Are Socrates And Fayol Still Relevant?

Reflective Essay

Socrates theory:

Information just like the rest of mankind goes through an evolution phase. If someone says that we would not be at the place where we are now if it were not for the Greeks then it would probably go unchallenged. With that said, if one says that the same knowledge that people like Socrates, Plato and Aristotle discovered should not be altered with and implemented as it is in the world of management, then that would be quite controversial and impractical. It needs to be said that yes, the contribution of the Greeks especially the big three, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are unparalleled but that should not make us obsess with them ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"lI4Czg8W","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(Bragues, 2007)","plainCitation":"(Bragues, 2007)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":259,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/DTmO0ro3/items/KK4UESDK"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/DTmO0ro3/items/KK4UESDK"],"itemData":{"id":259,"type":"report","abstract":"Socrates is said to have brought philosophy down from the heavens to the earth and is thereby recognized as the founder of Western moral and political philosophy. But in launching this subject, did the 5th century BC Greek philosopher also inaugurate the study of management and business ethics? Our answer is yes.","event-place":"Rochester, NY","genre":"SSRN Scholarly Paper","language":"en","number":"ID 997057","publisher":"Social Science Research Network","publisher-place":"Rochester, NY","source":"papers.ssrn.com","title":"Socrates on Management: An Analysis of Xenophon's Oeconomicus","title-short":"Socrates on Management","URL":"https://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=997057","author":[{"family":"Bragues","given":"George"}],"accessed":{"date-parts":[["2020",1,28]]},"issued":{"date-parts":[["2007",6,1]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Bragues, 2007). We should take what is useful from their body of knowledge and then move on the things that are implementable in the modern world.

Socrates, one of the big three thinkers of his time, gave a theory on effective management, which, in my opinion is no longer applicable. He posited that an effective manager can be an effective leader in any field of life ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"CChgAGyy","properties":{"formattedCitation":"({\\i{}Socrates As Management Consultant?}, n.d.)","plainCitation":"(Socrates As Management Consultant?, n.d.)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":261,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/DTmO0ro3/items/R8AZNBZU"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/DTmO0ro3/items/R8AZNBZU"],"itemData":{"id":261,"type":"webpage","abstract":"<p><strong>GENEVA</strong> — Imagine yourself in the office of a senior executive o...","title":"Socrates As Management Consultant? Why Executives Are Embracing Philosophy","title-short":"Socrates As Management Consultant?","URL":"https://www.worldcrunch.com/business-finance/socrates-as-management-consultant-why-executives-are-embracing-philosophy","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2020",1,28]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Socrates As Management Consultant?, n.d.). According to his thesis, a person who is an effective manager can be, at the same time, an effective military leader. In my opinion, this is a bit of a stretch, as being a military leader is a completely different ball game. Being a military leader is not a management job but you actually need to be an effective leader to be a good military leader. Your interactions with soldiers in difficult times can sometimes be indicative of how good of a leader that man is. In my understanding of being a leader, yes effective management is an important skill for military leaders but that is not the only skill that is required. Being a good soldier, soldiering on even when death feels certain and never giving up in the face of odds are, in my opinion, the making of a good military leader. The leader sometimes, needs to lead from the front especially when faced with despairing odds. Socrates bases his theory on his interactions with a soldier and that makes his theory highly subjective and that, is also a reason, which in my opinion should be considered when making a decision on who is a good military leader and who is not.

From a modern management perspective, the implementation of this theory is seen in the hiring process sometimes. When hiring a new manager, if the respective candidate has management experience in some other domain, he or she is still considered for the job and the common concept that is upheld is that people who can manage in one field will be good managers overall. In my opinion, this assumption is flawed as every field requires a different set of skills. The support chain and workflows differ which require a deep and robust understanding of the issues that may come up from within the workflow. A manager from another field might learn these things if trained properly but if the main requirement is that he will come in and improve the workflow then that might be a difficult proposition.

Henri Fayol

Moving on to the contemporary world, Henri Fayol was the director of a French mining company who lived in the 19th and the 20th century, wrote up the extensive theory of management which remains relevant to this very day. His writings form the foundation of modern study of management. In his conceptualization of the principles of management, the main core of the subject can be divided into five main subjects ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"EQ5Jg8LG","properties":{"formattedCitation":"({\\i{}Henri Fayol\\uc0\\u8217{}s Principles of Management}, n.d.)","plainCitation":"(Henri Fayol’s Principles of Management, n.d.)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":262,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/DTmO0ro3/items/8LDEME65"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/DTmO0ro3/items/8LDEME65"],"itemData":{"id":262,"type":"webpage","abstract":"Henri Fayol's 14 Principles of Management for one of the earliest management theories. Discover its impact on today's management techniques.","language":"en","title":"Henri Fayol's Principles of Management: Early Management Theory","title-short":"Henri Fayol's Principles of Management","URL":"http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/henri-fayol.htm","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2020",1,28]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Henri Fayol’s Principles of Management, n.d.). They are explained below.

Forecasting and planning: One of the very first aspects of starting a new business or even carrying an old one into the new year is the collection of relevant data. The relevant data can vary from surveys to marketing feedback to the sales data and the revenue data from last year. This part of the management procedure take most of the time and is often, the most expensive. The modern fields of data analysis and data science which are assumed to be paying the highest are focussed on this part of the business management. Many a times, big companies plan to come to a country due to a positive result due to the analysis of data collected from that particular country. Similarly, countries leave or close business in a country on a similar criteria.

Organizing: The building up of material and human resource is included in this part of the business. In terms of the success of the business, this part of the company needs to be on point. This part of the project, on most occasions decides if the project and the business will be a successful one or not.

Commanding: This is the job of the higher management forms the third category of the five parts of business management.

Coordinating: This part of business management is, one of the most discussed and important parts. Many a times, specialized people are hired to make the workflow smoother and the coordinating activities work in between the organization.

Controlling: This portion of business management can be a bit of a headache as a smooth workflow can hardly be predicted and controlled. The implementation of certain policies from a management perspective is also a part of this portion. Generally, the controlling is done by the people of the higher management.

Works cited:

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY Bragues, G. (2007). Socrates on Management: An Analysis of Xenophon’s Oeconomicus (SSRN Scholarly Paper ID 997057). Social Science Research Network. https://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=997057

Henri Fayol’s Principles of Management: Early Management Theory. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2020, from http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/henri-fayol.htm

Socrates As Management Consultant? Why Executives Are Embracing Philosophy. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2020, from https://www.worldcrunch.com/business-finance/socrates-as-management-consultant-why-executives-are-embracing-philosophy