Management Theory and Practice in the Early Childhood Education Industry - Coursework Example

Management Theory and Practice in the early childhood education industry This Report applies management theory into practice in the early childhood industry, especially in the context of women leaders. Management issues play a significant role in the academic sector, because early childhood professionals need higher levels of motivation in order to avoid burnout . As pointed out in a study by Osgood and Halsall (2007) where they carried out research to examine the position of women in leadership or management positions, a “glass ceiling” exists for women in the academic setting, which could significantly impair motivation. Since many of the individuals employed in the early education sector are women, addressing this issue is even more important because these individuals are faced with the difficult task of shaping young minds while also dealing with the problems associated with the actual physical care of very young children. The quality of professionals in this sector is vital, because it impacts upon the growth and development of the children that they care for. The degree of involvement in a job contributes to the feelings of self satisfaction that are generated at any workplace, which transmit positively to the customers or the people that the employees of the organization are working with. Job involvement is the degree to which the total job situation is perceived to be the major source of satisfaction and interest in an individual’s life [Lodahl and Kejner, 1965], and thereby indicates that a satisfied employee is one who perceives his job to be the central interest in his life. The importance of motivation: Motivation of these employees is especially important, to ensure that work is performed well. Employees in the early childhood education sector are placed in a position where they are dealing with vulnerable young individuals and if they are not adequately motivated, they could end up causing more harm and damage if they choose to vent their frustrations on their young charges, or through their indifference. These professionals are in essence, shaping the individuals of the future; as a result eliciting a good performance from them is important. This report applies management theory in specific relation to motivation of employees working in the dearly childhood sector. The theories applied in this report include Fayol’s theory, Taylor’s scientific theory of management and Max Weber’s bureaucratic theory. The most relevant of these is Max Weber’s theory, because in the early childhood education sector, it is often the bureaucratic elements that can cause problems because of the rigidity and lack of flexibility inherent within the system. Management theory and motivation: Employee attitudes, behaviour and motivation have been found to impact upon their actual job performance. Employees in the early childhood sector may often be hemmed in by rules and regulations; they are sometimes unable to respond quickly enough or appropriately enough to the needs of young children. This could be the cause of plenty of frustration and also impact upon their actual work performance because those rules and regulations tend to limit them. Yet another demotivating factor is the “glass ceiling” that these individuals come up against, especially if they are women (Osgood and Halsall, 2007). Applying Henri Fayol’s classical theory of management, some of the principles which would apply in the context of motivating employees in the early childhood education field would include (a) equity (b) initiative and (c) esprit de corps (Fayol, 1949). The first means that a combination of kindliness and justice must be shown to the employees (b) they must be encouraged to demonstrate initiative within the limits of authority and responsibility and (c) team work must be encouraged. These aspects would be relevant within the context of early childhood education, because when the contribution of these employees is appreciated and they are treated well, they are likely to respond favourably by demonstrating higher levels of motivation. By working in teams, they will be able to share their frustrations and problems with other employees and this would be very helpful to them in coping with their problems. They are likely to gain insight from each other, as they discuss the different ways in which they have solved the problems they come up with in the workplace. One of the most important functions a manager has is to motivate employees by meeting the social and psychological needs of the employees in fulfilling organizational goals. The components of such a high commitment HR system, as set out by Marchington and Wilkinson, based upon the views offered by Pfeffer (1998) include: (a) Selective hiring and sophisticated selection of applicants while recruiting (b) Providing extensive training to employees, as well as opportunities for learning and development (c) Employee involvement in company operations, sharing of information and worker voice (d) Working in teams which are self managed by the employees themselves (e) High levels of compensation which are contingent upon levels of performance (f) Harmonisation among employees and reduction in employee differentials (g) Employment security and internal labour markets (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2005:72) Of all the above elements Pfeffer(1998) views the offer of employment security as being the most important Human Resource practice, based upon which all other components are derived, because the higher the level of job security that is offered, the more likely the employee is to contribute his or her hard work, skill and commitment to the job. According to Pfeffer, when an organization resorts to practices such as compulsory lay-offs and downsizing, it is likely to undermine employment security and employers can consider alternative provisions such as reduction in working hours, reduction in