3.2.

0 Management Theories
Classical Theories
The classical era covered the period from about 1900 to the mid – 1930s. The classical
contributors among whom are such luminaries as Frederick Taylor, Henri Fayol, Max Weber,
Mary Parker Follett and Chester Barnard, laid the foundation for contemporary management
practice.
1. Scientific Management
The founder of this movement was an American engineer and management expert, Frederick
W. Taylor (1856 – 1915). He worked hard to create a universal mental revolution among both
workers and management by defining clear guidelines for improving production efficiently.
Mullins (1999) cites four principles of management propounded by Taylor:
a. Develop a science for each element of an individual’s work. (Previously, workers used
the “rule of thumb” method).
b. Scientifically select and then train, teach, and develop the worker (Previously, workers
chose their own work and trained themselves as best as they could).
c. Heartily co-operate with the workers so as to ensure that all work is done in accordance
with the principles of the science that has been developed. (Previously, management and
workers were in continual conflict). *Refer to your knowledge of the Industrial
Revolution in Western Europe in the 19th Century.
d. Divide work and responsibility almost equally between management and workers.
Management takes over all work for which it is better suited than the workers.
(Previously, almost all the work and the greater part of the responsibility were thrown
upon the workers.
Taylor argued that following these principles would result in the prosperity of both
management and workers. Workers would earn more pay, and management more profits. In
the education system traces of the Scientific Management can be found in the use of schemes
of work, lesson plans, rigid adherence to work plans, timetables and ensuring that pass rates
are always high.
Activity 1
* Analyse the principles of scientific management and discuss their application in modern
organisation. Draw your examples from the education system.
2 Administrative theory
Armstrong (1987) and Mullins (1999) argue that administrative theory describes efforts to
define the universal functions that managers perform and principles that constitute good
management practice. The major contributor to administrative theory was a French
industrialist named Henri Fayol.
Lang (1992:132) and Huczynski (1989:15) say Fayol proposed that all managers perform five
functions.
 Planning
This involves selecting objectives and the strategies, policies, programmes and procedures for
achieving these objectives.
 Organising
This involves establishing a structure of tasks which need to be carried out in order to achieve
the goals of the organisation. These tasks are grouped together to form jobs for individuals.
Jobs are grouped together to form sections and departments. Authority is delegated to carry
out the jobs and provide systems of information and communication and co-ordinate the
activities within the organisation.
 Commanding
This involves giving instructions to subordinates to carry out the tasks for which the manager
has authority.
 Co-ordinating
This is the task of measuring and correcting the activities of individuals and groups to ensure
that their performance is in accordance with plans.
 Controlling
This involves checking to see that all activities carried out agree with set policies and
practice. The importance of Fayol’s insight is underlined when we acknowledge that almost
every ‘cookbook’ on introductory management today uses these same five functions, or a
close variant of them, as a basic framework for describing what managers do.
Besides proposing these management functions, Fayol described the practice of management
as something distinct from accounting, finance, production, distribution and other typical
business functions. He argued that management was an activity common to all human
undertakings in business, in government, or in the home. He then proceeded to state his
famous 14 principles of management that could be taught in schools and universities. These
are:
1. Division of Work – This principle is the same as Adam Smith’s “division of labour”.
Specialisation increases output by making employees more efficient.
2. Authority – Managers must be able to give orders. Authority gives them this right. Along
with authority, however, goes responsibility. Whenever authority is exercised, responsibility
arises.
3. Discipline – Employees must obey and respect the rules that govern the organisation.
Good discipline is the result of effective leadership, a clear understanding between
management and workers regarding the organisation’s rules, and the judicious use of
penalties for disobeying of the rules.
4. Unity of Command – Every employee should receive orders from only one supervisor. In
a school situation this means that a teacher should receive orders only from the head, or
deputy head, or senior teacher, as the case may be.
5. Unity of Direction – Each group of organisational activities that have the same objective
should be directed by one manager using a plan for example the head of department in a
secondary school or Teacher in Charge of infants in a primary school.
6. Subordination of Individual Interests to General Interests – The interests of one
employee or group of employees should not take precedence over the interests of the
organisation as a whole.
7. Remuneration – Workers must be paid a fair wage for their services.

