Effective management practice
| English | Chinese | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| management/ˈmænɪdʒmənt/ | 管理 | guǎn lǐ |
| delegation/ˌdelɪˈɡeɪʃn/ | 授权 | shòu quán |
| motivation/ˌməʊtɪˈveɪʃn/ | 激励 | jī lì |
| key performance indicator/kiː pəˈfɔːməns ˈɪndɪkeɪtə/ | 关键绩效指标 | guān jiàn jì xiào zhǐ biāo |
Management gets work done through people
- Management 管理 is coordinating people and resources so that a business reaches its objectives.
- A manager plans, organises, leads, and controls. These actions overlap: a weekly meeting can assign work, solve a problem, and check progress.
- Good management is visible in decisions and communication, not in a job title.
A meeting can do four jobs, provided it eventually ends.
Communication changes the result
- Delegation 授权 means giving someone responsibility and enough authority to carry out a task.
- It can speed decisions and develop staff, but the manager remains accountable for the final result.
- Instructions work best when they name the outcome, deadline, resources, and point for questions.
What must a manager still hold after delegating a task?
Authority can be shared, but accountability stays with the manager.
Which details make an instruction usable? Choose all that apply.
A vague promise gives the worker no practical way to act.
Motivation and control
- Motivation 激励 is the reason a person chooses to make an effort. Pay matters, but recognition, responsibility, fairness, and useful feedback can matter too.
- A key performance indicator 关键绩效指标 is a number or measure used to check progress, such as orders completed on time or customer complaints.
- A KPI is a signal, not a whole judgement. Faster calls are not success if customers leave with the wrong answer.
One KPI always gives a complete picture of business performance.
A measure can improve while another important outcome worsens.
Match the management idea to its purpose.
One enables action; the other enables review.
A bakery receives complaints about late online orders. The manager gives one supervisor responsibility for the packing timetable, agrees a 15-minute handover at 3 pm, and reviews the percentage of orders dispatched on time each week.
This is delegation with control: the supervisor can act, while the manager has a clear measure to review.
Write one English sentence explaining how the bakery manager controls delegated work.
Example: “The supervisor runs the packing timetable, while the manager reviews the weekly on-time dispatch rate.”
Describe a management action, then its effect. “The manager delegates the packing timetable, so the supervisor can fix delays immediately” is analysis. “Managers delegate” is only a definition.
Do not confuse delegation with abandoning a task. A manager who gives no authority, deadline, or review has not delegated effectively.