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QUANTITATIVE, CONTEMPORARY AND EMERGING VIEWS OF MANAGEMENT

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Principles of Management ­ MGT503
VU
Lesson 4.10
QUANTITATIVE, CONTEMPORARY AND EMERGING VIEWS OF MANAGEMENT
Quantitative Approach to Management:
The quantitative approach involves the use of quantitative techniques to improve decision making. This
approach has also been labeled operations research of management science. It includes applications of
statistics, optimization models, information models, and computer simulations
How Do Today's Managers use the quantitative approach?
The quantitative approach has contributed directly to management decision making in the areas of planning
and control. For instance, when managers make budgeting, scheduling, quality control, and similar
decisions, they typically rely on quantitative techniques. The availability of sophisticated computer software
programs to aid in developing models, equations, and formulas has made the use of quantitative techniques
somewhat less intimidating for managers, although they must still be able to interpret the results.
The quantitative approach, although important in its own way, has not influenced management practice as
much as the next one we're going to discuss­organizational behavior­for a number of reasons. These
include the fact that many managers are unfamiliar with and intimidated by quantitative tools, behavioral
problems are more widespread and visible, and it is easier for most students and managers to relate to real,
day-to-day people problems than to the more abstract activity of constructing quantitative models.
Branches in the Quantitative Management Viewpoint:
There are three main branches in the Quantitative Management Viewpoint: management science,
operations management, and management information systems
Management science (or operations research as it has been called) is an approach aimed at increasing
decision effectiveness through the use of sophisticated mathematical models and statistical methods. This is
NOT a term to be used synonymously with either the term "Scientific Management" described earlier
featuring Taylor and others or "The Science of Management," a term that usually refers broadly, to a
deliberate, rational approach to management issues.
Operations Management is the function or field of expertise that is primarily responsible for the
production and delivery of an organization's products and services.
Management information systems (MIS) is the name often given to the field of management that
focuses on designing and implementing computer-based information systems for use by management
Contemporary viewpoints:
This school of thought or view point about management includes those major ideas about managing and
organizations that have emerged since the 1950s. Some of the ideas, systems theory for example, are rooted
in experiences gained during World War II.
The systems theory approach is based on the notion that organizations can be visualized as systems of
interrelated parts or subsystems that operate as a whole in pursuit of common goals. This will be discussed
in more detail in the next session.
Contingency Theory is the view that appropriate managerial action depends on the particular parameters
of each situation. This approach is in marked contrast to the earliest universal approach stemming from the
classical management school which suggested that there was one, and only one, best decision for managers
to make which applied in all cases and to all organization, big or little, for profit, or not-for-profit, etc. The
generalized corollary to the universal approach is that the secret to successful managing was just to keep
looking until that one best solution was "found." "it all depends", would be the slogan of contingency
theory. The contingency approach applies particularly well in such areas as environmental factors, strategy,
organizational design, technology, and leadership.
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Principles of Management ­ MGT503
VU
Emerging views: Now that you've got a good understanding of the evolution and past history of
management theories and practices, what current concepts and practices are shaping today's management
history and changing the way that managers do their jobs?
A.
Globalization. Organizational operations no longer stop at geographic borders. Managers in all
types and sizes of organizations are faced with the opportunities and challenges of globalization.
B.
Entrepreneurship refers to the process whereby an individual or a group of individuals uses
organized efforts and means to pursue opportunities to create value and grow by fulfilling wants and needs
through innovation and uniqueness.
1.
Three important themes stand out in this definition:
a.
The pursuit of opportunities
b.
Innovation
c.
Growth
2.
Entrepreneurship will continue to be important to societies around the world.
C.
Managing in an E-Business World.
1.
E-business (electronic business)--a comprehensive term describing the way an organization does
its work by using electronic (Internet-based) linkages with key constituencies in order to efficiently
and effectively achieve its goals.
2.
E-commerce (electronic commerce) is any form of business exchange or transaction in which the
parties interact electronically.
D.
Need for Innovation and Flexibility.
1.
The constant flow of new ideas is crucial for an organization to avoid obsolescence or failure.
2.
Flexibility is valuable in a context where customers/ needs may change overnight, where new
competitors come and go, and where employees and their skills are shifted as need from project to
project.
E.
Quality Management Systems.
1.
Total quality management is a philosophy of management that is driven by customer needs and
expectations and focuses on continual improvement in work processes
2.
TQM was inspired by a small group of quality experts, of whom W. Edwards Deming was one of
the chief proponents. He has also developed and presented his quality philosophy and theory of profound
knowledge.
3.
TQM represents a counterpoint to earlier management theorists who believed that low costs were
the only road to increased productivity.
4.
