Functional Areas of Business

Things Managers do

Managers are an important component in any organization. Best example one could think of is the snake boat racing (also called as Vallam Kali), a competitive sport very popular in India. The race itself involves more than 100 teams racing in the backwaters in the state of Kerala with a 110 feet long boat that is rowed by about 100 oarsmen.

A team consists of oarsmen divided equally on the left and the ride side of the snake boat with just one captain who stands behind at the end of the boat. Captain’s primary function in the team is to navigate and speed control so the team reaches the finish line. But how the captain achieves this goal is very interesting. Captain sings out loud a motivational song (written by him mostly) and taps the oar in a unique rhythm that clearly distinguishes the left sound with right. There are hidden rules in those rhythms, which tell the team things like either side left or right should be rowing faster or slower to control the speed or direction of the boat. As you can see, even though the oarsmen go through a lot of hard work and endurance, It was the manager who directed the team to achieve one common goal with all the knowledge and information he had by not only putting forth the right planning but also making it fun and motivational with the singing component. I can only imagine how hard it can be on that team without that fun factor to complete that race.

Just like this unique sport, managers are needed in every place that consists of a group of people who are trying to achieve a common goal. An idea and direction of a leader is important not only in every organization but also in every functional area.

Poalillo(1987) suggested that “The functional area in which a manager performs his or her job has substantial influence on the extent which Mintzberg’s managerial roles are required. In all, 6 of the 10 roles are required to a greater or lesser extent in the different functional areas”. Though the importance of managers is stressed by all, let’s try to analyze what happens to a team without a manager.