Description
Unformatted Attachment Preview
The Evolution of Management Broken Down
This is an article explaining the timeline of the Evolution of Management. The logic of changing
management styles is based on the intent of increasing the efficiency of workers and
organizations based on management practices, which is an outcome of careful observation.
1910s-1940s: Management as Science
Management as Science was developed in the early 20th century and focused on increasing
productivity and efficiency through standardization, division of labor, centralization and
hierarchy. A very ‘top down’ management with strict control over people and processes
dominated across industries.
1950s-1960s: Functional Organizations
Due to growing and more complex organizations, the 1950’s and 1960’s saw the emergence of
functional organizations and the Human Resource (HR) movement.
Managers began to understand the human factor in production and productivity and tools such as
goal setting, performance reviews and job descriptions were born.
1970s: Strategic Planning
In the 1970’s we changed our focus from measuring function to resource allocation and tools like
Strategic Planning (GE), Growth Share Matrix (BCG) and SWOT were used to formalize
strategic planning processes. After several decades of ‘best practice’ and ‘one size fits all’
solutions, academics began to developing contingency theories.
1980s: Competitive Advantage
As the business environment grew increasingly competitive and connected, and with a blooming
management consultancy industry, Competitive Advantage became a priority for organizations
in the 1980’s. Tools like Total Quality Management (TQM), Six Sigma and Lean were used to
measure processes and improve productivity. Employees were more involved by collecting data,
but decisions were still made at the top, and goals were used to manage people and maintain
control.
1990s: Process Optimization
Benchmarking and business process reengineering became popular in the 1990’s, and by the
middle of the decade, 60% of Fortune 500 companies claimed to have plans for or have already
initiated such projects. TQM, Six Sigma and Lean remained popular and a more holistic,
organization-wide approach and strategy implementation took the stage with tools such as
Strategy Maps and Balance Scorecards.
2000s: Big Data
Largely driven by the consulting industry under the banner of Big Data, organizations in the
2000’s started to focus on using technology for growth and value creation. Meanwhile,
oversaturation of existing market space drove to concepts such as Blue Ocean Strategy and
Value Innovation.
It’s 2013. Globalization, advances in technology and increased diversity have put organizational
challenges into hyper drive. Despite the inspirational stories we read about companies like
Zappos, Innocent Drinks and Google, the truth is that most of us are using outdated management
practices and failing to get the most out of our people. Not convinced? Consider this: 65% of
people are unhappy at work, only 14% understand their company’s strategy, and 75% are
seeking jobs as we speak. Now, what do you think that does for your bottom line?
How we lead our people and how we solve problems and innovate, are some of the most
important aspects of Management to get right. In our research, we’ve therefore looked
specifically at two aspects of Management throughout history, and how these will develop in the
future.
1. Management Approach: the style of top management, ranging from:
a. Control (i.e. your boss tells you what to do and how to do it).
b. Set Goals (i.e. your boss sets goals and expectations, but you have more freedom with regards
to how you achieve them).
c. Inspire (i.e. your boss gives you scope and freedom to innovate on both the what and the how).
2. Approach to Innovation / Problem Solving: how leaders solve strategic problems and
develop new products and services. This ranged from:
a. Top Down (i.e. solutions are created and come from the top)
b. Top Down with Bottom Up Data (i.e. the rest of the organization contributes information and
experiences, but solutions are still created at the top).
c. Participatory (i.e. solutions are created collaboratively, and throughout the organizational
levels).
After a century of trying to control people, processes and information, we have come to a point
in organizational history where we need to recognize that what worked before just simply isn’t
enough anymore. Traditional Management is fine if you want compliance, but if you want
innovation and growth, you need to engage your people on a whole new level. Top down control
is a thing of the past. Succeeding in today’s environment requires a management style that
inspires and is participatory.
Over the next couple of weeks I will discuss the future of organizations, and what it really takes
to increase value creation, innovation and employee engagement in today’s business
environment.
Questions:
1. Which decade do you believe impacted society the most from this article? Why?
2. What changes in management do you see in the next 10 years?
3. In the article there are two aspects of management (Management Approach, Approach to
Innovation/ Problem Solving). Reading the three different styles for each one (A,B,C),
which one would you choose? Why?
Purchase answer to see full
attachment
