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Term Control Essay

Decent Essays

Clearly define the term control in the context of an organization. Give examples and lucid explanation of the various types of control that can be used by a Manager. Why is the control function so very important to the effectiveness and efficiency of an organization?

According to Robbins & Coulter, “control refers to the process of monitoring, comparing and correcting work performances.”
The control process is a three step process of measuring actual performance, comparing actual performance against a standard and taking managerial action to correct deviations or to address inadequate standards.
The process assumes that performance standards already exist. For the most part they do as the organization would have set goals and …show more content…

A manager who has responsibility for cleaning would walk around to check the work done by frontline staff and assign persons to areas not completed. Another example would be on an assembly line where the manager can see the items before they are completed and correct any defects and make any adjustments before the products are released for distribution.
Feedback control is the most popular type of control and as the name implies it relies on feedback. With this concept control takes place after the activity is done. An example of this would be the Toyota recall situation where based on feedback from customers (in the form of complaints), the company sought to correct the problem after the product had reached the consumer. With this type of control, there can be significant damage or wastage which can come at a high cost. However, feedback control does have some advantages as it gives the manager valuable information or insight into how effective the planning was. The manager can compare actual performance to planned performance. If the variance is minor then it can be said that performance was on target. However if the variance is major then the manager can use that information to implement or update his plans as required.
The control function is therefore very important to the effectiveness and efficiency of an organization. As the final step in the management process, control

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