Classical theories of organization are based on traditional thinking. These theories were first propounded in the beginning of 19th century and incorporated original and initial ideas of management. The classical theories of organization were devoted mainly to the superior’s authority, objectives, rules and economic activities. The classical organization theories are broadly divided into Bureaucracy, Scientific management and Process management. 1. Bureaucracy The bureaucratic model developed because some people wanted to dominate others in business and other activities. They organized men and materials for achieving objectives for their personal benefits. This theory was given a formal shape by a German Sociologist, Max Weber, who believed that bureaucracy was an ideal weapon to harness human and physical resources. It is a formative model of organization characterized by a large and complex atmosphere with impersonal detachment from human resources. Rules, regulations, rigid hierarchy and specialized functions Continue reading
Management Principles
Nature and Importance of Managerial Principles by Henri Fayol
Henri Fayol was one of the most influential contributors to modern concepts of management. Fayol has been described as the father of modern operational management theory. Like Socrates, Fayol suggested that management is a universal human activity that applies equally well to the family as it does to the corporation. Fayol’s career began as a mining engineer. He then moved into research geology and in 1888 joined, Comambault as Director. Comambault was in difficulty but Fayol turned the operation round. On retirement he published his work – a comprehensive theory of administration – described and classified administrative management roles and processes then became recognized and referenced by others in the growing discourse about management. He is frequently seen as a key, early contributor to a classical or administrative management school of thought. His theorizing about administration was built on personal observation and experience of what worked well in terms of Continue reading
Staffing Process in Management
Staffing means manning of an organization. Staffing process involves determination of manpower requirements, recruitment, selection, placement, training, development, job transfer and appraisal of personnel to fill the various positions in an organization. 1. Manpower Planning The staffing function starts with the manpower planning. This means to assess precisely how many persons are required for the various positions in the organization, how many persons does the organization already haves and how many more will have to be appointed. The staffing also ensures that the right kind of people is to be placed at the right job. Manpower planning is also known as Human Resource Planning. Beach has defined it as “a process of determining and assuring that the organization will have an adequate number of qualified persons, at the proper times, performing jobs which meet the needs of the enterprise and which provide satisfaction for the individuals involved.” 2. Recruitment The Continue reading
Project Organization Structure
Project organization structure is used to complete a project or task. The project manager has people from several functional departments such as production, finance, marketing and so on. Specialists are drawn to perform their respective roles in the total project. The project organization structure is derived not from some principles but from the job requirements. Project organization structure brings together people of different expertise for the completion of the project. As soon as the project is completed, the experts are returned to their original departments in the head office. For example, in a bridge construction project, the engineers, financial manager, human resources people and other related people are brought to the sit of the project where project organization, the structure and process, is developed. The people are organized and allocated specialized jobs by the Project manager who will be the top person managing the Continue reading
Span of Management Types
Span of management directly affects the number of levels in the organization. Span of management is of two types; Wider span of management and Narrow span of management. Wider span of management leads to flat organization whereas narrow span of management result in tall organization structure. The principle of span of management does not by itself resolve the conflict between the advantages to tall organization and that of a flat one. Narrow spans lead to many levels in the organization and thus required a larger number of managers. This, in turn, leads to larger expenses in the form of executive remuneration. Expenses are further increased on account of additional clerical and office staff needed as a result of there being large number of managers. The process of control also gets complicated when there are narrow spans and too many levels in the organization structure. Another serious problem in having Continue reading
Committee Organizational Structure
A committee organization is an association of people set up to arrive at solutions to common problems. The line people are given opportunities to discuss their problems in the committee. The committee organizational structure is not like line or functional organization, but is similar to staff organization. Its decisions are implemented, whereas staff decisions are not necessarily implemented. It is a formal part of the organizational structure wherein the members are specifically mentioned. For example, the Finance Committee will include all the functional managers, viz. Marketing Manager, Production Manager, Personnel Managers, etc. as members, and the Managing Director as the Chairman. It will decide the financial requirements of each and every department. The decisions taken by the committee are followed by the line people, as the committees are representatives of various functional departments. Committee organizational structure provides integrated ideas of various related people of the company. Participative management in Continue reading