CONCLUSIONS / LET US SUM UP :

1.      McGregor was an American thinker. He was a management Psychiatrist, who complected M.A. & Ph.D. in Psychology. He worked as a professor in USA.

2.      McGregor wrote two classics, ‘The Human side of the Enterprise & the Professional Manager.’ Besides, he wrote numerous articles.

3.      McGregor wanted to make a research whether Management can be regarded as science besides being an art. He developed ‘X’ Theory & Y theory.

4.      His ‘X’ theory represents traditional approach of management, which believes that average human being dislikes work, responsibility. Hence employees need to be directed & controlled by the managers.

5.      The ‘X’ managers do not give their staff opportunity to develop. This ‘X’ theory resembles ‘carrot stick theory’.

6.      McGregor’s ‘Y’ theory is contradictory, is reformative & is more scientific & empirical. While proposing ‘Y’ theory, McGregor was influenced by Maslow.

7.      According to ‘Y’ Theory, employees like to work. Punishment & control are not tools to make the employees work. If the job is satisfying, the employees are committed to achieve organizational objectives. In proper conditions, employees shoulder responsibility, develop creativity. McGregor names this as innovation.

8.      In his ‘Y’ theory, McGregor suggests integrity & self control to be brought into the organization. This is equally applicable to the managers as well as employees.

9.      McGregor wanted to apply individual Psychology & group sociology to his study of Management.

10.  McGregor makes his Manager understand ‘human side’ as well as ‘professional side’ of managerial skills;

11.  McGregor collaborated his ‘Y’ theory with ‘Scanlon Plan’ of Fredrick Lesiaur.

12.  The ‘Y’ theory of McGregor has apt relevance in today’s world of management. His Y theory bridges Line & staff relationship. It might bring improved Line-staff collaboration.

13.  McGregor suggests his professional manager, leadership qualities & transnational concept of power & influence.

14.  In spite of criticism, McGregor will be remembered for his profound knowledge of human nature, human behavior & positive approach in management.

Read more

APPRAISAL & CRITICISM

Appraisal: The professional & human side of McGregor reveals a very colorful person of wide vision & scientific temper. His ‘Model’ of a manager was apt for industry, governments & nations. His books are guidelines to a future manager, to understand human nature & proper utilization of human resources.

From his Human side to the professional side, the writings of McGregor show a systematic evolution of his ideas. This has helped a lot to industrial society of U.S.A. As a scholar of behavioral management, his writings have helped the managers to sharpen their potentials to readjust their strategies of management for tomorrow.

The ‘X’ Theory & ‘Y’ theory represent the behavioral patterns of the employees. McGregor had his deep observation of human nature & human behavior. He wanted to relate theory to practice. McGregor wrote on both - a) the employees as well as - b) the managers. A ‘Y’ theory manager can communicate openly with subordinates, can minimize the differences between superior & subordinates, can create a comfortable environment in which the subordinates can develop & can use their abilities. McGregor suggests Managers to be more positive to their employees, to trust the employees & to make proper utilization of human resource for development.

Criticism - However, McGregor is largely criticized by his critics. The main criticism is that, his theories are fine but are difficult to bring into practice. Especially his ‘Y’ theory seems to be difficult to bring into practice.

McGregor tried to answer this question by claiming that each person must find his own answer. A manager has to think about the deal with himself, his role, his style, his own power & the issue & control over others. McGregor is also criticized on the ground that neither his ‘X’ theory nor ‘Y’ theory represent human behavior or human relationship. These theories are tools by which managerial skills can be studied & analyzed. The current research in management has gone beyond ‘Y’ theory to ‘Z’ theory.

Today, any theory is seldom used explicitly. The managers & the employees somewhere fall in between these two poles of ‘X’ theory & ‘Y’ theory. However, McGregor’s ‘X’ & ‘Y’ theories are still important theories in the field of management & motivation. His ‘X’ theory & ‘Y’ theory still remain a guiding principle of positive approaches to the management, to the development of organization & to bring improvement in organizational culture.

Read more

THE RELEVANCE OF ‘Y’ THEORY.

