In Our Leisure Time We Are All “Managers” Now’

In our leisure time we perform tasks and use skills without giving a thought to the word ‘manager’. To understand ‘management’ I will begin by explaining the theories of the management process by Fayol (1949) and Mintzbergh (1991). Then make the connection between the management processes using my own examples, to understand why ‘even in our leisure time we are all “managers” now’.

Fayol thought there were five management processes. These five processes have been used as management ‘principles’ and overtime are now recognised as the ‘classic’ approach to management. Fayol states the five processes are ‘planning, organising, leading, coordinating and controlling’ (Fayol, 1949, cited in Lucas et al., 2007, p. 21). These skills are recognisable in the workplace and are often used. However Mintzbergh argued the management processes are far more complex than Fayol’s reasoning. Mintzbergh case study during the 1970s explained the complexity of a managers demands (Mintzbergh, 1991, cited in Lucas et al., 2007. p. 22). He states there are ten roles, which he grouped into three main sections of manager responsibilities. These three main sections are ‘interpersonal, informational and decision making’ (Lucas et al., 2007, p. 22) although the practicing of each role in the workplace varies depending on the organisation and individual.   Within Mintzbergh’s ten roles he refers to leadership, which was studied long before management, although it is argued whether leadership is a skill you are born with or a skill you develop. Nevertheless, good leadership is the ability to motivate others by establishing what motivates individuals to perform. People are often motivated by different things, generally they will have ‘intrinsic’ and ‘extrinsic’ attributes (Lucas et al., 2007).  

So can these theories be applied to our roles in leisure time? In the following examples, there is evidence to show that in my leisure time links can be made to the theories discussed earlier....