MANSCI-Management Science
Management is a core function of every
business and a number of theories try to explain
how the processes of management can be best
utilized to help the organization to succeed.
Management science is one such approach and in
this guide, we’ll explore the history of this
approach.
THE HISTORY
SCIENCE
OF
MANAGEMENT
Management
science
has
an
interesting history and the approach has
evolved over the years to its current
concept, which we’ll explore further in the
next section. The roots of management
science can be found in a concept
of operations research, which was a system
developed during World War II. The War,
like other wars before and after it, involved
plenty of operations outside of the
traditional fighting on the battlefield.
Warfare changed from the First World War
and scientists from different fields were
part of the effort to gain the upper hand on
both sides of the war.
Operation research or operational
research saw the scientists trying to apply
analytical methods in order to enhance the
decision-making processes. The approach
was highly used by the Allied forces, with
Britain engaging nearly 1,000 men and
women in operation research during the
war. The basis of operation research was on
different mathematical models, which were
used to make predictions that would
improve military operations.
One example of the operation
research use was the application of
‘effectiveness ratios’, which compared the
flying hours of Allied planes with enemy Uboat sightings in a given area. By studying
these numbers, the military was able to
distribute the planes to productive patrol
areas and map out enemy positions more
efficiently.
After the war, the operation
research model became implemented in the
corporate sector. As businesses and other
organizations begun using analytical
research as part of the decision-making
process, the term management science was
coined. In 1967, Stafford Beer said the field
of management science is essentially “the
business use of operations research”.
At this initial stage, management
science involved around the application of
different scientific methods and findings in
order to solve management problems and
streamline the processes of management.
The broad approach meant the system used
operation research, system analysis as well
as the study of management-information
systems as part of the implementation.
Since then, the definition and scope of
management science has become more
defined.
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THE CORE CONCEPTS OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
Now that we’ve looked into the history of management science, we can move on to
exploring the current definition of the practice together with its core concepts.
The definition of management science
According to Lancaster University, management science can be defined as a concept
that is “concerned with developing and applying models and concepts that help to illuminate
issues and solve managerial problems”. The approach is essentially interested in looking at
an organization and finding ways it can manage itself better and improve its productivity.
The core aim of the approach is to use scientific concepts and methods in order to
solve management-related issues. It does this by focusing on analyzing different
management approaches, comparing them with existing possibilities and offering possible
outcomes of which the organization can pick to improve productivity.
While management science is mainly a mathematical approach to solving problems,
the application of it requires the examination of different fields. Management science uses
analytical data, statistics and methods for increasing efficiency of management systems and
it finds the tools from fields like:





Economics
Business Administration
Psychology
Sociology
Mathematics
The key to management science is the visualization of management as a logical
action. Since the approach views management through this lens, it means the process can
be quantified and described with the help of symbols, measurements and relationships.
The approach basis its theory on the decision theory approach and rational decisionmaking models and it can provide organizations with a model that helps identify goals and
the roadmap for achieving them.
Management science makes a few general assumptions of management, which
are the basis for its framework. The assumptions are:

Management is a problem-solving mechanism, which can be boosted by mathematical
tools and techniques.

Problems in management can be quantified and described in mathematical terms. This
includes areas such as system analysis, but also human behavior.

Managerial problems can best be resolved through mathematical tools, simulations
and models.
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The Four Core Areas of Research
The management science approach relies on four core areas of research. These four
are the steps an organization must take in order to properly implement management
science and they are the four core elements defining the system.
The first one is about discovering,
developing, defining, and evaluating the
goals and policies that lead to these
objectives. This requires the organization
to examine the goals it has set, the goals it
could set and the current and possible
methods and processes it could use in
order to achieve them. This is about the
initial step of understanding what the
company wants to do, what the company
is doing, and what the company could be
doing.
The second core element is
about ensuring the organization adopts
those policies. Once the processes and
policies have been chosen from the
selection of options, science management
requires the company to enforce them.
This might require additional policy
decisions and changes in the way the
organization operates, but the key is to
implement the processes as identified
during the initial phase.
After the policies are being
implemented, management science calls
for scrutinizing the effectiveness of the
policies. Management science doesn’t just
provide the tools for making better
decisions
and
streamlining
the
management procedures within the
organization. It can also help with
monitoring of the viability of these
approaches and decisions.
Finally, the fourth element is
about initiating changes to the policies
in case they are found ineffective. If the
processes are not working as intended
and the organization is not achieving the
predicted outcomes, management science
provides the framework for figuring out
the failing parts. The analytical approach
doesn’t just measure how things might be,
but it can help identify why certain
outcomes weren’t achieved. This will help
make changes on the go and shift the
focus to the processes that will guarantee
the achievement of the objectives.
In the final section, we’ll return to examining how the above can be implemented in
the most effective manner.
THE BENEFITS OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
When it comes to the benefits of implementing a management science approach,
organizations can expect a number of advantages. Management science can reduce the
overall efficiency of the organization and make decision-making easier and more
defined.
The broad advantage of the approach is its ability to design measures that can be
used to identify and evaluate the effectiveness of the processes currently in use.
Management science looks at the current situation and compares it with other possibilities,
creating measurable predictions.
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The analysis of processes and decision-making can help the organization identify
the problem areas, as well as the systems that are already working efficiently. The
identification of these will guarantee the organization is using processes and decisionmaking approaches that provide the best results in terms of the achieving the
organization’s objectives.
Furthermore, the management science approach can help more specifically in the
following core areas of any business:

Planning – The management science approach can be used in the planning because it
identifies and predicts the results of certain processes. The approach makes it easier
to understand the future needs of the organization based on the current and future
models, as well as the objectives the organization is looking to fulfill.

