Management in today workplace is truly no different from that of management of years
ago. From the dawn of the first business, managers have constantly fought the battle of
being successful. Over the years, education and understanding have led to the realism of
how management is truly accomplished. Management can be broken down into four
unique functions. These functions are planning, organizing, leading and controlling
(Bateman & Snell, 2007, p.54). The application of these functions varies depending on the
level of management, but all levels use all the functions. Allow me to explain the four
functions of management while providing explanations of how each function applies to my
organization, the U.S. Air Force.
First let discuss the planning function. This function is used to specify organizational goals
and determine what is necessary in order to achieve those goals. Planning normally
includes determining what courses of action to take, types of resources and personnel that
may be required, allocation of time, and anything else of strategic value. Within a military
organization, planning is constantly occurring. My military organization is responsible for
the training and qualification of crews that fly the Predator Unmanned Aerial Systems. My
unit constantly plans different aspects in order to complete the Air Force goals of
graduating 160 aircrews per year. Our planning efforts focus on things like establishing
schedules, availability of resources, development of student materials, ensuring proper
instructor qualifications, and timelines and goals to ensure completion. Once a plan has
been developed for each of these things, it time to move on to the next function,