The objective of TQM is to create an organization committed to continuous improvement.
F.
Learning Organizations and Knowledge Management.
Managers now must deal with an environment that is continually changing. The successful
organizations of the 21st century will be flexible, able to learn and respond quickly, and be led by managers
who can effectively challenge conventional wisdom, manage the organization's knowledge base, and make
needed changes.
1.
A learning organization is one that has developed the capacity to continuously adapt and change.
2.
Knowledge management involves cultivating a learning culture where organizational members
systematically gather knowledge and share it with others to achieve better performance.
G.
Theory Z : William Ouchi's Theory Z combines positive aspects of American and Japanese
management into a modified approach aimed at increasing managerial effectiveness while remaining
compatible with the norms and values of society and culture.
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Table of Contents:
  1. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF MANAGEMENT:The Egyptian Pyramid, Great China Wall
  2. MANAGEMENT AND MANAGERS:Why Study Management?
  3. MANAGERIAL ROLES IN ORGANIZATIONS:Informational roles, Decisional roles
  4. MANAGERIAL FUNCTIONS I.E. POLCA:Management Process, Mistakes Managers Make
  5. MANAGERIAL LEVELS AND SKILLS:Middle-level managers, Top managers
  6. MANAGEMENT IDEAS: YESTERDAY AND TODAY, Anthropology, Economics
  7. CLASSICAL VIEW OF MANAGEMENT:Scientific management
  8. ADMINISTRATIVE VIEW OF MANAGEMENT:Division of work, Authority
  9. BEHAVIORAL THEORIES OF MANAGEMENT:The Hawthorne Studies
  10. QUANTITATIVE, CONTEMPORARY AND EMERGING VIEWS OF MANAGEMENT
  11. SYSTEM’S VIEW OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION:Managing Systems
  12. ANALYZING ORGANIZATIONAL ENVIRONMENT AND UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
  13. 21ST CENTURY MANAGEMENT TRENDS:Organizational social Responsibility
  14. UNDERSTANDING GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT WTO AND SAARC
  15. DECISION MAKING AND DECISION TAKING
  16. RATIONAL DECISION MAKING:Models of Decision Making
  17. NATURE AND TYPES OF MANAGERIAL DECISIONS:Decision-Making Styles
  18. NON RATIONAL DECISION MAKING:Group Decision making
  19. GROUP DECISION MAKING AND CREATIVITY:Delphi Method, Scenario Analysis
  20. PLANNING AND DECISION AIDS-I:Methods of Forecasting, Benchmarking
  21. PLANNING AND DECISION AIDS-II:Budgeting, Scheduling, Project Management
  22. PLANNING: FUNCTIONS & BENEFITS:HOW DO MANAGERS PLAN?
  23. PLANNING PROCESS AND GOAL LEVELS:Types of Plans
  24. MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVE (MBO):Developing Plans
  25. STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT -1:THE IMPORTANCE OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
  26. STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT - 2:THE STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS
  27. LEVELS OF STRATEGIES, PORTER’S MODEL AND STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT (BCG) AND IMPLEMENTATION
  28. ENTREPRENEURSHIP MANAGEMENT:Why Is Entrepreneurship Important?
  29. ORGANIZING
  30. JOB DESIGN/SPECIALIZATION AND DEPARTMENTALIZATION
  31. SPAN OF COMMAND, CENTRALIZATION VS DE-CENTRALIZATION AND LINE VS STAFF AUTHORITY
  32. ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN AND ORGANIC VS MECHANISTIC VS VIRTUAL STRUCTURES
  33. LEADING AND LEADERSHIP MOTIVATING SELF AND OTHERS
  34. MASLOW’S NEEDS THEORY AND ITS ANALYSIS
  35. OTHER NEED AND COGNITIVE THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
  36. EXPECTANCY, GOAL SETTING AND RE-ENFORCEMENT THEORIES
  37. MOTIVATING KNOWLEDGE PROFESSIONALS LEADERSHIP TRAIT THEORIES
  38. BEHAVIORAL AND SITUATIONAL MODELS OF LEADERSHIP
  39. STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP MODELS
  40. UNDERSTANDING GROUP DYNAMICS IN ORGANIZATIONS
  41. GROUP CONCEPTS, STAGES OF GROUP DEVELOPMENT AND TEAM EFFECTIVENESS
  42. UNDERSTANDING MANAGERIAL COMMUNICATION
  43. COMMUNICATION NETWORKS AND CHANNELS EFFECT OF ICT ON MANAGERIAL COMMUNICATION
  44. CONTROLLING AS A MANAGEMENT FUNCTION:The control process
  45. CONTROLLING ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE THROUGH PRODUCTIVITY AND QUALITY