‘The Human side of the Enterprise of McGregor aims to educate future manager, professional manager. He wanted to bridge the organizational goals with the aims, values & methodology of behavioral science. To him, management styles & strategies should be evolved & continuously adjusted in the light of the empirical reality, consistent with the findings of behavioral knowledge. This makes his theory relevant with practice. He also had an assumption that management science has transnational influence.’

One important relevance of Y Theory of McGregor, to modern industry is related to the Line & Staff Agencies in the organization. Modern industries are mostly operated by skilled staff. Their knowledge & experience influence decision making process in the organization. The ‘Line’ employee increasingly depends upon specialized staff. However, the ‘Y’ theory of McGregor can coordinate Line - staff relationship. The conflict between Line & staff bring lowered commitment to organizational objectives. The ‘Y’ theory establishes improved human resources, either for resolving conflicts or taking best decisions. McGregor had also written on leadership qualities of a manager. He had placed an idea of integration within the conceptual mould of transnational concept of power & influence.

Discussing and resolving the conflicts within the organization, McGregor suggests three strategies to be adopted a) divide & rule b) suppression of differences & c) working through of differences. The first two are based upon ‘X’ theory, whereas the third one is based upon ‘Y’ theory.

Read more

MCGRAGOR’S ‘Y’ THEORY

McGregor was largely influenced by Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of human needs. McGregor viewed human needs with emotional commitment. McGregor’s Y theory suggests alternate assumptions for the integration of the individual & organizational goals. He wanted selective adoption in managerial strategy. McGregor arranged a new set of assumptions which will invite morals & motivation. The following assumptions are embodied in the ‘Y’ Theory:

·         The expenditure of physical & mental effort in work is as natural as play & rest.

·         Control & punishment are not the only ways to make people work. Man will direct himself if he is committed to the aims of the organization.

·         If a job is satisfying, then the result will be commitment to the organization.

·         The average man learns, under proper conditions, not only to accept but to seek responsibility.

·         Imagination, creativity, ingenuity can be used to solve work problems by a large number of employees.

·         Under the conditions of modern industrial life, the intellectual potentials of the average man are only partially used & utilized.

McGregor’s ‘Y’ theory attacks on the ‘X’ theory that employees are lazy, indifferent & are dislike of accepting responsibility. They are uncooperative. McGregor argued that it is not the fault of human nature but of manager’s strategy of control. If there is integration in the behavior of employees, the organizational goals could be achieved.

How the integrity amongst the employees can be achieved? The employees should have self control. Integration & self control can be possible if the individual needs & organizational needs are properly recognized. McGregor’s theory aims to encourage & create motivation amongst employees. This is a way to innovation. McGregor had a deep knowledge of individual Psychology & group sociology, which he wanted to offer to modern management. So he wanted to establish a high co-relation between the acceptance of responsibility & commitment to the objectives of the organization. The motivational performance of employees through self control & integrative behavior can bring better results. The employees should be given greater opportunities to play an active part in decisions affecting their careers.

The Scanlon plan:

Based upon the ‘Y’ Theory, McGregor further collaborated with Fredrick Hesiaur, who was carrying research on union Management Cooperation, popularly, known as Scanlon plan. The Scanlon plan is consistent with ‘Y’ theory of McGregor. The Scanlon plan is based upon two central features - 1) lost reduction sharing 2) effective participation.

The Scanlon plan proposes that, ‘used wisely & with understanding participation is a natural commitment of management by integration & self control.’

Read more

MCGREGOR’S ‘X’ THEORY

The most creative & lasting contribution of McGregor has been on management, development of managerial talent & managerial teamwork in an organization. His basic question of enquiry was, whether managers are made or are born? ‘Based upon his hypothesis that’ every managerial act rests upon theory’; McGregor argues that management is an art, it cannot be a science because it serves a different purpose. However, management can utilize scientific knowledge in the achievement of practical objectives of the organization, was his belief. As an organizational Psychiatrist, McGregor understood that the management’s hold on controlling its human resource, determine the whole character of the enterprise. He also argued that the most important problems of management lie outside the realm of improving the selection of managers with technical potential. The top executive, with higher potential & capacity cannot attain organizational objectives because of lack of utilization of employees’ talent. McGregor rejected the misconception that human behavior in an organization needs to be controlled. A top executive should not expect to achieve desired goals through inappropriate managerial action. So, he very aptly advances a hypothesis that all control is selective adaption. His deep observation led him to conclude that control in human affairs can be viewed as an integration of human behavior either through coercive compulsion or through motivational self control. He developed these two assumptions & scientifically tested their validity to propound his theories of managerial control, popularly known as ‘X’ theory & ‘Y’ theory. His ‘X’ theory is a traditional view of direction & control. In his book ‘The Human side of the Enterprise’, published in 1960, he has examined theories on behavior of individuals at work.

