NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Running head: THE EVOLUTION OF MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLE FROM THE CLASSICAL SCHOOL TO THE PRESENT The Evolution of Management Principle from the Classical School to the Present August 28, 2008 The Evolution of Management Principle from the Classical School to the Present Introduction The knowledge of the evolution of management theories is very important to managers. Understanding historical evolution of management thought empowers with the capacity to critically analyze managerial issues and to guide towards understanding the basic techniques and concepts pertaining to management thought. The present study is focused on the historical evolution of management thought, and provides an overview of management in ancient, medieval and contemporary history, through examination of the major approaches to the field of management, embracing classical, behavioral, quantitative, systems, contingency and quality management approaches. Finally, the present study examines each management approach through dwelling on its major principles and thinkers, comparing and contrasting and relating the schools of management theory and management principles in current work environment, equipping the readers with a critically important historical perspective on how the management field evolved into what it is nowadays. Classical Management Theory Classical management theory is the theory that placed high emphasis on finding the one best way to manage and perform the tasks.
This theory was one of the first schools of management thought. Classical management theory evolved during the Industrial Revolution when managers had to find effective solutions in relation to completely new problems concerning the factory system (Cole, 2003). During that time, the managers had difficulties in developing new approach to training employees, especially when taking into account that many of employees were foreign language speaking immigrants. Moreover, the managers had to find solutions to cope with the labor dissatisfaction. Therefore, in contrast to other management schools, classical management school appeared due to the attempts of the managers to find the one best way to perform and manage work-related strategic tasks. Basically, the classical management theory comprises of two major branches classical scientific school and classical administrative school.
In such a way, the major features of the classical management theory are as follows. Unlike other schools, classical management school emerged during England's Industrial Revolution when the manufacturers began mass-producing products in factories. The textile industry was among the first to implement the principles of the classical management school. It made possible to produce standardized goods and products and heavily depended on materials and constant flow of labor. The owners and managers, therefore, needed to plan, organize, manage and control. Finally, this theory placed especial emphasis on finding the one best way.
Classical Scientific School In contrast to classical administrative school, classical scientific school focused on the manufacturing environment, while classical administrative school placed special emphasis on the flow of information and the way how the organizations should function. One of the most famous persons associated with classical scientific school is Charles Babbage. In 1832 Charles Babbage published his famous work "On the Economy of Machinery and Manufactures." According to him, there were definite management principles with broad applications determined by experience. Charles Babbage also developed the principle of the division of labor among the persons who perform the work. (Nickels, McHugh, & McHugh, 1987) Frederick W. Taylor is considered the father of scientific management.
In his works, Taylor adhered to the following concepts: to develop a science of management, to develop and train workers scientifically, to select the workers scientifically and to create cooperation between labor and management. Also, Frederick W. Taylor has succeeded to determine the quickest and most effective ways to perform tasks. Another famous contributor to the scientific management approach, Henry Gantt, is known for his invention of the so-called Gantt chart. The scientists moved away from authoritarian management and supported a bonus system designed to reward workers. In such a way, the most important concepts of the classical scientific approach were as follows: to analyze everything thoroughly, to teach effective ways and methods to the others, to monitor workers constantly, to plan responsible and to control the workers and their performance.
Classical Administrative School In contrast to the classical scientific school that was mostly focused on the productivity of the workers, the classical administrative school placed especial emphasis on the total organization. Also, the classical administrative school was more focused on the development of managerial principles, while scientific management was more focused on work methods. Mary Parker Follett, Max Weber, Chester I. Barnard and Henri Fayol were the most important contributors to this management approach. The scholars considered that the most important thing is to understand how the organization operates.
