Here is a nice enumeration of the big hits in
managerial enthusiasms over the last century. This list is lifted from
“Facing up to Management Faddism”
| Early theories | ||
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Management | 1900 – 1930 | Process; one way to do things, efficency. |
| Administrative Management | 1930s | division of labor functions, hierarchy. |
| Human Social Factors | 1940s | Workers’ social needs are important for optimal motivation and productivity. |
| Beginning of True Faddism | ||
| Theory X and Theory Y | 1950s | Authoritarian versus participatory management, motivation. |
| Leadership | 1950s | Criticality of leader as pivotal to firm’s success of failure, traits could be identified. |
| Strategic Planning | 1950s – 1960s | Plan, control, external environment critical. |
| Management by Objectives | 1965 | Individual Goals related to company goals. |
| Portfolio Management | 1973 | Boston Consulting Group; matrix of business products, cash cows, stars, dogs, and the like. |
| Matrix Management | 1970s | Restructure reporting relationships to eliminate functional structures. |
| Quality Circles | 1970s – 1980s | Monitor, workplace improvement. |
| Total Quality Manaement | 1980s – 1990s | Customer focus, efficency, processes, quality. |
| Empowerment, Benchmarking, Reengineering | 1990s | process, start-over, structure |
| Team-Based Work, Self-Managed-Teams | 1980s – 1990s | |
| Downsizing | 1990s | Layoffs, called restructuring for efficency. |
| Learning in organizations | 1990s | constant learning, how organizations learn new ways of doing things, share learning |
| Leadership | 1980s – 1990s | Traits, charisma capable of being learned, individual pivotal to survival |
| Entrepreneurship | 1990s | Start-ups, e-commerce |
They also enumerate a handful of functions that a fad plays for those involved in it. It’s
interesting to contrast this with the list of drivers that give rise to standards, or the
the list of features of a destructive cult.
- Provide Identity to an Organization
- Serve to legitimate a firm, as firms tend to model each other’s behavior.
- Fads give managers, particularly those of short tenure, a tool to demonstrate activity.
- Provide a way for careers to advance and positions institutionalized.
- Create organizational culture (stories, scripts, shared understanding).
- Socialization – the fad’s rituals encourage work related social interaction.
- Legitimize decisions – responsiblity for the tough choices can be shared with the fad.
Interesting to contrast that excellent list with the drivers to standardization, and symptoms of a destructive cult.