MANAGEMENT AS AN ART AND A SCIENCE

The question whether management is an art or a science has often been asked. The answers are diverse and debatable. In practice, however, a manager's job involves both science and art. The following explanation makes the topic more clear.

MANAGEMENT AS AN ART

Art refers to creative skills and talents which people require to conduct certain activities in order to accomplish certain goals. Art is an inborn talent. However, it can be refined through learning, and practice.

Mary Parker Follet, Harold Koontz and several other management authors called management "as the art of getting things done through people." Are they right? Yes, management is an art due to the following reasons:

1. It is innovative:

A managerial decision taken by one manager cannot be easily copied or repeated by another manager. Even for the same manager, it may not be possible to repeat his earlier decision. He may have to modify an earlier decision depending upon the situation of a particular prob­lem. Copying has no place in management

2. Individual approach to handle situations:

Every manager adopts his individual approach or style of managing to handle situations. Given the same situation, the same resources, and the same environment, some managers can easily get the work done from their subordinates, whereas, others fail in spite of their best efforts. This is because of the individual approach adopted by managers to handle situations.

3. Application and dedication of skills:

Good managers of today not only require skills and knowledge but there is also a need for discipline, dedication, and commitment on the part of managers. It is often said that success is the outcome of 'knowledge + intelligence + dedication'. If the managers are not disciplined and dedicated, they are sure to fail sooner or later.

4. Accomplishment of results:

Every good manager, like an artist, is always practical and action based. What matters is not just activities but accomplishments in the form of results. In other words, emphasis is placed on the results rather than on activities. The results of a manager may be seen in the form of higher productivity, better relations, disciplined work-force, good working conditions, increase in sales, reduction in absenteeism, reduction in wastages, etc.

MANAGEMENT AS A SCIENCE

Science is a systematized body of knowledge which is universally accepted. Sciences are divided into two groups - physical sciences and social sciences. Physical sciences like physics, chemistry, etc., are accurate and exact. However, social sciences are less accurate and exact because they deal with human beings.

Management belongs to the social science category, because it deals with human beings. Since human nature cannot be predicted with accuracy, the laws and decisions in management may just be the one way of doing things in the given situation and not the only way of doing things.

F.W.Taylor was perhaps the first person to consider management as a science. He was of the opinion that management should conduct their business affairs by following certain well established standards. To a certain extent Taylor was right. Management can be called as a social science due to the following reasons:



1. It collects in format ion using observation and experiment:

Managers collect information cither by observation, experiment or by practice. For instance, a marketing research manager may collect information either by way of observation, or experimentation or by way of field research. The collected data is systematically processed through computers or such other techniques. After processing, the data is analyzed and then by using judgment and experience, the manager takes a decision.

2. Output may vary, the inputs being the same:

In physical sciences, the output varies if there is a variation in input. However, in management, the output may vary, even when the input remains the same. This is because it deals with human beings. Sub-ordinates working under one manager may give different results at different times depending upon the situation, even though they may use the same resources.

3. Process of" management is universally followed:

Managers in all organizations, whether large or small, and at all levels, follow the process of managers. All managers need to plan, to organize, to direct, and to control their activities. Every manager while performing the process of management does make use of knowledge gathered through systematic observation, experiment, or reasoning.

4. Principles of management are universally accepted:

All successful organizations do follow the well established principles of management, such as division of work, unity of command, authority and responsibility parity, discipline, and so on. However, the degree of application varies from one manager to another manager and from one situation to another situation, and from one organization to another organization.

Thus, it can be concluded that management is an art as well as a science. Managers need to be skillful artists in order to accomplish their goals. For this purpose they need to be innovative, and sys­tematic. It is the science that discovers and the art that develops