Reflections on the history of
management thought
William B. Wolf
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
The purpose of this article is to share with the reader some interesting data
related to developments in the history of management thought. The central
theme is that history is an elusive phenomenon and, in the process of recording
it, many of the significant causal forces are lost or little understood.
At the outset it seems in order to put what follows into a setting…without
such it is apt to be misunderstood and misinterpreted. About 25 years ago I
began to explore seriously the development of contemporary management
thought. First, I began a critical examination of what the “great” authors in the
field said. However, as my research progressed, it became apparent that to teach
management one should know not only the literature of the field but also how
the “greats” developed their ideas. Thus, starting around 1961, I began a new
quest. I began studying the intellectual developments of the key people in the
field of management. I personally interviewed many of the recognized
contributors to the literature and their associates. Included in my interviews
were outstanding people such as Chester Barnard, Peter Drucker, Herbert
Simon and William F. Whyte[1]. Furthermore, I explored archival data and, in a
sense, attempted to do psycho-biographies of these individuals. My hypothesis
was that such knowledge about “great” men in management could help
interpretation of their writings. I hoped that this research would give insights to
the best ways of teaching students to become excellent managers.
A result of my efforts has been the isolation of a number of anecdotes which
raise questions relative ...