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As individuals, people live and work within families, agencies and groups. All these entities have goals for their existence, they use resources and they serve the needs and desires of the individuals within the society. All groups need an activity or process that coordinates individual efforts toward achieving goals, allocates resources effectively and serves needs. This activity is called management.
Management is defined as activity that coordinates individual and group efforts toward achieving goals. Management is needed in every effective group to attain the desired goals with the least expenditure of time, energy and money. Whether the operation is an agency, a school, a business or a family, whether it is operated for profit or on a nonprofit basis, management as a process is needed.
A management theory is an organized set of related ideas, concepts, and principles that describe the process of managing an enterprise. Management has been growing in its recognition as a science.
Theoretical Approaches: Fulmer (1983) outlines ten approaches to management:
- Empirical or case approach: This approach is based on studying experience and focuses on mistakes and successes.
- Interpersonal behavior approach: This is based on the idea that things get done through people; thus management should study interpersonal relations.
- Group behavior approach: This approach is based on sociology and social psychology and is concerned with the behavior of people in groups in the workplace.
- The cooperative social systems approach: This is based on the idea of giving emphasis to well-organized cooperation.
- Sociotechnical systems approach: This approach is based on understanding how the technical system (machines and methods) affects the social system of the workplace, especially industry.
- Decision theory approach: This is based on the decisions that managers make.
- Management science approach:This approach is based on mathematical processes, concepts, symbols, and models.
- Contingency or situational approach: This is based on the circumstances of the workplace.
- Managerial roles approach: This approach is based on observation of managers and broadening the concept of management beyond the fundamental functions of planning, organizing, leading, staffing, monitoring, and controlling.
- Eclectic approach: This is based on utilizing fundamental functions of management – planning, organizing, leading, staffing, monitoring, and controlling – and parts of other approaches.
Application 0f Management theory approach:
The management theory is useful in different areas of functioning of child care center. This theory emphasizes how the effective entrepreneurs as the leader interacts, monitors and get the work done by staff of the center.
It is useful in providing effective work environment for getting optimum output from the staff.
It also helps the entrepreneur to perform his/her role effectively in decision making, planning the programme, organizing the programme, staffing and monitoring and evaluation.
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