Management theories - Essay Example

With new management theory so readily available, it seems that few if any of the historical theories meet our expectations today. However, in choosing one the choice here would be the Administrative Principles. This approach, at least made an attempt to focus on the total organization and today we know that each entity in an organization is important to the whole and how those entities function together is extremely important. In this particular theory, Henri Fayol (1841-1925) was the developer of the theory.

There were fourteen general principles that were put into place as a part of this principle. There are truly some good things and some bad things here.(provenmodels, 2010). Division of labor: This is a method of achieving maximum efficiency through the use of specialized labor rather than just splitting people up by the technical activities they do. This is, in some ways, how a hospital works today and many other major businesses too. The division of labor is usually split up by specialty. For example, the business office, the admissions, the coders etc.

Establishment of Authority: Here the true ability to make a decision and carry it out is available to the manager. Today, we call it one kind of power or another but even today, there are organizations that are unable to release this authority even to their top managers. As one reads these points, it is realized that they are all important today and we think of them as a part of one or more of the theories we study today. When the pros are thought of, one of the things that leaps out at the reader immediately is the stability of jobs.

In today's world there are beginning to be short numbers of staff in many specialty fields. It is also known that training and retraining staff are very expensive (Jick, & Perpirl,, 2003). With that known, retention of staff becomes extremely important, as important today at it was then. The other pros are that unity of command remains important today as well as unity of direction. Today, we understand that it is important to assure that employees other than senior management staff are a part of strategic planning, for example.

The cons are that this is a step back of course from what we know today and though the fourteen points are useful, it all seems somewhat complicated to use and they are somewhat vague in spots and seem a little confusing. The theory that is most