The Management Environment
In this chapter, we will discuss the environment of management and the factors that affect the environment. The terms organization, administration and management are often used interchangeably. Sometimes they are used to mean one and the same thing. Organization is: The “collection, preservation and co-ordination of the elements of an enterprise in An integrated manner.” It brings together various resources of an enterprise into a single harmonious whole. It warrants the utilization of resources for the accomplishment of its objectives. Administration…
Future of Management
Modern management approaches respect the classical, human resource, and quantitative approaches to management. However, successful managers recognize that although each theoretical school has limitations in its applications, each approach also offers valuable insights that can broaden a manager's options in solving problems and achieving organizational goals. Successful managers work to extend these approaches to meet the demands of a dynamic environment. Just as organizations evolve and grow, employee needs also change over time; people possess a range of talents and capabilities that can be developed. In order to optimize outcomes, organizations and managers, should respond to individuals with a wide variety of managerial strategies and job opportunities. Important aspects to be considered, as the 21st century progresses, include the following: Organizations need to commit to not just meeting customer needs but exceeding customer expectations through quality management and continuous improvement of operations. Reinvent new methods of process improvements and constantly learn new ways and best practices from practices in other organizations and environments. Organizations must reinvest in their most important asset, their human capital.…
Reengineering Approach
Reengineering Approach sometimes called Business Process Reengineering (BPR), involves a complete rethinking and transformation of key business processes, leading to strong horizontal coordination and greater flexibility in responding to changes in the environment. The reengineering approach focuses on sensing the need to change, anticipating changes, and reacting effectively when it happens. Reengineering Process Following are the steps involved in reengineering process. Develop business vision and process objectives Identify business processes Scope and measure existing processes Design and build new process prototypes Implement and manage changes
Kaizen Approach
Kaizen means that everyone is involved in making improvements. Kaizen (pronounced ky‐zen) is based on the Japanese management concept for incremental change and improvement. The idea of continuous improvement suggests that managers, teams, and individuals learn from both their accomplishments and their mistakes. It is a long-term approach to work that systematically seeks to achieve small, incremental changes in processes in order to improve efficiency and quality. While the majority of changes may be small, the greatest impact may be improvements or changes that are led by senior management as transformational projects, or by cross- functional teams as Kaizen events. Kaizen Process Following are the steps involved in Kaizen Process. Identifying opportunities for improvement…
Quality School of Management
The Quality School of Management (also known as Total Quality Management, TQM) is a fairly recent and comprehensive model for leading and operating an organization. The prime focus is on continually improving performance by focusing on customers while addressing the needs of all stakeholders. In other words, this concept focuses on managing the entire organization to deliver high quality to customers.
Contingency Approach and Recent Contributions
The Contingency Management theory evolved out of the System Approach to managing organizations. According to the Contingency approach, management is situational; hence there exists no single best approach to management, as situations that a manager faces is always changing. However, situations are often similar to the extent that some principles of management can be effectively applied by identifying the relevant contingency variables in the situation and then evaluating them. Peter F. Drucker, W. Edwards Deming, Laurence Peter, William Ouchi, Thomas Peters, Robert Waterman, and Nancy Austin are some of the most important contributors to management thought in recent times. This has emerged perhaps as the best approach as it encourages management to search for the correct situational factors for applying appropriate management principles effectively. On the basis of the Tom Peters and Robert Waterman’s research focusing on…
What is Management?
Management is a universal phenomenon. Every individual or entity requires setting objectives, making plans, handlingpeople, coordinating and controlling activities, achieving goals and evaluating performance directed towardsorganizational goals. These activities relate to the utilization of variables or resources from the environment − human, monetary, physical, and informational. Human resources refer to managerial talent, labor (managerial talent, labor, and services provided by them), monetaryresources (the monetary investment the organization uses to finance its current and long-term operations), physicalresources (raw materials, Physical and production facilities and equipment) and information resources (data and other kinds of information). Management is essentially the bringing together these resources within an organization towards reaching objectives of anorganization.
Management – Modern Schools of Thought
This school of thought primarily focuses on the development of each factor of both workers and the organization. It analyzes the interrelationship of workers and management in all aspects. System Approach and Contingency Approach are the two approaches by this school of thought.
Behavioral and Human Relations Approach
The criticism of scientific and administrative management approach as advocated by Taylor and Fayol, respectively gave birth to the behavioral approach to management. One of the main criticisms leveled against them are their indifference to and neglect of the human side of the enterprise in management dealings. A good number of sociologists and psychologists like Abraham Maslow, Hugo Munsterberg, Rensis Likert, Douglas McGregor, Frederick Herzberg, Mary Parker Follet, and Chester Barnard are the major contributors to this school of thought, which is further subdivided by some writers into the Human Relations approach and the Human Behavioral approach. Elton Mayo and Hawthorne Studies Elton Mayo and Hugo Munsterberg are considered pioneers of this school. The most important contribution to this school of thought was made by Elton Mayo and his associates through Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company between 1927 and 1932. Following are the findings of Mayo and his colleagues from Hawthorne studies: Human/social element operated in the workplace…
Henry Fayol’s Universal Process Theory
One of the oldest and most popular approaches, Henry Fayol’s theory holds that administration of all organizations – whether public or private, large or small – requires the same rational process or functions. This school of thought is based on two assumptions: Although the objective of an organization may differ (for example, business, government, education, or religion), yet there is a core management process that remains the same for all institutions. Successful managers, therefore, are interchangeable among organizations of differing purposes. The universal management process can be reduced to a set of separate functions and related principles. Fayol identifies fourteen universal principles of management, which are aimed at showing managers how to carry out their functional duties. 1. Specialization of labor This improves the efficiency of labor through…
