Evolution of Management Principles - Essay Example

EVOLUTION OF MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES 3 Introduction 3 Pre-Scientific management school 3 ical Management Era 4 Neo ical Management Era 5 Modern management Era 6 Contingency Theory 7 Comparative Analysis for Current working Environment 7 A General Comparison of the four schools of management 8 Conclusion 9 References: 10 EVOLUTION OF MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES Introduction The verb manage comes from the Italian maneggiare meaning to handle. Management has been defined by George Terry as task of planning, organizing, actuating and controlling to accomplish desired goals and objectives by using people and available resources efficiently and effectively. The development of management thought has been evolutionary in nature and can be divided in to four eras (Aquinas, 2005). 1. Pre scientific management era (before 1880) 2. Classical management era (1880-1930) 3. Neo classical management Era (1930-1950) 4. Modern management era (1950 onwards) Pre-Scientific management school Difficulties arise in tracing the history of management; some see it as a late modern conceptualization while others believe it has been present for millennia. Chanakya’s ‘Arthashastra writeen in India in around 300 BC describes various strategies, techniques and management theories. Chinese general Sun Tzu’s The Art of war (6th Century B.C), is a military strategy book which recommends us to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the two warring factions. Niccolo Machiavelli wrote the Prince in 1513 in which the city of Florence, Italy is advised that leaders use fear and not hatred to maintain control. Church and military contributed to his school of management thought (pediaview). Management ideas were also developed in China, Greek and Roman empires in the Middle Ages. Venice which was known for its fighting and production facilities has been found to have used assembly line techniques to outfit battle ships to go to wars during the 15th Century. There was a facility in which ten ships could be completely outfitted and sent to sea within a few hours. The early autocratic period of management is characterized by the use of strategies like fear of punishment and fear of God; absolute authority, coercion and force. Figure 1: Evolution of Management Principles Classical Management Era Efficiency and productivity became a critical concern of the managers at the turn of the 20th Century. Labour was in short supply and the solution lied in using labour more efficiently. Adam Smith wrote The wealth of Nations in 1776 which aims for efficient organization of work through specialization of labour. He described how changes in processes could boost productivity in the manufacture of pins. While individuals could produce 200 pins per day, with 10 specialists the production was 48,000 pins per day! F.W. Taylors scientific management theory states that if the amount of time and effort that each worker expends to produce a unit of output can be reduced by increasing specialization and division of labour; the production process will become more efficient (Montana & Charnov, 2008). Ford achieved the right mix of worker task specialization. Franklin motor company redesigned the work process using the scientific management principles and production increased from 100 cars a month to 45 cars a day. Administrative management theory is the study of how to create an organizational structure that leads to high efficiency and effectiveness. Max Weber (1864-1920) developed the principles of bureaucracy-a formal system of organization design. Henry Fayol (1841 to 1925) underlined 14 principles of management which are (Aquinas, 2005) 1. Division of Labour 2. Authority and Responsibility 3. Unity of Command 4. Line of authority 5. Centralization 6. Unity of Direction 7. Equity 8. Order 9. Initiative 10. Discipline 11. Remuneration of personnel 12. Stability of tenure of personnel 13. Subordination of individual interest to common interest 14. Esprit de corps Promotion of team spirit. Neo Classical Management Era Behavioural Management school in this era is the study of how managers should behave to motivate employees and encourage them to perform at high levels and be committed to the achievement of organizational goals. Mary Parker Follett advocated the interaction of management and workers. Her work contrasted with the scientific management of F.W. Taylor. She integrated the idea of organizational conflict into management theory. She differentiated coercive power from participative decision making. She was of the view that authority should go with knowledge. She wanted workers involvement in job analysis and work development process. Managers of different department should communicate with each other directly. The Hawthorne studies by Mayo are the finding that a managers behavior or leadership approach can affect workers level of performance. The human relations school of this era advocates the idea that supervisor receive behavioural training to manage subordinates in way that elicit their co-operation and increase their productivity. This School of thought is considered to be a swing in the opposite direction of classical theory. They see only the human variable as critical and ignore other variables. It is practically impossible to satisfy every body and turn the organization into one big happy family. For example-where secrecy of decision or quick decision making is required this approach may not work (Montana & Charmov, 2008). Modern management Era The modern management era began around 1950 with the revisionist movement propounded by Litchfiled in Administrative science quarterly in 1956. This group