Management Philosophies

Paper Summary:

This paper compares and contrasts the modern management philosophies of Chester Barnard and John Adair. The paper also touches briefly on prior theories of management similar to that of both Barnard and Adair. In addition, the paper provides a detailed understanding of the evolution of management thought and philosophy.

From the Paper:

"According to Adair, a manager's responsibilities were to establish, agree, and communicate standards of performance and behavior. The manager was responsible for monitoring and maintaining discipline, ethics, and integrity while focusing on objectives. Adair's philosophy was action-based, focusing on the goal of the organization or the group as a whole. The main difference in Barnard's philosophy from Adair was that Barnard's focus appeared to be individual based, rather than on based on the organizational as a whole. In Adair's theory, and the theories that it was based on, the role of the manager included assessing and changing as necessary the balance and composition of the group. Barnard focused on the individual moral influences that an individual encountered and that motivated them personally. That is most likely the central difference between both management philosophies."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Adams, J.S. (1965). Inequity in Social Exchange. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology. pp. 267-299.
• Businessballs.com. (2006). Action Centered Leadership. John Adair's action-centered lleadership model. Retrieved March 20, 2006 from http://www.businessballs.com/action.htm
• Katz, D. (1958). The Motivational Basis of Organizational Behavior. Behavioral Science, vol. 9, pp. 131-146.
• March, J.G. & Simon, H.A. (1958). Organizations. John Wiley: New York.
• Mitchell, T.R. (1979). Organizational Behavior. Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 30, pp. 243-281.

More papers on Management Philosophies:

• Analytical Essay # 139807 : "Management Philosophy and Human Resource Management"
• Comparison Essay # 28974 : "U.S. and Japanese Management"
• Essay # 29138 : "Personal Management Philosophy"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: