Evolving Management Ideas

This chapter reviews the different conceptualizations of ‘the’ historical development of management ideas. It focuses on three approaches to the evolution of research on management ideas: (1) mainstream, (2) embedded, and (3) critical alternatives. The mainstream is the most dominant approach, both in research and in textbooks of management, while the embedded approach is increasingly popular among institutionally oriented researchers. A key suggestion is that it is also important to find and follow less researched avenues in the evolution of management ideas, such as the critical alternatives approach, drawing on forgotten and marginalized discourses. The authors explicate limitations and research opportunities emerging from the three approaches and seek to motivate researchers to look for new research directions in the study of management ideas.