Line management refers to the
management
Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a Government agency, government bodies through business administration, Nonprofit studies, nonprofit management, or the political s ...
of
employees who are directly involved in the production or delivery of
products,
goods
In economics, goods are anything that is good, usually in the sense that it provides welfare or utility to someone. Alan V. Deardorff, 2006. ''Terms Of Trade: Glossary of International Economics'', World Scientific. Online version: Deardorffs ...
and/or
services. As the interface between an
organisation
An organization or organisation ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is an entity—such as a company, or corporation or an institution ( formal organization), or an association—comprising one or more people and having a pa ...
and its front-line
workforce
In macroeconomics, the workforce or labour force is the sum of people either working (i.e., the employed) or looking for work (i.e., the unemployed):
\text = \text + \text
Those neither working in the marketplace nor looking for work are out ...
, line management represents the lowest level of management within an organisational
hierarchy
A hierarchy (from Ancient Greek, Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy ...
(as distinct from
top/executive/senior management and
middle management
Middle management is the intermediate management level of a hierarchical organization that is subordinate to the executive management and responsible for "team leading" line managers and/or "specialist" line managers. Middle management is indire ...
).
A line manager is an employee who directly manages other employees and day-to-day operations while reporting to a higher-ranking manager. In some retail businesses, they may have titles such as head cashier or department supervisor. Related job titles are
supervisor
A supervisor, or lead, (also known as foreman, boss, overseer, facilitator, monitor, area coordinator, line-manager or sometimes gaffer) is the job title of a lower-level management position and role that is primarily based on authority over la ...
,
section leader,
foreperson,
office manager and
team leader.
They are charged with directing employees and controlling that the corporate objectives in a specific functional area or
line of business are met.
Despite the name, line managers are usually considered as part of the organization's workforce and not part of its management class.
Responsibilities
Line managers are tasked with implementing organizational policies through direct supervision of staff and ensuring alignment with business objectives and core values.
Key responsibilities include:
*
Recruitment and selection
*
Training
Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...
,
mentoring
Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...
,
coaching and
staff development
*
Performance management and
appraisal
*
Employee motivation and
well-being
Well-being is what is Intrinsic value (ethics), ultimately good for a person. Also called "welfare" and "quality of life", it is a measure of how well life is going for someone. It is a central goal of many individual and societal endeavors.
...
*
Team building and achievement of departmental goals
Typical duties may involve:
* Setting and communicating objectives and priorities
* Allocating and managing resources (e.g., staff time, budgets)
* Ensuring compliance with internal policies and legal requirements
* Providing leadership and operational direction
* Conducting regular meetings with team members
Line management also plays a role in facilitating organizational change, often in collaboration with senior management. Additionally, line managers are increasingly involved in functions traditionally managed by specialized departments, such as
human resources
Human resources (HR) is the set of people who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, industry, or economy. A narrower concept is human capital, the knowledge and skills which the individuals command. Similar terms include ' ...
,
finance
Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...
, and
risk management. In many organizations, line managers are directly responsible for operational risk and the implementation of HR policies.
See also
*
Staff management
*
Project management
Project management is the process of supervising the work of a Project team, team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints. This information is usually described in project initiation documentation, project documentation, crea ...
*
Performance management
*
Staff and line
*
Employee engagement
*
Management by objectives
*
Operations management
Operations management is concerned with designing and controlling the production (economics), production of good (economics), goods and service (economics), services, ensuring that businesses are efficiency, efficient in using resources to meet ...
References
Business management
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