The nature (characteristics) of principles of management is (are) explained as follows:
(1) Universal application : Management principles are universal in nature. They are applicable to all types of organisations irrespective of the type, size or nature, e.g. government, college, hospital, bank. etc. Their application may have to be modified, but they are suitable for all kinds of organisations, whether in private sector or public sector. Similarly, principles of management are applicable to all levels of management. For instance, the principle of division of labour is applicable to all types of organisations.
(2) General guidelines : Management principles give general guidelines to tackle the organisational situations wisely and to solve the problems systematically. They are not rigid. Application of management principles depend upon the situation, size and nature of organisation, e.g., when we say according to principle of remuneration, the employees must be paid fair remuneration. The term ‘fair’ may vary as per nature, size and financial ability of the organisation.
(3) Principles are formed by practice and experiments : The management principles are developed gradually with thorough research work, experiments and systematic observations. The results of such observations and experiments are developed after their practice in different organisations.
(4) Flexibility : Management principles, although fundamental are not rigid statements. They have to be applied differently under various conditions. It is possible to make suitable changes in their application according to the requirement of the organisation. Thus, Management principles are flexible guidelines providing ample scope for making changes according to the nature of enterprise, its size, competitive situation, etc.
(5) Behavioural in nature : Management is a teamwork or a group activity. Management principles aim at influencing individual efforts and directing them to achieve various objectives of the organisation. They are directed towards regulating human behaviour so that people give their best to the organisation. Thus, principles of management are designed to influence human behaviour.
(6) Cause and effect relationship : Management principles indicate cause and effect relationship. Each principle has a definite effect on the efficiency or working of management. For example, payment of good remuneration and incentives increases output. Similarly, effective advertisement given by the organisation increases the sale of a product.
(7) All principles are of equal importance : All the principles of management have equal importance and they also carry equal weightage with reference to their applicability in the organisation. For example, it cannot be said that the principle of division of labour is more important than the principle of unity of command or vice versa. Management principles are not static in nature. They are not absolute like principles of pure sciences like Chemistry, Mathematics, etc. They are the principles of social science. They are to be modified and applied according to the size and nature of the organisation, keeping in mind the requirements.
