Making Sense of Management A Critical Introduction

'A critical-academic-analysis of received wisdom, for serious students of the subject' - Long Range Planning

Provocative and thoughtful, this book provides a fresh perspective on management that is both broad and critical. The authors argue for the importance of subjecting received wisdoms about management to scrutiny. Such scrutiny needs to address not only the means but also the outcomes of management theory and practices as social and ecological problems proliferate in the global economy.

The book begins by examining why we should question notions of management as a neutral `technology' with no moral commitments and consequences, and the role of critical reflection in such questioning. It introduces Critical Theory in the context of other critical traditions in management and the social sciences, and then explores various core management sub-disciplines, examining dominant perspectives within each specialism. In the final section, the authors consider the possibilities for synthesis between the insights and ideals of Critical Theory and progressive elements in current management thinking. They discuss theoretical implications and issues of practice, in teaching and research in the field, and for managers themselves in their organizational settings.