This text covers Management overview and Managerial competencies . This is topic 1 under MAN 100 scope for November 2023. This module is offered by Stadio.

1. MAN 100
TOPIC 1 : Overview of management and managerial
competencies
 What is an organization
 Who is a manager , middle and first line managers
 Functions of management ( planning, organizing ,
leading and control )
 Define management
 Six managerial competencies according to Hellriegel
et al. (2017 and 2022) and short 9
SOLUTION :
WHAT IS AN ORGANIZATION ?
 Organizations are collections of people who work
together and coordinate their actions to achieve a
wide variety of goals or desired future outcomes .For
example Unilever , a global organization whose
products are sold in over 190 countries around the
world (www.unilever.com and www.unilever.co.za)
Information sourced from : Chapter 1.1 page 5

2. WHO IS A MANAGER, MIDDLE AND FIRST-LINE
MANAGERS ?
 First-line managers are usually called supervisors
although they can also go by the title of team leader .
In a university , however academic first-line
managers are usually referred to as heads of
departments . Thus the head of department of
business management for example is a first-line
manager .
Middle management refers to the level of
management between top management and first-
line management . Middle managers are mainly
responsible for managing first-line managers and
for translating the goals set by top management
into goals and activities for these lower-level
managers to perform . In a business organization ,
the marketing manager for example would be a
middle manager responsible for managing the
various brand managers ( first-line managers)
under them . In a university , the dean of
commerce would be a middle manager responsible
for managing the heads of departments of
accounting , business management and
economics.

3. Information sourced from : Chapter 1.1.3 page 8
Functions of management (planning, organizing ,
leading and control )
Functions of management include:
a)Planning
b)Organizing
c) Leading
d)Control
Planning: is a continuous process in which people
throughout the organization use their knowledge and
experience, relationships with stakeholders , to identify
opportunities in order to create , capture , strengthen
and sustain competitive advantage as a means of
delivering value to customers. Planning generally
includes the following:
-analyzing the current situation
-anticipating the future
-determining objectives
-choosing appropriate corporate and business
strategies to achieve the objectives
-determining resources needed to achieve the
organization’s goals

4. Organizing : is the process by which managers establish
the structure of working relationships among
employees to allow them to achieve organizational
goals efficiently and effectively . Organizing activities
includes the following :
-attracting the right people to the right jobs within the
organization
-specifying job responsibilities
-grouping jobs into work units
-getting and allocating resources
-creating conditions so that people and things work
together to achieve the greatest level of success
Leading: involves motivating and inspiring others to
perform the tasks necessary to achieve the
organization or department’s goals within the context
of a supportive organizational culture.
Controlling : The process by which a person, group or
organization consciously monitor performance and
takes corrective action , if needed . In the control
process, managers do the following :
-establish performance standards
-measure actual performance and compare results
against those set standards
-take actions to correct any deviations , if necessary

5. -adjust performance standards when necessary
Information sourced from Chapter 1.2.2 page 10-11
Definition of Management :
Management is the process of getting things done
effectively and efficiently, through and with other
people. When analyzing this definition, we need to
focus on three components:
-Process: refers to the main tasks and activities that
managers perform planning, organizing, leading and
controlling. These activities referred to as managerial
tasks.
-Effectiveness refers to identifying and performing
those activities that are going to ensure that the
organization achieves its goals and fulfills the purpose
for which it exists.
-Efficiency refers to how well tasks are done. Another
way of putting it is that efficiency is concerned with the
organization “doing things right “ .
Information sourced from Chapter 1.2.1 page 9 to 10

