Evolution of Management.

“Management is the art of knowing what to do, when to do and see that is done in the best and cheapest way”- F.W. Taylor.

The quote defines management as simply as possible. Management in some form is an integral part of living and is absolute wherever human efforts are to be undertaken to achieve desired goals. The basic components are always at play, whether it is a question of life or of business. Complexity arises when a particular method needs to be adopted to do what is to be done. The best process that gives the desired results using optimal resources. Over the years, this entire area of management has been dealt with in a different manner which was objective to the concerned era.

If we start with the commencement of human civilization, early humans had to manage the matters of food and shelter as more and more people joined their clan. ‘Family’ itself requires that life be organized and resources of food are apportioned in a manner so as to maximize the utility of such resources. Similarly, as the decades rolled by, with invention of newer materials to work on, various business ideas cropped up. There were kings and queens and memoirs had to be built in their honour. Taking examples of the Pyramids in Giza or the many Indian or Chinese temples, all required managerial skills to coordinate an entire workforce of hundreds of men over extended periods of time. The open markets in villages are a simpler form of the humongous departmental stores that the city dwellers are familiar with.

Management theory and the course of management science kickstarted with the Industrial Revolution followed by the World Wars. With invention of the modern factory along with several machines that could smoothen the process of production, profit motives started building up. The world was pushed towards a scramble for raw materials, labour and efficiency. Although the industrial revolution began in Europe, America would get the best of it in the coming years. The United States has always had a strict factory culture. As is shown in movies like “The Modern Times”, there was little value of human life and more value of time and money. The world had been plunged into a capitalist economy. In the time of World War 2, America had gained immense profits. The European nations were in a dearth of resources and thus they had to be dependent of the American guns and machineries to carry out their wars. A primary reason how America was able to revive from the Great Depression of 1929 was by supplying arms to the Europeans who were incapable to producing it themselves.

Management has seen a lot of changes and still undergoing variations. Chanakya’s “Arthashastra” was written in 3^rd century BC which focused on governance, formulation of policies and finally management of people. Sun Tzu’s (Chinese Army General) “The Art of War” written in 16^th century BC was one of the first books that gives managerial perspectives. Exploiting weakness of the rivals and organisation were given as two of the major criteria of winning wars. This is very close to the SWOT analysis done by the modern-day marketeer to enhance results. Professor Charles Babbage (UK. 1729-1871) combined guesswork with mathematics and science to come up with a full proof management system.  Robert Owen, (UK. 1771-1858) however, held employee welfare on a higher ground which would in turn improve their performance. F.W. Taylor, Emerson and others paved the way for scientific management which included labour division, job content, standardization to control large-scale industries. Along with these classical theories, neo-classical theory of management emphasizes on employee relationships in the work environment. Indian and Japanese methods are similar to what is said in this theory. These countries give more importance to the employees and push them to work better rather than merely firing them like the American way in which employees are dealt with. Finally, the bureaucratic model coined by German Sociologist, Max Weber, came up with a system that includes a series of rules, division of labour hinged on functional specialization, legal authority and placement of employees based on their technical competence.

Some primary qualities for management are leadership and intelligence, command over the employees and a sharp sense of intuition and understanding for coping with problems. This was previously carried out in large scales by the rulers which directly reflects upon the ministers of the country. On a comparatively smaller scale it is the industry owners. Nevertheless, each individual has to be efficient in management to be able to lead a smooth and resourceful life while performing critical tasks.