wages, halting new recruitment and transferring production workers into sales to drum up demand. (Pfeffer, 1998:183). On the other hand, companies that offer job security to their employees may be providing an indirect signal to the employees about the organization’s concern for their welfare and demonstrating a long term commitment to them, which in turn provides a powerful motivating force to the employees to put in their best performance and apply their skills in the best interests of the organization. In the case of employees in the early childhood industry, this would be relevant because the current recession has created anxiety among employees in this sector with competition intensifying and more candidates competing for the existing jobs. With proposed public sector cuts, it is very likely that some employees in this sector could be laid off, which adversely affects their motivation. Despite public sector cuts, it may be possible to adopt alternatives such as transferring some employees into part time employment, or reducing their wages but retaining them nevertheless. Applying Taylor’s Scientific theory of management, it would be the efficiency of the working methods which would be the most important (Taylor, 1911). Taylor observed the “soldiering” phenomenon among workers, whereby they sought excuses and devised ways to work much slower or to skive off work altogether and avoid doing it. When dealing with young children and facing difficulties in handling them, workers need to have a lot of patience. In some instances, they may also come across difficult parents and feel discouraged when working within the tightly regulated, bureaucratic atmosphere. Thus, effectively motivating these employees becomes even more important in order to sustain their interest and prevent them from skiving off from their work, as well as to provide them with some flexibility so that they can exercise their innovation. It contributes to an authoritarian style of leadership wherein managers make decisions from up above and employees are obliged to follow them (Tennenbaum and Schmidt, 1973). The bureaucratic constraints could be alleviated to some extent by introducing egalitarianism in the workplace through minimizing status differences and harmonizing employee status. Through a reduction of these differences, employees on the lower ranks in the organizational hierarchy, such as teaching assistants and lunchtime supervisors for example, get the feeling that they are also as valuable to the organization as higher level employees. This may be exemplified through HRM practices such as harmonisation in employment conditions, i.e, sick leave, holidays, pensions and hours of work (Keuning, 1997). The objective of such harmonisation is to break down the hierarchal barriers and promote higher levels of team-working and networking among employees to enhance productivity. Allowing support staff into teacher meetings, seeking their inputs, informing them about the goals and objectives of the schools, etc, produces a higher level of motivation in them. Sharing of information about educational strategy and performance provides employees with the sense that they are trusted. Additionally, it also enables employees to use the knowledge residing within the educational establishment to its fullest potential (Pfeffer, 1998).Thirdly, team working among employees is likely to be more successful if workers are provided a base of information on which to base their suggestions and make contributions to improve performance and productivity (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2005:77). Weber’s bureaucracy theory of management is thus very relevant in the field of education. This theory postulates a stable and predictable organizational model in which rational individuals carry out their own prescribed roles and traditional teaching systems do conform to this framework (Cole, 2004: 25-27). One of the criticisms of this theory is that bureaucracy can be dehumanizing and inefficient through red tape. In the field of education, this could mean that sometimes, the welfare of young children could be negatively impacted (Ritzer, 2000). As a result, motivating these employees is vital to ensure that business profits are maintained. Conclusions: On the basis of the above, it may be concluded that of all the three management theories discussed above, Max Weber’s bureaucratic theory appears to have the highest level of relevance in the field of early childhood education. Fayol’s theory has limited applicability and the only aspects that may be relevant are spirit de crops and providing opportunities to improve employee initiative. Taylor’s theory has some relevance in terms of effective leadership being applied in order to improve motivation but it is the element of bureaucracy that is most relevant and must be tackled if employees in the field of early childhood education are to be effectively encouraged. References: * Cole, Gerald, 2004. “Management Theory and practice”, Thomson. * Fayol, H, 1949. “General and industrial management”, translated from the French edition (Dunod) by Constance Storrs, Pitman. * Keuning, Doede, 1997. “Management: a contemporary approach”, Pitman * Marchington, Mick and Wilkinson, Adrian, 2005. “Human resource Management at work”, CIPD * McKenna, T. (2002). Service training your front line. National Petroleum News, 7, 16. Retrieved September 22, 2002, from ABI/INFORM database. * Osgood, Marie-Pierre and Halsall, J, 2007. “The early childhood education workforce”, Making sense of the glass ceiling in schools: an exploration of women teachers’ discourses”, Gender and Education, 19: 237-253 * Pfeffer, J. 1998. “The human equation”, Berrett-Koehler Publishers * Ritzer, G, 2000. “The Macdonaldization of society”, Pine Forge Press * Tannenbaum, R and Schmidt, W, 1973. “How to choose a leadership pattern”, Harvard Business review. * Taylor, Frederick W, 1911. “The Principles of Scientific Management “, New York: Harper Bros: 5-29 Read More