BUSINESS organization theory is expanding rapidly, so much so that even the professional student of the subject finds difficulty in keeping abreast of the literature. There are different schools of thought, which in this book are broadly grouped into the classical, the human relations and the systems, and which speak different languages, take different viewpoints and are often antagonistic towards each other. How then is the businessman, with so little time to spare, to avoid the bewilderment which arises from the conflicting advice offered to him?
This book reviews the various approaches and mediates between the hostile points of view. Only the three approaches defined above are still distinguished. Each of these could, however, have been broken down still further as this broad classification ignores many minor differences among writers that could give rise to sub-grouping and cross-grouping.
The aim of this book is to give the reader an understanding of the many factors that appear relevant to a study of business organization. The view expressed is that these factors should be drawn from all three approaches; no one approach has a monopoly of relevant theory. It is not intended to be encyclopaedic, but rather to give a broad survey in which the emphasis is on the more immediately useful branches of the theory.
Throughout the book, theoretical findings are supplemented by examples drawn from the practical problems of business management. Not only do they cover production and administration, but many of them are also drawn from the field of marketing. The inclusion of these latter is deliberate, since so many textbooks on organization have neglected this important function.
The structure of the book, the selection of its topics and the opinions expressed in it are the responsibility of the author alone. Nevertheless, it could not have been written without the help of colleagues, both in business and the academic field. Prominent among these are Professor T. Singleton, R. Stansfield, P. A. Losty, R. G. Lacey and Professor F. de P. Hanika. Special mention must be made of the contribution made by Professor S. Eilon and M. B. Godfrey in reading the drafts in detail and making suggestions for their improvement.
In preparing this book I have also had the able assistance of my Granfield colleague, Albert Battersby, who more than anyone helped in the preparation of the manuscript and editing and revising my drafts. My thanks are also due to the ‘ghost squad’—Ann Smith who typed the manuscript, Johnny Johnson who helped to prepare the illustrations and my wife who acted as my amanuensis.
Finally, I am grateful to the following for permission to reproduce diagrams from their publications:
Richard D. Irwin, Tavistock Publications, Holt, Rinehart & Winston, Inc., Management International, University of Illinois Press, McGraw-Hill Book Company and John Wiley and Sons.