The unity of command it is the management principle that states that no subordinate in a formal organization should take orders and report to more than one superior. Its purpose is to ensure unity of effort, under a responsible person, to complete a task.
Unity of command is one of Henri Fayol's fourteen management principles. This principle states that there should only be one superior for a subordinate. That is, an employee or worker should not have many bosses or superiors.
If an employee or subordinate has to work under the influence of many bosses or superiors, this creates a confusing situation, a dilemma and a mess. This also affects the overall efficiency, productivity and profit of the organization..
Therefore, according to the principle of unity of command, too many bosses or superiors should not direct or supervise the same amount of work performed by one worker or employee. In other words, the work of a worker or an employee must always be supervised by a single boss..
Article index
- Unity of command refers to a management principle, which establishes that the holder of a position should receive orders from a single boss and report to that same boss..
- The purpose of unity of command is to prevent dual subordination. Therefore, avoid subordination to multiple supervisors.
- Focuses on a single employee or subordinate.
- The result of unity of command is that this principle leads to effective work of subordinates.
- Unity of command can exist in both large and small organizations.
- Establishes the relationship that should exist between a superior and a subordinate.
- Unity of command is needed to establish responsibility for each person in the organization.
- In a small business, the structure can automatically follow unity of command when a single owner or manager has full control over each management responsibility.
Unity of command means that any worker reports to only one supervisor. His supervisor in turn reports to only one person. However, each supervisor can have more than one subordinate.
This means that as an employee, the command hierarchy essentially stops at a higher level, so you don't have to worry about reporting to more than one person..
Unity of command avoids the possibility that an employee will not know what orders to follow or who to report to. This applies even when an organization is being run by a committee..
For example, in the United States, a superintendent of public schools is accountable in his daily activities to the president of the school board, not the general school board..
Unity of command can help prevent problems, such as an employee feeling the need to respond to more than one boss or a situation in which a senior supervisor directly commands a team member, without consulting that employee's immediate supervisor. member.
This adds clarity to the management process for both team members and supervisors. As a result, it generates less confusion and chaos, with respect to the task assigned to the employee and the results obtained in the effective performance of their functions.
Henry Fayol, a French mining engineer and manager, was the one who listed the 14 management principles. Two of these management principles are unity of command and unity of direction..
Common to all members of this school was the attempt to extrapolate, from their practical experiences in managerial roles in large organizations, a set of rules on how to effectively and efficiently administer the administration..
This was defined by Fayol in terms of forecasting, planning, organization, command, coordination and control..
To this end, the administration must function according to a set of principles that are valid, regardless of the environment and the objectives of the organization. These principles included the principle of unity of command, a clear hierarchy and specialization of employment..
The command unit proclaims that each employee is responsible to a single supervisor and, therefore, receives orders from him, related to the task to be performed.
According to this principle, dual subordination is completely ignored. That is, an employee will be responsible to a single supervisor, who in turn will report to a manager, and so on, the chain will continue..
The person for whom the employee should be responsible is directly over the employee's position, called the immediate boss..
On the other hand, the unity of direction means that the set of activities that have a common objective must be carried out according to a single plan and also under a single boss..
The unity of command is related to the effective work of the subordinates in the organization. In contrast to the unit of direction, it is indicated that each unit of the organization must align itself towards the same objective, through organized efforts.
Unity of command helps develop a better, much clearer relationship between superiors and their subordinates.
Results in clear and well-organized authority, responsibility and accountability among the various levels of the organization's workforce.
Helps reduce or avoid duplication of work between different levels of the organization's workforce.
Unity of command helps managers make quick or immediate decisions correctly.
The unity of command will ensure effective and efficient discipline in the personnel within an organization..
Unity of command ensures better coordination and teamwork of workers in the organization.
Increases motivation and generates a positive attitude among the workers of the organization.
It leads to higher productivity of goods and services. Consequently, this creates a better image or brand of the organization in the market..
Proper unity of command flows from manager to deputy manager, from deputy manager to supervisor, from supervisor to executive, and finally from executive to workers.
According to the principle of unity of command, the organization must follow a correct unity of command. Therefore, it must not be communicated via the wrong control unit..
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