MT 6316 LABORATORY MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO LABORATORY MANAGEMENT

WHAT IS MANAGEMENT?

MANAGEMENT
• Process of forecasting, planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating, and controlling (Henri Fayol, 20th
Century)
• The social process of planning, coordination, control, and motivation (E.F.L Brech)
• Organizational direction based on sound common sense, pride in the organization, and enthusiasm for
its works (Tom Peters, 1980)
• The attainment of organizational goals in an effective and efficient manner through planning, organizing,
staffing, directing, and controlling organizational resources.
o Organizational resources include men, money, machines, & materials

IPO APPROACH

1. Resources = Input
2. Process
3. Performance = Output

ORGANIZATION
• A social-entity that is goal directed and deliberately structured
 NATURE OF MANAGEMENT 7. Required at all level

1. Management is universal • process which requires all level, top, middle,

& low level of an organization
• applicable anywhere
• According to levels, the process of
o social, religious, business or industrial.
management is different
o whether an organization is big or
small, govt, hospitals, schools, 8. Separate from ownership
colleges, etc. • Management & ownership are two different
• with the help of management each and things in a company.
every task can be handled easily, properly • In a company, stakeholders are the owner
and effectively and managerial work is in the hand of “Board
2. Management is a social process of Directors”

• Management involves dealing with the 9. Purposeful activity

people, the effort of human beings is • The activity of management is connected
controlled & directed by the management. with planning, direction, controlling, staffing,
• It has social obligation to make efficient use etc and also there is some purpose behind it.
of scarce material for the benefit of the • Its main aim is to achieve the economic and
society. social objective.
3. Goal Oriented MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS
• Effective management is always
PLANNING activities to achieve the
management by objectives & also it has no organization's objectives
justification to exist without goals

4. Science & Art ORGANIZING resources and activities to

achieve the organization's objectives
MANAGERS

• There are precise elements, scientific and

exact aspects that have to be learned and
STAFFING the organization with qualified
assimilated people
• It is based on some skills; knowledge is also
required to achieve the goals effectively. DIRECTING employees' activities toward
achievement of objectives
• There is great room for the use of creativity,
imagination, initiative and invention within CONTROLLING the organization's
the overall sphere of the occupation activities to keep it on course
• Includes communication skills, motivation,
and directives PLANNING
• Process of determining the organization’s
5. Group Effort
objectives & deciding how to accomplish
• It deals with group of activities because no them
individual can do all the activities at the • Essential for every level of the management.
same time. • Can help a manager perform organizational
• A group can achieve the predetermined activities properly and clearly
goals easily and effectively
ORGANIZING
6. Intangible
• Structuring of resources & activities to
• It is important but unseen process of the
accomplish objectives efficiently &
organization; can’t be seen functioning with
effectively.
eyes but can feel by observing the result.
• Involves the division and subdivision of
o If any organization is heading toward
activities into the department, section, and
higher levels of achievement, it
job, as well as the integration of activities of
signifies the existence of good
an organization
management and vice versa.
• IMPORTANCE:
• In other words, achievement reflects the
o Creates synergy
quality of management and its
o Establishes lines of authority
effectiveness.
o Improves communication
o Improves competitiveness
STAFFING FIVE ACTIVITIES
• Hiring people to carry out the work of the • Measuring performance
organization. o uses Key Performance Indicator (KPI)
• Men are the biggest asset of an organization • Comparing performance against
• The staffing process concerned with standards
appointment of personnel for individual job • Identifying deviations from standards
o Determine the effective manpower • Investigating causes of deviations
o Set their qualifications according to • Taking corrective action
work and remuneration
MANAGER
o Training & recruitment of the
• Takes charge of the management (figure head)
employees
• Oversees the activities to achieve set goal or
• IMPORTANCE
purpose
o Recruiting
o Determine skills CHARACTERISTICS OF A MANAGER
o Motivate & train
• Possess well- defined goals
o Compensation levels
• Allocate resources according to priorities
DOWNSIZING • Make decisions, act upon them, and accept
• Elimination of significant numbers of responsibility for them
employees • Willing to compromise
• Rightsizing, trimming the fat • Delegate and to depend on subordinates
• Self-motivated and self-controlled
DIRECTING
• Motivating and leading employees to CHARACTERISTICS OF A LABORATORY MANAGER
achieve organizational objectives.
• Able to organize, plan, and communicate for
• It is concerned with guiding the people at
effective use of resources
work for securing their cooperation in the
• Maintain good relationship with others
execution of work.
• Possess emotional maturity
• It helps in influencing, motivating human
• Internal resources to cope with frustration,
resources towards the achievement of
disappointment, and stress
organizational goals.
• Be able to appraise oneself and one’s
• The directing function actually starts the
performance objectively, to admit to being
work. It guides the human resources how the
wrong
work be done.
• Expect that one will keep on growing, improve
MOTIVATION one’s performance, and continue to develop
• Incentives (raise, promotion)
• Employee involvement (cost reduction, ROLES OF A MANAGER
customer service, new products)
• Recognition and appreciation INTERPESONAL ROLES

