Organising — Business Studies STD 12 Commerce — Question
CBSE BoardEnglish MediumSTD 12 CommerceBusiness StudiesOrganising6 Marks
Question
Give the meaning of essential elements of ‘Delegation’
✓
Answer
Delegation implies transfer of authority and responsibility by a superior official to subordinates.The following are the basic elements of delegation:
Authority: Authority means the power given to an individual to command and direct the subordinates. It endows the right to make decisions regarding what is to be done and by whom it is to be done. In a formal organisation, the scalar chain gives rise to authority. Authority flows downwards—that is, the superior official commands authority over the subordinates. The extent of authority becomes less and less as one goes down the hierarchy. That is, the top-level management commands the highest authority. Authority is less at the middle level and is the lowest at the lower level management. Assigning appropriate authority to individuals helps in maintaining obedience and compliance in an organisation.
Responsibility: Responsibility is the adherence of the subordinate to complete a given task. Once a task has been assigned to a subordinate, it becomes his/her official's responsibility to get the task done. The subordinate should perform the duty assigned obediently and loyally. As against authority, responsibility moves up the hierarchy—that is, the subordinate is accountable to his superior. However, along with assigning responsibility to a subordinate, this official should also be given a certain degree of authority. This is because authority without responsibility may lead to the misapplication of power. On the other hand, responsibility without authority may lead to inefficiency. Thus, there should be a fine balance between authority and responsibility.
Accountability: Accountability implies the answerability of the superior for the final outcome of the work the official is assigned. Though the superior official delegates the work to a subordinate, this higher official will continue to be responsible for the final outcome. For this the superior, provides regular feedback and improvement ideas to the subordinate so as to ensure that the subordinate performs the tasks satisfactorily. One can say that the concept of being accountable arises out of responsibility itself. We may say that while responsibility is assumed, accountability is imposed.
Need a full question paper?
Generate a complete, print-ready paper with questions like this in minutes — across 16+ boards, with answer keys.