MGT-401 Evolution of Management Thoughts and Theories

Assignment on
Evolution of Management Thoughts and Theories
Course Title: Management Thoughts
Course Code: MGT-401
Submitted to:
Md. Kazi Raihan Uddin
Assistant Professor
Department of Management
University of Dhaka
Submitted by:
Mohammed Aimon (ID: 024-106)
23rd batch
Department of Management
University of Dhaka
Date of submission: 29th August, 2020

EVOLUTION OF MANAGEMENT THOUGHTS AND
THEORIES
The basic objective of management is handling people or a situation for achievement of certain
goals. As a Noun, the word management refer to the person who perform the act (s) of
management. But, from a functional or implementation perspective, management is a process that
involves planning organizing, resourcing, directing and controlling different activities for the
accomplishment of desired goals. Management is also approached as a mechanism of creative
problem solving. The creative problem solving is accomplished through four functions of
management: planning, organizing, leading and controlling.
In early twentieth century, Mark Parker Follett 2 defined management in simple words as the art
of getting thing done through people. According to Koontz and Weihrich3,’Management is the
process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in
groups, efficiently accomplish selected aims.”
Evolution of Management Concept
The origin of Evolution management can be traced back to the days when man started living in
groups. History reveals that strong men organized the masses into groups according to their
intelligence, physical and mental capabilities. Evidence of the use of the well-recognized
principles of management is to be found in the organization of public life in ancient Greece, the
organization of the Roman Catholic Church and the organization of military forces. Thus
management in some form or the other has been practiced in the various parts of the world since
the dawn of civilization. With the onset of Industrial Revolution, however, the position underwent
a radical change. The structure of industry became extremely complex. At this stage, the
development of a formal theory of management became absolutely necessary. It was against this
background that the pioneers of modern management thought laid the foundations of modern
management theory and practice.

Management in ancient times
The first know management idea were recorded in 500B.C .When Sumerian traders develop
written records for government and commercial use. The application of management is also
evident in the Egyptian civilization as early as 4000-3000 B.C. The pyramid of Egypt built with
millions of stone blocks by utilizing the services of people are the testimonials of a coordinated
effort on an extremely large scale .Creation of such huge structure would have certainly required
extensive planning, decision-making, organizing men and materials and supervision. Roman also
made significant contribution to management, which is reflected in western military hierarchy and
public administration systems. It would not possible to manage the large roman empire without
application of sound management principle. Techniques were developed by army commander to
motivate their army and slaves to perform the assigned task in accordance with their actual
potential. Management and organization are products of their historical and social times and
places. Thus, we can understand the evolution of Management theory in terms of how people have
wrestled with matters of relationships at particular times in history. Early management theory
consisted of numerous attempts at getting to know these newcomer’s to industrial life at the end
of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth century in Europe and the United States.
Early writings on management
People have been change shaping and reshaping organization for many centuries. Works of several
writers in the area of governance of kingdoms and man management created a literature that
assisted in the development of modern management theories. The writers was writing about how
to make organization effective and efficient. The early leadership and management models were
provided by military, political, mythological and religious organizations. Some early writing that
subsequently influenced the development of managerial thought are described below.
Sun Tzu’s The Art of War: This book on military strategy was written by Chinese general Sun Tzu
in the 16th century BC .But, the writings in the book very well been used for managerial purposes.
The book recommends that success can be archived by being aware of utilizing the organizations
strength and utilizing them to exploit the weaknesses of the rival or enemy. It emphasizes the
importance of discipline in order to get the thing done through a coordinated group effort.

