Management Note - Classical view point

1.     Classical View Point

Scientific Management

The use of the scientific method to define the “one best way” for a job to be done. Frederick W. Taylor is known as the “father” of scientific management. Taylor’s work at the Bethlehem Steel companies motivated his interest in improving efficiency. Taylor sought to create a mental revolution among both workers and managers by defining clear guidelines for improving production efficiency. He defined four principles of management. His “pig iron” experiment is probably the most widely cited example of scientific management. Using his principles of scientific management, Taylor was able to define the one best way for doing each job. Overall, Taylor achieved consistent improvements in productivity in the range of 200 percent. He affirmed the role of managers to plan and control and of workers to perform as they were instructed. Frank and Lillian Gilbreth did studies aimed at eliminating unnecessary motions and way of reducing task fatigue. They perfected the time-and-motion study techniques first introduced by Taylor. Together they provided the first vocabulary for identifying hand, arm, and body motions used at work—which they called “Therbligs.” Lillian’s doctoral dissertation was published as the book, The Psychology of Management, one of the first books published on the findings of psychology in the workplace. Frank “proved” the value of motion studies in his own construction company whose productivity was nearly three times better than his competitors who used the older work methods. Henry L. Gantt , one of Taylor’s closest associates is best known for his Gantt chart, a graphic aide to planning, scheduling, and controlling. His other interests included a unique pay incentive system and the social responsibility of business.

Bureaucratic management

 

General administrative theorists is group of writers focused on the entire organization. They’re important for developing more general theories of what managers do and what constitutes good management practice. The two most prominent theorists behind the general administrative approach were Henri Fayol and Max Weber. Henri Fayol wrote during the same time period as Frederick Taylor. Fayol was the managing director of a large French coal-mining firm. His attention was aimed at the activities of all managers. He described the practice of management as distinct from other typical business functions. Max Weber (pronounced VAY-BAR) was a well known German sociologist who wrote in the early part of the 20th century. He developed a theory of authority structures and described organizational activity based on authority relations. He described the ideal form of organization—the bureaucracy , defined as a form of organization marked by division of labor, a clearly defined hierarchy, detailed rules and regulations, and impersonal relationships Max Weber stated 14 principles of management (fundamental or universal truths of management that can be taught in schools). It emphasized the need for organizational rationality rather than the owner’s whims as a means for determining how work should be divided into individual work positions and how the work should be rewarded. Max Weber, the most important early advocate of this approach, argued that too often organizational decisions and rewards were made because of who the worker was (possibly a relative of the manager) or who the worker knew rather than on the performance of the worker. Scientific management focused on the work or the job and how to do it better. Bureaucratic management, on the other hand, focused on how to structure the organization better so that better overall performance might be achieved. He coined the term “bureaucracy” to apply to the ideal of large organizations operating on a rational basis. Weber’s original definition was much different than the definition of government red tape and bungling usually associated with the term “bureaucracy” today. The major characteristics of Weber’s ideal bureaucracy include Specialization of a labor, Formalization of rules and procedures, Impersonality in application of rules and sanctions, Formalization of lines of authority into a hierarchical structure, Formalization of the career advancement process to be based on merit.

Administrative management

Administrative management is a term used for those early-day contributors who developed and taught principles to be used by managers, both individually and collectively, to improve the performance of the overall functions of the organization. Henri Fayol is a successful French industrialist, developed theories about management he thought could be taught to those individuals with administrative responsibilities. Fayol’s lasting contribution is the functional approach to management which is still used today. The major managerial functions, according to Fayol, were planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating, and controlling. The functions have been slightly modified several times since Fayol. In the main, though, they still provide the basic framework for studying management as witnessed by the organization of this and most other principles of management texts used today. Like Weber, Fayol’s works were not translated into English for a couple of decades after his death. Fayol gives us 14 principles of management which are still being used nowadays.