On the Issue of Technology Change and Managerial Change : Chickens and Eggs?

Changes in technology have necessitated managerial adaptations and change in management techniques and approaches have necessitated technological adaptations. Chandler’s investigation of 19th-century railroads in his 1977 book make such adaptations clear. It is a primary contention of this paper that the large shifts in technology in the 19th and early 20th centuries led to changes in traditional management approaches but the changes that have happened in the years 1960 to 2014 have been different. The development of a behavioral school of management and the change in technology from centralized, process driven to decentralized, network driven have been progressing hand in hand. It’s clear that the focus on change has been less on structure and process and more on communication and interpersonal management style