Applications of Scientific Management Scientific management involves an ideal system because it ensures the fulfilment of objectives of the company while at the same time advocating for the wage wage inter interest ests s of worke workers rs by consi conside derin ring g comp compet etiti itive ve wage wage as the the prima primary ry incent incentive ive for the coope cooperat ration ion and enhan enhance ced d perf perform ormanc ance e of worke workers. rs. The The scie scient ntif ific ic appr approa oach ch also also enab enable les s busi busine ness ss firm firms s to gain gain cont contro roll over over the the production production and fulfilment fulfilment of orders through clearly communicated communicated guidelines and standards. standards.
However, However, in practice, practice, application application is varied largely because of the
differences in the contexts of different business firms, even companies belonging to the same same indus industry try such such as the produ producti ction on indus industri tries es.. As such such,, scient scientifi ific c mana managem gement ent has no singl single e appli applica catio tion n or resul results ts when when appli applied ed by actua actuall business firms in the US or in other regions. There are business firms that adopted only aspects of scientific management while others merged scientific management management with other strategies. strategies. Regardless Regardless of the means of utilising scientific management, the important thing is for business firms to determine the effective ways of applying this strategy to meet their needs and objectives and achieve the desired desired results. results. Moreover Moreover,, companie companies s implem implementi enting ng scientif scientific ic manage management ment experienced successes and problems alike. The cases discussed below express the application of scientific management in actual business settings. In many ways McDonalds is the archetypical example of an organization employing Scientific Management in production. Within this restaurant chain, uniformity is complete; no matter what country you are in every branch of McDonalds is the same, as are the methods used to prepare food, clean floors, promote staff and lock up on closing. It is this ability to efficiently supply standard food and service throughout the world that has allowed McDonalds to become the biggest restaurant chain on the planet . Scie Scient ntif ific ic
mana manage gem ment ent
devel evelop oped ed
as
an
alte altern rnat ativ ive e
syst system em
for for
larg large e
manufacturing companies so that best studies on the application of scientific management include Ford and Toyota, with Ford as the earlier model for the
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application of scientific management. Ford applied scientific management in its mass production plants through division of labour and specialisation of tasks. In the completion of tasks, Ford applied strong hierarchical control so that workers performing tasks in the production line were assigned to a single repetitive task. Scientific management had a number of manifestations in Ford’s employment policies. First is the mechanisation of its mass production processes so that management management is highly technical and separated from humanistic humanistic consideration. In a way, way, scientif scientific ic manage management ment propou propounded nded the view that workers workers constit constitute ute instrume instruments nts or tools tools of product production ion subject subject to allocati allocation, on, control control or directio direction. n. Second is the fragmentation of work into clear stages and the assignment of people to these stages to complete the tasks. Since the assembly line constitutes a single process divided into phases, there is need to ensure that the people assigned in each phase are able to complete their work efficiently in order to prevent delays in the production process. Third is the specialisation of tasks in order to provide unskilled workers with the experience they need to be able to accomplish their work efficiently. (2003) Ford Ford
app applied lied
scie scient ntif ific ic
manag anagem emen entt
by
esta establ blis ishi hing ng
a
stro strong ng
management group and providing guidelines and standards for its workers so that that there there is a defin defined ed autho authorit rity y and and task task requ require ireme ments nts formi forming ng part part of the the manageme management nt plan of the compan company. y. Moreover Moreover,, Ford provided provided basic basic technica technicall training to its workers based on their specialisations. However, there are also devi deviat atio ions ns in Ford Ford’s ’s appl applic icat atio ion n of scie scient ntif ific ic mana manage geme ment nt incl includ udin ing g the the dehumanisation of the workforce so that the focus is only on the interests of the firm. This is different from scientific management because this process provides that through cooperative employment relations, both the interests of the company and the work workers ers can be achie achieve ved d throu through gh detai detaile led d plans plans.. This This means means that that workers cannot be treated merely as tools for production. Nevertheless, Ford’s
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Another large manufacturing company that patterned its management strategy from scientific management is Toyota. The company established Toyota Production System, which finds basis on the idea that plans and organises not only the manufacturing process but also dual relationships with its suppliers and end consum consumers ers.. The The purpos purpose e of the the produ producti ction on syste system m is to addr address ess the overbur overburdeni dening ng of aspects aspects of producti production on and relation relationship ships, s, the prevent prevention ion of inconsistencies in the work or phase alignments, and the elimination of wastes or delays. As such, the production system was intended to address a number of objectiv objectives es includi including: ng: 1) the continuity continuity of motion motion of workers workers and machin machine; e; 2) minimisation of the waiting period of workers and machine; 3) conveyance or logi logist stic ics s to tran transp spor ortt raw raw mate materi rial als s to the the plan plantt and and fini finish shed ed prod produc ucts ts to distri distribut bution ion channe channels; ls; 4) proce processi ssing ng of orders orders and and keep keeping ing sched schedule ules; s; 5) organising inventory of raw materials to ensure that resources are available to meet sudden surges in demand without resulting to waste in case of decreases in demand; and 6) making efficient the correction of errors through the reworking and scrapping of resources to prevent wastage by recycling parts. (2004) Toyota applied scientific management with managers taking charge of the processes and workers through thoroughly applied standards and guidelines in order order to ensur ensure e that that whene whenever ver the prod product ucts s are are sold sold there there are are alway always s new new products as replacement in order to always have products that meet demand. As such, through strong leadership and direction, Toyota was able to minimise leadtime as well as reduce cost while at the same time enhancing product quality. The scienti scientific fic aspect aspect of Toyota’ Toyota’s s producti production on system system involves involves the correlat correlations ions arising between certain events and processes that enable the company to take charge of present production as well as derive expectations of future levels of production. production. As such, other companies have used Toyota’s production production system as a model, although no other company has achieved the greatest results more than
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brand brand produc produced ed in Kentu Kentucky cky estab establis lishe hed d in 1795 1795.. The The comp compan any y addr address esses es intern internati ationa onall deman demand d so that that the bulk bulk of prod product uction ion neede needed d requir required ed the the company to consider management strategies that enabled the company to meet international demand. As such, the firm applied work standards that allowed workers three bathroom breaks, including one before lunch, one during lunch, and the last one after lunch. Workers are also given one bathroom break that is unsch unschedu eduled led.. The The failur failure e of worke workers rs to meet meet with with these these limits limits is subje subject ct to warnin warnings, gs, fines fines and and even even dismi dismissa ssall in case case of frequ frequent ent infrac infractio tions ns.. Thes These e guide guidelin lines es were were imple impleme mente nted d as part part of the organ organisa isatio tion n of the the produ producti ction on process intended to meet scheduled demand. As such, scheduled and limited bathroom breaks was necessary to ensure control of production process and ensure that workers are able to effectively meet the targeted quota. ( 2002) Applied scientific management system that adhered to Ford’s application of scientific management by having a planned production process that includes the expected actions of workers so that even bathroom breaks breaks are regulated. regulated. By controlling processes, ensured the achievement of its goals. However, similar to the other other comp compan anies ies,, Jim Beam Beam applie applied d scien scientif tific ic mana managem gemen entt witho without ut its humanistic factors.