Management theory
by Henri Fayol:
Henri Fayol was born 1841 in Istanbul and
died 1925 in Paris. He
was a French management theorist. Fayol
was one of the most influential contributors to modern concepts of management,
having proposed that there are five primary functions of management: (1)
planning, (2) organizing, (3) commanding, (4) coordinating, and (5)
controlling. Controlling is described in the sense that a manager must receive
feedback on a process in order to make necessary adjustments. Fayol's work has
stood the test of time and has been shown to be relevant and appropriate to
contemporary management.
Fayol believed management theories could be
developed, then taught. His theories were published in a monograph titled General
and Industrial Management (1916). This is an extraordinary little book
that offers the first theory of general management and statement.
Fayol suggested that it is important to have unity
of command: a concept that suggests there should be only one supervisor for
each person in an organization. Fayol suggested that management is a
universal human activity that applies equally well to the family as it does to
the corporation.
Henri Fayol, the father of
the school of Systematic Management, was motivated to create a
theoretical foundation for a managerial educational program based on his
experience as a successful managing director of a mining company. In his day,
managers had no formal training and he observed that the increasing complexity
of organizations would require more professional management. Fayol's legacy is
his generic Principles of Management.
Fayol's management process allows command functions
to operate efficiently and effectively through co-ordination and control
methods. For Fayol, the managing director overlooked a living organism that
requires liaison officers and joint committees.
There are many theories used in today's management
roles that can be traced back to the theories of these "founding
fathers" of management. For example, Henry Fayol's 14 principles serve as
a point of reference that many of today's managers use when conceptualizing,
planning, organization, implementing and overseeing ideas and theories in the
workforce
The main purpose of Henri Fayol’s “General
Principles of Management” is to offer valuable guidance in managing effectively
and efficiently. He explains that these are only principles and may need to be
built upon or changed due to certain circumstances. These principles can be
applied to situations that we may face as managers. Fayol provides each
principal with insight for each.
Division of Work is the first principle. Each person within an
organization has certain tasks and responsibilities. Each person continues to
do this same job every day and become efficient and skilled in their tasks.
This means better productivity for the organization as a whole.
Authority and Principal in large companies
mean there are varying degrees of responsibility assigned to each supervisory
position. With this gained authority comes more responsibility.
Discipline is the next principle of management. It is
important for the supervisor to prevent slacking or other bad behavior. Good
examples should be set by the supervisors also.
Unity of Command is the idea that at any one time a worker
should only have one supervisor to receive direct orders from. If there are
orders coming from two supervisors, it can obviously cause confusion among the
workers and animosity between the two supervisors. It can also cause a decrease
in production due to confusion among the workers.
Unity of Direction is closely related to
Unity of Command. The Leader makes the plans and the supervisors push the
original idea through the chain. They take extra care in ensuring the original
plan stays on track.
Subordination of Individual Interest to General
Interest is the
concept of the supervisor taking an active role to fighting bad habits of
employees. It is a supervisor’s duty to urge employees to leave personal
interests and problems out of the workplace. It is also imperative that the
supervisor teach by their own example.
Remuneration of Personnel is the next principle.
There are many considerations to take when determining an employees pay. What
is the state of the organization? What is the cost of living? Is there a
shortage of qualified workers in this area? These considerations are all taken
into account when deciding on a fair remuneration. Compensation should be given
to those as reward for hard work. On the same token though, it is important to
not overcompensate. The three different modes of payment are time rate, job
rate and piece rate.
Centralization is having a leader or manager that
effectively communicates the goal to all managers below them and getting the
task at hand to all people within the organization. True centralization occurs
when supervisors take the orders from the leader and effectively communicate it
to those below them. They need not add their own directives or ideas. Just give
the necessary direction to get the job done.
Scalar Chair is the chain of command within an
organization. It answers the questions of who supervises who and who is
responsible for what.
Order is the next principle. Order can be applied
to the material aspects of an organization as well as the Social Order. Having
all necessary products/ paperwork or even people in the right order and
organized correctly will make it easier for the organization to operate.
Workers should have a general order and a place to conduct business and tasks.
Equity as a principle in the organization assures that
each employee receives fair treatment and the same respect as others. When an
employee feels this way it will show through their work efficiency and general
attitude towards their daily tasks.
Stability of Tenure of Personnel is the idea that an
employee should have ample time to learn a position and skills needed for their
job before removing them from the job. Each job or task does take a level of
expertise. This expertise is best gained by experience. Firing someone too soon
and firing too often can be more detrimental than sticking with a person until
they learn to effectively do their job.
Initiative can be achieved in several ways. Managers and
Supervisors must be able and willing to instill a sense of pride and accomplishment
in the minds of employees. They should also strive to be respected by the
employees. This in turn will inspire workers to do their best for the manager.