tried to test the views of earlier schools and accept them selectively. In this process it has made use of many tools like computers, mathematical techniques and theories from other disciplines. In the context of Systems theory the word systems refer specifically to self regulating systems which are self correcting through feed back. Self regulating systems are found in nature including the physiological system of the body and global eco system. Systems theory is the transdisciplinary study of systems in general, with the goal of elucidating principles that can be applied to all types of systems (Montana & Charnov, 2008). Contingency Theory It is a type of behavioural theory that contends: There is no universal or one best way to manage The design of an organization and its subsystems must fit with the environment. The optimal leadership style is contingent upon various internal and external constraints. Organizational humanism believes that there is a set of forces and conditions that operate beyond an organizations boundaries but affect a managers ability to acquire and utilize resources. Management Science theory uses rigorous quantitative techniques to help managers make maximum use of organizational resources (Montana & Charnov, 2008). Comparative Analysis for Current working Environment The current working environment boasts of new trends and issues like (Aquinas, 2005): Globalization: Management in international organizations in a global market. Working with people from different cultures. Outsourcing of jobs to countries with low cost labour. Ethics: Increased emphasis on ethics education in colleges leads to use of code of ethics by businesses. Workforce diversity: Increased heterogeneity in the work force. More gender minority, ethnic diversity in employees. Entrepreneurship: The process of starting new businesses generally in response to opportunities. It is a pursuit of opportunities which leads to innovation in products, services or business methods. E-Business: The work performed by an organization using electronic linkages to its key constituencies. E-commerce is the sales and marketing aspect of an E business. Learning organization: An organization that has developed the capacity to continuously learn, adapt and change. Knowledge Management: The cultivation of a learning culture where organizational members systematically gather and share knowledge with others in order to achieve better performance. Quality management: A philosophy of management driven by continual improvement in the quality of work processes and responding to customers needs and expectations inspired by total quality management (TQM) ideas of Deming and Juran. A General Comparison of the four schools of management Pre-scientific theory was unrefined and unsynthesized. The early autocratic period of management is characterized by the use of absolute authority, coercion and force, with strategies like fear of God. Under classical era, the scientific theory of Taylor did not appreciate social context of work and higher needs of workers. It did not acknowledge variance among individuals. The administrative school, however looked at organization as a whole but its principles were not empirically tested. The principles are stated as unconditional statements which is not practicable. The neo-classical management era schools are criticised as they consider only the human variable as important and is concerned with the needs, drives, behaviour and attitude of people. The modern school of management derives and accepts selectively from the earlier schools and is more integrated in approach, techniques and theories (Montana & Charnov, 2008). It believes in We instead of just Me It is an organization that has developed the capacity to change for the better. They say, "If you are not changing, the system wont work for long". "If an idea was invented here, reject it" as they are continuously on the look out for new ideas. They believed that not only the Research and Development Department of organization, but every one in it is responsible for innovation. Their main fear is not learning new things and not "making mistakes". The work of a manager is not to control others but to enable others. The present working environment of the author involves a hierarchical organisation which is definite and precise; clearly defining the role of each of the individual in the organisation. Though the management is generally centralised with most of the decisions being taken by the senior managerial staff; it has clear advantages in the military set up. The discipline and authority are of prime concern and responsibilities as well as loyalty are high in the order of organisations’ priorities. Though the decision enactment can be slow due to bureaucratic set up yet this is partially compensated for by communication technology. Moreover it is important to consider that in a military set up the advantages of hierarchical set up far outweigh its disadvantages. Conclusion The schools of management thought are theoretical frameworks for the study of management. Over time thinkers have sought ways to organize and classify the voluminous information about management that has been collected and disseminated. The management research and practice continues to evolve new approaches to the study of the management. The more integrated the approach the better purpose will it serve in day to day practical affairs of management. References: 1. Aquinas, P. G. (2005). Principles of management. New Delhi: Anmol Publications. 2. Management studies. (n.d.). Retrieved May 2011, from http://pediaview.com/openpedia/Management_studies 3. Montana, P. J., & Charnov, B. H. (2008). Management. 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