The first and foremost duty of a manager is to have friendly and cordial relationship with his superiors as well as his immediate subordinates. This aspect largely depends on how timely he is communicating the orders and instruction received from the superiors to the subordinates, leaving no room for any suspicion and also taking the grievances of the employees to the higher levels and showing keen interest in finding solution for them.

He should also see to it that all the employees understand his words in the manner expected under the circumstances, in order to avoid unnecessary and unwanted confusion and misunderstanding.

In a nutshell, the manager should effectively communicate the messages to all employees, failing which it will be interpreted as a failure of personal attitude. This will prove costly to the organization.

It is also the duty of the manager to see that the actions of employees are in tune with the communications received with reference to relevant subjects. For example, a particular product must be produced as per the pre-determined standard, possessing the required quality, size, colour and weight.

The Manager should personally supervise so as to ensure that the efforts are in the right direction. Failure to maintain product quality may cost time, money and energy not only of the manager but also the employees of the organization.

Further, the manager should take personal care to ensure that all the machines provided to the employees are in good condition, materials supplied for production conform to quality standards, employees spend a reasonable time with their machines and that the materials used are of the required quantity.

All doubts from all quarters should be cleared in time, leaving no scope for unwanted comments. He should also come forward voluntarily to offer his services for the growth of the organization. Failure to deal personally may result in negative growth.

Of late, rail accidents in the country are growing in number. Even military training planes recently met with accidents near Rajasthan. In Bihar a boat capsized killing more than 15 people, including children.

Recently in Chennai a Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus killed three persons and injured 12 others when it lost control and ploughed through tea stall at the MMDA colony junction on the Inner Ring Road. The tragedy occurred when the driver attempted to go past a lorry but lost control in the process. All this reflects human as well as quality failure. The MTC Managing Director has admitted the human failure publicity.

Road and rail accidents are not uncommon in other parts of the world. When we go deep into such problems, we come to the conclusion that there is a failure on the part of people as well as the failure of the product. Unwise decisions taken as also product failure cost human lives. This aspect is too serious to be ignored.

So it is most important on the part of the top people – managers – to use their skills for the maximum benefits of the organization, by avoiding losses on account of poor management.