History of Management

History of Management Introduction Management is a profession as well as an art that has developed for a long period. Management has a long history that can be traced back to over a hundred years ago. It is important for any manager to understand the history of management to be able to steer an organization forward.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on History of Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Managers need to understand where management started and how it has developed to reach where it is today. It is said that a country should have a memory; otherwise such a country is better referred to as ‘a nation of mad people’. Applying this to the management profession, it can be said that management that does not have memories is a management for ‘mad people’ (Smith, 2007). Not many scholars are interested in history. Most students are just interested in knowing how to manage, with only a few being interested in knowing where management came from and how it developed. This creates managers who do not have deep knowledge in management (Daft Marcic, 2013). In addition, most training institutions today do not give much emphasis on the history of management. It is still important to understand the origin of management, despite the fact that management is not a new term. The purpose of this essay is to explain why managers and management students should understand the history of management. Managers and management students need to study the history of management critically so that they can know where the profession is headed to in the future. Importance of studying history of management One of the major challenges that trainers face in teaching their managements students is taking them through the journey of the past management practices. Modern students seem not to understand much beyond their timeframe. It, therefore, becomes a mountain task for managers to explain anything that is outside w hat students have come to know as reality (Waddell, Jones George, 2011). As a result, too much of the context that management students require to understand the art of management is non-existent. Students fail to understand the contemporary importance of past theory and practice. It is important to note that the current theory has evolved from past theories. Therefore, managers and students might not understand the real context of theories and their applications if they have no idea of how the theories evolved. Understanding past theories would enable managers to compare the current practices in the organization with past theories.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This would make managers and management students understand where they go wrong and when they go wrong. The past theories have been constantly improved as the economic environment changes to make them rem ain relevant. Therefore, if managers understand these theories they are able to avoid practices that are contrary to the theories. As a result, managers are in a position to execute their duties in a manner that would take the organization forward (Wren, 1987). According to Smith (2007), understanding the history of management has the ability to add value to the curriculum of management. If management trainers and students spend more time exploring and studying the history of management, it will have a number of benefits to their practice. Most students often dismiss the importance of the history of management thought, and they claim that the events of yesteryears cannot be applied in today’s practice. Smith (2007) writes that educators need to ask themselves how students would fair if they were asked to explain the history of their profession. As a matter of fact, many of these students and to some extent even the educators would not be in a position to explain that history. There is an important point that is missed by dismissing management theory. The missed point is that, â€Å"development of any theory must be viewed in the context of its time† (Smith, 2007: 12). As a result, management students are likely to miss a lot because they fail to have a grip on historical events. If students cannot learn management right, then it means that they will not be able to execute their roles in the right way once they take up management roles. Managers are likely to lead the organization in the wrong direction. Decision making might become a problem to such managers since they are not able to set the right strategies for the organization. The value of their management will be low since they are likely to achieve little success. Understanding the history of management is like acquiring wisdom. It is only when one has wisdom that they are able to improve on their knowledge. The growth of knowledge is related to the attainment of knowledge. Therefore, it is only when one understands the history of management that they are able to improve their knowledge and learning of the same. When one has the history, it acts as the cornerstone on which they can expand their knowledge. Consequently, one is able to develop their judgement, and decision making ability improves significantly. For instance, the contributions by Frederick Winslow Taylor on ‘The Principles of Scientific Management’ have remained relevant to date. Taylor is today referred to as the father of modern management. He made his contributions in the early 20th century, but these contributions have remained effective to date.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on History of Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Therefore, any manager or management student who does not understand the principles of management as contributed by Taylor is likely to lack the idea of current management practices. According to Giannantonio and Hurley-Hanson (2011), the ideas of Taylor have continued to dominate the management literature in the current management thought. The arguments that Taylor made in the year 1911 in his book, ‘The Principles of Scientific Management’ remain relevant even today. It is not possible for one to debate an issue that they do not know its origin. One cannot contribute to a debate that they do not know where the topic came from. It is also not possible to join a debate in the middle and make a relevant contribution. If a manager is to make any relevant contribution to the issues raised by Taylor, then they must understand how these principles have developed since 1911 when they were first brought forward. This further highlights the importance of managers and management students to critically learn and understand the history of management (Giannantonio Hurley- Hanson, 2011). If managers spend more time studying about the history of management and the contri butions that were made by economists