After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
Describe what management is, why management is important, what managers do, and how managers utilize organizational resources efficiently and effectively to achieve organizational goals.
Distinguish among planning, organizing, leading, and controlling (the four principal managerial tasks), and explain how managers' ability to handle each one affects organizational performance.
Differentiate among three levels of management, and understand the tasks and responsibilities of managers at different levels in the organizational hierarchy.
Distinguish between three kinds of managerial skill, and explain why managers are divided into different departments to perform their tasks more efficiently and effectively.
Discuss some major changes in management practices today that have occurred as a result of globalization and the use of advanced information technology (IT).
Discuss the principal challenges managers face in today's increasingly competitive global environment.