Fayol stands the test of time

Abstract

Planning, organising, co‐ordinating, commanding and controlling – these are the elements of management according to Henri Fayol. Less known, but no less important, are Fayol’s principles of management. Fayol was born in 1841 and died in 1925. His Administration Industrielle et Générale was published in French in 1916 but was not translated into English until 1929. Fayol’s work is often quickly rejected either because of its age or because it is believed to have been superseded by observational findings. However, Fayol’s work was based on observation. This paper considers some contemporary models of management (Hales, Kotter, Mintzberg) and argues that Fayol’s elements of management are not refuted but are rather reinforced by more recent findings. The paper concludes that Fayol’s work stands the test of time. The five elements of management and 14 principles of management are briefly presented.

Citation

Fells, M.J. (2000), "Fayol stands the test of time", Journal of Management History (Archive), Vol. 6 No. 8, pp. 345-360. https://doi.org/10.1108/13552520010359379