Management theory and organisational structures

In this chapter, we examine some of the best known approaches to management, the structure of organisations, and the thinking that both shapes people’s behaviour and is shaped by it. Starting from the classical theories of management, we look at: scientific managerialism, which tends to treat employees like cogs in a machine; the human relations school of management theory which added people into the equation; and the study of organisational structures, particularly bureaucratic hierarchies and organisations as systems, because these models will be most familiar to social workers. (Later chapters will consider the culture of excellence, with its emphasis on quality, and other current trends, including reward management.)