Of what use are management ideas and concepts in the practice of Coursework

Of what use are management ideas and concepts in the practice of management - Coursework Example Henri Fayol described his 14 principles of management that, when used in conjunction with other principles, build an effective team and develop a strong manager. Fayol’s 11th principle, equity, determines how to best motivate employees, creating fairness whilst blending authority and kindness. Equity is often determined by the justness of rewards, ensuring that all high-performing employees receive equal opportunities for additional remuneration or other appropriate rewards. Equity is important as a manager in the real-world business environment as it provides employees with a sense of affiliation. This is linked with Fayol’s 13th principle, initiative, that provides more autonomous working environments and opportunities to express employee innovations as become active in the decision-making process. Motivational theories indicate that employees must receive esteem and recognition from others in the organisation. Affiliation establishes perceptions of prestige, control and self-esteem (Gambrel and Cianci). Wal-Mart, a major multi-national retailer, recognises the importance of Fayol’s guidelines for management, providing employees with stock options, incentive bonuses and even profit sharing as a means to build commitment, ownership and equity. Wal-Mart is world-renowned for its high-commitment employees that are team-focused and therefore able to carry out strategic goals. These remuneration packages provide equity by establishing rewards for all employees throughout the organisation and inspires a sense of affiliation as valued contributors to the business model. Fayol’s theories, especially equity and initiative, are important concepts in the real-world. Managers establish strategic goals that determine the future position of the organisation related to profit, competitive advantage or other elements related to its market position. Multi-national companies, especially, require team-focused employees in order to achieve these goals. According to Reis and Pena (2008, p.674), â€Å"If the business is still using vertical hierarchies instead of self-directed teams, truly empowered to make changes, it is not ready for change†. This means that there will likely be resistance to change from different employees if the manager does not provide initiative in his or her efforts whilst promoting a sense of equity that there will be balanced rewards for achievement for all employees. Fayol’s concepts are h ighly relevant as the business will not be able to achieve without employee cooperation when teamwork is required to create new strategies and innovations. Mintzberg is another management guru who has established multiple theories of management that are classical in design. Mintzberg describes ten different management roles required to establish a successful management system, these being informational, interpersonal and decisional (LMC, 2008). Of most relevance is the interpersonal dynamic of the manager who takes on the role of a leader, or one who inspires others rather than establishing routine control systems to gain productivity and motivation. The difference between managers and leaders is in their approach to establishing interpersonal relationships. For example, a