The History of Organizations

"An organization is a deliberate arrangement of people to accomplish some specific purpose (Robbins & Coulter, 2007, p. 17). It is believed that organizations have existed since the beginning of mankind; however, probably the earliest known example of an organization is when Moses set up an organizational structure to lead the Israelites after they escaped from Egypt (CTU Online, 2006).

The Beginning of Modern Organizations

It was not until the 1400s, however, that organizations began actually evolving into what they are today. For example, during this century, Venetians developed a primitive version of the car assembly line. They floated warships down waterways, stopping them at different location to add another essential part or piece of equipment to the ships.

Adam Smith & the Division of Labor

Yet, organizations did not begin to truly see the benefits of pinpointing each individual's best skills and using the division of labor until around 1776 (Robbins & Coulter, 2007, p. 28). Adam Smith believed that if an organization (and society as a whole) learned to break down "jobs into narrow and repetitive tasks" (Robbins & Coulter, 2007, p. 29), it would drastically increase productivity by saving time switching in between different tasks and allowing each individual to become better skilled in his or her own specific task. Division of labor still continues to be an important part of many modern organizations, such as hospitals and restaurants (Robbins & Coulter, 2007, p. 29).

The Organizational Theories of Fredrick W. Taylor

Organizations changed even further with the development of various management theories. For example, in 1911, Frederick W. Taylor attempted to increase the efficiency of organizations by discovering the single best approach to accomplishing each task. His theories are also still used today by organizations (i.e., hiring only the best workers for a position) (Robbins & Coulter, 2007, p. 31-32).

Organizational Behavior Theories

Additionally, the development of organizational behavior theories truly revolutionized the organization. Instead of focusing solely on labor and efficiency, advocates of organizational behavior began to emphasize the importance of the individual within the organization. In the end, these theories still affect how modern managers interact with their employees, from determining the individual's work conditions and tasks to developing open communications between management and employees (Robbins & Coulter, 2007, p. 36-37).

References:

CTU Online. (2006). Phase 1 course materials. Retrieved June 8, 2008, from Colorado Technical University Online, Virtual Campus, MGM260-0803A-10: Fundamentals of Management: https://campus.ctuonline.edu

Robbins, S. P., & Coulter, M. (2007). Management (9^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Smith, M. K. (2001). Peter Senge and the learning organization. Retrieved June 8, 2008, from http://www.infed.org/thinkers/senge.htm

What is a "learning organization"? (n.d.). Retrieved June 8, 2008, from New York State University at Albany Web site: http://www.albany.edu/sph/Hoff_learning/hpm_tim_learnorg.htm