Chapter 1 Introduction to Principles of Management

Thomas Edison once quipped, “There is a way to do it better—find it.” This simple challenge is at the heart of the study and practice of management. Most of us have pondered better ways to manage others at work or considered ways to manage tasks better at home. As you’ve visited or worked at restaurants, coffee shops, schools, or other organizations, it’s likely you’ve encountered many instances where different interactions with individuals would have led to a better experience. By simply reading the first paragraph of this chapter you have, at some level, managed the challenge of procrastination that plagues many individuals. Whether you’re an evil genius plotting a scheme of world domination or a benevolent nonprofit leader hoping to change the world for good, you need management to continually master organizational challenges.

Management is the art and science of managing others. Knowledge of management will help you identify and develop the skills to better manage your career, relationships, and the behavior of others in organizations. A manager’s primary challenge is to solve problems creatively, and managementThe art and science of accomplishing individual and organizational goals through the efforts of individuals and groups using planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. often refers to “the art of getting things done through the efforts of other people.” The principles of managementThe concepts managers use in an effort to accomplish management goals. are the means by which you work to get things done through others individually, in groups, or in organizations. Formally defined, the principles of management are the activities that “plan, organize, and control the operations of the basic elements of [people], materials, machines, methods, money, and markets, providing direction and coordination, and giving leadership to human efforts, so as to achieve the sought objectives of the enterprise.” For this reason, principles of management have been discussed for decades using a the P-O-L-C framework, which refers to the management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. While managers do not necessarily spend all their time managing, everyone employed in an organization is affected by management principles, processes, policies, and practices. Consequently, finding a “way to do it better” is a challenge that helps all individuals to meet their personal and professional goals.