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CroweN6459 CroweN6459
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Posts: 493
4 years ago
What is the difference between scientific management and the human relations movement?
Textbook 
Introduction to Security: Operations and Management

Introduction to Security: Operations and Management


Edition: 5th
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4 years ago
Classical management is based on scientific and administrative management. Scientific management is focused on productivity, while administrative management focuses on the complete organization, looking at ways to increase organizational effectiveness and efficiency. One of the early contributions to classical managerial thought in the United States was based on the works of Frederick Taylor (1856-1915) and the practice of Scientific Management, which is also considered the classical school of managerial thought. Scientific management is premised on the principle that organizations carefully investigate the work activities needed in a company and then set appropriate performance standards that employees should meet. To accomplish this, Taylor recommended the use of scientific fact finding to determine what workers ought to be able to perform, based on their equipment, materials, and the correct way to perform tasks. This fact finding required a systematic analysis of the production processes, examining the true nature of the work, finding the right employees for the job, and making sure that employees had the right tools, machinery, and resources from the company. The goal was to increase the productivity and skill levels of workers. Because appropriate production rates could now be estimated, scientific management could also lead to increased pay for workers if they exceeded normed standards, since they would receive incentive pay for their hard work. As such, the company would benefit through increased productivity, and, employees would perceive the process as fair, especially if they could make more money.
One of the more common ways to scientifically study work was through time studies. These time studies first required that jobs be broken down into their most simplest or rudimentary tasks where an investigator then calculated the time it took to complete each task. Following this analytical stage, the constructive stage then re-designed and standardized each position or job, determining what precise movements were needed by the workers and what tools and other resources were required to maximize production. For example, Taylor applied these principles of scientific management to workers at the Bethlehem Steel Company of South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. These workers were responsible for loading "pig iron," which were 92 pound slabs of iron that they had to load onto rail cars. Through time-and-motion studies, Taylor calculated that an average worker could load 45 tons a day. Based on this calculation, the company then set a norm, expecting that each worker load a minimum of 45 tons; more than 45 tons would result in a bonus for the employee's hard work. There are some drawbacks to this managerial approach. First, the principles of scientific management did not apply well in assembly line factors. In assembly line positions, workers were tied to a rigid production rate. They were dependent on other workers for productivity norms and there were no benefits to getting jobs done earlier or faster because they were paid solely by the hour with no opportunity for bonuses. Furthermore, Scientific Management was found to be dehumanizing. With its concern for production, it did not consider the personal needs of the worker. The focus under scientific management was production rather than the human side of management, where oftentimes the worker was simply considered to be an extension of the machine.
These classical management concepts still exist in the actual practice and mindset of some managers. The need to cut costs, increase productivity, and increase organizational effectiveness are all elements of classical management theory. Beginning in 1930s, another approach to management emerged: the Human Relations Movement. The human relations movement is best associated with psychologist Eton Mayo from Harvard University and his research of how worker productivity could be improved at the Western Electric Hawthorne Plant in Chicago, Illinois (1924-1927). Originally, the primary goal of Mayo’s work was to determine if increased lighting (which Mayo called illumination studies) would improve productivity. In order to determine if lighting was important, Mayo and his team of researchers divided workers into two groups: one group of workers had increased lighting and other group had the same level of lighting. Then, they carefully recorded worker productivity and actions with management. Mayo found increased productivity with both groups. Mayo concluded that the productivity increased markedly over time because of the changed interpersonal relationships between supervisors and workers, where management became more relaxed and better communicated with employees. Upon further investigation on why productivity increased, Mayo determined that people worked harder because they believed that management was concerned about them. This phenomenon was later coined the Hawthorne effect.
From this and other research, the management of organizations shifted from solely production needs to a concern for the worker and participative management. The basic premise of the human relations movement is that the workplace is not simply a production system. Instead, it is a social system that is involved in the production of goods and services where workers have psychosocial needs that need to be met by management and the workplace. This concern for workers and the subsequent theories and practices have been collectively named the human relations movement in management. Since the early Hawthorne Electric studies, many more researchers have used the social and behavioral sciences, sociology, and psychology—to study human behavior in relationship to management and organizations, resulting in a multitude of organizational theories to assist in the development of the re-design of the workplace and managerial activities. Now, motivation, workers’ needs, leadership, worker empowerment, team building and decision-making are just some of the issues that organizations are addressing to improve effectiveness and efficiency and the quality of work life for employees. This change from solely production to human relations also required new forms of management, requiring that managers in contemporary organizations be educated and acutely aware that the management of people is a complex but nevertheless rewarding challenge.
CroweN6459 Author
wrote...
4 years ago
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
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