6. Six managerial competencies according to Hellriegel
et al. (2017 and 2022) and short 9
Communication competency : refers to the effective
transfer and exchange of information that leads to
understanding between yourself and others.
Communication competency includes the following
components :
a) informal communication
b) formal communication
c) negotiation
Dimensions of communication competency:
Informal communication
 Promotes two-way communication by soliciting
feedback , listening , seeing contrary opinions and
creating a give-and-take conversation
 Is flexible , and varies in approach in different
situation and with others from diverse backgrounds
 Makes use of personal networking
 Builds strong interpersonal relationships with a
diverse range of people , shows genuine sensitivity to
the diverse needs , opinions, and feelings of others ,

7. and is tolerant of their shortcomings and unique
characteristics
Formal communication
 Informs people of relevant events and activities,
and keeps them up to date
 Makes persuasive, high impact public
presentations and handles questions well
 Writes clearly , conscisely and effectively using
traditional and online platform media
Negotiation
 Negotiates effectively on behalf of the team over
roles and resources
 Is comfortable with the power of the managerial
role
 Is skilled at developing relationships and exercising
influence upwards with superiors, laterally with
peers, downward with subordinates , and
externally with customers, suppliers and other
stakeholders
 Takes decisive and fair actions when handling
problem subordinates
 Influences and motivates for effectiveness
Planning and management competency : as a
competency involves deciding what tasks need to be
done, determining how they can be done , allocating

8. resources to enable them to be done , and then
monitoring progress to ensure that they are done.
Included in this category are :
 Information gathering, analysis and problem
solving
 Planning and organizing projects
 Time management
 Budgeting
 Investment and financial decisions
 Managing dividend policies
Dimensions of planning and financial management
competency :
Information-gathering, analysis and problem solving :
 Monitors information and uses it to identify
symptoms, underlying problems and alternative
solutions
 Makes timely decisions
 Takes calculated risks and anticipates the
consequences
Planning and organizing projects :
 Develops plans and schedules to achieve specific
goals effectively
 Assigns priorities to tasks
 Determines , obtains and organizes necessary
resources such as materials, people and funds

9.  Delegates responsibility for task completion
Time management :
 Works effectively under time pressure
 Knows when to permit interruptions and when to
screen them
 Handles several issues and projects at any given
time , without being spread too thin
 Monitors and keeps to a schedule or negotiates
changes in the schedule if required
Budgeting and financial management :
 Understands budgets , cash flows , financial
reports and annual reports and regularly uses such
information
 Keeps accurate and complete financial records
 Creates budgetary guidelines for others and works
within the guidelines given by others
Investment and financial decisions :
 Identification of potential investments of projects
 Financial analysis of the identified investments of
projects
 Raising and allocation of capital to fund the
investments or projects
Managing dividend policies

10.  Decisions on profit distribution or retention in
the organization needs to be made in
consultation with dividend policies
Teamwork competency :this is an organizational
setting which is important in creating a system of
getting things done effectively
Dimensions of teamwork competency :
Designing teams :
 Formulates clear objectives that inspire team
members and engender commitment
 Appropriately staffs the team , taking into
account the value of diverse perspectives ,
technical skills and development goals
 Defines responsibilities for the team as a whole ,
and facilitates the allocation of tasks and
responsibilities to individual team members as
appropriate
 Creates systems for monitoring team
performance
Creating supportive environment
 Creates an environment characterized by
empowerment , in which effective teamwork is
expected , recognized , praised and rewarded.

11.  Assists them in identifying and acquiring the
resources it needs to accomplish its goals
 Acts as a coach , counsellor , and mentor and is
patient with team members as they learn
Managing team dynamics
 Understands the strengths and weaknesses of
team members , and uses their strengths to
accomplish tasks as a team
 Brings conflict and dissent into the open , and uses
it to enhance the quality of decisions , while at the
same time facilitating cooperative behavior and
keeping the team moving towards its goals
Strategic action competency : includes ;
 Understanding the industry
 Understanding the organization
 Taking strategic actions
Dimensions of strategic action competency :
Understanding the industry
 Understands the history of the industry
 Stays informed about the actions of competitors
and strategic partners
 Can analyse general trends in the industry and
their implications for the future