FIGUREHEAD
CONTROLLING
• Process of evaluating and correcting
Description • Symbolic head
activities to keep organization on course • Required to perform a number
• It is the important function in all types of of routine duties of a legal or
enterprises. social nature
• It is concerned with measuring and Examples • ceremonies status requests
comparing the operating results with plan • solicitations
• take corrective action if any deviation LEADER
occurs, so that similar problem may not
occur in future.
Description • Responsible for the motivation
and direction of subordinates
Examples • Virtually all managerial activities
involving subordinates
LIAISON DISTURBANCE HANDLER
Description • Maintains a network of outside Description • Responsible for corrective action
contacts who provide favors when organization faces
and information important, unexpected
Examples • Acknowledgement of mail disturbances
external board work Examples • Strategy and review sessions
involving disturbances & crises
INFORMATIONAL ROLES RESOURCE ALLOCATOR
MONITOR Description • Making or approving significant
Description • Receives wide variety of organizational decisions
information
Examples • Scheduling
• Serves as never center of internal • Requests for authorization
and external information of the • Budgeting
organization • Programming of subordinates work
Examples • Handing all mail and contacts NEGOTIATOR
categorized as concerned
Description • Responsible for representing the
primarily with receiving
organization at major
information
negotiations
DISSEMINATOR Examples • Contract negotiation
Description • Transmits information received
from outsiders or other MANAGERIAL SKILLS
subordinates to members of the
organization
Examples • Forwarding mail into
organization for information
purposes
• Verbal contacts involving
information flow to subordinates
such as review sessions
TECHNICAL SKILLS
SPOKESPERSON
• Competent in a specialized area, analytical
Description • Transmits information to outsiders ability, and the ability to use appropriate tools
on organizations plans, policies, and techniques
actions, and results o Do your best with the task assigned
• Serves as expert on to you
organization’s industry o First step; preparation for
Examples • Board meeting management skills (human skills)
• Handling contacts involving • Understands what is needed to get the job
transmission of information to done; understands the physical operation
outsiders • Hands-on activity with basic product or
process knowledge
DECISIONAL ROLES o Producing the actual products a
company is designed to produce
ENTREPRENEUR • Technical skills are the knowledge and
Description • Searches organization and its capabilities to perform specialized tasks.
environment for opportunities • Management often needs to have technical
• Initiates projects to bring about skills in order to communicate effectively with
changes line workers and coordinate efforts.
Examples • Strategy and review sessions
involving initiation or design of
improvement projects
HUMAN SKILLS 1. TOP MANAGEMENT
• An individuals’ ability to cooperate with other • make decisions regarding the firm’s long-
members of the organization and work run objectives
effectively in teams. • sets the direction for the whole organization
• Manager = less technical and conceptual • make decisions that the middle and first-
skills, more on human skills line management cannot do
• Managing subordinates as well as managing • responsible for corporate planning
yourself • more on conceptual skills in nature
• EXAMPLES: o President
o Interpersonal relationships § Leader of a small organization or
o Solving people’s problem institution
o Acceptance of other employees § Decision making is faster
o Assist group members in working o Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
cooperatively as a group to achieve § The executive of all the chiefs
common goal below him/her
o Create an atmosphere of trust and § Complex organization (e.g. San
comfort Miguel Corporation)
o Encourage involvement in planning • Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
o Motivating others • Chief Operations Officer (COO)
o E.g. Clinical laboratory
EFFECTIVENESS
• e.g. Chief of Hospital
• Refers to the result – attainment of goals
• E.g. accurate laboratory test results
2. MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
EFFICIENCY • Responsible for tactical planning
• Achieving maximum productivity (time) o Short-term plans that defines the
• Lowest cost possible w/out sacrificing objectives, operational processes,
the result and resources
• E.g. Fastest possible turnaround time o E.g. 3-6 months
(TAT) • Implement general guidelines established
by top management
CONCEPTUAL SKILLS • Recommend possible improvements or
revisions to the top management
• Ability of an individual to analyze complex • Section heads, laboratory heads
situations and to rationally process and • More on the human skills
interpret available information. o communicate with both the top
• EXAMPLES: and supervisory management
o Idea generation • e.g. Chief Medical Technologist; Chief
o Analytical process of information Pathologist
o Create a vision and strategic plan for
the organization 3. FIRST-LINE/ SUPERVISORY MANAGEMENT
o Understanding what a company stands • Supervise workers
for and where it should be going. • Oversee daily or weekly operations
• Directing and controlling primary functions
LEVELS OF MANAGEMENT • Highly involved with the employees who
engage in the day-to-day production
TOP process
MANAGEMENT • More on the technical skills
• e.g. Section Heads

