Manager redirects to here. For use in sports, see Coach (sport) or Manager (baseball).

Enterprise management redirects to here. For use in computer networks, see Network management or Systems management

"Management" (from Old French ménagement "the art of conducting, directing", from Latin manu agere "to lead by the hand") characterises the process of leading and directing all or part of an organisation, often a business, through the deployment and manipulation of resources (human, financial, material, intellectual or intangible). Early twentieth-century management writer Mary Parker Follett defined management as "the art of getting things done through people."

One can also think of management functionally, as the action of measuring a quantity on a regular basis and of adjusting some initial plan, and as the actions taken to reach one's intended goal. This applies even in situations where planning does not take place. From this perspective, there are five management functions: Planning, Organizing, Leading, Co-ordinating and Controlling. For others though, this definition, while useful, is far too narrow. The phrase "management is what managers do" is also prevalent, conveying the difficulty with which management is defined, the shifting nature of definitions, and the connection of managerial practices with the existence of a managerial cadre or class.