Presented by Radhakrishnan Pillai

All Management theories and concepts are based on certain principles. These essentials are the basic foundations on which we evaluate if the manager has been efficient, the organisation productive and if the objectives have been achieved. Today management is not just a subject but also considered a science and an art. But what exactly is management? Several voluminous books have attempted to answer this question. However Kautilya has given the most refined view of management in five pointers in Verse 42 of Chapter 15 of Book one of the Arthashastra.

He says, the basic elements of management are:

1. The Means of Starting Undertakings (Assignments / Projects)
When we say we have to manage, the question is what to manage? We need some project, or an assignment, in order to start managing. Without a project or an assignment, one cannot be called a manager. However, the best manager is the one who not only takes up projects given by his boss but also 'creates' projects on his own. Stephen Covey in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, describes this as 'proactiveness' - the highest quality of a good leader.

2.The Excellence of Men and Materials
A manager has some resources at his discretion, to be used in order to accomplish his tasks. They are the men who work under his direction and the tools that are used by him and these men. Hence, another quality of a good manager is to make his men highly productive and ensure the optimum utilisation of materials like machinery, space, and budgets, given to him in order to help him achieve his objectives.

3. Deciding Suitable Place and Time
Management is all about deciding the right place and the right time to make our moves. Like in warfare, the timing is crucial. Determining the best time to attack the enemy requires careful planning, analysis, and also patience. This sense of the right 'timing' comes from one's own experience, knowledge, and guidance from other sources.

4. Provision Against Failure
Every move has to be carefully planned, taking into consideration two alternatives - the best-case scenario of success and the worst situation of total failure. Therefore, a backup plan is required for each move. One needs to have alternative solutions ready in case of failures. A businessman was once asked about the reason for his success, to which he replied, "I take into consideration maximum failures at each stage. I plan the alternative moves even before I start the venture." It's like having Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C in place.

5. Accomplishment of the work
Finally, management is all about getting 'results'. All said and done, the achievement of results is what finally counts. It is very important to set a parameter to check if one has actually achieved what one set out to. That takes us to the first step of management - starting a project. Every project is started with a certain objective in mind. The process evolves and gets refined. But finally, the target has to be achieved even if the route taken to reach there is different.