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Today’s organisational environment is significantly different from that of the past. Global competition, information technology, the quality service revolution, as well as diversity and ethics have forced management of all types of organisations to rethink their approach to their operations and human resources. This paradigm shift makes it necessary for organisations to respond to their internal and external environments. As a result, the face of the workplace is constantly changing with demands for cutting edge technology and just-in-time quality practises. These demands make organisational learning and behaviour critical elements in education and training.
An organisation is a social entity that is goal directed and structured so that tasks and responsibilities are assigned to its members. The manager of an organisation has the responsibility, therefore, to deploy the functions of management to ensure that resources are utilised in an effective and efficient manner to accomplish the organisations goals.
Organisations are often thought of in structural forms often depicted graphically in an organisational chart. They consist of four (4) interdependent elements, which are:
Technology – its processes e.g., in a school, the process of education and the physical plant, workshop/laboratories, classrooms, chalkboards etc.
Structure the organisational chart, the departments, the hierarchical levels and lines of authority and responsibility, the timetables, the curricula etc.
People the people in a school organisation are the teachers, their professional codes, their knowledge, skills and attitudes, and the experiences of students and non-teaching staff.
Culture the character of the organisation relates to its tone, its value system, the standards that are set and by which it is guided, personal relationships, habits and practises.
The management of organisations involves not only the management of each of the elements, but also of the balance or harmony between them.
Conclusion
A modern perspective to management is Total Quality Management (TQM), which focuses on the delivery of quality to stakeholders. The elements are employee involvement, the customer, competition and continuous improvement. Within the context of TVET, educational inputs are seen as fundamental to quality in education. Trained teachers, appropriately equipped classrooms, good educational resources and motivated students all contribute greatly to learning. The second facet, processes, are significant because the quality of education depends fundamentally on how we do things, and improvement comes about by changing the way we do things based upon our experience. The quality of teaching and learning bring about the best quality of education. Outputs, as the third element, relate to the achievement of specific standards of excellence. In this instance, learning is regarded as the true measure of the quality and efficiency of education. Outcomes are measured by the sense of responsibility individuals demonstrate a likely example being the quality of the workforce a real measure of a quality system. It is important to parallel management and organisation theory to TVET because of its relatedness to the work environment which was used as the platform for study or research, reengineering and development from the industrial age to modern times.
