The original concept of management, as it appeared in the Anglo-American context in the early parts of the 19th Century, was a largely functional notion, a kind of add-on skill, one which was treated as a subset of the skill sets that a factory floor engineer, who was often the owner himself during those days, was required to master, if he was to perform his job effectively, and if he wanted to achieve his principal goal of maximising the returns on his investment.
Those humble, but often brutal beginnings, led to today, when management has well and truly emerged as an independent discipline with very well-defined disciplinary parameters, an independent and well-crafted philosophy of its own. Some of the best MBA colleges in Maharashtra offer cutting-edge management courses that create generation after generation of excellent managers across industries.
Rise of management as a master industrial discipline, and the lessons for developing societies from this phenomenon
In fact, after the end of the second world war, when the whole world in general and the two great nations, Japan and Germany in particular, got down to the task of rebuilding their societies and economies from the ashes of the devastating war.
The German and Japanese companies realised very fast that their home bases i.e. Germany and Japan, did not have the scale and the financial wherewithal to challenge the industrial giants from United States, by far the top economic power of the world at that time.They, coming from the land of the vanquished powers, did not fail to notice, that unless they scaled up and acquired a level of financial and technical might that the American companies enjoyed, and that too quickly, they would not be able to withstand the onslaught of American companies on their respective home markets.
It was this realisation that forced them on a path, that of innovation and exploration, that made them a class apart, a force not seen in global markets since the arrival of the system of trading between sovereign states, all of them making their decisions based purely upon commercial considerations.
It took them a few decades. But, since the mid-1960s, when these two nations started experiencing the impact of what the Germans called as the ‘Wirtschaftswunder’, the whole world could not help but sit back and take notice.
Till about early to mid-1970s, American companies did not really understand the scale of challenge that was soon going to look them in the eye. They thought they were dealing with German and Japanese versions of British and French companies, something they had dealt with in the past, and had the experience of successfully competing against in the marketplace.
Initially, when the results of the innovations that had been set in motion in the companies of these two countries, started arriving on the global market from late 1960s onwards, American companies responded by doubling down on what they were good at, namely mass production.
But, just as a Samurai fighter, no matter how well-crafted his sword is, can never take on a modern machine gun, the American companies too soon discovered that try as they might, their efforts simply were not good enough to beat the new wave of products hitting the shores of Europe and North America from these two countries. When seen from the point of view of the American companies, all this was nothing short of black magic being enacted upon them.
Lessons for India and other emerging economies
Just as the Lilliputs of Japan and Germany could stop the industrial juggernaut of American corporations in its tracks, countries like India too have a similar opportunity. The biggest difference between the situation of Japan and Germany after the end of the Second World War, and the situation that India and other developing countries find themselves in at the moment, lies in the list of adversaries to be overcome.
Japan and Germany had only America and American companies to take into account. Today however, the situation has become a little more complicated. In addition to the whole of Europe, North America, countries like us have also to contend with other competitors too like Japan, South Korea and above all, the most mercantilist of them all, namely China.
But, the lessons that helped the Japanese and German companies survive the duel with American giants, stand valid even today, perhaps more so today than ever before. Just as mastery over the art and science of management helped the German and Japanese companies sail through, we too can hope to write our own success stories, both as individuals and as countries, if we truly internalise the spirit of management.
Conclusion
There is a lot of scope for Indian students to establish thriving careers in the management field with the right training. Many BBA courses in Nashik offer students a comprehensive education which is a combination of case studies and extracurricular activities.
Students are trained through projects, skill-building activities, workshops, compulsory internships, and industry visits. Students who think that they have the aptitude to become a successful manager must consider pursuing management programs from a top BBA college in Nashik.