Business Structures, Management, and Leadership Styles

A company is an organization created by a person or a group of people in order to provide inputs to achieve profits or economic objectives.

Primary: Obtaining resources from nature.
Secondary: Transforming raw materials and products into consumer goods.
Tertiary: Varied activities including services provided to citizens, such as trade, transport, and administration.

Formal Structure: The organization groups employees into work units as determined by the company’s directors, without regard to the wishes of individual group members.
Informal Structure: The formation of small social groups that are created spontaneously among company employees. These groups arise naturally, although they are governed by the company.

Directing means guiding the company towards the achievement of certain objectives. Different levels exist, depending on the scope of decision-making:

Top Management: Consists of the president and other key executives involved in setting long-term plans and making high-level decisions.
Middle Management: Includes factory managers or heads of divisions dealing with specific issues, developing plans and procedures set by senior management, and supervising lower-level employees.

Planning: Setting the course of action. Requires analysis of forecasts, establishing policies, setting objectives, writing software, and creating a budget.
Organizing: Establishing the company’s structure, defining tasks, creating groups or teams, and assigning staff.
Managing: Making decisions and encouraging people to make provisions.
Controlling: Monitoring progress to detect possible deviations from the plan and correcting them.

Increases worker motivation and productivity.

Characteristics of a leader:

Being positive at work or in solving problems and generating positive attitudes.
Knowing the objectives and targets, and understanding the reasons behind them.
Being able to enthuse others with their ideas.
Having good communication skills.
Being aware of their strengths and limitations.
Working in a team.

Autocratic: The leader decides how to do things, imposing their own criteria. They assume responsibility without delegating tasks and are responsible for planning and distributing all work.
Laissez-Faire: The leader does not actively lead, allowing group members to make decisions. This lack of involvement can cause personal and group demotivation.
Democratic: The leader proposes tasks to group members, and a plan is decided by consensus. The leader bears the consequences and guides the group. Paternalistic leaders make relevant decisions related to work without letting other people get involved.
Bureaucratic Style: Based on rigid compliance with established regulations, respect for the hierarchical structure, and its maintenance. This can block interpersonal relationships.
Participatory Style: Management involves subordinates in making decisions about work, sharing responsibility and consequences with them.