8. Centralisation – Centralisation refers to the degree to which subordinates are involved in

decision-making. Whether decision-making is centralised (to management) or decentralized
(to subordinates) is a question of proper proportion. The problem is to find the optimum
degree of centralization for each situation.
9. Scalar Chain – The line of authority from top management to the lowest ranks represents
the scalar chain. Communications should follow this chain. However, if following the chain
creates delays, cross communications can be allowed if agreed to by all parties and superiors
are kept informed.
10. Order – People and materials should be in the right place at the right time.
11. Equity – Managers must give equal treatment to their subordinates.
12. Stability of Tenure of Personnel – High employee turnover is inefficient. Management
should provide orderly personnel planning and ensure that replacements are available to fill
vacancies.
13. Initiative – Employees who are allowed to originate and carry out plans will exert high
levels of effort.
14. Espirit de Corps – Promoting team spirit builds harmony and unity within the
organisation.
Huczynski (1989) contends that while some of the principles advocated by Fayol’s
administrative management may be defective, their overall scheme for building machine-like
bureaucracies, with managers and officials strongly in control, have continued to be applied
over time. He also argues that although administrative management is now considered an
historical fossil, it continues to represent a major model for the design of large highly –
integrated organisations of today. There is evidence of use Fayol’s administrative
management in the way schools are run bureaucratically and school heads in control of their
activities.
One major criticism of the principles of administrative management is on the span of control,
which if taken to its logical conclusion, means that the narrower the span of control, the more
levels of hierarchy there are. Critics say this results in a tall organisational structure which is
difficult to control, and becomes rigid and highly bureaucratic. March and Simon (1958)
called them ‘contradictory proverbs’ while Perrow (1973) called them ‘simple-minded
deductions’. Clegg and Dunkerley (1980) cited in Huczynski (1989:15) say these principles
“form neither a coherent conceptualisation pattern of determination nor an accurate
description of concrete reality”.
However, despite these criticisms, the principles of administrative management, like those of
scientific management, have had a major and continuing impact on management thought and
practice. Huczynski (1989) argues that even their most hardened critics have admitted that
these ideas have enormously influenced the shaping and structuring of organisations to the
present day.
Activity 2
* To what extent have Fayol’s administrative principles influenced organisational behaviour
in education to date?
3 Max Weber (1864 – 1920)
Mullins (1989) and Rowe (1992) observe that while Taylor was concerned with management
at the shop floor level, and Fayol focused on general management functions, the German
sociologist Max Weber was developing a theory of authority structures and describing
organisational activity as based on authority relations. He described an ideal type of
organisation called a bureaucracy. Weber recognized that this ideal “ideal bureaucracy did
not exist in reality but rather represented a selective reconstruction of the real world”.
For him it meant a basis for theorizing about work and how work could be done in large
groups. His theory became the design prototype for large organisations.
1.1 Weber’s Ideal Bureaucracy
Weber’s ideal bureaucracy consists of the following elements:
 Job Specialisation – Jobs are broken down into simple, routine and well-defined tasks.
 Authority Hierarchy – Offices or positions are organised in a hierarchy, each lower
level office being controlled and supervised by a higher one. In the Zimbabwean
education system, there is evidence of their structure, for example the structure at the
school, regional and head office levels.
 Formal Selection – All organisational members are to be selected on the basis of
technical qualifications demonstrated by training, education or formal examination.
 Formal Rules and Regulations – To ensure uniformity and to regulate the actions of
employees, managers must depend heavily on formal organisational rules.
 Impersonality – Rules and controls are applied uniformly, avoiding involvement with
personalities and personal preferences of employees.
 Career Orientation – Managers are professional officials rather than owners of the
units they manage. They work for fixed salaries and pursue their careers within the
organisation.
For Weber, bureaucracy means efficiency, combining the components of rational action and
legal-rational authority.
1.2 Criticism of Weber’s Model
Robbins and Coulter (2002), Robbins, Decenzo and Stuart-Kotze (1996) and Armstrong
(1987) argue that bureaucracy is not the most efficient form of organisation. Merton (1957)
points out the following as the dysfunctions of bureaucracy:
 Bureaucratic organisations create personalities that are more interested in tradition,
loyalty and conformity
 the bureaucratic personality typically lacks imagination and initiative
 the division of labour can easily lead to the task becoming fragmented, with no clear
cohesion between people or departments. This can lead to people concentrating on
specific goals which may not be those of the organisation
  the lack of flexibility and initiative, typical of bureaucrats, inhibits change and
inventiveness
Burns and Stalker, cited by Moore (1994) argue that hierarchical organisations are only
efficient where there is little change. They go on to say where there is rapid change,
particularly in industries in which new technology is being developed, those who know most
are the youngest and least senior in the hierarchy. Those in senior positions are the least
knowledgeable.
Activity 1.6
* Present a sound critique of the Weberean Model of bureaucracy, in Zimbabwe’s education
system.
4 Mary Parker Follett: Early 1900s
Mary Parker Follett was one of the earliest writers to recognise that organisations could be
viewed from the perspective of individual and group behaviour. She was a social philosopher
who proposed more people-oriented ideas than the proponents of scientific management. She
maintained that organisations should be based on the growth ethic.
5. Hugo Munsterberg – Early 1900s
He created the field of industrial psychology – the study of the behaviour of people at work.
He also suggested using psychological tests for employee selection, learning theory concepts
for employee training, and the study of human behaviour for employee motivation.
Activity 3.
* To what extent are classical theories applicable in the management of educational
institutions? What are their merits and demerits?
 Human relations theory
 Behaviourist theory
 Systems theory.
Management
i. How is management defined?
ii. The primary management activities in institutions of higher learning
a) Planning
b) Organising
c) Leading
d) Controlling

