Which of the following is applicable in respect of Controlling function of management?

Both option 1 and 2

The correct answer is option 3- Both option 1 and 2.

Controlling is both backward looking and Forward looking.

Planning and controlling are inseparable twins of management. Planning seeks consistent, integrated and articulated programmes while controlling seeks to compel events to conform to plans. Planning is basically an intellectual process involving thinking, articulation and analysis to discover and prescribe an appropriate course of action for achieving objectives. Controlling, on the other hand, checks whether decisions have been translated into desired action. Planning is thus, prescriptive whereas, controlling is evaluative. It is often said that planning is looking ahead while controlling is looking back. However, the statement is only partially correct. Plans are prepared for future and are based on forecasts about future conditions. Therefore, planning involves looking ahead and is called a forward-looking function. On the contrary, controlling is like a postmortem of past activities to find out deviations from the standards. In that sense, controlling is a backward looking function. However, it should be understood that planning is guided by past experiences and the corrective action initiated by control function aims to improve future performance. Thus, planning and controlling are both backward-looking as well as a forward-looking function.