T-Kit 1: Organisational Management
For trainers, staff and committee members of international youth organisations.
This T-kit seeks to encourage the development of well managed youth organisations across Europe through the provision of a theoretical foundation and practical application of organisational management techniques.
It has been produced with the aim to serve:
• Trainers and multipliers in the field of organisational management
• “Managers” (i.e. Secretary Generals, International Co-ordinators, Executives, Presidents, etc.) of small and medium sized non-governmental youth organisations.
Both the words ‘managers’ and ‘management’ may seem sometimes a bit alien to the jargon used in youth organisations. However we would like to emphasise that management is not only a business practise, any volunteer organising a day trip is managing time, people and resources. So it is important that individuals identify themselves with the concept of management.
This T-kit does not attempt to offer the solution to all youth organisation’s problems. In the same way that organisations and individuals are unique, solutions are too. So there are not miraculous recipes, however we offer techniques and methods that can be adapted to your organisation’s reality and help it to improve its quality.
A publication of this size does not have enough space to cover in depth all the topics related to organisational management. For this reason the authors have had to be selective in their choice of topics developed. The selection of topics for this T-Kit and their grouping into 4 chapters is the result of great discussion amongst the authors who themselves bring wide experience of managing and management theory. Other T-kits are planned for the future on specialised themes such us fund-raising, and a complementary bibliography is offered on different topics in this publication.
The T-kit is divided in four main sections which can be read independently and which also are interconnected; thus demonstrating the holistic approach to managing organisations. Each section includes some theoretical background, analysis and specific exercises to assist trainers in their work.
Chapter 1 describes organisations as systems related to the external environment and able to develop a specific internal environment called culture. The use of the word “environment” is intentional as it is intended to help those involved in management to consider first the context of youth organisations and their role in today’s society.
Chapters 2 and 3 are devoted to people, the organisation’s greatest resource: Chapter 2 is about management of self – an essential precursor to managing others. It covers the discovery of one’s potential as manager and leader and understanding how we learn. It also considers the importance of relationships in management.
Chapter 3 is about management of people. Management is not seen as the controlling factor in organisations but rather a function focussed on the mission of the organisation. Management enables the purpose to be defined and fulfilled by adapting to change and by maintaining a balance between the various, and frequently conflicting, pressures of work.
Chapter 4 goes into the management of process or the “non human resources” within and outside the organisation. Processes are treated as dynamic elements within the life of an organisation – continually changing, responding and developing.