The ‘X’ Theory:-

·         The average human being has an inherent dislike of work & will avoid it, if he can.

·         Because of their dislike for work, most people must be controlled & threatened before they will work hard enough.

·         The average human prefers to be directed, dislikes responsibility, is unambiguous & desires security above ever thing.

·         These assumptions lie behind most organizational principles today & give rise both to ‘tough’ management with punishment & tight controls & ‘soft’ management, which aims at harmony at work.

·         Both these are ‘wrong’ because man needs more than financial rewards at work; he also needs some deeper higher order motivation - the opportunity to fulfill himself.

·         Theories ‘X’ managers do not give their staff this opportunity so that the employees behave in the expected fashion.

The ‘X’ theory of McGregor resembles ‘carrot stick theory.’ This can be one type of managerial strategy. This theory does not describe human nature. It considers humans as fearful, a dislike to work & an insecure beast. These assumptions limit managerial strategies. New managerial strategies, new organizational goals, new pattern of leadership etc. do not fall under this ‘X’ theory. He came to a conclusion that ‘as long as the assumptions of theory ‘X’ continue to influence managerial strategy; we will fail to discover, let alone, utilize the potentialities of the average human being.’

Read more

WORKING OF BUREAUCRACY by McGregor Douglas McGregor (1906-1964)

OBJECTIVES

Douglas McGregor’s contribution has been in the field of art & science of management. McGregor emerged as a management Psychiatrist during the behaviouralist movement of post war era. McGregor attacked on the unrealistic & limiting assumptions of traditional theories of management, having concern for human nature & human behavior. Control over human behavior in organizations leads to resistance, restriction of output & indifference in the accomplishment, of organizational objectives. McGregor divided his views into - a) ‘X’ Theory & b) ‘Y’ Theory. The traditional assumptions, he regarded, fall under ‘X’ theory. He suggested ‘Y’ theory which is based upon integration & Self control, by the employees in an organization, to accomplish organizational goals. McGregor hoped that his Y theory as a new & superior ethic - is a set of moral values that ought to replace the values managers usually accept.

INTRODUCTION

In the field of study of Management, name of McGregor, is highly recognized. He was a Psychiatrist, who studied human Psychology & group sociology. Being a Management researcher, his main research was to make empirical science of Management. He wanted to guide manager as a professional manager. McGregor had a great concern for employees also.

McGregor had developed ‘X’ Theory, as a traditional view of management, McGregor did not support ‘X’ theory. Hence he developed ‘Y’ theory, which would suit the contemporary industrial society. In his ‘Y’ theory, McGregor had suggested positive approach to be adopted by managers as well as employees.

In this chapter, an attempt is made, to understand McGregor’s ‘X’ theory; ‘Y’ theory & the relevance of ‘Y’ theory in today’s world.

A BRIEF LIFE SKETCH OF MCGRAGOR

McGregor was born in U.S.A. He earned his B.E. in Mechanical from Rangoon Institution of Technology. He completed his M.A. & Ph.D. in Psychology from Harvard University in 1933 & 1935 respectively. He worked as a Management Professor at MIT, Sloan School of Management. He was president of Antioch College, from 1948 to 1954. He also taught at Indian Institute of Management, at Calcutta.

McGregor wrote two classics - 1) The Human side of the Enterprise & 2) The professional Manager. He also wrote numerous articles on professional managerial skills. His, ‘The Professional Manager’, focuses on linking the human side of the enterprise with appropriate managerial intervention & understanding.

Read more