MBA Practice Assignment

MBA 2010/11 Practice Assignment

To what extent is management an art or a science?

Discuss, making reference to appropriate literature to support your answer.

Word Limit : Word Count : Due : Name :

1000 words 1022 words 11th October 2010 Delia MacNamara

Delia MacNamara

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MBA Practice Assignment

Introduction To define management as an art or science is controversial (Thomas, 2003). Some would argue that management is an art because it is that innate and immeasurable quality of a manager who is able to have the nouse to do the right thing for the company, delivering results through leadership, instinct and people skills. On the other hand, others would argue that management is a science which can be observed, measured and explained, to produce processes, procedures and strategies which can be taught to managers to achieve reproducible predictable outcomes.

This essay will explore the controversy as to whether management is an art or science, not only in the world of management education, but also in the world of management practice, whilst reflecting upon the author's own personal experiences in different organisations, sectors and countries. It is also important to consider how management has evolved since the industrial revolution in the late 1800s through to the current era of technological advancement and globalisation; how the environment, tasks and people within these organisations have changed and the consequent impact on the study and practice of management.

Is management an art or a science? In order to be able discuss whether management is an art or a science we need to define what art and science are and this, in itself, is controversial (Thomas, 2003). For the purpose of this essay, art will be defined as the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination (Oxforddictionaries.com, 2010) and science as the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the

Delia MacNamara

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structure and behaviour of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment. (Oxforddictionaries.com, 2010)

Management as a science So, what is management? According to Oxforddictionaries.com (2004),

management can be described as the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. This implies that management can be observed and defined as a process

that can control elements within that process, including people, suggesting that management is a science.

Historically management theory has been developed by engineers, such as F. W. Taylor, Henry Ford, and Henri Fayol, who focussed on management as a rational profession (Thomas, 2003) and viewing the organisation as a machine (Morgan, 1997). The advent of Taylorism and subsequent development of management

science suggests that management is measurable, predictable and replicable that management can be explained as a set of rules and procedures that will achieve reproducible positive results.

Working at McDonalds and in the Australian Defence Force demonstrated how this approach was not only efficient, but also effective in terms of being able to quickly train staff to do a job competently. Whether it was sales, cleaning a rifle, or

developing and delivering training, each task was broken down into a process that, if followed without error, would always produce the desired organisational outcome.

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However, this approach to management does not include the human factor - that mysterious, difficult to describe and to measure (Miller, 2010), intangible aspect of management whereby managers act on instinct and produce results through their own innate personal qualities. In order to understand this, we need to look at managers in the workplace practising management.

Management as an art In the 1960s, Henry Mintzberg researched the role of managers and what they did and in 1973 published The Nature of Managerial Work. He argued that management in practise was contrary to the classical view whereby the manager did not plan, organise, co-ordinate, control (Thomas, 2003, 40) but instead was a leader, a liaiser, a disseminator of information, an entrepreneur, a negotiator, a disturbance handler, to name a few (Mintzberg, 1973). This was reinforced by John Kotters study which

concluded that, for managers, formal concepts and tools were important to their work but were not sufficient in themselves to yield effective management. (Thomas, 2003, 40)

Gary Hainsworth, owner of local Hull business, Premier Galvanising Ltd, (2010), looks for eight characteristics when choosing a manager: 1. The ability to look outside the box. 2. Remaining positive an optimistic person under pressure. 3. A persuasive talent. 4. Natural leadership skills. 5. Nouse intimate knowledge of whats best for the business instinct.

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6. Intuition - business acumen. 7. Inspiring levels of energy. 8. An intellectual ability complex problem-solving. Apart from point 8, it could be argued that the other seven characteristics suggest that management is an art. The qualities that Hainsworth looks for are generally not

process driven, so they are difficult to explain, predict and replicate. Management is less like the process of controlling a machine than it is like seeking to influence events and processes under conditions of uncertainty and value conflict. (Thomas, 2003, 5)

The Australian Defence Force recognised these skills as leadership skills and believed that all staff regardless of rank or time in service should have these skills as well as the process, knowledge-based skills. In 1994 Leadership and Management courses were developed and implemented for junior and senior officers and sailors. This holistic approach provided positive results in communication and culture. On the other hand, in 2003 the BBC, also recognising that these qualities were important management skills, started a program that trained only its senior managers in creativity and emotional intelligence to develop these less tangible skills. It was observed that the most successful managers were those that were adept at managing people, good communicators and who understood the human factor which included the complexity of emotions, motivations and politics as well as producing creative programmes on schedule and on budget.

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Management education as a science, management practice as an art Management is both a science and an art. The practice of controlling processes and predicting business outcomes can be systematically studied... through observation and experiment. (Oxforddictionaries.com, 2010) and reproduced. Yet in the real world, managers have to apply human creative skill and imagination (Oxforddictionaries.com, 2010), using their own personal qualities to inspire and engage people to deliver organisational goals. The management element of

controlling things or people (Oxforddictionaries.com, 2010) can be taught with scientific precision yet, in practice it is an art, for humans are not consistent and provide an ever-changing variable in the world of management science.

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Bibliography Books: Buchanan, D. and Huczynski A. (2010) Organizational Behaviour Essex: Pearson Education Ltd. Minztberg, H. (1973) The Nature of Managerial Work New York: Harper and Row. Morgan, G. (1997) Images of Organization London: Sage. Thomas, A.B. (2003) Controversies in Management: Issues, debates, answers 2nd Edition London: Rutledge, pp 1 47 Lectures: Hainsworth, G. (2010) Hull A Centre for Business 28th September 2010 (Unpublished lecture) University of Hull. Miller, S. (2010) Managing in Organisations 04 October 2010 (Unpublished lecture) University of Hull. Websites: management, art, science: Oxford Dictionaries. April 2010. Oxford University Press. Available online: http://oxforddictionaries.com (accessed October 03, 2010). Traut, T. (2004) The Key Newsletter 28 September 2004 Entelechy Available online: http://unlockit.com/key/The_Key_20040928.html (accessed October 04, 2010)

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