Esprit De Corps principle is based on the idea of unity. Stay
unified; do not split your employees up. Bring them together for a common good.
Communicate effectively with all of them with a focus on verbal communication
and not written. Strive for harmony in the organization
Henry Fayol’s Management Theory Pros and Cons
Pros
Fayol provided a language to communicate management
theory and establish a foundation for management training.
Managers should perceive organizations as living
organisms that require constant attention rather than as mechanical machines.
Cons
The principles describe a vision rather than
reality and are based on Fayol's own experience rather than empirical research.
Later studies by Mintzberg and Kotter found that successful managers spend
little time carrying out Fayol's activities and rely more on cultivating
networks and personal contacts.
Conclusion
It is the intertwining of these classic theories mixed with some of the more
modern ones that keep the worldwide management and labor force in constant productivity
and questing to achieve better and better efficiency roles. And though there
are many different approaches to management, the goal stays the same: to
produce goods and services efficiently in a timely manner with a positive and
beneficial outcome for employee, manager and company as a whole.
Functions of management
theory by HF
Criticism of Administrative
Management Theory
Henri Fayol's management principles and functions are used
even today for managing the organisations. However, his Administrative
Management Theory is criticised on the following grounds :-
1.
Management Oriented Theory : The administrative management theory is management oriented. It
does not give much attention to the problems of the workers.
2.
Lack of Importance to Informal Organisation : The administrative management theory does not give
any importance to informal organisation or groups. It gives importance only to
the formal organisation structure.
3.
Concepts Borrowed From Military Science : Some of the concepts of administrative management
theory were borrowed from military science. They tried to apply these concepts
to the social and business organisations. For e.g. Henri Fayol gave importance
to "commanding" and not "directing" the workers.
4.
Mechanical Approach : The administrative management theory has a mechanical approach. It
does not deal with some of the important aspects of management such as
motivation, communication and leading.
1.“Employees
should receive orders from one superior only”. How did Fayol define this
principle?
Unity of Command. Unity of command states
that every worker should have only one immediate superior – he or she is
responsible to that person and should ideally receive orders from that person
only. This helps to pin responsibility in case of faults and fix errors in the
system more easily. It also helps prevent chaos.
2. "Respect for
agreements which are directed at achieving obedience, application, energy and
the outward marks of respect”. What was Fayol defining?
Discipline. Discipline was one of
the most important principles (according to Fayol). He declared that discipline
requires good superiors at all levels.
3. Fayol emphasised on
the need for team work in completing objectives and in the principle “In union,
there is strength”. What term did Fayol use for expressing this?
Esprit de Corps. Fayol was a Frenchman.
He made his observations on general management in his book, “Administration
Industrielle et Generale.”
4. To avoid wastage of
time and resources while communicating in the formal chain (following the
organisational chart), Fayol introduced a concept. What is it better known as?
Gang plank Policy. Suppose a supervisor in
the service sector (of a firm) wanted to communicate something to his or her
counterpart in the production sector. Following the formal line of
communication would mean that he/she had to communicate to his/her superior who
contacts theirs and so on till the person who is head of both the departments
is contacted; from the latter, the message is routed downwards till it reaches
the required person. As per the “Gang plank policy”, the supervisor can contact
a counterpart in any department directly (subject to approval from his/her
superior).
5. “Each group of activities with the same objective must
have one head of one plan (to achieve the objective)”. What was Fayol defining?
Unity of Direction. Every department in an
organisation must move according to specified plan – it is not only necessary
that the plan optimises the working of the department; it should also be made
considering the organisation as a whole (to prevent plans of different
departments from clashing).
6. Fayol talks about “Division of Labour”.
Fayol believed that it is necessary to have division of labour
to improve efficiency. He wanted this principle to all kinds of work – both
managerial as well as technical.
7. “Order” was an
important principle for Fayol. He broke down “Order” into two types – Material
and what?
Social. Order was defined as “a
place for everything (everyone) and everything (everyone) in its (his or her)
place”.
8. Another important
principle of Fayol was “Authority and Responsibility”. According to Fayol,
Authority was a combination of official power as well as what?
Personal. Official authority was
derived from the manager’s position while personal authority was obtained from
a combination of factors like intelligence, past service, moral worth,
experience, informal relationships etc.
9. Fayol advocated the
need for subordination of general interest to individual interest.
He advocated that both ‘interests’ should be met but when these
interests collide (or differ), then the overall interest (general interest)
must prevail. Management must also try to reconcile the differences.
10."The extent to
which authority is concentrated or dispersed”. This principle is known in the
management fields as _______?
Centralisation. Fayol maintained that
individual circumstances will degree (of centralisation) that is needed to
“give the best overall yield”.
