Authoritarian Management Style

Authoritarian Management

• Authoritarian or traditional management is based on the classic model of military governance applied to civilian purposes.
• Managers under authoritarian doctrine value order, precision, consistency, and obedience.
• Power flows from the structure and is considered supreme.
• Relationships are hierarchical, based on dominance and dependence.

Evolution of Management Styles

• Authoritarian style has gradually given way to less centralized, more participative management styles.
• Participation has proven more competent than authoritarianism when dealing with sophisticated workers.
• The change is not due to altruistic desire to be nice to workers, but because participation is more effective.

History of Management Principles

• The military has evolved principles about how its authoritarian organizations are best managed since antiquity.
• Principles of war, such as span of control and unity of command, have been incorporated into principles of management.
• These concepts, once military, are now thoroughly civilian.

Limitations of Traditional Hierarchical Organizations

• The traditional hierarchical organization was dependent on the proper enculturation of individual supervisors at every level for its success.
• Under stable conditions, properly trained military officers and factory supervisors performed well.
• However, under unstable conditions, such as during the French Revolution and the industrial revolution, mechanisms had to evolve to compensate for the inherent rigidity of the traditional hierarchy.

The Staff Concept

• The staff concept evolved to overcome the inherent limitations of a single mind and ever-fleeting time.
• This concept allowed leaders to extend their reach beyond the limitations of their own intellectual energy.