BUSINESS MANAGEMENT A1 Session 1 October 30, 2014

What is management about … ? Game.. Homework – What does it take to be a manager? Good manager? At what level? – refer to and file posted in IS by Thursday Oct 2 nd, 2014 – Self-assessment test – Looking for core competencies of a manager inside of you

What is management about … ? Getting things done through people … In an organizational setting … Doing things now to get things done in the future … But how? By planning and administering (example) – A factory … logistics dept manager … gathers info from sales dept. about times and dates when goods are to be shipped -> learns about who has what shifts -> analyzes who is best for what trucks’ destinations (language competencies of logistics HR) -> sets up a working schedule (shifts) for employees

Getting work done … By communicating – How does he best communicate the schedule? (in what form? Formal? Informal? Does he negotiate? Should he negotiate? Why/not?) – To whom? All employees in the dept? Their team leader? Why? – When? Next day? Why? By working together with others – knowledge, time (mother cannot stay late at work every day as she needs to pick up her child from kinder-garden … etc.) – How do you create a supportive and dynamic team environment? What if two workers hate each other? Do you want them to load up one truck together?

Getting work done … By setting a strategic path – What if the goods must be delivered by Saturday every week because the law prohibits its transportation on Sundays? -> do you have this knowledge & understanding of this industry? – => how do you plan the shipments? Will you not let employees stay at home on Fridays? (organizational changes)=> sales strategy => sales plans set accordingly => pricing strategy => marketing strategy … By being able to work with people of different cultures and backgrounds – Understanding and feeling other cultures, empathy -> employing cheap yet educated labor from East may be insensitive and not proper

Getting work done … By being able to practice self-management – Equality of treatment of all subordinates regardless of race, religion, language, etc. -> ethics – Keeping promises -> integrity? – Daily life and work shall be balanced for all -> would you ask subordinates to work 3 hours of overtime every day w/without adequate compensation? (lifting heavy boxed goods) – How do you encourage people to work more efficiently in a logistics dept?

Cell-phone R&D project management example – 1 observer per group How much $ do we have available? E.g. 100,000 EUR? – What for? – How many people involved? Who is paid? How much? When? Planning & organizing a project? – What do we do ourselves? (knowledge, time, $ capacities) – What do we outsource? (knowledge, time, $ capacities) Time management of the project? – Deadlines? Why? -> e.g. Apple wants to present to the world a next generation phone by a certain date – Breakdown of deadlines for individual steps – operations … ?

Cell-phone R&D project management example – 1 observer per group Who will work with whom? Why? How do you decide this? -> team work? At what pace do you plan R&D projects? How often do you plan the release of a new cell-phone? What kinds? Why? Who do you hire and why? Based on what criteria? How much of what are you willing and ready to invest in this project? Why?

Terminology – home assignment Organization … define Manager … define all items below – functional vs. general – First-line vs. middle vs. top managers Managing … define all items below – Planning – Organizing – Leading – Controlling – Evaluating – Taking corrective actions, changing plans, etc.