Human Quest for (Environment) Control and the Microfoundations of Management

Abstract

Individual fears and instincts taken as the antecedents for the perception of natural and social risks are gathered in this chapter to illustrate the microfoundations of organizational management and the underlying rationale for the contemporaneity of the management function. Entering the realm of the philosophy of management, and following some of the most influential roots in Ancient China and Greece, one may revisit particularly the Xenophon´s contribution to the initial conception of business management, and to the consequent evolution of human thought until the neoclassicism of the scientific management. Along the way, seminal concepts (e.g. uncertainty or risk) are revisited in the context of strategic management domain which is discussed side-by-side with governance and leadership. Furthermore, the case of Haier Group (and Mr. Zhang Ruimin) is used to illustrate the successful intertwining of the three organizational dimensions (i.e. governance, leadership, and management) for the organizational success.