Chapter 1: Is there a New Path to Advancing the Art and Science of Management?

After scanning the management literature, an interplanetary visitor to Earth might reasonably ask: how much of what is written on management has contributed positively to the sum of human knowledge? Whether it is the formal academic literature or the practitioner literature, our curious guest might read the literature with the not unreasonable hope that he or she might learn something new, insightful, or even helpful. Unfortunately, they are likely to be disappointed.

Our caller might observe that many people are engaged in management and that it is a substantial and important part of the daily lives of the planet’s inhabitants. Indeed, work and organization might be described as one of the more important endeavors in modern society. However, there seems to be little convincing evidence that the understanding or practice of management has advanced. Certainly, it has not advanced in relation to the considerable investment that is put into thinking, researching and communicating on every conceivable aspect of work, the workplace, the workforce or how it is organized. There needs to be a new path to advancing the art and science of management.