MIDDLE
MANAGEMENT

FIRST-LINE/SUPERVISORY
 INDICATORS OF LACK OF important role to play in improving
MANAGEMENT SKILLS employee engagement.

1. Not listening while people are talking 8. Making decisions & then asking for feedback
• Poor leaders don’t set aside time to • Leaders that believe they need to be
actively listen to their people the one to have all the answers and all
o No communication is happening decisions need to be made at the top
and then handed down to the
2. Micromanaging employees.
• when someone is watching your every • Good leader should obtain feedback
move. they are just waiting for you to from the sharp end who have
make a mistake so they can jump in and experience and knowledge to handle
take over certain situations, before deciding on a
• spending all the time checking up on particular course of action
what others are doing
9. Passing the buck
3. Focusing on the task and not the individuals • Poor Leaders look to point the finger of
• manager who was only interested in blame away from them for anything that
getting the job done but disregard the went wrong!
individuals’ involvement in helping • Good leadership means taking
achieve said task responsibility when it is due and allowing
• Coaching vs Mentoring others to take the credit when it is
o Coaching – performance deserved.
driven, dictates
o Mentoring – long term, 10. No sense of humor
• A sense of humor is a vital element in the
4. Not enforcing standards make-up of successful Leaders
• this sends the message that the • It indicates you are working for someone
standards are not important or relevant. who is in control, someone who is
relaxed and someone who is confident
5. Lack of effective communication of in achieving success.
expectations • Humor can disarm uncomfortable
• Leader paints a clear picture of exactly situations and help employees identify
what is expected of their people and with their bosses.
helps create the environment to allow • Studies suggest humor leads to
them the best chance of success. creativity, better personal interactions
• Listening – best way of communicating and workplaces that are simply more
• Goal of communication: to understand fun.
• Happier employees like their workplace
6. Ineffective feedback (positive & negative) more and will put more effort into their
• Leader that don’t take time to tell jobs, be more satisfied and, perhaps,
people how they are doing, and if they feel less like a number and more like they
are meeting expectations. matter to the success of the company.
• The feedback should be presented in a
constructive, objective and calm
manner, to help people grow and
improve.
• Management should be done together
o Give feedback and listen to
feedback

7. Communication on a need to know basis only

• If plans and other areas of the business
are treated as secrets not to be shared
with other departments
• Effective communication of the
company vision and objectives has an
MT 6316 LABORATORY MANAGEMENT
CHAPTER 2: MANAGEMENT PLANNING
INDICATORS OF POOR PLANNING
PLANNING
(According to William J. McLarney)
• PLAN
o Blueprint of activities/ strategies set 1. Delivery dates not met
to reach the goal 2. Idle machines
• PLANNING: plan + goal 3. Materials wasted
o Act of setting the blueprint (plan) 4. Some machines doing jobs that should be
and setting the goal done by smaller machines
o First step of management 5. Some laboratory personnel overworked,
• The organization’s goals others are underworked
o Desired output 6. Skilled workers doing unskilled work
• An overall strategy 7. Laboratory Personnel fumbling on jobs for
• Comprehensive set of plans to integrate which they have not been trained
and coordinate organizational work 8. Quarreling, bickering, buck-passing and
• Objective: customer satisfaction confusion

