Contemporary management functions reflect considerations of past management theories and aim to improve and strengthen employer-employee relationships as well as providing suitable working conditions for employees. Management functions are functions which managers perform to “effectively and efficiently coordinate the work of others. (Robbins, 2012). The functions consist of planning, organising, leading and controlling. The theories discussed in the article (1981) Hawthorne, the Myth of the Docile Worker, and Class Bias in Psychology, American Psychologist, 36(8) pp. 867-878. By Bramel, D, an article written about the Hawthorne Research conducted between 1924-1933, which looked to identify the relation between various working conditions and productivity and output, highlight the need for contemporary management functions. The article addresses how integral a continuous strong and communicative relationship is between the employer and employees of a business and the necessity of a strong and ethical organizational culture.
Poor executions of the leading management function can reduce trust between employers and employees and create job dissatisfaction. In regards to the rapid decrease in output in period 12, Bramel writes that Roethlisberger and Dickson (1939) stated that the “workers were afraid that should their previous performance be maintained or improved in this period, rest pauses might never again be reinstated.” (Bramel, D. 1981). This is an example of a lack of communication between employer and employee, resulting in resistance from employees. Communication is a vital part of the organising management function; communication is the transfer of understanding and meaning (Robbins, 2012). In the case study, understanding was clearly not transferred between managers and employees as despite employees being reassured this was only temporary prior to the exercise, the