Performance & security by Cloudflare, Please complete the security check to access. – Keith Davis, Responsibility is the obligation of a subordinate to perform his duty as required by his superior – Theo Haiman. The term ‘authority’ stands for aptitude or rights authorized to an individual to make decisions, whereas ‘responsibility’ is a contract to maintain and manage the assigned authority. Since 1950 the term technical authority or computer authority has come into use. 3. Authority and Responsibility. Our mission is to provide an online platform to help students to discuss anything and everything about Economics. Authority may not mean the same thing as power A person many have the power to influence the activity and behaviour of other persons but he may not have the official or legal right of command and thus enforce compliance by others. To run the organization towards its goal and objectives the authority of the executive has to be re-delegated to the managers down the line to reach the bottom line managers. Authority is subject to the physical and mental capacity of the subordinate who has to exercise it. Generally the authority to make decisions or the right to command decreases as it proceeds from the highest to lowest level of an organisation. I have worked with leadership coaching clients who confuse power and authority and as a result, lead less effectively. 6. ‘Formal’, ‘Traditional’ or ‘Top-Down Theory’ of Authority: Formal authority flows from law, rules, and regulations that are framed by, or with the consent of all stakeholders. Authority and responsibility of a manager should be co-equal i.e. Lord Ram went into exile to honor the promise once made by his father. I would think that responsibility is the duty or role delegated according to your scope of work. As per this definition, there are two aspects involved in the concept of authority. Unlimited authority always tends to be an instrument of corruption, It should therefore, have arid generally does have some limitations, which may be express and implied. If you are on a personal connection, like at home, you can run an anti-virus scan on your device to make sure it is not infected with malware. A great recent example that illustrates the difference between delegating authority and delegating responsibility is seen in remarks made by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg following intense scrutiny over the social media giant’s role in the spread of fake news in general and surrounding the 2016 presidential election specifically. This shows that the obligation is the essence of responsibility. It is the power or the right to act, to command or to extract action by others. The right may flow from a legal-institutional framework (a law governing the organization, or a manual, or guidelines framed by the organi­zation). iii. Authority comes with special skills, greater knowledge, and vast experience, or perhaps due to age and the type of education a person has achieved during his lifetime. Applied to the managerial jobs, the power of the superior to command the subordinate to act or not to act in a particular manner, is called the ‘authority’. 2. The acceptance theory really emphasizing the leadership function of management that is the ability to persuade others to work well in the interest of goals/objectives of enterprise. Tradition-centric authority has a lot to commend itself, only it should not become a tool to exploit people who respect it. 0405-luby - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. Describe the delegation process, including the five rights of delegation and the importance of clear The essence of responsibility is obligation to perform the assigned duty or task. A person with extraor­dinary characteristics (charisma) exercises authority over his followers, even though the followers are neither bound by any law or tradition to do so. Likewise, only a person who is subordinate to the authority-holding person can be assigned task or responsibil­ity. There are technological limits on authority too. Without authority, a manager … For practical purposes, the term authority can be defined as the legal and rightful power to command or to extract action from others. Now the question – What source of authority would best enable a manager to perform his task? Another way to prevent getting this page in the future is to use Privacy Pass. But the acceptance theory has been criticised on the grounds that: ii. Therefore responsibility cannot be delegated. It is a different matter though that in the modern society this tradition-conferred authority is suffering dilution. The extent of delegation of authority also restricts the authority of a manager. Authority is the right of a preferable to give orders and directions to his subordinates to get things done. Legal authority or social or cultural norms become irrele­vant here. Responsibility is the obligation of a subordinate to perform a duty, which has been assigned to him by his superior. A manager is responsible for the performance of the duties even though he may delegate to a subordinate authority to accomplish a service and the subordinate also in his turn may delegate a part of his authority received by him. Henri Fayol, who designed the administrative theory of 14 principles of management, defined authority as ‘the right to give orders and exact obedience‘. A manager has authority to reward and punish his subordinates based on their performance. 4. The acceptance theory was formulated by Chester Barnard who held that authority lies in the character of a communication (order) issued in a formal organization which makes it acceptable to the persons for whom it is intended. This website includes study notes, research papers, essays, articles and other allied information submitted by visitors like YOU. Authority and Moral Responsibility. The Board, on its part, selects and appoints staff that will help it accom­plish the tasks and responsibility necessary to achieve organizational goals. Some writers define as a duty while others call it an obligation. Everything you need to know about authority and responsibility in management. Authority is the only cohesive force that sets in motion the integrated activities of sub-ordinates in an enterprise. Responsibility is a personal attribute and it cannot be deleted. There are two versions of theory of authority. (iii) He wants to avoid disciplinary action, (iv) he regards the maturity, age or experience of superior (v) he wants to avoid responsibility, (vi) he believes that the authority is legitimate and should be followed. Content Guidelines 2. This happens when he enjoys support and confidence of his followers because they see him as personification of their urges and aspirations. Vertical delegation of authority determines relationship between a boss and his subordinate and the horizontal division of authority determines the degree of decentralisation. Until and unless any performance is technically possible an order to do any such work would be unworthy. Only a per­son holding authority—legal, traditional or competence—can assign task or responsibility. The word authority is used in the sense of ‘power.’ On th… No subordinate can be ordered to do a job which is impossible to be performed due to biological limitations. He does this because he has made decision about the work behavior of his subordinates. It is the authority a person enjoys by virtue of his superior position in the organisation. It is only through authority, a manager exercises control. You may need to download version 2.0 now from the Chrome Web Store. 3. 2. The other means, that it can help in making authority more effective and may include the backing and support to lower executives, from the top executives, due attention to their advice, usually confirming their decisions, permitting command to flow through proper channels and supplying adequate information and materials to them. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. Many academic theorists of the formal authority view the legal aspects of private property as the source of authority. According to some writers all authority is formal. Responsibility Not Power. The important principle of authority is: Authority and responsibility should be equal. However, delegation of authority does not diminish the authority and responsibility of the manager- he continues to be the source of authority vested in him and also continues to be responsible for per­formance of the assigned task by him and/or his subordinate(s). Al 2010).This essay will explain all the important aspects related to decision making and impact of power and authority on its effectiveness and there it will also defined the relationship between power and authority in decision making context and the way they overlap each other or differ from each other will be explained in this study. • Authority is never absolute like responsibility. Continuous or Specific-Duration Task or Responsibility: Task or responsibility assigned to a subordinate may be a continuing obligation, or it may be limited in terms of time or tasks. A manager is accountable only to his superior but the top management owes the maximum accountability. (1) Exercise of authority drives staff of the organization to perform the tasks and responsibility assigned to them: Authority means the right to influence the behavior of others. “Duty” or “responsibility” refers to an obligation or liability for performance of a task or responsibility that is assigned. It may, therefore, be said that authority includes power but power may or may not be supported by authority. ... the areas of responsibility that are divided between both authorities in two-tier areas. we shall be concerned with the more general question about the relationship between autonomy (or self-direction) and exter­ nal influences, which I take to be any guide to behavior whose presence, content or substance is dependent upon something beyond the … The task or responsibility to produce minimum 100 units per day is a task or responsibility expressed in quantitative terms. Authority and Responsibility in Management – Meaning, Definition, Concept, Characteristics and Relationship, According to Barnard, “Authority is the character of a communication (order) in a formal organization, by virtue of which it is accepted by a contributor to, or member of, the organization as governing the action he contributes; that is, as governing or determining what he does or not do, so far as the orga­nization is concerned.”. Normally, responsibility moves upwards, whereas authority flows downwards. It will help him in successful utilization of his authority. Responsibility is also an important concept and has been defined as follows: Responsibility is an obligation of the individual to perform assigned duties to the best of his ability under the direction of his executive leader. Share Your PDF File Some persons having attractive personality command others to work. The essence of the theory is that any authority is as effective or inef­fective as the willingness or unwillingness of subordinates to accept it. The essence of responsibility is then, obligation.”. They do not work on their own; they need humans to work them. While the authority flows from a superior to a subordinate when assignment of duty is made, the responsibility flows from a subordinate to his superior when former undertakes the obligation of accomplishing the duties assigned to him. This is example of traditional authority. A manager is responsible ultimately for the performance of his duties even though he has delegated it to his subordinates. The term Responsibility is, most of the times, used to mean duty, activity, liability, accountability or even authority. Cloudflare Ray ID: 607f7b968be76b4d A responsible person will weigh the outcome of his/her action and take the most logical and economic action. 1. – Koontz and O’Donnell. A sub­ordinates may accept the authority of the manager because – (i) he wants to contribute to the accomplishment of organisational objective (ii) he wants to obtain some reward by accepting it. It always originates from the superior-subordinate relationship. 1. Shravan Kumar spent his youth carrying parents on his shoulders to pilgrim centers. responsibility, and accountability in the relationship between contributor and recipient countries and the financial institutions they create and operate. Characteristics of Responsibility. Without authority, the executive cannot secure compliance of his orders from his subordinates. 3. 5. Also, all authority is formal. Responsibility arises from the superior subordinate relationship, from the fact that a superior has the authority to get specific services from his subordinate. Both authority and responsible are the two sides of a coin. In a more comprehensive sense responsibility can be defined as an obligation of a subordinate to perform the duties assigned to him. Authority flows downward, i.e. The relationship between a president and his sales managers is typical of the continuing type of obligation. Acceptance theory of authority is the exact opposite of the traditional, formal theory of authority. Their reward is the salary and prospects of promotion to higher responsibility positions in the organization. For this reason they cannot be held accountable for failure or deficiency of performance. If the subordinates do not accept the authority of manager, they may not willingly comply with his decisions and orders – they may even defy them. They do so also because they trust his extraordinary technical, social and human qualities. Top managers of the company owe responsibility and accountability to their superiors—the board of directors—who on their part are responsible and accountable to shareholders. 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