Time in management thought
Introduction:
The concept of time varies among individuals, depending on their motivations, needs, and the nature of their jobs, and it also varies from one culture to another. Management views achievement as a goal linked to a specific direction towards the targeted time. “Wasted and unutilized time is a problem because it cannot be replaced, and managers know that managing their time is an important factor in increasing their productivity”
This chapter is divided into the following sections:
First: Management and time management.
Second: Time in management theories.
Third: Time management within the administrative process.
First topic:
Management, and time management:
First: Management and defining its concept
Ideas, opinions, and approaches have varied in defining and determining the concept of management. The literature on management has included a large number of definitions, as each of the administrative researchers has a specific concept of management, according to his view of the components of the administrative function, or rather, according to his basic concept of the administrative process itself.
The reasons why researchers have not agreed on a specific definition of management can be summarized in three main points:
1- …that management is a relatively modern science. This modernity has not allowed sufficient time for thinkers and researchers in the field of management to agree on a single comprehensive definition for it, noting that management has been known as a practice since ancient times.
2- …that management encompasses all the various fields of economic, social and service life. This comprehensiveness, along with the difference and diversity of the nature of work in these fields, and the novelty of management science, has led to a delay in reaching a comprehensive definition of it, and in reaching a complete agreement on its concepts and foundations.
3- …that management is classified as a human science, not a natural science. It deals with man as an independent unit, and also as a member of a work group who is subject to its pressures and is affected by them. In doing so, it studies the human personality and its behaviors, which are characterized by continuous movement and instability, which has led to a difference in the interpretation of the human personality, its behavior and motivation from one thinker to another.
The following is a set of definitions drawn from pioneers of management thought to provide an overview of its content:
Frederick Taylor defined management as: “Knowing exactly what is required of employees and ensuring that they do it in the best way and at the lowest cost” Henri Fayol defined management by specifying the manager’s role, saying: “The meaning of a manager is to predict, plan, organize, order, coordinate, and control” Koontz and Odonnel view management as “a series of sequential and integrated activities that begin with setting goals and then outlining the method for achieving them, through planning, organizing, directing, and controlling activities, which is called the management process” Ali Abdel Wahab defines it as: “ A continuous social process that works to optimally utilize available resources through planning, organizing, leading, and controlling to reach a specific goal”
Based on the above, and by reviewing some definitions from a number of thinkers and pioneers of management thought, both ancient and modern, we observe that management
In its modern sense, it must be viewed as a comprehensive integrated unit that includes various intellectual approaches. The focus in this concept is on management being a mental activity that seeks to make optimal use of all available energies and capabilities in the organization, with the highest available efficiency and the lowest possible cost. Time comes within these available capabilities or resources, so it is assumed that it should be invested effectively, since if time is not invested optimally, the cost is likely to increase significantly.
Therefore, the definition of management – from the writer’s point of view – is based on previous definitions in carrying out the elements of the administrative process to achieve the specified goals through the optimal use of available resources.
Management is both action and time; the two are inextricably linked. No action is performed without time accompanying it, and no movement is carried out except within a specific, standardized timeframe This time is not perceived by the senses but rather understood by the mind. So, what is the true nature of this time?
