American Management Association history

AMA added to its scope in 1924 by absorbing the National Association of Sales Managers.

However, with the Great Depression of 1929, the American Management Association adopted more progressive positions to limit direct policy interventions in the management of enterprises.

After the stock market crash in 1 929 and the country was plunged into the Great Depression of the 1930 s, however, the AMA began to advocate progressive positions on the is sues of the day.

Some of the New Deal legislation would be struck down by the Supreme Court in 1936, but by this time the AMA and business leaders realized that it made more sense to address workplace problems themselves, rather than have the government intervene.

In 1942 the AMA issued a research report that advocated the need for African Americans to be better incorporated into the work force, which had been thinned dramatically by military enlistments and the draft.

In 1943 t he AMA issued a similar report about women production workers, urging supervisors not to confuse a woman's mechanical familiarity with mec hanical aptitude, arguing that there was no essential difference betw een men and women in performing jobs, just opportunity.

By the time Lawrence A. Appley started his presidency, in 1948, the American Management Association offered a forum for debates, a network of influence, and a platform for the leaders in the training of business leaders.

Out of this grew other types of programs, such as continuing education courses for different professional functions, and "orientation" seminars, which essentially helped executives to gain cross-functionality by learning about other areas of their business. It was under his leadership that AMA in 1949 began to sponsor workshop seminars that allowed managers to meet, share, and essentially educate themselves.

In 1952 AMA launched an executive training program, The Management Cours e, which would become a mainstay of the organization.

After a surprise dip in the economy in 1958, the association hosted a special Economic Mobilization Conference, where President Dwight D. Eisenhower made the keynote address and top executives from the largest corporations convened with government officials to discuss recovery plans.

Throughout the 1950s, the American Management Association continued to link the world of big business with government. It was in 1961 that it began its international expansion with the opening of a European center in Brussels.

In 1963, the American Management Association established the Operation Enterprise, a program designed for high school and college students.

In 1973, AMA consolidated five closely related national associations—all dedicated to management education—into one organization.

The Padgett-Thomp son training organization was bought in 1991, expanding the Associati on's subject matter as well as geographic reach.

Scheid, Fred M., "'How Did Humans Become Resources Anyway?'" pape r presented at the University of Alberta in Edmonton Adult Education Research Conference, 1995.

In 2005 AMA broadened its reach to includ e the people who assisted managers when it forged an alliance with th e National Association of Executive Secretaries and Administrative As sistants.

The American Management Association sold Amacom to HarperCollins in 2018.