Teaching the concept of management: Perspectives from ‘six honest serving men’

Abstract

AbstractManagement as a body of knowledge is dynamic such that management educators face continual challenges to achieve realism and relevance in the classroom. The emerging knowledge economy, in parallel with accelerating changes in technology, globalization and societal values, make these challenges more acute than ever before. The purpose of this article is to provide personal insights using a framework for analyzing and teaching management that draws on Rudyard Kipling's ‘six honest serving men’—what, why, when, how, where and who. These ‘honest serving men’ trigger discrete perspectives with which we can analyze, revise and recalibrate the teaching of management to ensure that it remains relevant to modern business. Teaching propositions are advanced as to management's definition.