AED 4210 Organisation Theory and Management

ADMINISTRATIVE THEORY WITH

FAYOL
By Dr. M. Luchembe
 FAYOL’S PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT

At the end of this topic, students should be able to:

 Explain the 14 principles of management developed
by Fayol;

 Discuss the benefits of each of the principles of

management to modern organisations, and

 Identify weaknesses inherent in Fayol’s principles of

management in relation to modern organisations.
 FAYOL’S 14 PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT

Fayol’s 14 principles …… efficiency of the management process..

They form the foundation on which much of the recent management
theory and research are based.
1. Division of labour/work
• Reduces the span of attention or effort for anyone person or group.
•  It develops practice and familiarity.
• Job specialisation and the division of labour should increase
efficiency.
But Fayol cautioned against too much job specialisation as it can breed
boredom which can lead to a fall in product quality, worker initiative,
and flexibility.
Consequently, Fayol advocated that workers be given more job duties
to perform.
 2. Authority and Responsibility

• This is the right to give orders and the power to

exhort subordinates for obedience by managers.

• Fayol went beyond Weber’s formal authority which

derives from a manager’s position in the hierarchy, to
recognise the informal authority that derives from
personal expertise, technical knowledge, moral worth
and ability to lead and generate commitment from
subordinates.
 3. Discipline

• This is essentially respect and obedience between a firm and its

employees in accordance with formal or informal agreements.
 
• Fayol’s main concern was how to create a work force that was
reliable and hardworking and would strive to achieve
organisational goals.
 
• In Fayol’s mind, discipline results in respectful relations
between organisational members, and reflects the quality of an
organisation’s leadership and a manager’s ability to act fairly
and equitably. Discipline was vital for a smoothly functioning
and prosperous firm.
 4. Unity of Command

• This refers to one man one superior! In other words an employee should
receive orders from, and report to, only one superior. Just as the Biblical
injunction advises: “No one can serve two masters”.
 
• Fayol was against dual command where two supervisors give orders to the
same subordinate except in exceptional circumstances.
 
• He argued that dual command confused the subordinate, undermined order
and discipline and created havoc within the formal hierarchy of authority.
 
• Assessing any manager’s authority and responsibility in a system of dual
command is difficult. A manager who has been by-passed may not
cooperate in future.
 5. Unity of Direction

• The organisation should have a single plan of action

for a group of activities to guide managers and
workers.
 
• An organisation without a single guiding plan
becomes inefficient and ineffective; its activities
become unfocused and individuals and groups work
at cross purposes. Therefore, unity of direction
provides the coordination necessary for focusing a
firm’s efforts.
 6. Subordination of Individual Interests to the Common Interest

• This is a plea to abolish “ignorance, ambition,

selfishness, laziness, weakness and all human passions”.

• The interests of the organisation as a whole must take

precedence over the interests of any one individual or
group if the organisation is to survive or to avoid conflict.

• Fayol noted that individuals or groups who serve only

themselves are harmful to the interests of their fellow
employees and the interest of the firm in general.