Question

The directors of Bhupender Ltd. an organisation manufacturing computers want to double the sales & have given this responsibility to their sales manager. The sales manager has no authority either to increase the sales expenses or appoint new salesman. Hence he could not achieve this target. Is the sales manager responsible for not achieving the target? Explain in brief, the relevant principle in support of your answer.

Answer 1

No, the sales manager is not responsible because he has no authority either to increase the sales expenses or appoint new salesmen. In this case, the principle of ‘Parity of Authority and Responsibility is violated’.
Authority means the right to orders & obtain obedience. There are two types of authority (a) Official authority i.e. authority to command and (b) Personal authority which is the authority of the individual manager. ‘Responsibility’ means obligation to perform the job assigned on time. Fayol suggested that there must be balance between authority and responsibility. Giving authority without responsibility may lead to irresponsible use of authority. So an organization should build safeguards against abuse of managerial power.