12.  Quickly recognizes when changes in the industry
create significant threats and opportunities
Understanding the organization
 Understands and is able to balance the concerns of
stakeholders
 Understands the strengths and limitations of
various business strategies
 Understands the distinctive competencies of the
organization
 Understands various organizational structures ,
and the advantages and disadvantages of each
Taking strategic actions
 Executes specific plans that reflect cross-functional
and cross-divisional knowledge
 Assigns priorities and makes decisions that are
consistent with the organisation’s mission and
strategic goals
 Recognizes the managerial challenges of
alternative strategies and addresses them
systematically
 Establishes tactical and operational goals that
facilitate strategy implementation
Global awareness competency is about carrying out
an organisation’s managerial work drawing on the
human , financial , information and material

13. resources from multiple countries serving markets
that span multiple cultures
Dimensions of global awareness competency :
Cultural knowledge and understanding
 Stays informed of political, social and economic
trends and events around the world
 Travels regularly to gain first hand knowledge of
countries in which the organization has or is
expected to have an interest in
 Understands, reads and speaks more than one
language fluently
 Has basic business vocabulary in each language
relevant to own job
Cultural openness and sensitivity
 Understands the nature of natural , ethnic and
cultural differences and is open to examining these
differences honestly and objectively
 Is sensitive to cultural cues and is able to adapt
quickly in novel situations
 Recognizes that there is great variation within any
culture and avoids stereotyping
 Adjusts own behavior appropriately when
interacting with people from various national,
ethnic and cultural backgrounds

14.  Understands how own cultural background affects
own attitudes and behaviors
Emotional intelligence and self-management
competency
Emotional intelligence is a form of personal and
social intelligence that enables a person to perceive,
understand and manage their own emotions and
emotions of others
Self-management competency involves taking
responsibility for your life and beyond. It includes :
 Integrity and ethical conduct
 Personal drive and resilience
 Balancing work/life issues
 Spiritual intelligence
Dimensions of emotional intelligence and self-
management competency
Emotional intelligence
 Shows self-awareness , which is the ability to
recognize one’s emotions and their impact on
others and on work performance and relationships
(emotional self-awarenesss) as well as the ability
to assess one’s strengths and limitations accuracy

15. (self-assessment ), and a strong sense of self-worth
and capabilities (self-confidence)
 Uses self-management which means
understanding oneself and how to motivate
oneself as well as understanding how to control
disruptive emotions and drives self-control ;
maintains standards of integrity and honesty
(trustworthiness) ; accepts responsibility for
personal actions (consciousness) ; is open to new
ideas and able to adapt behavior to changing
circumstances and overcome obstacles
 Has good relationship management or social skills ,
which is the ability to lead and work with other
people including inspiring and leading groups
Integrity and ethical conduct
 Has clear personal standards that serve as a
foundation for maintaining a sense of integrity
and conduct , even in the face of strong pressure
to the contrary
 Is willing to admit mistakes
 Accepts responsibility for own actions
Personal drive and resilience
 Seeks responsibility and willing to innovate and
take risks

16.  Is ambitious and motivated to achieve objectives ,
but does not put personal ambition ahead of
organization’s goals
 Works hard to get things done
 Shows perseverance in the face of obstacles and
bounces back from failure
Balancing work and life issues :
 Strikes a reasonable balance between work and
their other life activities so that neither of the
aspects suffers
 Takes good care of self, mentally and physically
and uses constructive outlets to vent
Self-awareness and development
 Has clear personal and personal goals and knows
own values , feelings and areas of strength
 Uses strengths to advantage while seeking to
improve or compensate for weaknesses
 Accepts responsibility for continuous self-
development and learning, and develop plans and
opportunities for personal long-term growth
 Analyses and learns from work and life
experiences.
 Is willing to unlearn and relearn continually as
changed situations call for new skills.

17. Information sourced from Chapter 2.1.1 page 32 to
48