Henri Fayol considered that specific management skills can be taught and learned. Fayol also dweller on the following universal management functions, such as planning, organizing, leading and controlling. It is also important to mention Fayol's principles of management, namely, division of work (which is similar to Adam Smith's division of labor), authority (according to which the managers should be able to give orders, and authority provides them with this right), discipline (the workers should obey and respect the rules of the organization), unity of command (according to which every worker should receive orders from only one manager), unity of direction (each group of organization activity should be directed by one manager), subordination of the persons interests to the general good, remuneration (the employees should receive fair remuneration for their services), centralization, hierarchy of orders (representing the scalar chain from the top to the lowest ranks), order (materials and individuals should be in the right place at the right time), equity (the managers should be fair and kind to their subordinates), stability of tenure of staff, initiative and esprit de corps (with the major objective of promoting team spirit within the organization) (Nickels, McHugh, & McHugh, 1987). In such a way, the most important features of the classical administrative school were as follows. Unlike other theories, this theory emphasized on continuous and total management process, determined the skills and principles that were considered to underlie effective management, dweller on formal and hierarchical structural process referred in an organization, and examined the influence of human relations on organizational success, considering people oriented approach to management to be the most crucial factor for overall efficiency of the organization. The Behavioral School Unlike classical management theory, this management school places high emphasis on human relations at the workplace and is focused on discovering psychological and social factors that can affect human performance.
The most famous theorists were Mayo et. al (1880 - 1949), McGregor (Theory X and Theory Y), Maslow with his hierarchy of needs theory, and Simon (1950). According to Maslow, the theory of human needs was based on three assumptions: human needs cannot be satisfied completely, human behavior is motivated by the need for satisfaction and is purposeful, and that human needs can be classified in compliance with the hierarchical structure of importance (Pierce & Dunham, 1990). Also, the needs hierarchy was divided into five specific categories: physiological needs, safety needs, belonging and love needs, esteem needs and self-actualization needs. This theory helped the managers to understand and visualize workers motivation. The behavioral approach has emerged in response to the scientists attempts to find answers to the questions concerning the motivations and interactions of the individual within the organizations.
In contrast to the behavioral school classical management school was not very effective in finding solutions to many management situation. Classical management theory also failed to provide appropriate explanation to the behavior of the individual workers. It also didn't take into consideration workers' behavior and motivation. In such a way, the behavioral management school emerged as a natural continuation from the classical school of management thought.
The behavioral theory is often referred to as the human relation movement. This can be explained by the fact that behavioral management theory heavily emphasizes on the human dimension of work (Cole, 2003). According to this theory, the workers should be treated as individuals, assets and valuable resources of the organization, and shouldn't be viewed as machines (as it was in the past, when classical management theory was popular). In such a way, behavioral management theory treats workers as individual with concrete human needs, as members of a larger society and parts of work groups.
The behavioral management theory helps managers to discover what the employees want from their work (employees expectations), how to enlist commitment and cooperation and how to discover talents, creativity and energy. Quantitative School of Management Thought The quantitative management theory emerged during World War II. Unlike classical and behavioral school that emphasized on human dimension of work, quantitative management theory was based on applying mathematical approaches to the management problems. The quantitative management theory can be applied to every aspect of business. There are few branches of this school: Management Science School This school was developed as the study of relatively complex systems of money, people, procedures and recourses with the objective to improve their effectiveness. It appeared to find solutions to the problems associated with the global warfare (Kazmier, 1964).
Management science school suggests managers to use statistics, mathematics and various quantitative methods to make management decisions (Pierce & Dunham, 1990). For example, the managers may use computer models in order to find out the best way to perform some activity. Also, the managers can use mathematical forecasting to enhance their planning processes, to use inventory modeling in order to control inventories more effectively, or to use queuing theory to allocate workstations or service personnel in order to reduce service cost and customer waiting to the lowest possible level. Operations Management School Operations management emphasizes on managing the process of transforming labor, materials and capital into useful services and goods.
Operations management can be very useful for both service and manufacturing organizations, as it allows the managers paying attention to the demands of customer service, quality and competition. Management Information Systems (MIS) Management information systems (MIS) are the most recent subdivision of the quantitative management school. MIS help managers to organize past, present and projected information from both external and internal sources and transform it into usable data in accessible format. In result of this, the managers are able to determine alternative solutions quickly, to perform evaluation of the alternatives with spreadsheet programs, to answer a series of what-if" questions, and to discover the best alternatives available. Systems Management Theory Unlike other theories, this theory has a significant influence on management science. Systems management school represents an interrelated set of elements constituting the integral whole.
