Scientific management

Plan

Principles
Legacy- philosophy of management
Legacy- scientific design of every aspect of every task
Legacy- scientific training & selection
Legacy- specialisation
Legacy- money as motivator
Advantages
Disadvantages
Examples

Rational Control

Carefully articulated universal methods & systems
Stream-lining of production process to increase productivity
Appeal to worker's self-interest with work seen as an economic endeavour

Scientific Management

Principle that there is one best way to organise work, according to a science of management based upon principles of standardisation of time & routinisation of motion as decided by authoritative experts

F.W Taylor

Late 1800s
Engineer
- developing a systematic approach to management

4 principles of scientific management

1) Scientific design of every aspect of every task
Task idea- work carefully planned out by management, complete written instructions- what to be done, how to do it, exact time allowed for doing it
- division of work into minute regularised movements
- th

Legacy of Taylorism- philosophy of management

Scientific approach to decision making: based on proven fact rather than on tradition, guesswork or personal opinion
- accepted in modern management
- Amazon
- workers assemble McDonalds burger

Legacy of Taylorism- scientific design of every aspect of every task

(Locke 1982)
Time & motion study
- widespread use, standard times
Standardised tools & procedures
- Standardisation principle is now well accepted
- technique of standardisation been extended beyond sphere of tool use to include other types of organisatio

Legacy of Taylorism- scientifically selecting & training employees

Management responsibility for training
learn from management experts who are throughly familiar with job & "one best way"
-contemporary managers fully accept notion that training new employees is their responsibility
Scientific selection
- personnel selec

Legacy of Taylorism- Managers & workers must specialise

Specialisation of labour
Fewer & fewer jobs in existence today that stay unchanged for long periods of time
- if such jobs exist they are eventually automated
In times of rapid tech change spending months training a worker for one narrow speciality wouldn

Legacy of Taylorism- money as motivator

Workers motivated only by wages
- attacked by social scientists from time of Hawthorne experiments to present
- oversimplified view of human motivation
- job enrichment & participation
- still relevant

Advantages of scientific management

Each worker has high degree of specialisation
Can standardise- e.g. all branches of shop around world produce exactly same product

Scientific management-criticisms

Extreme specialisation leads to boredom & low morale
- lack of work motivation due to under-utilised mental capacity
Ignored the psychological needs of workers

Example of scientific management

Amazon
Royal Mail
McDonalds
Jim Beam

Amazon- scientific management

data-driven management"
- scientific design of every aspect of every task
"one best way"
- guided by principles inscribed on laminated cards
Taylorized jobs:
"Shelfers"- tagged with personal sat-nav, maps out route to shelves, sets target times, measures

Royal Mail

Pegasus computer system
- Calculates optimum post load that can be delivered by staff

McDonalds

one best way"
Strict, detailed working standards for each worker to perform their individual job
Manuals and operative check lists for the working methods determined by management
Layout of equipment & machineries measured & calculated to best maximize e

Jim Beam

Limited to 4 bathroom breaks
- only one unscheduled
Reprimands issued for failure to meet this limits