Question

How does an understanding of management and organizational behavior lead to organizational effectiveness and efficiency? Why is the study of management theories (classical, behavioral and modern management) relevant today?

Answer 1

Organizational Behavior is the study of individuals and their behavior within the context of the organization in a workplace setting. Management is both art and science. It is the art of making people more effective than they would have been without you. The science is in how you do that. There are four basic pillars: plan, organize, direct, and monitor. If a manager effectively studies his employees and understands them as workers, the manager then can get the most efficiency out of his employees. Understanding a certain employee will allow the manager to treat each employee differently; treat them in a way which is most effective for that particular employee.

Three main reasons for studying historical management theories are; first, theories provide a stable focusfor understanding what we experience, second, theories enable us to communicate efficiently and thus move into more and more complex relationships with other people, and finally theories make it possible--indeed, challenge us--to keep learning about our world. By definition, theories have boundaries; there is only so much that can be covered by any one theory. Once we are aware of this, we are better able to ask ourselves if there are alternative ways of looking at the world, especially when our theories no longer seem to "fit" our experience and to consider the consequences of adopting alternative beliefs.