MANAGEMENT'S CHANGING ROLE AND SCOPE

Due to various environmental changes, management theory and practice have also changed during the past 100 years. The first part of this period saw mechanization and automation advance with industrial growth. Growth in industry, however, created problem between management and labor. As noted on Chapter 1, management practice was little more than a day to day, fire fighting operation at the beginning of this century. Managers saw their duties as those of getting the most output from workers with as little labor cost as possible. Only passing attention was given to any systematic planning, organizing, or controlling of operations. Manufacturing activities, for example, were usually not based on standards were often established subjectively with little or no though given to matching the demands of a job with employee skills. Guesses, hunches, and past experiences provided the bases for most management decisions and employee alienation was quite common.

The practice of management changed dramatically when scientific management emerged during the first quarter of the 20th century. Initially, the term referred to the systematic study and measurement of work in order to achieve maximum efficiency in production. Although these early efforts to improve productivity were carried out in factory settings, the results contributed to an overall expansion of management knowledge. New insights were provided into the analysis of work methods, authority relationships, production planning, and the elimination of wasteful efforts. Unfortunately, scientific management often gave major attention to the creation of the ideal organization, and if performance failed to meet standards, it was assumed to be the fault of either unqualified workers or improper engineering methods. In either case, employee social needs were considered to be far less important than organizational goals.

By the early 1930s, more attention was given to the role of both individuals and groups within organizations. This changed the focus of management thought from an impersonal view of employees to one that considered their  feelings, attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, and ideas. The latter view was based on a belief that employees could be motivated to work more productively when provided with opportunities to satisfy certain social and psychological needs. Consequently, the human element was given major consideration while other environmental factors were pushed out of the mainstream of management theorists have been concerned with both external and internal environments as they influence, and are influenced by, the human element.

The need to view management in a broader context will be increasingly important in years to come. Managers will soon be affected by even more pressures from different groups within our society. Decision making techniques will need to be improved, and current research must be used to provide a better understanding of the total management process. In this respects, a knowledge of how environmental changes affect managers as they seek to balance employee needs and organizational goals will be especially critical.

Managers of the future will also find that they cannot respond to a changing world by merely following procedures or techniques that have worked in the past. Responding to a greater number of pressures and needs will require an understanding of relationships within and among organizations, the complex nature of organizational life, and the critical factors in an organization's external environment. Thus, the demands on all managers will continue to increase as more individuals and groups turn to organization