the performance
takes place according to plans."
According to Billy E. Goetz, "Management control seeks to compel events to conform plans".
According to Robert N. Anthony, "Management control is the process by which managers assure
that resources are obtained and used effectively and efficiently."
In the words of Koontz and O'Donnell, "Managerial control implies measurement of
accomplishment against the standard and the correction of deviations to assure attainment of
objectives according to plans."
In the words of Haynes and Massie, "Fundamentally, control is any process that guides activity
towards some predetermined goal. The essence of the concept is in determining whether the
activity is achieving the desired results".
In the words of J. L. Massie, "Control is the process that measures current performance and
guides it towards some predetermined goals."
In the words of Henry Fayol, "Control consists in verifying whether everything occurs in
conformity with the plan adopted, the instructions issued and the principles established. Its
object is to find out the weakness and errors in order to rectify them and prevent recurrence. It
operates on everything, i.e., things, people and actions".

From the above definitions it is clear that the managerial function of control consists in a
comparison of the actual performance with the planned performance with the object of discovering
whether all is going on well according to plans and if not why. Remedial action arising from a
study of deviations of the actual performance with the standard or planned performance will
serve to correct the plans and make suitable changes. Controlling is the nature of follow-up to
the other three fundamental functions of management. There can, in fact, be not controlling
without previous planning, organising and directing. Controlling cannot take place in a vacuum.

7.2 Characteristics of Control

Managerial control has certain characteristic feature. They are:
1. Control is the function of every manager. Managers at all levels have to perform this
function to contribute to the achievement of organisational objectives.
2. Control leads to appraisal of past activities. The deviations in the past are revealed by the
control process. Corrective actions can be initiated accordingly.

3. Control is linked with future, as past cannot be controlled. It should anticipate possible
deviations and to think of corrective action for the control of such deviations in the future.
It is usually preventive as presence of control system tends to minimise wastages, losses
and deviations from standards.
4. Control is concerned with setting standards, measurement of actual performance,
comparison of actual performance with predetermined standards and bringing to light
the variations between the actual performance and the standard performance.

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