The quantitative management approach is given by the mathematical school that recommends the use of computers and mathematical techniques to solve complex management issues and assist in the managerial decision-making process. Managers observe historical quantitative relationships and use quantitative techniques such as statistics, information models, and computer simulations to improve their decision making.
During World War II, the U.S and the U.K army brought together business managers, government officials, and scientists and took their help to decide on the best way to utilize the existing resources. These experts from different domains and areas used some of the mathematical and statistical approaches devised by Taylor and Gantt to solve these logistical problems. This is how the quantitative-based management perspective emerged.
The quantitative approach to management includes the application of statistics, optimization models, information models, and computer simulation to assist in the managerial decision-making process. More specifically, this approach focuses on achieving organizational effectiveness through the application of mathematical and statistical concepts.
The three main branches of the quantitative approach are:
The management science approach stresses the use of mathematical models and statistical methods for decision-making. Various mathematical tools like the waiting-line theory or queering theory, linear programming, the Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT), the critical path method (CPM), the decision theory, the simulation theory, the probability theory, sampling, time series analysis, etc., are used in management science approach to increase the effectiveness of managerial decision-making.
Management science techniques are widely used in the following areas.
Operations management is an applied form of management science. It deals with the effective management of the production process and the timely delivery of an organization's products and services. Operations managers make use of tools like forecasting, inventory analysis, materials requirement, planning systems, networking models, statistical quality control methods, and project planning and control techniques.
Operations management is primarily used in the following areas:
A management information system (MIS) is an information system used for decision-making, and for the coordination, control, analysis, and visualization of information in an organization. Management information systems focus on designing and implementing computer-based information systems for business organizations. In simpler terms, the MIS converts raw data into information and provides the required information to each manager at the right time in the needed form.
Businesses use management information systems to increase the value and profits of the business. MIS has the capability of providing timely and appropriate information allowing the managers to make effective information-based decisions.
In its simplest sense, decision-making is the act of choosing between two or more courses of action. Decision making is a key skill in the workplace and is particularly important if you want to be an effective leader. When decisions have to be made, there are several stages that you should go through to reach a practical solution. Understand the meaning and importance of decision making and how to look at it as a process.
The concept of management refers to the process of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, coordinating, and controlling to achieve organizational goals. It is the management of human, physical, financial, and other valuable resources of the organization in an effective and efficient manner to achieve business objectives.
Hawthorne Studies - Leadership
The Hawthorne studies were conducted on workers at the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company by Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger in the 1920s. This study established the behavioral change that happened due to an awareness of being observed, resulting in active compliance with the supposed wishes of researchers, because of special attention received, or positive response to the stimulus being introduced.
Have you ever resonated that there seem to be as many different ways to lead people as there have been great leaders? When we recall the success of Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Abraham Lincoln, Napoleon Bonaparte to Steve Jobs and Jack Welch, we also notice that they all used different approaches that were suitable to their specific situations and circumstances. Over the last century, researchers and psychologists have developed simple ways to describe the “Styles of leadership” and in this section, we will explore these commonly known leadership styles.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory that explains that people are motivated by five basic categories of human needs. These needs are physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. There is a little scientific basis for this concept of a hierarchy of needs.
Behavioral Approach to Management
The behavioral management theory had a profound influence on management by focusing on understanding the human dimensions of work. It is also called human relations movement as behavioral theorists focused on managing productivity by understanding factors of worker motivation like their needs and expectations, personality, attitudes, values, group behavior, conflict, and group dynamics. It advocated the use of psychological techniques to motivate employees.
At different points in your professional career, it is helpful to identify your core values. Values are the qualities considered to be the most important guiding principles that determine the priorities in your life and greatly influence your career choices. Your career brings happiness when it is in agreement with the beliefs you have about what is important and meaningful to you. Awareness of your values will help you develop a clearer sense of what's most important to you in life.
Process & Stages of Creativity
Creative ideas do not come just like that. There is a process to it. There are a number of techniques of creativity to support the generation of ideas but the widely practiced ones are brainstorming and lateral thinking. Most innovations are not so much the product of sudden insights as they are the result of a conscious process that often goes through multiple stages. The creative process can be divided into four stages of preparation, incubation, evaluation, and implementation.
Theory Z also called the "Japanese Management" style is a leadership theory of human motivation focused on organizational behavior, communication, and development. It assumes that employees want to enter into long term partnerships with their employers and peers. Offering stable jobs with an associated focus on the well-being of employees results in increased employee loyalty to the company.
Teams are part of the modern organizational culture. Whether you are a team leader or a team member, having a better understanding of how teams work, and being able to identify where the team is in the process, is a critical part of ensuring the team is ultimately successful. Start with the basics and understand what a team is and what role they play in an organization.
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