Management - Research Paper Example

This paper will discuss the evolution of management principle from the Classical School to the present and further compare, contrast, and relate different schools of management theory and management practices. Evolution of management principle from the Classical School to the present There are several theories originating from different principles throughout history which have seen management from their own point of view. These theories appeared due to the revolutionary development that has happened throughout history and not because they were planned.

Management theories are broadly classified into three which are the classical management theory, the neoclassical management theory and the modern management theory. The classical management theory, which is also referred to as the traditional school of management, consists of a group that has similar ideas on organizational management which evolved from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. This theory evolved due to the Industrial Revolution and consists of three branches, which are the administrative principles, bureaucratic organization, and scientific management.

The common aspects of these theories under the classical management theory is that they all put an emphasis on the economic rational of management and organization, which assumes that individuals at work are motivated by economic factors and would normally choose that which will give them the greatest monetary benefits. The scientific management was championed in 1911 by Frederick Tailor, who is considered to be the father of scientific management; he emphasized on time and motion studies, production maximization, and task specialization.

Taylor argued that other schools of thought leave workers too much discretion, and their potential at the workplace is not being maximized. Taylor argues that despite the fact that there is specialization and division of labor, employees still retain discretion on how to perform tasks. Scientific management theory was designed so as to put management in control, designing and using studies that are scientifically measured while focusing on the most efficient work methods and then organizing and controlling workers to ensure maximum efficiency (Giannantonio & Hurley, 2011).

This method had four elements where each job had to be broken down into elements and where each element is assigned a scientific way of handling it. Workers then would be selected and trained on how to do a task in a specific way, and there should also be good coordination between the managers and workers, and finally, there should be division of labor. He believed that this would determine the most efficient way of doing work. This method was challenged as there is no best way of doing work, and by the fact that there are also other factors other than money that affect productivity, like social needs, esteem and security needs.

As the scientific management pioneers tried to find the best way of doing things, the administrative principle pioneers tried to explore possibilities of the best ways of pulling jobs together and operating the organization; they tried to find the best way of running an organization. This theory was championed by Henry Fayol, who introduced the principles of management which are fundamental functions of all managers; they include planning,