Which sequence describes the management process?

• A. Planning and decision making → Organizing → Leading → Controlling → Repeat
• B. Controlling → Leading → Organizing → Planning
• C. Planning → Controlling → Organizing → Leading
• D. Leading → Planning → Organizing → Controlling

Answer: (A)

Starting with planning and decision making is about setting clear goals and choosing how to use resources to reach them. You need this roadmap before you do anything else, so planning defines what you intend to achieve and how you’ll approach it. Next comes organizing, which is about structuring the team, tasks, and systems so the plan can be carried out efficiently. With the framework in place, leading then becomes guiding and motivating people to execute the plan, ensuring everyone knows their role and priorities. Once work is in progress, controlling checks performance against the plan, identifies variances, and signals what adjustments are needed. This feedback loop is essential because conditions change and information becomes available, so you cycle back to planning to refine goals and methods. This sequence—planning and decision making, organizing, leading, controlling, and then repeating—embodies how management activities flow and adapt over time.