It is
exceedingly difficult to identify a pure example of what Douglas McGregor called in his book
The Human Side of Enterprise Theory Y management style among major US
corporations. Often, as with Nike, companies start out as prime examples of this particular
style but, over time, evolve into a less pure example in which the corporate headquarters in the
Pacific Northwest continues to exemplify some level of Theory Y management style while overseas
manufacturing processes frequently reflect McGregors definition of Theory X, a noticeably less
attractive model. Similarly, Silicon Valley start-ups often exemplify the Theory Y model while
in their infancy when founders and executives are enthusiastic and idealistic. Once again,
however, production processes, usually overseas in poorer countries, degrade the corporate
culture because those overseas processes often lack American- or European-style worker
protections.
More often, major corporations reflect a combination of multiple
management styles. In addition to the factors involved in a companys growth, including the
requirement to remain competitive, there are the human factors that McGregor and others have
attributed to most corporations. One essay, a link to which is provided below, examines Amazon
through the prism of McGregors theories of management. This article, understandably, concludes
that Amazons management style, a product of its enormous growth over the past two decades, has
come to reflect the normal issues that affect all companies over time. Amazon has outgrown its
early, smaller and more personable environment and become a more generalized example of a mature
business, with the personnel struggles that entails.
One corporation that has
been identified with the Theory Y management style and is certainly in the news is Google, whose
founders deliberately adapted academic management theories into their operating style at the
company's inception. Google applies Theory Y principles in its day-to-day operations to the
extent practical by creating an employee-friendly work environment that prioritizes individual
morale as much as corporate loyalty, the theory being that the former contributes to the latter.
Google, though, is an Internet search engine first and foremost and functions a great deal
"in the ether." It is not dependent upon a vast network of manufacturing or
distribution centers like Amazon and Nike.
One is more likely to identify a
good example of a company employing the more benign and optimistic management style dubbed
Theory Y among the vast number of small businesses across the country. A small mom-and-pop
operation, for example, may very well fit the model with the employees being relatively few in
number and the operating environment being more conducive to the familialsuch ownership
encourages. Also, companies with profit-sharing arrangements incentivize employees toward
greater productivity and a far greater sense of buying-into the companys agenda. Even then,
though, a little bit of Theory X may seep into the atmosphere if even one employee develops a
reputation for shirking responsibility.
As is usually the case with theories
that purport to show disparate models, McGregors theories of management style do not lend
themselves to concrete examples that fit those models. Models serve to illuminate and educate
but should not be rigidly applied to real-world scenarios outside of the
classroom.
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