Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-8ctnn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T19:10:05.006Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Teaching the concept of management: Perspectives from ‘six honest serving men’

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Paul McDonald*
Affiliation:
Victoria Management School, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

Abstract

Management as a body of knowledge is dynamic such that management educators face continual challenges to achieve realism and relevance in the classroom. The emerging knowledge economy, in parallel with accelerating changes in technology, globalization and societal values, make these challenges more acute than ever before. The purpose of this article is to provide personal insights using a framework for analyzing and teaching management that draws on Rudyard Kipling's ‘six honest serving men’—what, why, when, how, where and who. These ‘honest serving men’ trigger discrete perspectives with which we can analyze, revise and recalibrate the teaching of management to ensure that it remains relevant to modern business. Teaching propositions are advanced as to management's definition.

Type
Essay
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adler, N. J. (2002). International dimensions of organizational behavior (4th edn.). Cincinnati, OH: South-Western.Google Scholar
Awasthi, V. (2008). Managerial decision-making on moral issues and the effects of teaching ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 78(1/2), 207223.Google Scholar
Banutu-Gomez, M. B., Coyle, P. T., Ebenhoech, S. J., Fallucca, K. A., Minetti, C. M., & Sarin, M. M. (2009). International branding effectiveness: The global image of Nestles brand name and employee perceptions of strategies and brands. Journal of Global Business Issues, 3(2), 1724.Google Scholar
Bassi, L., & McMurrer, D. (2004). How's your return on people? Harvard Business Review, 82(3), 1818.Google Scholar
Burrell, G., & Morgan, G. (1993). Sociological paradigms and organisational analysis. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.Google Scholar
Cerniamo, L., & Gardner, D. (2008). Generational differences in work values, outcomes and person-organisation values fit. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 23(8), 891906.Google Scholar
Clark, S. C., Callister, R., & Wallace, R. (2003). Undergraduate management skills courses and students' emotional intelligence. Journal of Management Education, 27(1), 323.Google Scholar
Dawkins, R. (1976). The selfish gene. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Drucker, P. F. (1958). The practice of management. London: Heinemann.Google Scholar
Fayol, H. (1949). General and industrial management. London: Pitman.Google Scholar
Fischer, S. (2003). Globalization and its challenges. American Economic Review, 93(2), 130.Google Scholar
Follett, M. P., & Metcalf, H. C. (1941). Dynamic administration: The collected papers of Mary Parker Follett. Bath, UK: Management Publications Trust, Ltd.Google Scholar
French, S. (2009). Cogito ergo sum: Exploring epis-temological options for strategic management. Journal of Management Development, 28(1), 1837.Google Scholar
Guba, E., & Lincoln, Y. (1994). Competing paradigms in qualitative research. In Denzin, N. & Lincoln, Y. (Eds.), Handbook of qualitative research (pp. 105117). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Hamel, G. (2009). Moon shots for management. Harvard Business Review, 87(2), 9198.Google Scholar
Handy, C. (1995). Trust and the virtual, organization. Harvard Business Review, 73(3), 4050.Google Scholar
Hartwick, J. (2007). Encephalization and division of labor by early humans. Queen's Economics Department Working Paper, No. 1161, 126.Google Scholar
Hanlon, M. (2005). Adidas launches Adidas_1: The world's first intelligent shoe. Gizmag. Retrieved June 1, 2009, from http://www.gizmag.com/go/3810/Google Scholar
Hofstede, G., & Bond, M. H. (1988). The, Confucius connection: From cultural roots to economic growth. Organizational Dynamics, 16(4), 521.Google Scholar
House, R. J., & Global Leadership and, Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Research Program (2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Katz, R. L. (1974). Skills of an effective administrator. Harvard Business Review, 52(5), 90102.Google Scholar
Kipling, R. (2007). Just so stories. (p. 27) Middlesex, UK: Echo Library.Google Scholar
Mayo, E. (1933). The human problems of an industrial civilization. New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar
McGregor, D. (1960). The human side of enterprise. New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Mintzberg, H. (1973). The nature of managerial work. New York: Harper & Row.Google Scholar
Parker, C. (2006). The thinkers 50: The world's most influential business writers and leaders. (p. 147) Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.Google Scholar
Perry, C. (2004). Realism rules OK: Scientific paradigms and case research in marketing. In Buber, R., Gadber, J., & Richards, L. (Eds.), Applying qualitative methods to marketing management research (pp. 4660). New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Peterson, T. O., & van Fleet, D. D. (2004). The ongoing legacy of R.L. Katz. Management Decision, 42(10), 12971308.Google Scholar
Seers, A. (2007). Management education in the, emerging knowledge economy: Going beyond “those who can, do; those who can't teach”. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 6(4), 558567.Google Scholar
Singla, R.K. (2009). Business management (p. 8). Delhi, India: V.K. (India) Enterprises.Google Scholar
Smith, A. (1776). An inquiry into the nature and, causes of the wealth of nations. London: Strahan, and Cadell.Google Scholar
Smith, G. (2007). Management history and historical context: Potential benefits for its inclusion in the management curriculum. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 6(4), 522533.Google Scholar
Stoner, J. (1982). Management (2nd edn). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar
Taylor, F. W. (1911). The principles of scientific management. London: Harper.Google Scholar
Walton, R. E. (1985). From control to commitment in the workplace. Harvard Business Review, 63(2), 7784.Google Scholar
Wensley, R. (1996). Isabella Beeton: Management as ‘everything in its place’. Business Strategy Review, 7(1), 3746.Google Scholar