The foregoing description reveals the following features of co­ordination:

(i) Coordination is not a distinct function but the very essence of management.

(ii) Coordination is the basic responsibility of every manager and it can be achieved through the managerial functions. No manager can evade or avoid this responsibility. Coordination is essential whenever people work together to achieve some common objective.

(iii) Coordination does not arise spontaneously or by force. It is the result of conscious and concerted action by management.

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(iv)The heart of coordination is the unity of effort and action which involves fixing the time and manner of performing various activities so that individual efforts are blended into a productive team.

(v) Coordination is a continuous, never ending or on-going process. It is also a dynamic process. Some amount of coordination exists in every organisation though it may not be adequate.

(vi) Coordination is required in group efforts not in individual effort. It involves the orderly arrangement of group efforts. There is no need for coordination when an individual works in isolation without affecting anyone’s functioning. Coordination becomes essential when people form organizations.

(vii) The object of coordination is to lend unity of purpose to group efforts. Unity of effort requires an understanding of common purpose by all the members of the group.

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(viii) Coordination has a common purpose of getting organizational objectives accomplished.

(ix) Balancing, timing and integrating are the three elements of coordination. Balancing is ensuring that enough of one thing is avail­able to support or counter-balance the other.

It implies creating a balance between the resources of different departments and individuals Timing means bringing together different activities under a common time schedule so that they support and reinforce each other. Integrating involves unification of diverse interests under the common purpose.