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Management Practices and Organisational Behaviour

Notes 2. Bottom-up approach: Thinking and doing aspects in the planning process are two sides of
the same coin. So, if lower level managers are drawn into the preparation and
implementation of plans, their loyalty and commitment would go up automatically.
Participation enables them to give their best to the plan document.
3. Composite approach: In this approach, a middle path is chosen to facilitate the smooth
implementation of the plans. Here the top management offers guidelines, sets boundaries
and encourages the middle and lower level executives to come out with tentative plans.
These are put to discussion and debate. Once approved, such plans gain acceptance readily
since everyone has been drawn into the exercise.

4. Team approach: The team approach is slightly different from the composite approach. In
this, the job of planning is assigned to a team of managers having requisite experience in
various functional areas. They prepare the draft plans, taking internal as well as external
factors into account. The tentative plans are forwarded to the top management for approval.
The expertise, experience, and capabilities of functional heads are executed into action in
such a participative climate.

Notes Koontz has given some principles that make a plan successful.
1. Principle of contribution to objectives: Every plan should help in the achievement
of organisational objectives.
2. Principle of primacy of planning: Planning should precede all the other functions of
a managerial process.
3. Principle of pervasiveness of planning: Planning should be pervasive in nature
otherwise the functionaries might just not stick to the plan.

4. Principle of flexibility: By flexibility of a plan is meant its ability to switch gears,
change direction to adapt to changing situations without incurring unnecessary
costs.
5. Principle of periodicity: Plans should be integrated and interconnected in such a
way as to achieve the stated objectives well in time.

6. Principle of planning premises: Every plan should be based on carefully considered
assumptions, known as planning premises.
7. Principle of limiting factor: While choosing an appropriate course of action among
different alternatives, the limiting or critical factor (such as money, manpower,
machinery, materials, management) should be recoginised and given due weightage.
When ignored, the critical factor would seriously impact the process of planning
and make it impossible to achieve goals.

3.4 Steps in the Planning Process

Planning is a vital managerial function. It is intellectually demanding. It requires a lot of time
and effort on the part of planners. They must adopt a systematic approach so as to avoid pitfalls,
errors and costly mistakes which may upset the whole business later on. Such a systematic
approach may consist of the following steps:

1. Establishing objectives: The first step in the planning process is to identify the goals of the
organisation. The internal as well as external conditions affecting the organisation must

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