KSLU Solved Question Papers
Principles and Practice of Management
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.Com. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 2
2021 Oct (100 marks) Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.Com. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 2 Principles and Practice of Management 2021 Oct (100 marks) Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
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Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2021 Oct (100 marks) examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2021 Oct (100 marks) examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 100 · 15 questions answered
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1What is Management ? Explain its scope and major functions.[16]
Answer
For full marks, cover: the meaning of management with definitions (Fayol, Koontz and Weihrich, the phrase widely attributed to Follett) and its main features; its scope in four senses (functional areas of business, the managerial functions themselves, its use in every kind of organisation, and management as a subject of study), each with examples; its major functions (planning, organising, staffing, directing, controlling) explained with their parts and an example, with co-ordination as their common thread; the levels at which the functions are performed; a table; and a conclusion.
What is management?
Management is the process of getting work done through and with people, so that the goals of an organisation are reached efficiently and effectively. Efficiency means using the least resources for a given result. Effectiveness means reaching the right goals. A manager must achieve both.
Three definitions are widely quoted.
- Henri Fayol (1916): "To manage is to forecast and plan, to organize, to command, to co-ordinate and to control."
- Harold Koontz and Heinz Weihrich: management is the process of designing and maintaining an environment. In it, individuals working together in groups efficiently accomplish selected aims.
- A short description, widely attributed to Mary Parker Follett, calls management "the art of getting things done through people."
Main features
- Purposeful: it always aims at definite objectives.
- A process: a series of linked functions performed again and again.
- Works through people: it is a group activity, not a solitary one.
- Universal: needed in every organisation, large or small.
- Dynamic: it adapts to changes in the environment.
- Intangible: seen only in its results.
- Both science and art: it rests on organised knowledge and on personal skill.
Scope of management
The scope of management is the range of its activities. It can be understood in four senses.
A. Functional areas of business
Management is applied to every department of an enterprise.
- Production management: deciding what, how much and how to produce; plant layout, production planning and control, quality control, maintenance and inventory control.
- Marketing management: finding out what customers want and supplying it at a profit; market research, product design, pricing, branding, advertising, sales promotion and distribution.
- Financial management: estimating the funds needed, raising them from suitable sources, investing them wisely, managing working capital and deciding on dividends.
- Personnel (human resource) management: manpower planning, recruitment, selection, training, appraisal, wages, welfare, industrial relations and the health and safety of employees.
- Purchase and materials management: buying materials of the right quality, in the right quantity, at the right price and time, and storing them safely.
- Office management: organising office work, records, correspondence and the flow of information.
- Research and development: new products, new processes and the improvement of existing ones.
- Transport and logistics: moving materials in and finished goods out at the lowest cost.
B. The managerial functions
In a second sense, the scope of management is the set of functions every manager performs: planning, organising, staffing, directing and controlling. These are explained in full below.
C. Every kind of organisation
Management is not confined to business. It is practised in government departments, public sector undertakings, hospitals, schools and colleges, banks, the armed forces, political parties, sports clubs and charitable trusts. A hospital superintendent, a college principal and a district collector all plan, organise and control. This is what is meant by the universality of management.
D. Management as a subject of study
Management is also a body of knowledge. Its study covers the principles and theories of management and the techniques used by managers, such as budgeting, network analysis and work study. It also covers the behaviour of people in organisations. It also covers the special problems of each functional area. Universities teach it, and professional institutes train managers in it.
Major functions of management
1. Planning
Planning is deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it and who is to do it. It begins with setting objectives and goes on to choose the best way of reaching them. Its main parts are:
- setting objectives for the firm and each department;
- forecasting future conditions;
- framing policies, procedures and rules;
- preparing programmes, schedules and budgets.
Planning is the first and basic function. Every other function exists to carry out the plan.
Example: a mobile phone maker plans to launch two new models next year, fixes their prices and sets a sales target for each region.
2. Organising
Organising arranges the work, people and resources needed to carry out the plan. Its main parts are:
- identifying and dividing the work into jobs;
- grouping jobs into departments;
- assigning duties to positions;
- delegating authority to match responsibility;
- fixing reporting relationships.
The result is the organisation structure, often shown on a chart.
Example: the phone maker sets up design, production, purchase, marketing and service departments, each under a head reporting to the managing director.
3. Staffing
Staffing fills the positions in the structure with suitable people and keeps them fit and willing. Its main parts are manpower planning, recruitment, selection, placement, induction, training, appraisal, promotion and pay. Koontz and O'Donnell treated staffing as a separate function because people are the most important resource of an organisation.
Example: the phone maker hires software engineers for the new models and trains service staff to repair them.
4. Directing
Directing sets the organisation in motion. It guides, leads and motivates people so that they carry out the plan willingly and well. It has four parts.
- Supervision: overseeing the work of subordinates.
- Motivation: creating the will to work.
- Leadership: influencing people to follow willingly.
- Communication: passing orders, information and ideas, and listening to feedback.
Example: a production manager explains the new targets to supervisors, praises good work and settles problems on the shop floor.
5. Controlling
Controlling checks that actual performance matches the plan and corrects any deviation. Its steps are:
- setting standards of performance;
- measuring actual performance;
- comparing it with the standards;
- taking corrective action.
Example: the phone maker compares monthly sales with the target. In a region that falls short, it adds dealers or increases advertising.
Co-ordination, the common thread
Co-ordination is the harmonising of the efforts of all individuals and departments towards common goals. Many writers call it the essence of management, since every function contributes to it. Planning unites goals, organising links departments, staffing matches people to jobs, directing aligns efforts, and controlling keeps everyone on course.
Other functions sometimes listed
Some writers add innovation (developing new ideas, products and methods) and representation (acting for the organisation in dealings with government, banks, unions and the public). These are carried out through the five main functions.
Functions at different levels
All managers perform all the functions, but the share of time differs.
| Level | Emphasis |
|---|---|
| Top management | Mostly planning and organising: long-term goals, policies, structure |
| Middle management | Organising, staffing and directing departments |
| Lower management | Mostly directing and controlling day-to-day work |
Summary table
| Function | Core question | Main parts |
|---|---|---|
| Planning | What, how, when, who? | Objectives, forecasts, policies, budgets |
| Organising | How is work arranged? | Jobs, departments, authority, relationships |
| Staffing | Who will do the work? | Recruitment, selection, training, appraisal |
| Directing | How do we get willing action? | Supervision, motivation, leadership, communication |
| Function | Core question | Main parts |
|---|---|---|
| Controlling | Are results as planned? | Standards, measurement, comparison, correction |
| Co-ordination | Do all parts work together? | Runs through every function |
An example tying scope and functions together
A large private hospital shows the full scope of management. Its finance manager raises funds for a new wing (financial management). Its personnel manager recruits nurses (personnel management), and its purchase officer buys medicines (materials management). In each of these areas the managers plan, organise, staff, direct and control. The hospital itself is not a business in the ordinary sense, which shows that management is universal.
Conclusion. Management is the process of reaching organisational goals efficiently and effectively through people. Its scope is very wide. It covers every functional area of a business, the managerial functions themselves and every kind of organisation. It is also a subject of study in its own right. Its major functions are planning, organising, staffing, directing and controlling, held together by co-ordination and performed at every level. A manager who understands this scope and these functions can see the whole of the job, and not just the urgent task of the day.
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