Why Management Is an Art?

Why management is an art? First and foremost, we take into consideration the different meanings of the words management and art. According to Harold Koontz in his book “The Management Theory Jungle”, “Management is the art of getting things done through and with people in formally organized groups.” Another definition of management is the organization and coordination of the activities of an enterprise in accordance with certain policies and in achievement of defined objectives. On the other hand, they say art is the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form and that art as a form is a formed content. There are a lot of meanings surrounded by these two words but how can we correlate both words in order for us to see why Management considered an art.

'Art' is sometimes used interchangeably with 'craft', and though the two often intersect, they are really quite distinct concepts. Craft tends to focus on practical or manual skill and usually has a function like knitting, pottery, stitching, and jewelry. They may often become works of art when the crafter applies a particular creative aesthetic. Art is about communicating an idea or emotion that employs crafting ability.

Management is an art in the sense that there is considerable space for individual style and self-expression. The Manager’s personality sometimes influences how he or she manages people. Every art is result-oriented as it seeks to achieve concrete results. In the same manner, management is also directed towards accomplishment of pre-determined goals. Managers use various resources like men, money, material, machinery & methods to promote growth of an organization. Art requires practical knowledge as it implies application of knowledge & skill to trying to achieve desired results, therefore learning of theory is not sufficient. It is very important to know practical application of theoretical principles. Art deals with perfection through