CBSE Class 12 Board Examination

Board examination for Class 12 students under CBSE, a crucial exam for higher education and career opportunities, covering stream-specific subjects.

Principles of Management — Class 12 Business Studies

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Business Studies · 11 chapters
Summary, key terms, important questions and a practice quiz with AI diagnosis for each.
CBSE Class 12Business Studies Business Studies Part I

Chapter 2: Principles of Management

Summary

Principles of management are broad, general guidelines for managerial decision-making and behaviour. They are formed by observation and experiment, are general guidelines (not rigid rules), are flexible, mainly behavioural, cause-and-effect relationships and contingent on the situation. Their significance lies in providing useful insight, optimum use of resources, scientific decisions, meeting changing requirements, fulfilling social responsibility and supporting management training. Henri Fayol, regarded as the father of general management, gave fourteen principles: division of work, authority and responsibility, discipline, unity of command, unity of direction, subordination of individual interest to general interest, remuneration of employees, centralisation and decentralisation, scalar chain (with the gang plank for quick horizontal communication), order, equity, stability of personnel, initiative and esprit de corps. F.W. Taylor, the father of scientific management, sought to replace rule of thumb with science. His principles were science not rule of thumb, harmony not discord, cooperation not individualism, and development of each worker to greatest efficiency and prosperity. His techniques included functional foremanship, standardisation and simplification of work, method, motion, time and fatigue study, and the differential piece-wage system. Together, Fayol and Taylor laid the foundations of modern management thought.

Meaning and nature of principlesSignificance of principlesFayol's fourteen principlesTaylor's scientific managementPrinciples of scientific managementTechniques of scientific management

Key terms

Principle of management
A broad and general guideline for managerial decision-making and behaviour.
Unity of command
An employee should receive orders from one superior only, to avoid confusion.
Scalar chain
The formal line of authority from highest to lowest rank; the gang plank allows quick lateral contact.
Esprit de corps
Management should promote team spirit and harmony among employees.
Scientific management
Taylor's approach of applying science and experiment to improve work efficiency.
Functional foremanship
Taylor's technique of having eight specialised foremen supervise different aspects of work.

Important questions

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Practice quiz · Principles of Management

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Principles of Management

Business Studies 10 Qs · ~10 min