and managers who lived many years ago, they would get a positive effect on management in the future (Waddell, Jones George, 2011). There is historical knowledge that students are likely to acquire in the study, and can be highly relevant in today’s business. A good example of this is Fordism. The theory of Fordism has remained effective in the motor industry since it was first described by Henry Ford in the year 1914 (Shioni, 1995). Students are less likely to acquire some of these skills if they fail to study the history of management. Students who study history of management are able to understand the mistakes that were made in the past and avoid them in the future. Such students and managers are also able to come up with ideas on how to improve on those mistakes. Once the students understand how the art of management has changed over time, they are able to think and understand how the current management practices work. For example, the contribution by Max Weber about the issue of bureaucracies in organizations did not bring much success to organizations since it was not motivating most employees. If a student understands the contributions by Max Weber, they are able to rectify bureaucratic procedures in the organization and achieve the success that was not achieved by bureaucratic managers in the past. The student is also able to develop more innovative ways of managing the organization. Failure to teach the history of management cannot be wholly blamed on lack of teachers to teach, but also on the lack of quality teaching materials that can help teachers (Cummings Bridgman, 2011).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Another issue that makes the history of management worth studying is that the definition of the term has its roots deep in history. The term management was yet to be defined at the beginning of the 20th century. No one had an idea of what management really is. It is interesting to note that management in practise existed long before the 20th century. However, no one had defined management until a French man known as Henri Fayol, an engineer who lived between the year 1841 and 1925, defined the term for the first time. The definition by Fayol has endured until today, and the current definition is heavily borrowed from Fayol’s definition. A student who has studied Fayol’s contribution is better positioned to define management and understand what the whole idea of management entails (Crainer, 2003). It is Fayol who suggested that a manager’s role is to ‘organize, to plan and to coordinate’ all the activities that take place in the organization. The def inition of the term management states that it management is all about â€Å"planning, controlling, coordinating, organization and staffing†. Everything that exists today comes for what was there in the past. In other words, it is not possible for organizations and the world in general to be where it is today there was no past. According to Bedeian (2004), lack of institutions to teach the history of management has led to production of managers who have doctorates, but are very illiterate. Bedeian (2004) further suggests that all the theories, models and methodologies that are applied today in management have been inherited from the past. Management students today fail in their practice since they do not appreciate a dictum by Isaac Newton in the year 1676: â€Å"that each succeeding generation stands on the shoulders of the giants that have gone before it† (Bedeian, 2004: 21). This means that it is not possible to start from nowhere and succeed in anything. One has to reflect on the works of the people who were there before and then build his or her success from there. This is a call for the current students and managers to critically understand the history of management. Managers will not succeed in their profession unless they have an idea of how the past management practices were and what mistakes were made. This way, managers will be able to correct on those mistakes and capitalize on the strengths of past theories. A manager who understands history is able to know the current position of the organization they are managing.They will then determine whether the events currently in the organization have any relation with the past events in the history of management. That way, managers will be able to understand the reason for the failures that occur in the organization and then rectify them. Generally, studying the history of management helps students and managers to integrate management with the current knowledge and consequently make very effe ctive managers who have the ability to move organizations forward (Wren, 1987). Conclusion Management is an art and a science that has evolved over time. The past management is strongly linked to the current management. As a result, for one to have a clear understanding of management it is important that they first study the history of management. This will give them a foundation on which they can build and develop their knowledge. Some of the theories and thoughts that were developed in the past are still applicable today, either directly or indirectly. In addition, the current management theories are developed from past theories. Therefore, it is important for managers and management students to study the history of management from a critical perspective. Reference List Bedeian, AG 2004 ‘The gift of professional maturity’, Academy of Management Learning Education, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 92-98 Crainer, C 2003 ‘One hundred years of management’, Business Strate gy Review, vol. 14, issue 2, pp. 41-49 Cummings, S Bridgman, T 2011 ‘The relevant past: Why the history of management should be critical for our future’, Academy of Management Learning Education, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 77-93. Daft, RL Marcic, D 2013 Understanding management, Australia: South-Western Cengage Learning. Giannantonio, CM Hurley-Hanson, AE 2011 ‘Frederick Winslow Taylor: Reflections on the relevance of the principles of scientific management 100 years later’, Journal of Business and Management, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 7-10. Shioni, H 1995, Fordism transformed: The development of production: Methods in the automobile industry, New York: Oxford Univ. Press. Smith, GE 2007 ‘Management history and historical context: Potential benefits of its inclusion in the management curriculum’, Academy of Management Learning Education, vol. 6, no. 4, pp. 522-533. Waddell, D, Jones, GR, George, JM 2011 Contemporary management, 2ndedn, McGraw-Hill Aust ralia Pty Limited, Sydney Wren, DA 1987 ‘Management history: Issues and ideas for teaching and research’, Journal of Management, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 339-350.