Contemporary Management Practice - Essay Example

Reflective Journal Writing this essay has given me a lot of insights about the nature and implications of different management approaches to organisations. The most important thing that I have learned is that a manager will more likely succeed if s/he knows how to apply these different management approaches in the right place and in the right time. Managers who usually fail are those who choose to focus on a single management style. For instance, McDonald’s has been using scientific management for a long time now.

It helped the company grow stronger and more profitable, but eventually the approach began to deteriorate and fail to deliver the desired outcomes of the company. This example shows that the internal and external environments of an organisation continuously change. And alongside these changes are the demands for more appropriate management approach. One example of a successful CEO is Jack Welch of General Electric (GE). He combined various management approaches, like operations management, systems management, human relations approach, and so on, in his Six Sigma model.

Therefore, I can definitely say that the situational or contingency approach to management is one of the best among the management approaches, whether traditional or contemporary. This approach is not only useful for managers, but for leaders as well. Due to the complexity of the field of management theory and practice, I encountered some difficulties gathering relevant and most accurate descriptions and explanations of the various management approaches. The initial phases of the write up, most especially the library research part, consumed a lot of time.

Nonetheless, the entire endeavour was fulfilling because I clearly understand now how and why the various management approaches emerged.