CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW
2.5 REVIEW OF THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY: CONCEPT, PRINCIPLES, AND FUNCTIONS OF MANAGEMENT
2.5.2 Principles of management
Generally, management principles such as planning, organising, coordinating, and controlling are the processes through which managers get things done through other people's efforts (Gupta, 2014; Mbalamula, Suru & Seni, 2017). Management principles guide managers in decision- making and its implementation. Fayol (1949) was the first author to identify fourteen general management principles. These principles are discussed in the following sections, particularly as they relate to managing educational organisations like ECCD centres.
2.5.2.1 Division of work
Division of work requires the specialisation of employees in different areas with different skills and expertise. This principle supports staff's personal and professional development to promote staff efficiency to increase accuracy, speed, and improved productivity (Mehta &Yadav, 2014;
Poudyal, 2013; Shakir, 2014). The authors mentioned above argue that applying the principle of division of labour in an organisation enables the performance of management functions. This management principle is, therefore, crucial to the current study to explore how ECCD directors perceive its application at their centres.
29 2.5.2.2 Authority and responsibility
Fayol indicated that managers have the right to exercise authority and responsibility by giving orders to subordinates, thereby reaching goals through the effort of others (Esmaeili, Mohamadrezai, Mohamadrezai, 2015; Kongnyuy, 2020; Nazari, 2014). This management principle is of interest to this current study as literature revealed that when authority is exercised well, this principle promotes management efficiency and effectiveness. It is therefore important to explore how ECCD directors apply this principle at their centres since it is part of their management responsibility to establish ECCD centre governance structures.
2.5.2.3 Discipline
The third management principle deals with compliance with the organisation’s core values, mission, and vision statements. It encourages good conduct and respectful interactions among staff as necessary for the smooth running of the organisation (Amoah, 2015; Belle, 2018;
Tumilaar, 2015). The authors revealed that when adequately enforced by managers, discipline enables employees to comply with rules and regulations, consequently leading to attaining organisational goals. Discipline, as a management principle, is vital as the current study explores the management practices of ECCD centre directors. Discipline is an important component of educational institutions such ECCD centres, and directors should ensure that discipline prevails at all times to enable the smooth implementation of the ECCD curriculum.
2.5.2.4 Unity of command
According to Fayol, unity of command relates to the ability of staff to answer to one superior to avoid confusion due to conflicting orders from more than one superior. Application of this principle helps to trace the sources of mistakes easily (Cruz, Villena, Navarro, Belecina, &
Garvida, 2016;Garba, 2017; Mbalamula, Suru, & Seni, 2017; Mohammed, Edu & Etoh, 2020).
The literature revealed the importance of unity of command as its enactment prevents role conflict and promotes orderliness in organisations. The management principle of unity of command is relevant to the current study as it relates to ECCD directors’ authority to give instructions and commands. Centre directors’ job description gives them the authority to assign duties and responsibilities to staff and ensures such orders emanate from one source to avoid conflicting orders.
30 2.5.2.5 Unity of direction
This management principle emphasises attention and unison. This means that all staff are to direct their efforts towards the same organisational activities as a team, which must be associated with the same organisational goal. Unity of direction stipulates that those organisational activities be well prescribed in an actionable plan. Managers must be responsible for planning and monitoring the progress of implementing the plan and coordinating employees’ activities (Poudyal, 2013; Tanzeh, 2019). The management principle of unity of direction is fundamental in every organisation, including educational institutions like ECCD centres, to ensure various categories of staff are classified according to areas of specialisation and expertise for effective and efficient performance.
2.5.2.6 Subordination of individual interest
Fayol acknowledged two types of interest: personal and organisational interests, and recommended that for an organisation to function effectively, the organisation’s interest must supersede that of an employee’s personal interest (Poudyal, 2013). The literature revealed the need for managers to ensure that the organisation's interest surpasses that of individual staff members, without which organisational goals may not be attained.
The management principle of subordination of individual interest is relevant to this study to explore how ECCD directors apply it to demonstrate that the centre’s overall interests come first and that centre personnel must be aware of this.
2.5.2.7 Remuneration
Fayol noted that for an organisation to run smoothly, staff must be motivated through sufficient remuneration, and this will ensure improved productivity. This management principle recommends rewarding employees’ efforts using both non-monetary remuneration, such as compliments, credits, and praises, and monetary remuneration, such as fair financial compensation and bonuses (Řehoř & Vrchota, 2018; Virgana, 2018; Yemina, 2016). The literature indicated that when well implemented, remuneration is an important management principle as it is a major source of motivation that can ensure the attainment of organisational goals. This principle is worth exploring to understand how ECCD directors perceive the relevance of the principle of remuneration in their management practice.
