14 Principles of Management
(Henri Fayol)

The general management principles as summarized by Fayol. Explanation of 14 Principles of Management of Henri Fayol. (1916)

Contributed by: Vincent Marino

Henri Fayol (1841-1925) - 14 Principles of Management

What are the 14 Principles of Management? Description

The 14 Management Principles from Henri Fayol (1841-1925) are:

Division of Work. Specialization allows the individual to build up experience, and to continuously improve his skills. Thereby he can be more productive.
Authority. The right to issue commands, along with which must go the balanced responsibility for its function.
Discipline. Employees must obey, but this is two-sided: employees will only obey orders if management play their part by providing good leadership.
Unity of Command. Each worker should have only one boss with no other conflicting lines of command.
Unity of Direction. People engaged in the same kind of activities must have the same objectives in a single plan. This is essential to ensure unity and coordination in the enterprise. Unity of command does not exist without unity of direction but does not necessarily flows from it.
Subordination of individual interest (to the general interest). Management must see that the goals of the firms are always paramount.
Remuneration. Payment is an important motivator although by analyzing a number of possibilities, Fayol points out that there is no such thing as a perfect system.
Centralization (or Decentralization). This is a matter of degree depending on the condition of the business and the quality of its personnel.
Scalar chain (Line of Authority). A hierarchy is necessary for unity of direction. But lateral communication is also fundamental, as long as superiors know that such communication is taking place. Scalar chain refers to the number of levels in the hierarchy from the ultimate authority to the lowest level in the organization. It should not be over-stretched and consist of too-many levels.
Order. Both material order and social order are necessary. The former minimizes lost time and useless handling of materials. The latter is achieved through organization and selection.
Equity. In running a business a ‘combination of kindliness and justice’ is needed. Treating employees well is important to achieve equity.
Stability of Tenure of Personnel. Employees work better if job security and career progress are assured to them. An insecure tenure and a high rate of employee turnover will affect the organization adversely.
Initiative. Allowing all personnel to show their initiative in some way is a source of strength for the organization. Even though it may well involve a sacrifice of ‘personal vanity’ on the part of many managers.
Team Spirit (Esprit de Corps). Management must foster the morale of its employees. He further suggests that: “real talent is needed to coordinate effort, encourage keenness, use each person’s abilities, and reward each one’s merit without arousing possible jealousies and disturbing harmonious relations.”

What is Management? Five elements

Fayol's definition of management roles and actions distinguishes between Five Elements:

Prevoyance. (Forecast & Plan). Examining the future and drawing up a plan of action. The elements of strategy.
To organize. Build up the structure, both material and human, of the undertaking.
To command. Maintain the activity among the personnel.
To coordinate. Binding together, unifying and harmonizing all activity and effort.
To control. Seeing that everything occurs in conformity with established rule and expressed command.

Origin of the 14 Principles of Management. History

Henri Fayol (1841-1925) was a French management theorist whose theories in management and organization of labor were widely influential in the beginning of 20th century. He was a mining engineer who worked for a French mining company Commentry-Fourchamboult-Decazeville, first as an engineer. Then he moved into general management and became Managing Director from 1888 to 1918. During his tenure as Managing Director he wrote various articles on 'administration' and in 1916 the Bulletin de la Société de l’ Industrie Minérale, printed his "Administration, Industrielle et Générale – Prévoyance, Organisation, Commandement, Coordination, Contrôle". In 1949 the first English translation appeared: ‘General and Industrial Management’ by Constance Storrs.

Usage of the 14 Management Principles. Applications

Change and Organization.
Decision-making.
Skills. Can be used to improve the basic effectiveness of a manager.
Understand that management can be seen as a variety of activities, which can be listed and grouped.

Book: Henri Fayol - General and Industrial Management -

Principles of Management - Fayol Forum (39)

Exactly Where are the 14 Principles of Fayol Located?
"I am writing an essay which encompasses Fayol's theory and applying it to a modern business. I have a copy of General and Industrial Management to hand but I'm having difficulty to find a reference to the 14 principles in the book.
Are these principles simply ideas that have been derived from Fayol's work or am I just not looking hard enough?
If it helps, my copy is the 1984 revised edition by Irwin Gray. Any help would be much appreciated."

The Contribution of Henri Fayol to Strategy
"The biggest contribution Fayol made to the discipline of management or administration is not his 14 principles or the 5 functions of a manager.
In my opinion, it was to identify that there is a framework of strategies common to all organizations. On page one of chapter one of the first book ever written on the new subject of managing strategy, Fayol states that there are six activities that all executives must manage. These "activities" are in fact strategies and represent 6 of the eight strategies common to all organizations, whether they are for-profit, not-for-profit, or public sector in nature.
Fayol identified: risk, finances, organization, production (also known as manufacturing or service delivery depending on what the organization does), marketing and sales, and R&D/technology.
Peter Drucker identified the other two, business definition (known as mandate for public sector and not-for-profit organizations) in his book, The Practice of Management, published in 1954.
These eight strategies are what constitutes "the strategic plan" and all subsequent strategy implementation planning is driven by the expectations created by each of the eight.
Because none of the subsequent points Fayol makes, such as the 5 functions of a manager or 14 principles, have any relevance without being founded in strategy, I am always surprised at how so many readers missed what is contained on page one of chapter one.
I consider Fayol to the the true father of Strategic Management for this contribution. The reality is, we are only beginning to understand what he wrote. We are still hung up in a complex and confusing construct which uses synonyms for strategy (e.g. vision, mission, objectives, goals, tactics) rather than doing what Fayol recommended, which was to focus on the activities (i.e. risk, finances, production, etc.)."

Current Research on Fayol / 14 Principles?
"Although they are now almost 100 years old, we seem to agree that Fayol's principles continue to be relevant today.
Do you know of any research teams who are currently working on Fayol's 14 principles?"

Are Fayol's Principles of Management also applicable to non-profit organizations?
"Fayol's principles of management were written having industrial (mining) firms in mind. Obviously these are for profit companies.
Are the 14 principles also applicable to non-profit organizations? Which principles would have to be changed should we want to apply them to not for profit organizations?"

On the 4th Principle: Unity of Command
"According to Fayol's 4th Principle, Unity of Command, I should receive instruction from one boss who is my immediate manager.
However I have been instructed by other managers from other department too. And even by my colleagues. These instructions make my work overloaded. Is this not a violation of this principle by Fayol?"

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