Chanakya’s Arthashastra: This treatise, developed around third century BC, deal with the
governance of kingdom by a king or a leader while making the policies of governance and people
management. It highlights the importance of creation of department, development of detailed job
profiles and qualifications of administrations who had to manage these departments a director.
Arthashastra considerably affected the administrative philosophy of different ruler of India for
centuries. Machiavelli’s The Prince: This book written by Nicola Machiavelli in 1531 as a counsel
for the leadership of Florence, Italy. Machiavelli recommended in this classic that the end justify
the mean and that a leader should use fear, not hatred, to maintain control.
Although Sun Tzu, Chanakya and Machiavelli was trying to development a theory of management,
insights teach us an important lesson about Management. And its help to think about management
of organization.
Effect of the Industrial Revolution on Management
The industrial Revolution made a significant contribution to the development of management
thought before the 20th century. The substitution of human power with machine power made it
possible to manufacture goods in large numbers in factories more economically. Consequently,
there emerged large-scale business which required managerial skills to produce goods in an
efficient and profitable manner. The growing size and complexity of business organization led to
the requirement of managers to various business-related task, like assessing the demand of goods,
ensuring the availability of raw materials, assigning the task to factory workers, supervising the
production and sales of goods, maintaining quality standard etc.The first textbook of management
was written by J. Duncan in 1911 and the early comprehensive theories on management appeared
around 1920.The discipline of management got a strong foundation. When Harvard University
became one of the first American universities to offered
graduate degree in business management in 1908.The curriculum for teaching management was
based on the analysis of relevant real situations in the business world.
Evolution of Management Thought
Evolution of management thought may be divided into four stages

 Pre-scientific management period.
 Classical theory
a. Scientific management
b. Administrative management
c. Bureaucratic model
 Neo - classical theory or behavior approach
 Modern theory or systems approach
Pre-scientific Management Period
The advent of industrial revolution in the middle of the 18th century had its impact on
management. Industrial revolution brought about a complete change in the methods of production,
tools and equipment’s, organization of labor and methods of raising capital.
Employees went to their work instead of receiving it, and so, the factory system, as it is known
today, become a dominant feature of the economy. Under this system, land and buildings, hired

labor, and capital are made available to the entrepreneur, who strives to combine these factors in
the efficient achievement of a particular goal. All these changes, in turn, brought about changes in
the field of management. Traditional, conventional or customary ideas of management were slowly
given up and management came to be based on scientific principles. In the words of L. F. Urwick-
"Modern management has thrown open a new branch of human knowledge, a fresh universe of
discourse". During the period following the industrial revolution, certain pioneers tried to
challenge the traditional character of management by introducing new ideas and character of
management by introducing new ideas and approaches. The notable contributors of this period are:
Professor Charles Babbage (UK 1729 -1871): He was a Professor of Mathematics at
Cambridge University. Prof Babbage found that manufacturers made little use of science and
mathematics, and that they (manufacturers) relied upon opinions instead of investigations and
accurate knowledge. He felt that the methods of science and mathematics could be applied to
the solution of methods in the place of guess work for the solution of business problems. He
advocated the use of accurate observations, measurement and precise knowledge for taking
business decisions. He urged the management of an enterprise, on the basis of accurate data
obtained through rigid investigation, the desirability of finding out the number of times each
operation is repeated each hour, the dividing of work into mental and physical efforts, the
determining of the precise cost for every process and the paying of a bonus to the workers in
proportion to his own efficiency and the success of enterprise.
James Watt Junior (UK 1796 - 1848) and Mathew Robinson Bolton (1770 - 1842): James
Watt Junior and Mathew Robinson Bolton contributed to the development of management
thought by following certain management techniques in their engineering factory at Soho in
Birmingham. They are:-
Robert Owens (UK 1771 - 1858): Robert Owens, the promoter of co-operative and trade
union movement in England, emphasized the recognition of human element in industry. He
firmly believed that workers' performance in industry was influenced by the working
conditions and treatment of workers. He introduced new ideas of human relations - shorter
working hours, housing facilities, training of workers in hygiene, education of their children,
provision of canteen etc. Robert Owen, managed a group of textile mills in Lanark, Scotland,
where he used his ideas of human relations. Though his approach was paternalistic, he came
to be regarded as the father of Personnel Management.