HAROLD KOONTZ: BIOGRAPHY, MANAGEMENT THEORY, CONTRIBUTIONS - DUDAS - 2025

Harold Koontz (1909-1984) was an organizational theorist and professor of business administration at the University of California. He worked as an administrative consultant in large companies in the United States and gave top management conferences internationally.

His interest in administration led him to write several articles, books and theses on the subject, in which he made a clear definition of this concept that still persists to this day.

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Koontz defined administration as the study of a social or business organization so that through its design, structure and management of its members, the objectives are achieved in a simple and efficient way.

Although there were many other influential professors who participated in the definition and development of the administration, it is Harold Koontz who is considered to be the pioneer of this concept. The great success of his works and the scope of these attest to this.

Harold Koontz Biography

Harold Koontz was born in Findlay, Ohio, the son of Joseph Darius and Harriet Koontz. There is not much that is known about his childhood but about his university career, which led him to be known for his achievements and contributions in administration.

He completed his first studies in which he obtained his AB (Bachelor of Arts) at Oberlin College, and later, in 1931, he obtained his Master of Business Administration at Northwestern University and his doctorate at Yale University in 1935.

He passed away on February 11, 1984 at the age of 75. Although the cause is unknown, it is known of the existence of an acute osteoarthritis with which he had to deal for years.

Your career

In 1933 he began teaching business administration classes at Duke University for a year, followed by another year as a professor of accounting at the University of Toledo, Ohio.

In 1935 he graduated with a doctorate from Yale University, after which he was able to work as a professor of economics until 1942 at Colgate University.

During World War II he served as Chief of Traffic for the War Production Board, an agency created by the United States government that oversaw the production and distribution of materials and services during the war.

The objective of such an organization was to set priorities and ration the most necessary elements. Koontz did an excellent job as the one in charge of such responsibility.

After World War II, he worked for three years as assistant to the planning director of the largest American airline: Trans World Airlines. For the next two years, he worked as a sales manager for a well-established American aircraft factory in the country.

It was in 1950 when he decided to return to what he considered his world, the academic, and concentrated on teaching administration. Even so, while working as a teacher, he also did it as a management consultant for many large American companies such as Hughes Tool Company, Hughes Aircraft Company, Purex Corporation or KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, among others.

Contributions to the administration

Any existing organization has to abide by the concept of management pioneered by Koontz and followed by other theorists if it is to be successful.

Although before this concept existed, large entrepreneurs thought that it was enough to have the infrastructure and knowledge to achieve objectives, Koontz went much further, taking into account the people who are part of said process, because in the end they are the most important resource to achieve the goals.

Besides this, there were certain precepts to follow, namely:

1-Plan

The administrator must be able to recognize in what situation the company is, what are the objectives it has set, as well as the resources available to achieve it.

This step also includes an analysis of the market in which you want to introduce the product and what methods you will use to achieve it.

2-Organization

This is the crucial step to begin to achieve stated goals. Knowing well the personnel that make up the organization is crucial for the administrator, because only then can she determine who is the one to achieve what purpose.

3-Address

Establish methods and business structure that will always achieve the objectives set. Koontz said that creating an environment in which staff are stimulated is essential for good results.

An administrator must go beyond ordering what to do and by whom; It must be closely linked to people so that they feel committed to what they do and feel enthusiastic about achieving the goals set.

4-Supervision

An administrator can never fall asleep, he must always be attentive that the participants remain engaged at the same level as at the beginning.

To do this, you have to observe the limits, the goals and the dates set in order to correct any deviation. This also includes offering help to any participant who feels overwhelmed by their work.

Therefore, Koontz's theory of management could be summarized in an excellent leadership process but based on a strong notion of organization. In this way, it is possible not only to direct a human group, but to make this group work and work as a social organism. In short, one could say the motto 'one for all and all for one'.

Achievements obtained

His career and the contributions he made to the administration led him to earn these merits, among others:

• Be a member of the American Academy of Management
• Be part of the International Academy of Management
• He was awarded the Mead Johnson Award, a recognition of the best researchers in the world.
• He was awarded the Society for Advacement of Management Taylor Key Award.
• It has a deserved mention in world famous publications such as Who's Who in America, Who's Who in Finance and Industry and Who's Who in the World.

There were other recognized theorists who participated with contributions to the concept of management, but the great experience and impeccable career of Harold Koontz made him stand out above all of them.

Despite the discrepancies in some of his concepts, which Koontz himself called 'the administration jungle', he himself managed to dispel them in his many works and articles on the subject.

References

1. Wikipedia contributors. (2018, October 25). Harold Koontz. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 19:53, February 18, 2019.
2. Koontz H. The Management Theory Jungle Revisited. Acad Manag Rev. 1980;
3. Harold Koontz; Heinz Weihrich. ELEMENTS OF ADMINISTRATION An international and innovative approach. Mc Graw Hill Education. 2013.
4. Koontz H. A Model For Analyzing the Universality and Transferability of Management. Acad Manag J. 1969.
5. Koontz H. Challenges for Intellectual Leadership in Management. Calif Manage Rev. 1965.