Work design

Question 1

Why is control over work needed?

Answer 1

• Plan objectives
• Establish standards
• Monitor performance
• Compare achievement against targets

Question 2

Insights into Taylorism

Answer 2

• Between 1880 and 1910, America underwent rapid industrialisation
• Workers in the influx of new factories were from Agricultural regions of America or were European immigrants
• The workers were unskilled, had little knowledge of the English language and no experience of disciplined work
• This was a massive organisational problem
• Frederick Taylor developed and implemented their ideas. Belief in rationalism - the theory that reason is the foundation of certainty in knowledge

Question 3

Methods and objectives of Taylorism

Answer 3

• Taylorism was aimed at rationality of workers and employees
• It was used to establish discipline and efficiency, by individualising work with simple and easy tasks. These tasks were often easy, menial and repetitive but easy to measure for managers
• Taylors objectives were to achieve
  EFFICIENCY - by increasing output per worker and reducing underworking by employees
  PREDICTABILITY - of job performance by standardising tasks and dividing them into small sub-groups
  CONTROL - by establishing discipline through hierarchical authority

Question 4

Criticisms of Taylorism

Answer 4

• Represents an inadequate conception of the psychology of work
• Treats employees as machines and de-skills workers
• Can cause resistance / low trust in workplace
• Provides management with bureaucratic control
• Misconceives what motivates employees

Question 5

Shift towards human relations approach

Answer 5

• From control and inflexibility to learning, engagement and development
• Relates to an understanding of the role of human psychology
• Job design and skill level debates
• Elton Mayo - empirical evidence of the impact of informal groups and managerial attitude on performance
• Increased autonomy for individuals
• Benefits of team working

Question 6

Elton Mayo

Answer 6

• Workers are not just concerned with money, but could be better motivated by having social needs met at work
  Mayo concluded workers are best motivated by;
  
  • Better communication with managers
  • Greater management involvement
  • Managers should have greater involvement in employees working life

Question 7

Human relations approach

Answer 7

A school of management thought which emphasises the importance of social processes at work
Employees must work together, communicating and providing motivation to get things done. Without a stable and inviting workplace culture, challenges managing employees occur

Question 8

Benefits of HR approach

Answer 8

• Improves retention - turnover is costly, making sure quality employees remain interested requires patience and attention but makes business more financially sound
• Motivation and productivity - workplace relations provide a source of motivation which in turn increases productivity

Question 9

Criticisms of HR approach

Answer 9

• Focus is on happiness at work, leaving aside other aspects of relevance such as satisfaction and opportunity for development
• Indirect and more covert attempt of manipulation and exploitation of workers
• Just another attempt at increasing productivity but not worker relations

Question 10

Amazon and scientific management

Answer 10

• Workplace governed by data-driven surveillance, vicious humanity effacing competitiveness and intolerable working hours
• Workers are fiercely monitored and pitted against one another. There is an underlying framework of continuous improvement algorithm
• Warehouses are “Taylorist dreams.” In which, movement, shelving and packaging of goods are broken down into subtasks, usually measured to the second
• Three strikes and you’re out

Question 11

Google and human relations management

Answer 11

• Voted best place to work by Forbes magazine 4 years in a row
• Lavish maternity and paternity plans. Free gourmet food and on site laundry are juts some of the benefits google offer their employees
• Googles benefits may sound excessive, but they are not from a bottom line perspective. They rarely throw money away, closely monitoring all of the employee benefits offered and their effects
• Policies are cost effective - saves on recruitment due to low turnover