Approaches to Management Theory
These (historical and contemporary) approaches demonstrate the evolution of
the understanding of the functions, role, skills, and effect of a manager on an
organization. These theories do not focus solely on the manager.
Management theory also explores the organizational structure, individual
efficiency models, and worker behaviors related to psychological and
sociological factors.
What is Classical Management Theory?
Classical management theory refers to the earliest areas of management
research. It focuses on the rationality in decision-making and the efficiency of
the organization. The categories and most renowned early contributors to
classical management theory are as follows:
Scientific Approach to Management
The early pioneer of Scientific Management Theory was Frederick Taylor Principles of Scientific Management. His work envisioned One Best Way to do a
job. He proposed the following method for addressing any managerial task:

Develop science for the elements of work to replace rule of thumb

Select, train, teach workers

Cooperate with Workers to ensure work is done

Divide work suitably between workers and managers
Another major contribution to Scientific Management theory was by Frank
Gilbreth and Lillian Moller Gilbreth. They studied task process and efficient
body motions. They focused on the efficiency of effort furthering the
understanding of the best way to carry out a process.
Administrative Approach to Management
The father of Administrative or Management Process Theory was Henri Fayol.
In his early text, Administration Industrielle et Generale, he proposed several
managerial functions as categories for all managerial activities. The functions
include:

Planning

Organizing

Commanding

Coordinating

Controlling
This framework evolved into the highly-influential P-O-L-C (Plan, Organize,
Lead, Control) framework for management functions. The Coordinating and
Controlling functions collapsed into Leadership.
Fayol also contributed to the understanding of managerial duties through his
text, Fayol's 14 Principles of Management.
Henri Mintzberg, in his text The Nature of Managerial Work, added to the body
of administrative management theory by proposing a framework for the Role of
Managers.
He categorizes the roles of managers as follows:



Interpersonal
o
Figurehead
o
Supervisor
o
Liaison
Informational
o
Monitor
o
Disseminator
o
Spokesperson
Decisional
o
Entrepreneur
o
Disturbance Handler
o
Resource allocator
o
Negotiator
Max Weber was another notable theorist contributing to the administrative
approach to management. Weber explored the organizational structure and
proposed the concept of a Bureaucracy.
He saw an organization as a clearly-defined structure with a division of labor,
clear hierarchy, detailed rules, and impersonal relationships. Managers served
the function of facilitating the organization of the bureaucracy and
management of functions therein.
Robert L. Katz, yet another administrative management theorist, proposed
categories for managerial skills, including:

Conceptual

Human

Technical
Conclusion of Classical Theory of Management
The scientific approach and administrative approaches co-existed and
dominated early management theory. These views focused primarily upon a
manager who oversees manual laborers. As the labor force gradually shifted
from labor to a mixture of labor and knowledge work, these principles became
less relevant.
Behavioral Approach to Management
These process-driven theories that focused on the manager and the role of
management later gave way to a focus on understanding the individual within
the organization. That is, as work became less about manual labor and more
about knowledge and understanding, other theories besides task
accomplishment and managerial efficiency became relevant.
The behavior-based approach to management focused on the individual
worker, such as motivations, behaviors, social systems, etc. It incorporated
aspects of psychology, motivation, and sociology. Some of the major early
contributors to Behavioral Theory were:

Mary Parker Follet - Her work focused on Individual and Group
Behavior. Here theories include: Genuine power is not coercive (power
over) but coactive (power with). True leaders create group power rather
than expressing personal power

Hugo Munsterberg - His work focused on psychological tests for
employee selection. He also proposed theoretical concepts for training.
His work also linked worker behavior to individual motivation.

Robert Owen - His work focused on workplace conditions and the need
to invest in the workforce.

Chester Barnard - His work pained organizations as coordinated social
systems. He explored the role of communication in stimulating activity.
Notably, he proposed the concept of the organizations as an open system.

Elton Mayo - Mayo demonstrated that employee motivation is heavily
influenced by social and situational factors. Mayos findings, referred to
as the Hawthorne Effect, marked a radical change in motivational theory
and management practice.

Abraham Maslow - Maslow proposed that human behavior is purposeful
and is motivated by the desire to satisfy needs and that lower-level needs
must be met before a person can focus on the next level of needs.
Contemporary Approaches to Management
The study of management theory has burgeoned in recent decades. The
resulting theories are quite diverse and novel. They explore numerous aspects
of the manager, the employee, the organization, the business environment,
resources (human and capital), efficiency, understanding, and
creativity/innovation. The primary contemporary approaches to management
include:
Quantitative Approach to Management
The quantitative approach to management applies mathematical models,
information and optimization models, computer simulations, and other
quantitative techniques to managerial decision-making. The primary branches
of quantitative management theory include:

Management Science- Under the umbrella of management science,
there are a number of recognized disciplines:
o
Operations Management - The management of functional
processes employed in delivering the company's value proposition.
o
Quantitative Management - This approach focuses on the use of
data analysis in management decision making.
o
Total Quality Management - This is an efficiency and waste
reduction approach to management processes and decision
making.
o
Management Info Systems - This field includes the use of
technological and quantitative methods for the observation,
collection, organization, evaluation, and dissemination of
information across and throughout an organization.

Systems Theory - An organization is a system consisting of a number of
interdependent parts functioning as a whole for some purpose. These
parts might include: inputs, a transformation process, outputs,
feedback, and the environment. An organization is generally considered
to be open and organic with the subpart or subsystem interacting.

Contingency Theory - This is a decision-making theory of management.
The behavior of one sub-unit of an organization is dependent on its
environment and relationship to other units or sub-units that have some
control over the sequences desired by that sub-unit.
Other Contemporary Theories
Scholars have proposed various other contemporary approaches to
management theory. These theories may relate individually to prior theories or
span multiple theories. Each of these is discussed individually.