Management Principles by Henri Fayol
Principles of management
Introduction
There are about fourteen principles of management based on Henri Fayol. He was a French Industrialist. In modern society, he is regarded as the Father of Modern management. In his book, Industrial and General Administration, Henri Fayol elaborated the Fourteen principles of management. In this study, some of the remarkable principles have been explained. Some of the critical management principles that have been covered in the study include division of work, balancing the authority and responsibility, discipline, unity of direction and Unity of Command. Each of them has been listed and elaborated. The paper thus aims to discuss management principles based on the Father of Modern Management.
Unity of Command
This is one of the principles that govern management. According to Henri Fayol, the junior employees such as the subordinate staff in the organization are entitled to receive orders from one superior manager. This is the boss or the manager of the organization. Ideally, the management of the organization entails that, there should be no more than one source of command (Skurka, 2017). The employees should receive the command from a particular source. on the other hand, Henri stated that the subordinate is mandated to report to the one superior. This is aimed at preventing dual subordination in the organization. In the case of dual subordination in an organization, there is a possibility of crisis.
Unity of direction
Although the organization is made up of various employees who belong to different departments, the objective of the organization is the same. Several activities are carried out in the organization, however, they have the same objective. The activities, therefore have the same director or one manager. The plan that is used in the organization should apply to all. Henri Fayol stated that the activities that occur in the organization should be managed and directed by one person (Fayol, 14). Some of these activities include advertising, pricing policy, sales promotion, financing the business among other critical issues. Ideally, there is a need for these objectives with the same manager to be well organized.
Division of work
This is one of the most critical principles in management. The principles state that the full work in the organization shall involve several departments among the individuals or the employees involved. This means that no organization can run if there is no division of labour. Ideally, the division of labour in the organization leads to specialization. When specialization occurs there is the creation of various departments where different employees work towards the realization of a common goal (Godwin, Handsome, Ayomide, Enobong & Johnson, 2017). Besides, the efficiency of the organization’s activities is enhanced. This explains why such an organization is likely to increase its productivity hence returns. The general performance of the organization is thus enhanced if this principle is applied in an organization.
Authority and Responsibility balancing
A leader in any organization is entitled to the two, both authority and responsibility. Henri describes authority as the power that is mandated to a leader in a particular organization. On the other hand, any leader must be responsible for all the activities he is entitled. According to Henri Fayol, the authority should be equal to responsibility. If a person is not responsible, he is not to be entitled to give authority in the organization. In a scenario whereby the authority of a leader or a director in an organization exceed the responsibility, chances are, he will misuse the authority entitled to him (Gaisina, Belonozhko, Tkacheva, Abdrakhmanov & Grogulenko, 2017). On the other hand, a leader must not be more responsible than the authority he got. If this happens he is likely to be frustrated.
Discipline
This is the central principle in organization management. It is an outward mark of respect and it should be exercised following the formal and informal agreements between the employees and the firm itself. Although discipline is expected to be self, in some scenarios it may be enforced. According to Henri, discipline is one’s ability to adhere to the set rules as well as regulations stipulated in the organization (Liebler & McConnell, 2020). The organization should be firm to enforce the rules and regulations and no one should bend the discipline in the organization. The organization will only run if the members run it with discipline. No employee whether in top management, middle management or the subordinates is allowed to break the rules that govern an organization.
Equity
This is the last principle elaborated in this study. The treatment of the individual employees in the organization by the manager should be equal. Every employee should be treated with justice and kindness and equal to all. No one is special in the organization. According to Henri, Equity in an organization refers to justice and kindness combined (Lin & Orvis, 2016). If the employees are treated with equity, they are likely to be more devoted to carrying out their duties. The managers, on the other hand, should be fair to the subordinates in the organization. The employees or rather the human resources are the most essential assets to the success of the organization. They are therefore to be treated well to realize the objectives of the organization.
Conclusion
The study has elaborated the remarkable principles in the management of an organization. Each of them has been elaborated separately. The principles of management are based on the Father of Modern Management, Henri Fayol. However, there are other principles besides these and are also vital in managing the organization.
References
Fayol, H. (14). Principles of management. General and Industrial Management.
Gaisina, L. M., Belonozhko, M. L., Tkacheva, N. A., Abdrakhmanov, N. K., & Grogulenko, N. V. (2017). Principles and methods of synergy modelling of the management system at the oil and gas sector’s enterprises. Espacios, 38(33), 5.
Godwin, A., Handsome, O., Ayomide, W., Enobong, A., & Johnson, F. (2017). Application of the Henri Fayol principles of management in startup organizations. Journal of Business and Management, 19(10), 78-85.
Liebler, J. G., & McConnell, C. R. (2020). Management principles for health professionals. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Lin, Y., & Orvis, B. (2016). Principles of management efficiency and organizational inefficiency. Kybernetes.
Skurka, M. A. (Ed.). (2017). Health information management: principles and organization for health information services. John Wiley & Sons.