One of the enduring questions in the field of management is whether it is an art or a science. Webster's College Dictionary defines an art as "skill in conducting any human activity" and science as "any skill or technique that reflects a precise application of facts or a principle." Reflected in the differences in these definitions is the use of precision in science, in that there is a particular, prescribed way in which a manager should act. Thus, management as a science would indicate that in practice, managers use a specific body of information and facts to guide their behaviors, but that management as an art requires no specific body of knowledge, only skill. Conversely, those who believe management is an art are likely to believe that there is no specific way to teach or understand management, and that it is a skill borne of personality and ability. Those who believe in management as an art are likely to believe that certain people are more predisposed to be effective managers than are others, and that some people cannot be taught to be effective managers. That is, even with an understanding of management research and an education in management, some people will not be capable of being effective practicing managers.
FOUNDATIONS OF THE MANAGEMENT AS A SCIENCE PERSPECTIVE
Practicing managers who believe in management as a science are likely to believe that there are ideal managerial practices for certain situations. That is, when faced with a managerial dilemma, the manager who believes in the scientific foundation of his or her craft will expect that there is a rational and objective way to determine the correct course of action. This manager is likely to follow general principles and theories and also by creating and testing hypotheses. For instance, if a manager has a problem with an employee's poor work performance, the manager will look to specific means of performance improvement, expecting that certain principles will work in most situations. He or she may rely on concepts learned in business school or through a company training program when determining a course of action, perhaps paying less attention to political and social factors involved in the situation.
Many early management researchers subscribed to the vision of managers as scientists. The scientific management movement was the primary driver of this perspective. Scientific management, pioneered by Frederick W. Taylor, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, and others, attempted to discover "the one best way" to perform jobs. They used scientific processes to evaluate and organize work so that it became more efficient and effective. Scientific management's emphasis on both reducing inefficiencies and on understanding the psychology of workers changed manager and employee attitudes towards the practice of management.
FOUNDATIONS OF THE MANAGEMENT AS AN ART PERSPECTIVE
Practicing managers who believe in management as an art are unlikely to believe that scientific principles and theories will be able to implemented in actual managerial situations. Instead, these managers are likely to rely on the social and political environment surrounding the managerial issue, using their own knowledge of a situation, rather than generic rules, to determine a course of action. For example, as a contrast to the example given previously, a manager who has a problem with an employee's poor work performance is likely to rely on his or her own experiences and judgment when addressing this issue. Rather than having a standard response to such a problem, this manager is likely to consider a broad range of social and political factors, and is likely to take different actions depending on the context of the problem.
Henry Mintzberg is probably the most well-known and prominent advocate of the school of thought that management is an art. Mintzberg is an academic researcher whose work capturing the actual daily tasks of real managers was ground breaking research for its time. Mintzberg, through his observation of actual managers in their daily work, determined that managers did not sit at their desks, thinking, evaluating, and deciding all day long, working for long, uninterrupted time periods. Rather, Mintzberg determined that mangers engaged in very fragmented work, with constant interruptions and rare opportunities to quietly consider managerial issues. Thus, Mintzberg revolutionized thinking about managers at the time that his work was published, challenging the prior notion that managers behaved rationally and methodically. This was in line with the perspective of management as an art, because it indicated that managers did not necessarily have routine behaviors throughout their days, but instead used their own social and political skills to solve problems that arose throughout the course of work.
Another scholar that promoted the notion of management as an art was David E. Lilienthal, who in 1967 had his series of lectures titled Management: A Humanist Art published. In this set of published lectures, Lilienthal argues that management requires more than a mastery of techniques and skills; instead, it also requires that managers understand individuals and their motivations and help them achieve their goals. Lilienthal believed that combining management and leadership into practice, by not only getting work done but understanding the meaning behind the work, as effective managerial behavior. Thus, he promoted the idea of the manager as a motivator and facilitator of others. This manager as an artist was likely to respond differently to each employee and situation, rather than use a prescribed set of responses dictated by set of known guidelines.
Another proponent of the management as art school of thought is Peter Drucker, famed management scholar who is best known for developing ideas related to total quality management. Drucker terms management "a liberal art," claiming that it is such because it deals with the fundamentals of knowledge, wisdom, and leadership, but because it is also concerned with practice and application. Drucker argues that the discipline (i.e., the science) of management attempts to create a paradigm for managers, in which facts are established, and exceptions to these facts are ignored as anomalies. He is critical of the assumptions that make up the management paradigm, because these assumptions change over time as society and the business environment change. Thus, management is more of an art, because scientific "facts" do not remain stable over time.
MANAGEMENT AS A PROFESSION
Mr. Louis Allen defined profession as "a specialized kind of work practiced through and by use of classified knowledge, a common vocabulary, and requiring standards of practice and code of ethics established by a recognized body." Whether management can be called a profession or not will be clear if we compare its features with the characteristics of recognized profession like medicine, law, accountancy, etc., which are discussed below:
1. Systematic Knowledge
Every profession has a well defined area of organized knowledge. Management also deals with distinct area of knowledge which is developed around functions of management. Techniques of management developed by drawing knowledge from other branches like economics, mathematics and so on, facilitate managers to perform their job better. Coordinated decision making in organization is made possible by application of the same theory by all managers in their decision making. Managers should possess experimental attitude in acquisition of new knowledge so as to prove successful in an ever-changing organizational environment.
2. Formalized method of acquiring knowledge
For present day managers, formal education and training is an important source of knowledge. Transfer of knowledge gained through experience from one living mind to another or intuitive knowledge are no longer considered adequate for practicing managers.
3. Performance-based status
Manager's status in the present day organization is linked to its performance rather than other extraneous factors like family or political connections. This way management is exacting philosophy with performance orientation.
4. Code of ethics
Professionals must be governed by a strict code of ethics formulated and enforced by professional bodies to protect their members integrity. Since it is difficult to identify clearly the membership of management associations and their role, managerial codes of ethics has not yet evolved so as to acceptable to all practicing managers.
5. Dedication and commitment
True professionals through dedication and commitment serve their clients interest. Financial reward is not the measure of their success. Managers today are expected to serve the long-run interest of the organization but they are also conscious of their social responsibilities. Besides, they are entrusted with wealth producing resources of society which they are expected to put to the most effective use.
We may conclude from the above that management cannot be regarded as a profession in all respects but it has some of the characteristics of a profession.
