Principles of Management
Principles of management are broad guidelines for managerial behaviour. They are derived from observation and experience, are flexible, contingent on the situation, and mainly behavioural. The exam tests Fayol's 14 principles, Taylor's scientific management techniques, and the difference between the two thinkers.
Fayol's principles to remember
- Division of work → specialisation; authority and responsibility must balance.
- Unity of command: one employee, one boss. Unity of direction: one head, one plan for one objective. These are different.
- Scalar chain is the formal line of authority from top to bottom; the gang plank permits direct contact between two employees at the same level in an emergency, without violating the chain.
- Esprit de corps means team spirit; initiative means encouraging employees to suggest and act.
Taylor's scientific management
- Functional foremanship: eight specialists - four in planning (route clerk, instruction card clerk, time and cost clerk, disciplinarian) and four in production (speed boss, gang boss, repair boss, inspector).
- Method, motion, time and fatigue study standardise the best way of doing work.
- Differential piece wage system pays a higher rate to workers who meet the standard and a lower rate to those who do not.
Worked example
In a bicycle factory, two workers assemble a wheel in different ways. Motion study removes unnecessary movements; time study sets a standard time; the differential piece rate rewards the worker who meets it. Fayol would also check that each worker receives orders from only one supervisor.
Traps
Do not attribute functional foremanship to Fayol or gang plank to Taylor. Principles are not rigid. Unity of command is about one boss; unity of direction is about one plan.