What are some of Henry Fayol’s main contributions to the field of management?
In 1916, Henry Fayol provided 14 principles of management, which have become important in modern management. One of the main principles is that one of specialization. Henry Fayol argues that inefficiencies in the workplace emanate from inability of individuals to perform different duties. Thus, the specialization provides a means through which workers can specialize and increase their productivity due to increased efficiency. Another major contribution pertains to the principle of unity of command. Unity of command enhances order and accountability in the workplace, as workers are only answerable to one line of command. Centralization and decentralization of authority is also a major contribution of Fayol. He asserts that management should have appropriate and effective centralization and decentralization of authority in an organization.
What is competitive advantage and why is it important for contemporary organisations?
Competitive advantage is the advantage that an organization has over other similar organizations that they compete in a given business environment. Competitive advantage enables an organization to provide quality yet cheap products and services by utilizing its human resources effectively. In terms of workforce, contemporary organization can gain significant competitive advantage over its competitors. By using innovative strategies, contemporary organizations can train and equip their employees with matchless skills for them to be innovative and generate unique goods and services for competitive markets. Moreover, modern organizations can also utilize a strategy of operational effectiveness to increase productivity of human resources, thus reducing the cost of producing goods and services.
Why do people make the difference in organizations?
The success or failure of an organization depends on the nature of human resources since they are responsible for making a difference in organizations. An organization with good human resources has a potential to make significant changes. One of the reasons why human capital can make a significant difference is due to the organization culture, which creates a good environment that motivates employees to work effectively. Another reason is that individual attributes determine the overall performance of employees. Individual attributes such as creativity, knowledge, skills, integrity, and ambition are some of the factors that drive employees to make a difference in various capacities that they serve in an organization.
What are the international management challenges of globalisation?
Globalization has come up with numerous challenges in the realm of human capital. One of the challenges facing international management is harmonization of knowledge and skills that diverse employees have depend on their country of origin. While developed countries have the ability to train, attract, and maintain highly skilled labour force, developing countries hardly have the capacity to do the same. Additionally, globalization enhances the interaction of diverse employees having different cultural backgrounds. Hence, the management faces a challenge of integrating diverse employees into organizational culture where they can communicate and coordinate their activities well. Brain drain is also another challenge that management in developing countries faces in attracting and maintaining human resources.
What are the main issues in job satisfaction, performance and design?
Human resources are invaluable resources that an organization needs to nurture. Enhancing job satisfaction is one strategy that human resource managers employ in motivating employees. Motivation of employees increases their productivity because it triggers internal and external forces that drive a given activity or action. Thus, motivation of employees provides a means of increasing their performance in the workplace. Evidently, motivated employees perform their duties more effectively when compared to demotivated employees. According to Maslow theory of needs, when an employee reaches the level of self-actualization, one attains fulfilment and uses creativity and talents fully. Therefore, since job satisfaction influences performance, contemporary management is designing workplace that motivates employees to perform optimally.