Management and Managing: Is There a Difference

Management as a practice is part of ancient history, but management as a discipline is a mid-twentieth century invention. A review of the literature will find many descriptions for the activity we call management. The word management used as an impersonal inclusion of some unidentified body of decision makers has no meaning. Managers are part of management and thus responsible for results through managing. Management also includes a body of knowledge and is a discipline that has theories, although they are not governed by the laws of science.

Research results from the academic community provide the manager with new insights to be used in the process of managing. While those insights may not be fully quantified they need to be explored for the hidden gems. "Is management a bag of techniques and tricks?" It appears so after scanning the books and periodicals from the academic and business press that focus on techniques and tools for managing. But management is more than tools and techniques—it's a body of knowledge that supports the act of managing.

Managing could be described as applying the theories of management. But that description lacks specificity; theories are applied to what, and for what purpose? Managing has also been described as being responsible for the work of others. True, but not sufficiently inclusive. Managing is about people—how to develop skills and competencies that meet the needs of the organization and provide opportunities for personal growth. For our purposes, consider managing as the practice, the art, and the act of doing. Responsible managers meet the organization's objectives and fulfill their commitment to the organization by managing. To restate Drucker's description: Managing is not a bag of tools, techniques, and tricks; it is about human beings. Its task is to make people capable of joint performance, to make their strengths effective and their weaknesses irrelevant.

Managing involves more than meeting the objectives for your group; managing also involves guaranteeing that meeting your objectives is in consort with the objectives of other groups. This applies to those involved in academia, government, or industry. You need to be able to communicate effectively and understand each other. As a manager your scope of operations expands and your actions and decisions impact other groups. If you're a manager in marketing or sales, you need to understand some level of the technology involved in order to communicate effectively with customers. If you're a manager in the finance department, you're not simply a bookkeeper; you should provide insight, establish guidelines, and look for ways to find the workable financial solutions. You are managing part of the organizational resources and those resources include not just people and money but also the intellectual property, technology, time, distribution channels, customers, suppliers, production capability, operating facilities, finance, and all external resources.