According to the theories, the organization is viewed as a system consisting of four elements: inputs (human resources and materials, for example, money, technology, raw materials and people), transformation processes (managerial and technological processes during which the inputs undergo the processes of planning, organizing, motivating and controlling), outputs (products and services aimed to improve the productivity or quality of life), and feedback (response from the environment, for example, customers comments). The system approach can be also applied to any program or department in the organization. Systems management theory helps the managers to treat the organization as something special, looking at it from a broader perspective. The managers, therefore, are encouraged to recognize different parts of the organization as well as the interrelations of these parts. The theory is very useful as it helps to analyze the efficiency of the organizations in compliance with the degree that they are open or closed systems, where open systems interact with the environment, and closed systems interact little with the external environment. Contingency School of Management Thought Unlike systems management school, the contingency management school can be defined as an "it all depends" approach.
In contrast to behavioral and classical schools, the theorists consider that the appropriate managements approaches and actions should depend on the situation (Kazmier, 1964). According to this theory, the managers should adhere to flexible approach, use a wide range of experiences and theories, and evaluate various options as they find solutions to the problems. Contingency management approach is based on assumption that it is a manager's task to define major contingencies for best contribute to the achievement of the company's management goals. Under this theory, the managers should understand that there cannot be one best way to manage (for example, the approach that is effective to manage a group of scientists working in the lab can be completely different from the approach used to manage a group of IT freelancers). In such a way, the contingency management theory is completely different from the classical management approach, as it avoids the classical theory assumption (one best way) and is heavily dependent on the judgment and experience of the manager in the organizational environment. Quality School of Management Unlike other management schools, the quality management school is more focused on continually enhancing organizational performance through focusing on the customers and their needs.
This school places high emphasis on managing the total organization in order to deliver high quality to the clients. In its theory, the quality management schools considers organization makeup (according to the theory, the organizations should be viewed as complex systems of suppliers and customers), quality of products and services (the key aspect to the company's effective operation), continuous improvement in the organization's products and services through recognition of the customers needs, effective teamwork and developing and encouraging trust and openness (Stoner, 1995). In contrast to other theories, quality management theory encourages employees to take part in decision making, considering it to be the most effective way to prevent quality problems. This approach is also known as the Kaizen approach and is known for the use of continuous, incremental improvement for people, processes and products. The second approach, reengineering approach is more focused on understanding and feeling the urge for change, observing the change coming and reacting efficiently to the change when it occurs.
In such a way, reengineering approach defines what an organization must do and how to do it (Stoner, 1995). Quality school of management rests on fundamentals of the behavioral, quantitative, systems and contingency schools of management thought. According to this theory, individuals are key to performance and commitment, and what is done should be evaluated both qualitatively and quantitatively. Modern Approaches to the Management Thought Finally, modern approaches embrace all positive features of the classical, behavioral and quantitative approaches. Successful managers, however, understand that each school of management thought has its own limitations and restrictions, therefore, the managers need to accept all positive and rebuild all negative features to achieve their organizational goals and extend all those approaches to meet the needs of the dynamic work environment.
Modern management approaches acknowledge that fact that individuals are variable and complex. The worker needs change over time, and that employees have a wide range of talents that can and should be developed. The managers (and companies), therefore, should respond to the workers with a wide range of job opportunities and managerial strategies to make the organization more efficient and successful. References Cole, G. (2003). Management Theory and Practice. Thomson.
Kazmier, L. (1964). Principles of Management: A Program for Self-Instruction (8 th edition). New York: McGraw-Hill. Nickels, W. , McHugh, J. , & McHugh, S. (1987).
Understanding Business. Chicago: Irwin. Pierce, J. , & Dunham, R. (1990). Managing. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman/Little, Brown Higher Education.
Stoner, J. (1995). Management. Prentice-Hall.
Free research essays on topics related to: industrial revolution, effective ways, henri fayol, wide range, charles babbage
Research essay sample on Henri Fayol Charles Babbage