Human Relations Theory

The human relations theory arose from the American wish to “humanise” their society
without interfering with the free operation of market forces (Butler,
1986).
Huczynski (1989) and Gabriel (2003) point out that the essence of the human relations
movement was the belief that the key to higher productivity in organisations was increasing
employee satisfaction. The leading scholars in this movement were Elton Mayo of the famous
Hawthorne Studies, Dale Carnegie, Abraham Maslow and Douglas McGregor. Their key
propositions cited by Huczynski (1989:P.17) were:
 A focus on people, rather than upon mechanics or economics
 People exist in an organisational environment rather than an organised
 social context
 A key activity in human relations is motivating people
 Motivation should be directed towards teamwork which requires both the co-
ordination and the co-operation of the individuals involved
 Human relations, through teamwork, seeks to fulfil both individual and organisational
objectives simultaneously
 Both individuals and organisations share a desire for efficiency, that is, they try to
achieve maximum results with minimum inputs
Mullins (1989) says that scholars generally agree that the Hawthorne studies had a large and
dramatic impact on the direction of organisational behaviour and management practice.
Mayo’s conclusions were that behaviour and sentiments were closely related, that group
influences significantly affected individual behaviour, that group standards established
individual worker output, and that money was less a factor in determining output than were
group standards, group sentiments and security. These conclusions led to a new emphasis on
the human factor in the functioning of organisations and the attainment of their goals. They
also led to increased paternalism by management.
However, the Hawthorne studies have been criticised like other theories before them. Attacks
have been made on their procedures, analysis of findings and the conclusions they made.
Watson cited by Huczynski (1989:18) argues that the Hawthorne studies “could best be
viewed as an instructive test of half-true stories”. Some critics argued that human relations
simply represented a more subtle and refined form of exploitation. Bell (1968), Bendix
(1956),
Landsberger (1958) and Braverman (1974) branded the movement the “cow sociology”
saying just as contented cows were alleged to produce more milk, satisfied workers were
expected to produce more output.
However, in spite of these endless attacks on the theory, the emphasis on the human factor in
organisational development cannot be ignored.
Activity 4
* How has organisational behaviour benefited from the human relations movement?
* Discuss the relevance of human relations theory to the management of schools.

Human Resources Theory

Some of the proponents of the human resources theory are Douglas McGregor, Chris Argyris
and Rensis Likert , James March and Abraham Maslow, Fredrick Hertzberg, James March
and William Onuchi. Owens (1991:36) presents the following as the key principles of the
Human Resources Theory:
 Organisations are characterized by ambiguity and uncertainty in their fast changing
environments.
 What controls the core-activity of the organisation is not administrative hierarchy as in
classical theory, but the culture of the organisation, its values, its tradition and norms of
behaviour established over time.
Owens (1991:47) argues that human resources theory emphasizes using the conscious
thinking of individual persons about what they are doing as a means of involving their
commitment, their abilities, and their energies in achieving the goals for which the
organisation stands. The central theme is co-ordination and control through socialization of
participants to the values and goals of the organisation rather than through rules and
regulations. the workers’ interests, human relations management emphasised the
improvement of worker welfare at the expense of the organisation. Human resources
management emphasised the promotion of the organisation’s interests and the development
of the worker’s potential as well.
Activity 5
* Discuss the application of the human resources theory in an educational setting.
The Systems Theory

Miller and Rice (1967) cited by Armstrong (1990:96) state that the systems theory posit that
organisations should be treated as “open systems which are continually dependent upon and
influenced by their environments”. They argue that the basic characteristic of the organisation
or enterprise as an open system is that it transforms inputs into outputs within its
environment.

The systems theory is basically concerned with problems of relationship, of structure and of
interdependence. As a result, there is considerable emphasis on the concept of transactions
across boundaries – between the system and its environment and between the different parts
of the system. This open and dynamic approach is at cross purposes with the era of classical
and human relations theorists who thought of organisations as closed systems and analysed
their problems with reference to their internal structures and processes of interaction, without
taking account of external influences and the changes they impose or of the technology in the
organisation. In the education system in the Zimbabwean context, there is evidence that
schools are adopting some elements of this theory. Schools interact closely with their
stakeholders, that is government, local authorities, the community and various publics that
they serve.

Activity 6
* Consider the application of the systems theory in organisational behaviour, paying
particular attention to the education system.
* Compare and contrast the human relations and the human resources theories of
organisational behaviour.
* Discuss the merits and demerits of Weber’s theory of bureaucracy and show its application
in modern organisation. Draw your illustrations from education.
* Evaluate the benefits education has drawn from the historical developments in
organisational behaviour.
* What skills do managers use to perform their jobs? As a manager in an educational
institution, which of these skills have you learnt as you were reading this unit? Which are
more critical as you move up the hierarchy of authority?