TAYLOR’S SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT Flashcards
What is scientific managment
The application of scientific principles with the aim of maximising organisational productivity.
What is Taylor’s theory?
Taylor’s theory was about scientific management, it’s not strictly about motivation or motivating staff, but it had huge implications, particularly in the early 20th century in manufacturing firms. The idea was that you could apply scientific principles in order to maximise organisational productivity. - Taking a scientific approach to improving an organisation’s products. Taylors engaged in time and motion studies - An example would be what’s the most efficient movement to make a cup of coffee, where should the milk be, where should the sugar be, where should the water be etc, how quickly can you make that coffee. Then you get workers to learn the technique, so that you can maximise labour productivity.
What does Taylor’s scientific managment include?
Rigorous analysis of each task in the production process
Working out the most efficient method to complete each task through scientific experimentation
Training workers to reproduce the most efficient movements
The assumption that workers are motivated by money
What are some implications of the theory
Many businesses engaged in these time and motion studies
Division of labour and specialisation, so getting the staff really good with the new method - They do that by repeating it all day, so that they can become really good at it
Flow production/ assembly lines
Training staff to follow instructions
Piece rate methods of payment
Need for tall hierarchies and careful supervision
Impact of employee relations - as the managers are the thinkers and the workers are the doers being micromanaged
What is the value of the theory
Highly influential in the 20th century manufacturing
Taylor was an engineer and not a psychologist - he ignored/ did not consider the psychological implications of his finding - He was focused on the scientific logical side of things, rather than the the mental emotional side of things
Did not consider that different factors may motivate other people
