Early Management Thought - History of Management Thought

This collection of readings examines the writings of individuals who were beginning to put forth some substantive ideas about the management of business enterprises. While the practice of management is ancient, the musings of philosophers and kings never formed a coherent body of thinking. The Industrial Revolution is considered in this collection as representing the beginnings for the study of management as a distinct discipline, subject to observation and experimentation and having a vocabulary with concepts that could be exchanged with others. - - Beginning with the work of Adam Smith, this volume on the Organization and management of early enterprises, manufacturing methods and the role of labour, wage payment plans, the human side of enterprise and how business was viewed in a broader social context. Within each of these topics, the writings of pioneers such as Alfred and Mary Marshall, Charles Babbage, Robert Owen, Charles Dickens, Frederick Taylor, and numerous others tell the story of management thought in its formative stages. Afterward, others would follow to refine and extend our understanding of management.