BENEFITS OF GOOD PLANNING

IMPORTANCE OF GOOD PLANNING
1. Jobs turn out on time
1. Planning focuses attention on objectives 2. Good relationship with other departments
2. Planning Reduces Risks of Uncertainty 3. People using their highest skills
o “sana pumasa ako sa quiz, kung…” 4. Workers know how their jobs fit into the total
3. Planning helps in coordination pattern
o Anyone who can help you gather 5. Machines doing their proper jobs
information needed for your plan 6. Equipment in good shape
4. Planning gains economical operation 7. Materials available
5. Planning facilitates control 8. Waste kept to a minimum
6. Planning helps executive development
MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVE (MBO)
QUALITIES OF A GOOD PLANNER
1. Proficiency in the determination of
objectives
2. Good judgement, imagination, foresight,
and experience
3. Ability to accept changes
4. Ability to evaluate laboratory opportunities
and hazards

VALUES DERIVED FROM PLANNING

1. The achievement of the objective of the
organization in the most efficient and
• Process
economical manner.
• Managers and employees
2. The use of efficient methods and the
• Set goals for the employees
development of standards necessary for
• Make action plans, periodically evaluate
accurate control.
performance and reward according to the
3. Integration of activities of the different units
results
in the organization toward goal-directed
• Encourages:
actions.
o Discussion
4. The reduction of emergency and
o Interaction
unexpected problems
o truly committed managers and
involved employees in the decision
making process
 HIERARCHY OF PLANS LABORATORY DESIGN
1. Ensure that patients and patient samples do
not have common pathways
2. The design should have different circulation
paths between the public and biological
materials
3. Reception area for incoming patients should
be located as close as possible to the entry
door
4. Only authorized personnel should have
restricted access to rooms where analyses of
samples are done and hazardous chemicals
or other materials are stored
• The mission - organization’s purpose and
5. Access restriction can be accomplished using
philosophy
signs on door locks and identification badges
• Objectives - It is the ultimate goal towards
for staff
which the activities of the organization are
directed
CIRCULATION PATHWAYS
• Strategies - general program of action and
1. Sample collection Areas
deployment of resources
• Reception area and sample
• Policies - general statement or
collection room located at the
understanding which guide or channel
patient’s entrance
thinking in decision making
• Procedures - states a series of related steps or 2. Sample processing areas
tasks to be performed in a sequential way • separated from other sections of the
• Rules - prescribes a course of action and laboratory
explicitly states what is to be done • but nearby the testing areas
• Programs - comprehensive plan that 3. Biological samples between different
includes future use of different resources sections of the laboratory
• Budgets - statement of expected results • clean and dirty laboratory materials
expressed in numerical terms should never cross
• contaminated materials should be
TYPES OF PLANS isolated
STRATEGIC PLANNING 4. Post-examination pathways
• the identification of the mission and of those • communication system
objectives • efficient and reliable
• most efficient pursuit • transferring of messages
• long-term goals for the next 5 years SPATIAL CONSIDERATIONS IN LABORATORY DESIGN
• top managers with final authority and
1. Laboratory departments (such as Clinical
responsibility
Chemistry, Hematology, Coagulation) which
have highly automated instrumentation
TACTICAL PLANNING
processes and manual processes is desirable
• action and deals with the method(s) to centralize the automated processing area.
Short-range – strategy implementation (6 2. Those laboratories with greater turn-around –
months – 2 years) time (TAT) and or less volume, as well as those
• operational or technical skill requiring special safety features ( such as
• middle managers (supervisory staff) Clinical Microbiology, and radio assay and
radio-assay laboratories) might be removed
OPERATIONAL PLANNING from the central area
• detailed plan used to provide - team, section
or department
• Very short-term ( for the next 1 week to 1 year)
• Responsibility of First-line managers
3. Location of room with specific requirement
such as:
A. Molecular biology that needs two rooms.
B. Fluorescence Microscopy that requires a
dark room with proper ventilation
C. Ultraviolet illumination systems for DNA gel
photography
4. The blood bank and the critical care
laboratory procedures should be readily
accessible to the emergency room, operating
room, and ICU. The location of blood bank
should allow rapid access of donors and
adequate parking donors if the blood bank is
responsible for donor procurement,
phlebotomy and/ or apheresis
5. If the laboratory is serving an in-patient
population, accessibility to corridors and
elevators providing access to the main patient
care unit is essential.
6. The intralaboratory traffic flow must be
separated from the outside. Provisions should
be made for ambulatory patients and blood
bank donors coming into the laboratory