Scientific Management
What are the main features of Taylor’s approach to ‘Scientific Management” and what criticisms have been made of it? Do firms use scientific management today?
Frederick Winslow Talyor developed a theory called the Scientific Management. It is a theory of management that analyse and improve work process, aiming to increase labour productivity. Scientific management methods are used to optimize productivity and simplifying the jobs so that workers could be trained to perform their task in one “best” way.
Prior to the development of scientific management, works were performed by skilled craftsmen who had learned their jobs by apprenticeships and they made their own decisions about how their job was to be carried out. Scientific management changed skilled crafts to a series of simplified jobs that could be performed by unskilled workers who could be trained to perform the task,
Taylor developed this theory as he worked his way up from a labourer to a manager in a US steelworks company. He realised the worker in his company were not efficient, hence he wanted to improve the workers’ productivity.
Talyor stated that inefficiency is caused by both labour and management. He had observed, that workers purposely operate below their capacity and at the slowest rate that would not be punished, which is called soldiering. Managers were incompetence and irrational. Managers lacked information and knowledge about work process, worker’s abilities and the time which is required to complete the tasks. Time management is done by guesswork. Taylor portrayed managers as ignorant, arbitrary, selfish and blind to their own real interest. (Rose, Rational Workmen and Incompetent Managers, 1978)
Taylor’s scientific management can be divided into three broad areas. The first is improving the organisational structure and routine. The second is the measurement of work and the design of task. The third is on the selection and motivation of workers (Rose, Rational Workmen and Incompetent
Frederick Winslow Talyor developed a theory called the Scientific Management. It is a theory of management that analyse and improve work process, aiming to increase labour productivity. Scientific management methods are used to optimize productivity and simplifying the jobs so that workers could be trained to perform their task in one “best” way.
Prior to the development of scientific management, works were performed by skilled craftsmen who had learned their jobs by apprenticeships and they made their own decisions about how their job was to be carried out. Scientific management changed skilled crafts to a series of simplified jobs that could be performed by unskilled workers who could be trained to perform the task,
Taylor developed this theory as he worked his way up from a labourer to a manager in a US steelworks company. He realised the worker in his company were not efficient, hence he wanted to improve the workers’ productivity.
Talyor stated that inefficiency is caused by both labour and management. He had observed, that workers purposely operate below their capacity and at the slowest rate that would not be punished, which is called soldiering. Managers were incompetence and irrational. Managers lacked information and knowledge about work process, worker’s abilities and the time which is required to complete the tasks. Time management is done by guesswork. Taylor portrayed managers as ignorant, arbitrary, selfish and blind to their own real interest. (Rose, Rational Workmen and Incompetent Managers, 1978)
Taylor’s scientific management can be divided into three broad areas. The first is improving the organisational structure and routine. The second is the measurement of work and the design of task. The third is on the selection and motivation of workers (Rose, Rational Workmen and Incompetent
Bibliography: Huczynski, A. (n.d.). Organizational Behaviour. 434. managementstudyguide. (2008). managementstudyguide. Retrieved Feburary 20, 2013, from managementstudyguide: http://www.managementstudyguide.com/techniques_scientificmanagement.htm Mindtools. (2011). Mindtools. Retrieved Feburary 18, 2013, from Mindtools: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_Taylor.htm NetMBA. (2002). Internet Centre for Management and Business Administration, Inc. Retrieved Feburary 19, 2013, from NetMBA.com: http://www.netmba.com/mgmt/scientific/ Rose. (1978). Rational Workmen and Incompetent Managers. 35.