Control, Coordination, Teams, and MIS

The Control Process

Controlling is the systematic process of establishing standards, measuring actual performance, comparing results with those standards, and taking corrective action.

1. Establish standards: Set specific, measurable performance criteria derived from plans.

2. Measure performance: Collect valid and timely data through reports, observation, information systems, or inspection.

3. Compare: Calculate and interpret favorable or unfavorable deviation from the standard.

4. Correct: Remove causes, adjust methods or resources, revise an unrealistic standard, and feed learning into the next plan.

Type	Timing	Example
Feed-forward (preventive)	Before the activity	Supplier qualification, raw-material inspection, preventive training
Concurrent	During the activity	Real-time network monitoring or a supervisor checking work in progress
Feedback	After the activity	Final quality inspection, monthly variance report, post-project review

Types of control by timing

Coordination

Coordination is the deliberate integration of interdependent individual and departmental activities so that organizational goals are achieved harmoniously.

Mary Parker Follett’s principles emphasize direct contact, coordination from the early planning stage, recognition of reciprocal relationships, and continuity. Coordination is therefore a pervasive managerial responsibility, not a one-time meeting.

Groups, Teams, and Group Dynamics

Aspect	Group	Team
Goal	Mainly individual goals	Shared performance goal
Accountability	Primarily individual	Individual and mutual
Synergy	Neutral or sometimes negative	Deliberately positive
Skills	May be random or overlapping	Complementary and coordinated
Work product	Sum of individual outputs	Collective output as well as individual contributions

A work group and a real team compared

Tuckman’s stages of team development

Stage	Team condition	Leadership priority
Forming	Orientation, caution, testing boundaries	Clarify purpose, roles, and initial ground rules
Storming	Conflict, competition, and power struggles	Surface disagreement safely and establish decision rules
Norming	Trust, cohesion, and accepted roles	Reinforce collaboration and shared standards
Performing	Flexible, goal-focused, high performance	Delegate, remove obstacles, and sustain learning
Adjourning	Completion, separation, and reflection	Recognize contribution, transfer knowledge, and capture lessons

Team development from formation to closure

• Group size: For many decision tasks, a group of roughly five to nine members balances diversity and participation; the task remains decisive.

• Cohesiveness: Shared attraction and norms can improve effort when those norms support performance.

• Groupthink: Pressure for unanimity suppresses critical evaluation and produces poor decisions.

• Social loafing: Some individuals reduce effort when their contribution is hard to identify in a larger group.

Management Information Systems

A management information system (MIS) is an integrated, computer-based system that collects, processes, stores, and distributes information for managerial planning, coordination, control, and decision-making.

Component	Function
Hardware	Computers, servers, storage, terminals, and network equipment
Software	Operating systems, database systems, and application programs
Data	Internal and external facts from which useful information is produced
Procedures	Rules for collection, validation, processing, access, security, backup, and distribution
People	Managers, operational users, analysts, administrators, and IT staff

Core components of an MIS

Level	Dominant system	Main users	Typical application
Operational	Transaction processing system (TPS)	Supervisors and operational staff	Billing, payroll, order entry, fault tickets
Tactical	Management information system (MIS)	Middle managers	Periodic sales, budget, inventory, and exception reports
Strategic	Decision support or executive information system (DSS/EIS)	Top management	Scenario analysis, market trends, strategic dashboards

Information systems aligned with management levels

Information-to-decision chain

1. Collect relevant data from organizational and environmental sources.

2. Validate, classify, aggregate, and process it into meaningful information.

3. Store it securely with controls for integrity, privacy, and retrieval.

4. Deliver the right report or alert to the right decision-maker on time.

5. Use it to select an action and capture feedback for later decisions.

Note

Key Point — Value of MIS

A useful MIS improves decision quality and speed, coordination, planning, forecasting, exception control, and competitive awareness. Its value depends on information being accurate, relevant, complete enough, timely, and economical.