Introduction to Management & Organisations

Asforthe word ‘management’, there has been long debate about its meaning. For our purpose, we take the perspective of the functions that managers

Scientific management or "Taylorism" is an approach to job design, developed by Frederick Taylor (1856-1915) during the Second World War. With the industrial revolution came a fast growing pool of people, seeking jobs, that required a new approach of management. Scientific management was the first management theory, applied internationally. It believes in the rational use of resources for utmost output, hence motivating workers to earn more money. Taylor believed that the incompetence of managers was the major obstacle on the way of productivity increase of human labour. Consequently, this idea led to the need of change of management principles. On the base of research, involving analysing controlled experiments under various working

The Contingency theory, developed in 1950s, argues that there is no 'one best way ' to structure an organization and we face different possibilities when determining how it should be structured and how it should be managed. Successful organizations adopt structures that are an appropriate response to a number of variables, or contingencies (Enoch, 2006).

Taylors Method was known as the Time & Motion Studies. Time was the least amount of time it took to perform each task and even each part of each task, whereas motion was where the fewest numbers of motions required for each small task. Taylor wanted employees to work as if they were machines. From Taylor’s Theory to Taylorism the outcomes were that it boosted in productivity by 200% to 400%. More work was also accomplished with fewer people meant more profit for companies from Taylorism and the final outcome was that more consistent products were of higher quality (Frederick Taylor Scientific Management). In Frederick Winslow Taylor’s ‘The Principles of Scientific Management 1910, he states that ‘under the old

Management is both art and science. It is the art of making people more effective than they would have been without you. The science is in how you do that. There are four basic pillars: plan, organize, direct, and monitor.

DR. Simon.H ‘Management- beyond the day. Insights from encounters with Peter Drucker’ Drucker society(Online). Available at:

Probably the most widely cited example of Taylor’s scientific management was the pig iron experiment’ -6th edition management pg 41. Providing incentives, the right people, the right equipment and his scientific analysis Taylor increased productivity of the pig iron from 47 to 4 tons. ‘using similar approaches to other jobs, Taylor was able to define the ‘one best way’ for doing each job. He could then, after selecting the right people for the job, train them to do it precisely in this one best way’ 6th edition pg

Taylor introduced scientific management, which has formed the theory of management and examines work in order to improve productivity of labour. He

Frederick Taylor was considered a genius for his invention and introduction of scientific management. He was an industrial innovator who looked at the way the system was working at the time and decided to formulate a plan that would increase the overall production and efficiency of the factories. The domain that Taylor operated in was the factor production technique, this was an accumulation of decades of evolving business practices. Management and factories never tried anything different up until Taylor introduced his theories. Relating to the quote, he knew his methods were untested based off the current trends in the industry. These untested and innovated methods included motion and time studies, specific selection and training of individual workers, and standardization of tools.

organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or efforts for the purpose of

This led to lowered overall productivity and systematic underproduction. Hence, this provoked Taylor to develop scientific management. The principles behind Tayor’s management concept were based on the idea that workers put in the least amount of effort and that they are motivated solely by material gains. As a result, the theory implied that greater external control is needed for more productive operations. Furthermore, the theory basically built an instrumental view of human behaviour making the human factor a mere component in a machine (Morgan, 2006) . Taylor’s concept was considered a milestone in the development of management as it proposed a different, efficiency-orientated approach that relied on how work was organized. From his point of view surely it was the increased productivity, predictability and control of the system that made the idea better. H e himself states that if applied in a correct manner his methods would lead to far larger and better results (Taylor, 2007) . However, when the scientific management theory was applied the negative effects of the system manifested. Frederick Taylor was even called “enemy of the working man” because of the principles he introduced (Morgan, 2006) . The separation between execution and conception and tightened control led to workers going to strike or leaving their jobs. Furthermore, the fact that the applied system presumed that workers had no other

In today’s ever changing economy, society’s idea of management is becoming increasingly more difficult to sustain with the continuous demands of the position. A successful manager must have a certain level of expertise and problem solving techniques to carry out the daily tasks required. Over the years, there have been various ideas on what management is, such as planning, organizing, leading and controlling.

Managing just like all other practices like music, baseball, and accountancy is considered to be an art but mangers can do great in their fields by using a well organized knowledge about management. Thus, management can be considered as an art but the organized knowledge is considered as a science but, yet both of these go hand in hand with each other. (Heinz,

The paper will explore different theories of Management, include Henri Fayol and Henry Mintzberg. This section of this paper provides an overview of functions, roles and skills required of a manager. What is Management? Management can define as the process of reaching organisational goals by working with and through people and other organisational resources. (Management Innovation, 2008).

The definition of ‘management’ is controversial and subject to much debate. There have been many contradictory views on what the term ‘management’ means and accordingly how one should correctly manage an organisation. These theories have been put forward by several highly regarded management scholars over time. By taking into account past knowledge and contemporary views on management, we are able to ‘’explore how thinking has changed through time’’. (Brooks, 2006). Moreover, businesses have, and can continue to be able to adapt these theories and put them into practice. Successfully applying correct management practices is especially vital in a global business environment which is becoming very competitive. ‘’Most management theories, even those that do not resonate comfortably with the prevailing mood, have attractive and valid elements to them.’’ (Robinson, 2005). For example, some of these theories can be seen flourishing in fast food chains like McDonalds.