9.3 Philosophies, Styles, & Skills

Management Philosophies

In 1960, Douglas McGregor, a management professor at MIT, described two contrasting perceptions of how and why people work, formulating Theory X and Theory Y; they are both based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. These became overarching philosophies that often help predict leadership style.

Theory X asserts that workers are motivated by their basic (low-level) needs and have a general disposition against labor. From this viewpoint, workers are considered lazy and are predicted to avoid work if they can, giving rise to the perceived need for constant, direct supervision. A Theory X manager may be described as authoritarian or autocratic and does not seek employee input or feedback. The view further holds that workers are motivated by personal interest, avoid discomfort, and seek pleasure. The Theory X manager uses control and incentive programs to provide punishment and rewards. Responsibility is the domain of the manager, and the view is that employees will avoid it if at all possible to the extent that blame is always deflected or attributed to something other than personal responsibility. Lack of training, inferior machines, or failure to provide the necessary tools are all reasons to stop working, and it is up to the manager to fix these issues.

In contrast to Theory X, Theory Y views employees as ambitious, self-directed, and capable of self-motivation. Employees have a choice and prefer to do a good job as a representation of self-actualization. Pursuing pleasure and avoiding pain are part of being human, but work is also a reward in itself, and employees take pride in their efforts. Employees want to reach their fullest potential and define themselves by their profession. A job well done is a reward in and of itself, and the employee may be a valuable source of feedback. Collaboration is viewed as normal, and the worker may need little supervision.

Theory X and Y may seem like two extremes across the range of management styles, but they are often combined in actual work settings. William Ouchi’s Theory Z combines elements of both and draws from American and Japanese management styles. It promotes worker participation and emphasizes job rotation, skills development, and loyalty to the company (Luthans, 1989). Workers are seen as having a high need for reinforcement, and belonging is emphasized. Theory Z workers are trusted to do their jobs with excellence, and management is trusted to support them, looking out for their well-being (Massie & Douglas, 1992).

Each of these theories of management features a viewpoint with assumptions about people and why they do what they do. While each has been the subject of debate, and variations on each have been introduced across organizational communication and business, they serve as a foundation for understanding management in an intercultural context.

Understanding these philosophies may help you understand how leaders/managers adapt the styles we saw with the behavioral leadership approach.  

When to Use Different Styles

Different situations call for particular leadership styles. Under intense time constraints, when there is little room to engage in long discussions that seek consensus, a more directive, top-down style may be appropriate. For a highly motivated and cohesive team with a homogeneous level of expertise, a democratic leadership style may be more effective. 

A review of the literature shows that when leaders use more democratic or participative decision-making styles, employees tend to be more satisfied; however, the effects on decision quality or employee productivity are weaker. Moreover, instead of expecting to be involved in every single decision, employees seem to care more about the overall participativeness of the organizational climate (Miller & Monge, 1986). Different types of employees may also expect different levels of involvement. In a research organization, scientists viewed democratic leadership most favorably and authoritarian leadership least favorably (Baumgartel, 1957), but employees working in large groups where opportunities for member interaction was limited preferred authoritarian leader decision-making (Vroom & Mann, 1960). Finally, the effectiveness of each style seems to depend on who is using it. There are examples of effective leaders using both authoritarian and democratic styles. At Hyundai Motor America, high-level managers use authoritarian decision-making styles, and the company is performing very well (Deutschman, 2004; Welch et al., 2008).

Each leadership style can be effective if it matches the situation's needs and is used by a skilled leader who can adopt a deft approach. The most effective leaders are adept at several styles and can choose the most likely to help the organization achieve its objectives.

Managerial Skills 

In order to be successful in planning, organizing, leading, and controlling, managers must use a wide variety of skills. A skill is the ability to do something proficiently. Managerial skills fall into three basic categories: technical, human relations, and conceptual skills. The degree to which each type of skill is used depends upon the level of the manager’s position. (Image 9.3) 

Attributions: 

Information for the 'Management Philosophies' section was adapted from 

Business Communication for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted. 

Information for the 'When to use different styles" section was modified from

Organizational Behavior was adapted by Saylor Academy (2012) under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License without attribution as requested by the work's original creator or licensor.

Information for the 'Managerial Skills' section (including Image 9.3) was adapted from 

Introduction to Business (6.7 Managerial Skills) Copyright © 2018 OpenStax by Lawrence J. Gitman, Carl McDaniel, Amit Shah, Monique Reece, Linda Koffel, Bethann Talsma, James C. Hyatt is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0

References:

Baumgartel, H. (1957). Leadership style as a variable in research administration. Administrative Science Quarterly, 2, 344–360. 

Deutschman, A. (2004, September). Googling for courage. Fast Company, 86, 58–59.

Luthans, F. (1989). Organisational behaviour. McGraw-Hill.

Massie, J., & Douglas, J. (1992). Managing: A contemporary introduction. Prentice Hall.

McGregor, D. (1960). The human side of enterprise. McGraw-Hill.

Miller, K. I., & Monge, P. R. (1986). Participation, satisfaction, and productivity: A meta-analytic review. Academy of Management Journal, 29, 727–753. 

Vroom, V. H., & Mann, F. C. (1960). Leader authoritarianism and employee attitudes. Personnel Psychology, 13, 125–140. 

Welch, D., Kiley, D., Ihlwan, M. (2008, March 17). My way or the highway at Hyundai. Business Week, 4075, 48–51.