31 2.5.2.8 The degree of centralisation
Fayol recommends the distribution of authority through decentralisation of decision-making processes at the middle and lower levels of management to strive for a good balance in the organisation (Cornito, 2021;Rini, Sukamto, Ridwan & Hariri, 2019). This management principle is worth exploring at ECCD centres because the nature of complexities surrounding the management of ECCD centres requires the delegation of roles to enable the performance of management control function at various units through leaders at various departments and sections at the centre.
2.5.2.9. Scalar chain
This management principle stipulates establishing a clear chain of command to facilitate an obvious line of authority and effective organisational communication. This can be achieved through the clear management structure of the organisation (Achinivu, Handsome, Ayomide, Enobong & Johnson, 2017; Mbalamula, Suru & Seni, 2017; Tadle-Zaragosa, & Sonsona, 2021).
Literature revealed that the management principle of a scalar chain is an enabler of effective and efficient management performance but requires the establishment of proper structures, a chain of command, and communication systems to facilitate effective reporting systems. Therefore, this study must further explore how ECCD directors enact this principle at the centres.
2.5.2.10 Order
Fayol argued that one of the manager’s responsibilities is the provision of a safe working environment, which ensures that staff can perform at their best (Al-Zu’bi, 2013; Mezieobi, Nzokurum & Mezieobi, 2014; Shohan, Azizifar, & Kamalvand, 2014). Based on the literature, order can be achieved when managers provide an orderly work environment, which is relevant in ECCD settings. Therefore, this study will explore directors’ perceptions of and experiences in ensuring safe and orderly ECCD centre environments and how this affects their management efficiency.
2.5.2.11 Equity
According to Fayol (1949), the principle of equity should form part of the organisation’s values, and this will ensure that all staff members are treated equally and kindly. This management principle recommends correctly placing staff within the organisation and providing supervision
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to ensure staff performance. The principle of equity recommends fair and impartial treatment of staff (Nadelson, Albritton, Valerie, Couture, Green, Loyless, & Shaw 2020). Literature revealed that ensuring fairness and equity in management practice enables management efficiency. Since this study aims to explore applying basic principles of management by ECCD directors, it is worth exploring how directors perceive their experiences in applying equity in the management of their centres.
2.5.2.12 Stability of tenure of personnel
This management principle focuses on staff deployment and management to minimise staff turnover. It also emphasises sufficient staff deployment and management to ensure efficient service delivery (Bacud, 2020; Tadle-Zaragosa & Sonsona, 2021). Literature shows that when managers provide appropriate motivation and establish a system to reduce a high staff attrition rate, it may ensure the stability of tenure, hence a stable labour force, which is needed to implement organisational goals. This principle is relevant to this study because employers are required to practice human resources management in accordance with the labour laws of Ghana, which protect employees. This contributes to ensuring the security of the tenure of personnel.
This study is interested in finding out how ECCD directors ensure the stability of staff tenure.
2.5.2.13 Initiative
Fayol expressed the need for managers to encourage employees’ initiatives by welcoming new ideas to encourage their relevance and participative management. This principle acknowledges the importance of staff initiatives as a source of organisational strength (Ali, 2019; Ololube, Ingiabuna, & Agbor, 2014). Based on previous research, initiative is an important enabler of management performance when managers create opportunities for staff to innovate and welcome stakeholder initiatives. This is worth exploring in ECCD settings to understand directors’
experiences of applying this principle.
2.5.2.14 Esprit de corps
Fayol maintained that managers ensure teamwork and unity among staff and their involvement in all organisational activities. This management principle recommends promoting self-esteem among staff in the workplace through communication. The principle of esprit de corps promotes organisational culture, empathy, understanding, and mutual trust among the employees (Okoro,
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2019). Fayol’s final management principle of esprit de corps is also relevant in ECCD management practices by directors because of the complexity of ECCD programme provision.
Teams and committee systems promote team spirit among personnel and, when properly utilised could promote management effectiveness and efficiency. It is necessary to apply the above management principles as they enable the performance of management functions effectively and efficiently.
Throughout the literature review, there was no evidence suggesting prior studies on the application of basic principles of management by directors at ECCD centres in Ghana. It is therefore necessary to explore the application of basic management principles by directors at ECCD centres in Ghana to understand their experiences and contextual factors that influence their management practices. The following sub-section presents a review of management functions.