Mary Parker Follett
Mary Parker Follett (1868-1933) was an influential American social worker, management consultant, and theorist known for her innovative ideas on democracy and organizational management. Born in Quincy, Massachusetts, she faced early family challenges but excelled academically, graduating from Radcliffe College. Follett's groundbreaking work in social services began in Boston, where she advocated for community centers that promoted socialization and civic engagement, believing that these were vital for understanding democracy.
She is renowned for her management theories, which emphasize resolving conflicts through integration, defining power as coactive rather than coercive, and recognizing that effective leadership fosters group power. Her notable publications, such as "The New State" and "Creative Experience," explore the necessity of collaboration and social interaction in achieving effective governance and organizational success. Although her contributions were largely overlooked for decades, she has since gained recognition for her pioneering thoughts on management and community organization. Follett's legacy remains significant in the fields of management and social work, highlighting the importance of community and cooperation in democratic processes.
Mary Parker Follett
Sociologist, social worker, and author
- Born: September 3, 1868
- Birthplace: Quincy, Massachusetts
- Died: December 18, 1933
- Place of death: Boston, Massachusetts
Education: Radcliffe College, Cambridge University
Significance: Mary Parker Follett was an American social worker and author of books on democracy and industrial management. She established community centers in schools throughout Boston, so people would have a place to work together and socialize.
Background
Mary Parker Follett was born on September, 3, 1868, in Quincy, Massachusetts, where she spent most of her childhood. She was the daughter of Charles Allen and Elizabeth Baxter Follett. Her father worked in a shoe factory and was an alcoholic who eventually became sober. He did not earn enough money to support his family, however, so the Folletts moved in with his father. Both men passed away in 1885. Despite their loss, Follett, her mother, and her brother were financially secure because of land they inherited.
Follett's mother was disabled. After the death of her father, Follett took responsibility for running the household and caring for her younger brother. Follett still managed to excel at school, however. She graduated from Thayer Academy in 1884 at age fifteen. After this, Follett studied English, economics, and history at the Society for the Collegiate Instruction for Women. At this time, women were not admitted to college. This organization, which eventually became Radcliff College, was a "Harvard annex" where volunteer professors from Harvard taught promising females.
Follett then traveled to England for a year to study at Cambridge University. While there, she wrote a paper that later became the basis for her book The Speaker of the House of Representatives, published in 1896. The book described the workings of the US Congress and theorized about the qualities and actions that made some representatives more successful than others. Follett enjoyed living in England and studying at Cambridge but had to return home because of her mother's deteriorating health. Once back in the United States, Follett returned to Radcliffe, where she graduated summa cum laude in 1898.
Life's Work
After earning a bachelor's degree, Follett began working in social services and continued to do so for the next twenty-five years. She worked in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston from 1900 to 1908. Through her work there, Follett realized that people need a place to socialize because socialization and participation in community activities are essential to understanding democracy. She became an advocate for community centers, asserting that many could easily be established in schools. She wanted to keep young people off the streets by encouraging them to attend programs at these centers. She wanted school dropouts to be able to learn vocational skills there.
In 1908, Follett was elected chair of the Women's Municipal League's Committee on Extended Use of School Buildings. In 1911, this committee opened the East Boston High School Social Center, which was extremely successful and led to the establishment of other centers throughout Boston. Follett also became a member of the Massachusetts Minimum Wage Board, which fostered in her an interest in industrial management.
Follett is famous for the Mary Parker Follett Theory of Management, which she developed based on her working experiences. Her theory includes the following three principles:
- Resolving conflict through integration. Follett believed each opposing party should find its underlying need, which is often compatible with the other party's need. This is preferable to both parties attempting to meet their often incompatible expressed desires.
- Defining power as coactive instead of coercive. Coactive power refers to sharing power with others, whereas coercive power is maintaining power over others.
- Understanding that effective leaders create group power. When a leader fosters group power, the leader encourages people to work together. This is preferable to a leader expressing his or her personal power.
In 1925 Follett began working as an industrial management lecturer. While writing her lectures, she developed many organizational theories that she included in her books.
While she was working, Follett was also writing and publishing books about the importance of socialization and working together in groups. In 1918, she published The New State, in which she argues that people need to socialize to function effectively as citizens. She contends that people cannot be given democracy but rather must learn democracy by working together.
Follett published Creative Experience in 1924. In this work, she stresses that organizations should focus on the principle of achieving power with employees instead of power over them.
Impact
Follett is remembered for her pioneering work in establishing community centers in schools in Boston. Her theory that socialization is key to understanding democracy led scholars to better understand the concept of democracy. Follett's books and managerial theories were mostly forgotten until the 1960s when scholars began to reexamine and apply them.
Personal Life
Follett had a relationship with Isobel L. Briggs, an English woman who was twenty years older than she was. They lived together in Boston until Briggs's death in 1926. Follett entered into a relationship with Dame Katharine Furse two years later. In 1929, Follett moved to London with Furse. Follett returned to Boston on business in 1933 and died there after an operation.
Principal Works
Nonfiction
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, 1896
The New State: Group Organization the Solution of Popular Government, 1918
Creative Experience, 1924
Dynamic Administration: The Collected Papers of Mary Parker Follett, 1940
Bibliography
Dininni, Jeanne. "Management Theory of Mary Parker Follett." Business.com, 22 Feb. 2017, www.business.com/articles/management-theory-of-mary-parker-follett/. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.
"Follett, Mary Parker." Encyclopedia.com, www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/follett-mary-parker-1868-1933. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.
Graham, Pauline, ed. Mary Parker Follett: Prophet of Management. Harvard Business School Press, 1994.
Heon, Francois, et al. The Essential Mary Parker Follett: Ideas We Need Today. Amazon Self-Publishing, 2014.
"Management Gurus: Mary Parker Follett." Manage Train Learn, www.managetrainlearn.com/page/mary-parker-follett. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.
"Mary Parker Follett (1868–1933): Social Worker, Pioneer in Human Relations, Advocate for Community Centers and Management Consultant." The Social Welfare History Project, Virginia Commonwealth University, socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/people/follett-mary-parker/. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.
Taylor, Kris. "Mary Parker Follett: Influential Visionary." Evergreen Leadership, 18 Mar. 2016, evergreenleadership.com/2016/03/18/mary-parker-follett-influential-visionary/. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.
Tonn, Joan. Mary Parker Follett: Creating Democracy, Transforming Management. Yale UP, 2003.