Discussion
M264_123 s
Chapter2Slides.pptxChapter 2: Classical Approaches and Organizational Structure
Introduction
The Industrial Revolution (late 19th and early 20th century) sparked major changes in society
Shift from an agrarian and artisan environment manufacturing processes
Changes in both the management and communication of workers became necessary
Classical theorists impacted the way industry understood and practiced organization and communicating
Case Study: IPhones and Suicide Nets?
In 2010, nine factory workers committed suicide at the Foxxconn plant in Shenzhen China
A few years later, 150 workers threatened to commit suicide
Workers cited overly strict management, long work shifts, dangerous work and living conditions, boring and repetitive job tasks, and low pay as contributing factors
Foxxconn installed nets around the building to physically catch any attempted suicides
What are the ethical concerns or issues with this solution?
Frederick Taylor
The father of scientific management
Developed a system of scientific management in an effort to improve industrial efficiency, prevent “soldiering”
Asserted the need for organizations to scientifically determine the “best” way for employees to do their work
Conceptualized time and motion studies, introduced incentives, emphasized selection and training of workers, worker-management cooperation
Max Weber
Bureaucratic theory (also referred to as the legal-rational model)
Emphasized three primary types of authority
Charismatic
Traditional
Legal
Organizations are impersonal systems that rely on rationality and highly formalized systems of rules
Henri Fayol
Proposed five primary functions of management:
Planning
Organizing
Commanding
Controlling
Coordinating
And 14 principles of management emphasizing highly structured work environments where everyone knows their place
Critical Thinking Questions – Classical
What are the benefits of such strict, rigid systems utilizing a classical approach?
What is missing from the classical approach?
Classical Management Communication
Taylor, Weber, and Fayol emphasized a machine metaphor in the understanding of the common worker
Communication was a tool to complete the task at hand
Managers focused on control, hierarchy, and division of labor, and communication was for getting the job done
Communication can flow vertically (up or down), diagonally, or horizontally
In classical organizations, communication was narrowly focused, specific to the task at hand, and moved vertically downward
Mary Parker Follett
American social worker and management consultant
Follett indicated a need for a shared, collective sense of control
Articulated four principles of coordination:
As the reciprocal relating of all the factors in a situation
By direct contact of the responsible people concerned
In the early stages
As a continuing process
Classical Influences in Today’s Global Economy
Matrix structures, which violates traditional classical approaches including unity of direction and unity of command
Employees report to two supervisors (not one)
Allows for teams of empowered employees with diverse skill sets
Virtual and boundaryless structures
Use technology to focus on core competencies while outsourcing other work
Challenging traditional classical theory on organizational structure and communication
Critical Thinking Questions – Mary Parker Follett
Why might the ideas of Mary Parker Follett be unpopular among the classical theorists?
In what ways do Mary Parker Follett’s ideas facilitate the types of matrix, virtual, and boundaryless structures seen in organizations today (and in the pictured figure)?
Context Matters
For-Profit Organizations
Informal and formal communication, emphasis on formal hierarchy, following orders, making a profit
Entrepreneurship – Small Business
Standardized procedures, ideas encouraged from all employees, informal communication, relationships
Nonprofit Organizations
Administrative hierarchy and a “Book of Discipline” with the rules of the church
Government Sector
Constrained by regulations that often connect them to a larger governmental structure
