Concept of Authority / source of authority in management
In simple words, ‘authority is the power to make decisions which guide the action of others. It is a right and power to influence the behaviour or efforts of other persons. It involves two basic elements power to use discretions and making decisions the right to compel for its obedience, and the power to influence the behaviour or actions of the subordinates. Authority is the cement of the organisation as such it is a binding force in an organisation.
Fayol defines Authority as follows: “Authority is the right to give orders and the powers to exact obedience.” The person who exercise authority by taking decisions to guide the activities of others is called the ‘superior’ and the person who is guided and accepts is called the ‘subordinate.’ Source of Authority
Now the question arises as regard to the source of authority. There are mainly three schools of thought regarding the source of authority. They are as follows:
(1) Formal Authority Theory – According to this theory authority is obtained by a persons because of his position he holds in the organisation. Persons in higher positions have legal right to exercise authority over subordinates. The managers operating at various levels receive the right to issue orders from top management. This type of authority originates in the formal structure of the organisation. Subordinates accept the formal authority of superior because of his position in the organisation. The subordinates are aware of the fact that if they disobey the formal authority they will be punished according to the rules and regulations of the company. To get results, the superior can delegate his authority to lower levels. The flow of authority is from top to bottom.
(2) Acceptance Theory-According to this theory, authority exists when subordinates are willing to be directed. The moment a superior’s authority is rejected by the subordinates, he ceases to have the authority even though he is legally authorised to command people. Formal authority is reduced to nominal authority if it is not accepted by the subordinates.
Thus this expression of the source of authority of the manager is the acceptance by his subordinates. This expression of the source of authority is based on the behavioural approach of management. It shows that the manager has no real authority until and unless the individual subordinate confers it upon him. A subordinate accepts “he authority of his superior because of certain factors obeying out of superiority, responding to the quality of leadership, respecting and constituted authorities, obtaining rewards and incentives from his superior, contribution to the realization of organisation objective. Thus the acceptance theory permits attention to the legal and social basis for authority.
It depends to a large extent on the personal traits of leadership, ability to persuade others to work well to accomplish organisation goals. The value of the acceptance theory lies in its recognition of the individuals decision on whether he will act on a communication he receives. A manager who has never thought about whether his orders will be followed or not and who has never considered ways of increasing understanding and acceptance of these orders, is not likely to be effective.
(3) Competence Theory- According to this theory, a person’s aurthority is not accepted because of any position he holds in the organisation but because of his authority of knowledge. Thus this principle is akin to the theory acceptance but here its basis is personal expertise and not the status or position of the persons concerned. In each organisation there are certain persons who do not possess any formal authority but they command respect and authority on account of their personality influence and technical competence. Thus to become an effective and successful manager, one should develop one’s personal competence also. Limits of Authority.
There are many limitations to the concept of authority. Authority is never absolute like responsibility. It changes with time, position and group behaviour of the subordinates, etc, While exercising authority, the manager must keep the following limitations in his mind. It will help him in successful utilization of this authority. Limitations of authority are as follows
1. Regard for the Mores and Folkways of the Group-Authority when used commands reactions from individual as well as groups. It may be favourable or unfavourable. So a manager must keep in his mind, while using authority, the reaction of his order on employees, shareholders and customers etc.
2. Legal Limitations- A manager’s authority is restricted by the enterprise goals objectives, policies, programmes and procedures etc. These all are governed by the Articles and Memorandum of Association which are governed themselves by the commercial and industrial laws of the country. Every manager, at any level in the organisation, must respect these laws, traditions and restrictions etc..
3. Natural or Biological Limitations- No subordinates can be ordered to do a job which is impossible to be performed due to biologicals limitations. For example, one can hardly order a person to walk up to side of a building or do such impossible things.
4. Physical Limitation- Physical limitations such as climate geography, chemical elements, and so on put limits on authority. For example, an order to make gold from copper will be ineffectual.
5. Technological Limitations : There are technological limits on authority too. Until and unless any performance is technically possible, an order to do any such work would be futile.
6. Economic Limitations : Sometimes, a manager may not get the work done from the subordinate if the wages to be paid are not according to his expectations. The competition, price of the product and other economic factors also affect the authority.
7. Authority Delegation Limitations: The extent of delegation of authority also restricts the authority of a manager. Generally the authority to make decisions or the right to command decreases as it proceeds from the highest to lowest level of an organisation.
