Classical

Management
Theory
Management Theory
Management theories are a collection of ideas that recommend general rules for how to manage an
organization or business. They address how supervisors implement strategies to accomplish organizational
goals and how they motivate employees to perform at their highest ability.
 3 Prominent Figures in
Management and Sociology
1. Max Weber 2. Frederick Taylor 3. Henry Fayol
Max Weber’s Bureaucracy
Max Weber, a German scientist, defines bureaucracy as a highly structured, formalized, and also an
impersonal organization. He also instituted the belief that an organization must have a defined
hierarchical structure and clear rules, regulations, and lines of authority which govern it.
6 Major Principles of Max Weber’s
Bureaucracy
• A formal hierarchical structure
• Rules-based Management
• Functional Specialty organization
• Up-focused or In-focused Mission
• Impersonal
• Employment-based on Technical Qualifications
 Why is a Bureaucratic Organization
criticized?
•The rules are inflexible and rigid. Further, there is too much emphasis on these rules and regulations.

•Informal groups do not receive any importance. In current times, informal groups play a huge role in most business organizations.

•Typically, bureaucracy involves a lot of paperwork which leads to a waste of time, money, and also effort.

•The rules and formalities lead to an unnecessary delay in the decision-making process.

•While Government organizations can benefit from a bureaucratic structure, business organization need quick decision-making and
flexibility in procedures. Therefore, it is not suitable for the latter.
•While the technical qualifications of the employee is an important aspect of his promotion, a bureaucratic organization does not
consider the employee’s commitment and dedication.
•There is limited scope for Human Resource management.

•Coordinating and communicating is difficult.

FREDERICK TAYLOR AND
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
•He started the Scientific Management movement

•Taylor's philosophy focused on the belief that making people work as hard as they could was not as
efficient as optimizing the way the work was done.

•In 1909, Taylor published “The Principles of Scientific Management” in which he described how the
application of the scientific method to the management of workers greatly could improve productivity.

•He promoted the idea of “a fair day's pay for a fair day's work.”
•With a background in mechanical engineering, Taylor was very interested in efficiency.

•While advancing his career at a U.S. steel manufacturer, he designed workplace experiments to
determine optimal performance levels that he called time studies, (also known as time and motion
studies).

•In one, he experimented with shovel design until he had a design that would allow workers to shovel
for several hours straight. With bricklayers, he experimented with the various motions required and
developed an efficient way to lay bricks.

•He found that by calculating the time needed for the various elements of a task, he could develop the
"best" way to complete it.
FOUR PRINCIPLES OF SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
These principles are also known simply as "Taylorism“.

1.Replace working by "rule of thumb," or simple habit and common sense, and instead use the scientific
method to study work and determine the most efficient way to perform specific tasks.

2.Rather than simply assign workers to just any job, match workers to their jobs based on capability and
motivation, and train them to work at maximum efficiency.

3.Monitor worker performance, and provide instructions and supervision to ensure that they're using the
most efficient ways of working.

4.Allocate the work between managers and workers so that the managers spend their time planning and
training, allowing the workers to perform their tasks efficiently.
CRITIQUES OF TAYLORISM
•Lack of Flexibility: Taylorism promotes rigid approaches, while modern methods value worker
autonomy and adaptability.

•Teamwork Emphasis: Taylorism breaks tasks into steps; modern practices focus on holistic efficiency
and collaboration.

•Manual vs. Mental Work: Taylorism separates work types; modern approaches integrate workers'
knowledge and experiences.
•Motivation and Workplace Satisfaction: Taylorism overlooks motivation and job satisfaction, key
elements for productivity.