Vision Management

Management is termed as the process which starts from planning and leads to organizing, leading and controlling (Robbins (2008).). The management is a vast concept and can be viewed from many prospective; the management is generally referred with Marketing Management, Financial Management, Human Resource Management and Operations Management etc.
One of the traits of leaders is vision that is having a dream for future scenario; the vision statement is present at the profile of every company. Vision is so important for individuals, groups and corporations that the success and growth is not possible without a vision.
It is important to have a vision but it is more critical to manage the vision. Vision management means managing the vision to achieve the desired outcome. Vision management includes all the activities of planning, organizing, leading and controlling.
It is said, “Leaders do the right things and managers do the things right.” Leaders have a vision for future scenario to bring a change to improve a situation. But how a change will come? How a situation will be improved? The answers to these questions come from the concept of vision management. With vision management activities, actions are taken to move the things into favorable situations to achieve the vision.
Let’s look at the each step of vision management in detail.


Vision
It is generally said that management starts with planning (Robbins (2008).), but in real situation management starts with a vision, if there is no vision, for which the management activities will take place? The vision is first thing after which all other actions are taken place. Like in the organizations, whenever the change occurs, it comes from the top management. Through the vision of the top management and determination to manage the vision, change the market position of the organizations. There are lot of examples o in Pakistan, like “niralla sweets”, it was started as a very small business now through the vision; it is now a million dollars business. Vision is given by leaders who want to bring change or improve the situation or change the attitude of the people. When people rather mangers have vision, they start other activities to achieve the vision.
The vision is not always realistic; the vision is made realistic through vision management.
Planning
After the vision, planning is done about how the vision can be achieved, what is required to make the situation in favor, what resources are required to achieve the vision and what should be eliminated.
Planning for resources is very important but it is also critical to eliminate or minimize unfavorable circumstances, because if these are not minimized, even the abundant resource will not help in achieving the favorable results. Planning includes planning of physical resources, financial resources and human resources (Robbins (2008.)). Planning is very important after having a vision because if planning is dumb than all in not well even best vision and affluent resources will not be useful if there is poor or dumb planning.
Planning is very important activity and we all are involved in planning in our daily life, the planning can be short term or long term. In Pakistan the planning is generally not given the importance it deserves especially in public sector because there is no vision so there is no planning.
Planning is always made by keeping vision in mind, during planning there should be minimum deviation from the vision; vision should be always in mind to make the planning.
Organizing
Organizing comes next to planning. Organizing refers to organizing the physical, financial and human resources. It is very critical to make the right use of resources.
Organizing is linked with vision, in vision management organizing not just mean organizing resources it also means organizing the series of events that will direct the situation in the favor of vision.
Organizing is also very important for vision management unless resources and scenarios are not organized the vision cannot be achieved, it is the task of managers to organize and make the aisle for vision clear without any obstruction.
The vision is well managed when every thing is organized and there is no hurdle or obstruction in the way, it does not mean that there should be no problem; it means that when there comes any problem, the managers solve the problem immediately and turn the situation in favor to carry out the vision. The independence of Pakistan in 1947 is a bright example of vision management. Quaid I Azam had vision and the party members (managers) helped in achieving that vision, the struggle for independence is a bright example of vision management. We can take this example and implement the lessons in businesses, to achieve a certain position in market, hard work, efforts, competencies, determined people and above all a vision is required.
Leading
Leading comes next to organizing in vision management. Leading means leading the people i.e. make people behave and work according to the plan in order to achieve the vision. The concept of behavior modification is important in leading the vision.
Leading the people includes changing behavior of people and make use of their knowledge, skills and abilities in order to achieve the vision. The people use their knowledge and skills and work for the vision which is provided by leaders thus are very critical to vision management. It should be kept in mind that the leaders have vision they, communicate their vision to the people, but it is achieved by people. The people work according to plan and thus help in achieving the vision. Vision management is not possible without people and thus vision cannot be achieved without people.
Leader gives directions and vision and people follow the vision to achieve the leader’s vision and goal. Even competent and most intelligent people cannot work at full capacity unless they have clear direction and a vision to follow. The example of ©Microsoft is an example, the company is losing its market position because of low innovation, the people are same, there working has affected the reason is that the company’s vision in obsolete now and the workforce do not have any vision to follow which has caused company to lose its market position. This shows that vision is very important for the success of the companies.
Controlling
Controlling is considered as final activity in management (Robbins (2008.).) and thus it is final activity in vision management.
In vision management just like a project, the controlling is a continuous activity and it remains throughout the process of vision management.
In vision management, controlling refers to the controlling of every single step that nothing should deviate from the vision. Controlling also refers to controlling the physical resources, finance and behaviors of people so that not a single thing should deviate from the vision.
Controlling is the job of leaders and the managers to whom the authority is dedicated by the leader.
Conclusion
Vision management is thus the combination of various management activities which leads to the achievement of vision provided by leaders. Vision management is very important and present every where but it has not been given due consideration. Awareness to vision management will helps the organizations to improve their operations and working environment to better achieve the company’s vision.




WHAT IS VISION?
Vision is the expected future in visionary’s eyes. The difference between a common person and visionary is that common person also expects more and more from but life but he leaves it on fait and waits for something to happen. Whereas the visionary expects more and more from the life and takes reasonable actions and measures to make the situation in his favor and gets the desired results from the life.
More and more importance has been given to the vision because vision is very important the success and growth. It is the vision that has made Apple Computers a leading innovator company, it is the vision that has made TATA Group a mega corporation it is today; it is the vision that has made nirala sweets a mega business it is today.
Look at the history of these businesses, they all were started from scratch, some from a very low level like nirala sweets and tata group but they grew to be millionaire corporations because their owners had a vision and they worked hard to achieve it.
In contrast, some businesses are started from a very low level and they remain there for the rest of their existence, it does not mean that they do not earn profits, they earn lots of profit but the difference is that the owners do not have a vision to guide them towards the growth of business and as a result, they fail to capitalize the possible opportunities and remain in one position rather stagnant position for a very long time and sometimes always.
When you have a vision, then you make planning and capitalize the possible opportunities, you are always in search of different opportunities and eventually you find that and moves closer to the desired position. Why Walmart , Kmart and Metro etc. are mega retail stores and the retail store in our locality remains at the same position and it never grows, does it mean that it does not earn profit? No, it earns profit but the point of differentiation is vision, the owner does not have a vision of growth, he does not see his/her business to be a large corporation, as a result he does not make planning towards the growth and rests at stagnant position.
The bigger they are, the harder they fall is a generally quoted statement by small businessmen who does not want their businesses to turn into big organizations. The risk is involved in all businesses whether small or big.
Many business suffers crisis situations and face losses. Here also comes the part of vision, the vision is not only important for the growth and success of businesses and their success, it is very important and critical to save the organizations from dissolution. There are dozens of examples where visionary leaders have saved the companies from bankruptcy. It was the vision of Steven Jobs that saved Apple Computers and turned it into a leading company today (Apple Computers, 2010). It was the vision of Iacocca that saved Chrysler for the brink of bankruptcy (Chrysler Corp, 2008)
These examples significantly tell us the importance of vision.
But one thing should always be kept in mind that having a vision is one thing but to manage that vision is completely a different thing.