Why does a manager need to understand the methods and need for control within an organization?

Dana is a recent graduate who was selected to be part of ABC Corporation’s management training program. She has her master’s degree in engineering and wants to become a project manager in the company’s research and development division. She receives her training schedule and syllabus and notices that a large portion of the program is devoted to understanding income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. Given that she has no desire to ever work in finance, Dana questions the need to focus so much on financial management.

Why do you think that Dana’s program contains such a high degree of focus on financial concepts? In fact, many of the most highly regarded corporate training programs have a similar focus.

Thinking back to the P-O-L-C framework that we’ve used throughout this course, you’ll remember that the C stands for control. One of the key functions of a manager is to ensure that all parts of the organization are working to achieve the overall strategic objectives of the company. Properly designed and implemented controls are the method by which managers carry out this responsibility.

In this module you will learn about business control processes and other tools that are extremely important for managerial success. Become familiar with these various tools—they will serve you well in the future.