Organizing – Creating systems that efficiently focus on the specifically defined
processes and tasks. Furthermore, it makes it easier to direct resources to their right
places.

Leading and controlling operations – Since the approach focuses on management, it
can boost the way the organization leads. It can help individual managers focus on the
most important aspects of the organization and improve their decision-making skills.
Efficiency in the following core
areas of business will provide boosts in
productivity, industrial peace and
enhance the organization’s ability to
specialize its products and services.
Productivity results from the efficiency in
planning, organizing and leading, as the
processes are streamlined and different
parts of the organization focus on the
areas that maximize their efficiency.
Furthermore,
the
higher
productivity can result in increased
wages as well, since the organization
doesn’t need to worry about time-wasting
and inefficient workforce. As wages
improve, employee motivation is likely to
improve, creating a system of reinforced
productivity.
In terms of industrial peace,
management science enforces better co-
operation between the management and
the labor. The enhanced processes create
an environment of clarity in the
workplace and provide more security to
the workforce in terms of knowing their
position and the health and safety of the
employee. If relations between the
management and the labor are
harmonious and built on trust and
respect, industrial disputes are less likely
to take place.
Employee
motivation
and
productivity are also boosted through the
safer work environment, as alluded
above. The approach identifies the most
efficient and the safest ways to produce
products and services. This can have a
meaningful impact on the working
conditions and thus increase industrial
peace further.
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Specialization is improved through enhanced understanding of the strengths and
weaknesses of the organization. Management science helps identify the processes, which
work, notice the areas of weakness, and realize the future possibilities and needs of the
organization’s consumer base. The approach makes the utilization of resources easier,
since the framework can notice the availability of resources and the proper use of them.
As the above shows, management science can be beneficial for the organization by
improving the way it operates, but also guaranteeing better relations between the different
stakeholders. With improved efficiency, productivity will increase and further create a
situation for higher profits.
THE DISADVANTAGES OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
What about the downside to
management science? Despite the above
advantages, certain drawbacks need to be
taken into account before an organization
starts
using
the approach. The
disadvantages should be taken seriously,
even though many of these drawbacks
can be limited and controlled with proper
implementation and planning.
Management science controls the
decision-making process within the
organization. Decisions are made based
on the findings of the framework, using
analysis of different factors and
implementing a variety of methodologies.
This can lead to reduced employeeinvolvement in decision-making, as the
process is not controlled by discussion
and opinion, but focus is on numbers and
scientific predictions.
Management science also requires
an understanding of the process, which is
something
the
employee
doesn’t
necessarily have. The employees might
not have a good grasp of how the
decisions were made and the justification
behind the conclusion, which can make
the management’s approach seem further
disengaging and confusing.
In its essence, management
science supports a top-down decisionmaking process. If you read management
expert opinions, many champion the
opposite to the traditional top-down
approach. Author Peter Diamandis is
among the proponents of collective
decision-making,
stating,
“collective
management will build companies – not
top-down decision-making”.
The problem with transferring the
decision-making completely away from
employee input is how it creates
situations where people feel disengaged.
Since you don’t have any voice, you can
more easily feel uncomfortable with the
decisions. Even if you wouldn’t get your
way with the decisions, the ability to
influence or discuss the decision can be
enough to make you feel more engaged.
The framework also looks at
individual components and therefore
breaks down the tasks into smaller
objectives.
This
can create
fragmentation
throughout
the
organization, which can have a few
defining impacts. First, the fragmentation
of objectives means each employee is
closely associated with a single unit of
action. In short, employees have a task
and the instructions on how to do it.
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The employee just needs to fulfill the objective and the task is done. Since each
person is in charge of their own objective, tasks don’t have much spill over. This can lead
to a situation where teamwork is non-existent. Employees are only focused on the
specific tasks they’ve been given, without the need to discuss or co-operate with others.
While this might suit certain types of employees, others might find it disengaging again.
The second problem of fragmentation follows directly from the lack of teamwork.
If team-building and co-operation are diminished, creativity within the
organization can suffer. People don’t communicate with each other in the same way,
creating a system where the team starts relying on the feedback from the management
science framework. Ideas are not thrown around, but rather people wait for the
management science framework to come up with the best approaches.
The above points deal with the disadvantages in terms of employee engagement and
creativity. But management science can have a few drawbacks on a more practical,
operational sense as well. First, the approach generalizes that things can be quantified. For
the model to work and make effective predictions, things should be quantifiable and easily
measured. If they are, then mathematical calculations will work accurately and the
outcomes can be analyzed with care.
But certain issues and problems won’t be easily quantified or standardized. For
example, while resources and equipment can be standardized, human behavior is much
harder to generalize, as certain people can perform well in specific conditions in which
someone else might fail. Therefore, by creating artificial generalization and
standardization, the management will reduce the effectiveness of the predictions. If the set
of processes analyzed is not correctly quantified, the outcomes might not be the most
accurate. In effect, this means the resulting decisions might not yield the optimum results.
In addition to the above, management science has a problem with scaling. Since
the framework requires plenty of data and the data has to be as accurate as possible, the
implementation process can be much easier for smaller organizations. Creating a process
for data collection, analysis and prediction is easier when you have only a limited number
of data available with a small organization. The process can be easier to establish and the
results can be faster to achieve since analyzing won’t take forever. On the other hand, the
cost of establishing an efficient management science system can be high and the expensive
element of the framework can make it unattractive for smaller firms.
References:
Martin (2018). Management science: The Definitive Guide. Retrieved on June 11, 2019 from
Cleverism Magazine Website: https://www.cleverism.com/management-scienceguide/