Therefore to examine such behavior of individuals at work, Douglas McGregor developed a philosophical view of mankind with his Theory X and Theory Y in 1960. He classified the managers in two broad categories, the positive ones are called Theory Y managers and the negative ones are called Theory X managers.Here is a video demonstrating the theories:
Theory X is an authoritarian style and keeps tight control over individuals. It advocates the belief that management must counteract an inherent human tendency to work. On the other hand Theory Y is a participative management style which believes that people are self-motivated and take responsibility for their work.
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| Fig: Douglas McGregor’s XY-Theory |
As there are theory X and Y managers, in the same way there are 2 kinds of workers – lazy and not lazy. That makes up 4 different kinds of scenarios possible in an organisation.
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| Fig: Different possible scenarios |
Case A: When the manager falls under Theory X and the worker is lazy :
Such kinds of situations are generally of the worst kind. People in these cases prefer to be directed, do not want responsibility, and have little or no ambition. The organisations with such a culture will neither grow nor survive in the business environment until it gets rid of such managers and such employees.
Case B: When the manager falls under Theory X and the worker is not lazy:
Such a situation can be bad for people who actually want to learn and see their good in the good of the organisation. Instead such workers are not given good responsibilities due to the negative environment persisting in the company and they end up getting demotivated. It is harder to retain a good employee in such a scenario.
Case C: When the manager falls under Theory Y and the worker is lazy:
In such a scenario, there is a chance of the manager having positive impact on the workers by trusting them with productive work according to their competencies. Motivations can sometimes work miracles for such an organisation. In such a situation workers eventually tend to learn and start accepting part of their responsibilities.
Case D: When the manager falls under Theory Y and the worker is not lazy:
These kinds of situations are generally a win-win situation for both the organisation and the worker. The environment is generally very constructive in such an organisation and healthy competition is promoted. Each and everyone who aspires to be a big name wants to work in such an organisation. And all the great organisations are generally a result of this positive scenario.
By referring to my past experience as Assistant Manager with NTPC, I would say that I was lucky that I had a manager who fell under Theory Y category. The employees too were motivated by good prospects they had in the organisation. The manager trusted all his subordinates at work and gave them a chance to learn and grow professionally, while simultaneously creating value for the organisation as well. And thus we as a part of the organisation management contributed our part by making NTPC one of the best employers in India and a goldmine in terms of profit for the Government of India.
