Lakhasly

Frederick
W.
Taylor
(1856‐1915)
rested
his
philosophy
on
four
basic
principles:
The
development
of
a
true
science
of
management,
so
that
the
best
method
for
performing
each

task
could
be
determined.
The
scientific
selection
of
workers,
so
that
each
worker
would
be
given
responsibility
for
the
task

for
which
he
or
she
was
best
suited.
The
scientific
education
and
development
of
the
worker.
Intimate,
friendly
cooperation
between
management
and
labor.
Taylor
contended
that
the
success
of
these
principles
required
"a
complete
mental
revolution"
on

the
part
of
management
and
labor.
Rather
than
quarrel
over
profits,
both
sides
should
try
to
increase

production;
by
so
doing,
he
believed,
profits
would
rise
to
such
an
extent
that
labor
and
management

would
no
longer
have
to
fight
over
them.
In
short,
Taylor
believed
that
management
and
labor
had
a

common
interest
in
increasing
productivity.
Taylor
based
his
management
system
on
production‐line
time
studies.
Instead
of
relying
on

traditional
work
methods,
he
analyzed
and
timed
steel
workers'
movements
on
a
series
of
jobs.
Using

time
study
as
his
base,
he
broke
each
job
down
into
its
components
and
designed
the
quickest
and

best
methods
of
performing
each
component.
In
this
way
he
established
how
much
workers
should

be
able
to
do
with
the
equipment
and
materials
at
hand.
He
also
encouraged
employers
to
pay
more
productive
workers
at
a
higher
rate
than
others,
using
a
"scientifically
correct"
rate
that
would

benefit
both
company
and
worker.
Thus,
workers
were
urged
to
surpass
their
previous
performance

standards
to
earn
more
pay
Taylor
called
his
plan
the
differential
rate
system.


CONTRIBUTIONS
OF
SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
THEORY
The
modem
assembly
line
pours
out
finished
products
faster
than
Taylor
could
ever
have
imagined.

This
production
"miracle"
is
just
one
legacy
of
scientific
management.
In
addition,
its
efficiency

techniques
have
been
applied
to
many
tasks
in
non‐industrial
organizations,
ranging
from
fast‐food

service
to
the
training
of
surgeons.


LIMITATIONS
OF
SCIENTIFIC
MANAGEMENT
THEORY
Although
Taylor's
method
led
to
dramatic
increases
in
productivity
and
to
higher
pay
in
a
number
of

instances,
workers
and
unions
began
to
oppose
his
approach
because
they
feared
that
working

harder
or
faster
would
exhaust
whatever
work
was
available,
causing
layoffs.
Moreover,
Taylor's
system
clearly
meant
that
time
was
of
the
essence.
His
critics
objected
to
the

"speed
up"
conditions
that
placed
undue
pressures
on
employees
to
perform
at
faster
and
faster

levels.
The
emphasis
on
productivity—and,
by
extension,
profitability—led
some
managers
to
exploit

both
workers
and
customers.
As
a
result,
more
workers
joined
unions
and
thus
reinforced
a
pattern

of
suspicion
and
mistrust
that
shaded
labor‐management
relations
for
decades