Monday, September 22, 2008

DQ

Frederick Winslow Taylor, author of “The Principles of Scientific Management,” plainly lays out the guidelines for scientific management and provides more than enough examples of how it is used, and he feels strongly that it can improve any workplace. The process is summarized in his groupings:

First. They develop a science for each element of a man’s work, which replaces the old rule-of-thumb method.
Second. They scientifically select and then train, teach, and develop the workman, whereas in the past he chose his own work and trained himself as best he could.
Third. They heartily cooperate with the men so as to insure all of the work being done in accordance with the principles of the science which has been developed.
Fourth. There is an almost equal division of the work and the responsibility between the management and the workmen. The management take over all work for which they are better fitted than the workmen, while in the past almost all of the work and the greater part of the responsibility were thrown upon the men. (Taylor 15-16)

Scientific management is more than just Taylor’s theory. It applies to my own job experience. For the past two and a half years I have worked at Dairy Queen making ice cream cones, cheeseburgers, interacting with customers, etc. After reading Taylor’s book I realize that scientific management is much more efficient at my job than the “initiative and incentive” management (14).

The First group dictates the need for developing certain ways to do things. For example, at Dairy Queen, using the cash registers and drive-thru headsets, cooking burgers, and making ice cream cones are all to be done in a specific way. If they are not done properly, customers will not be satisfied, and equipment could possibly be damaged. The upper-management, such as shift managers and the store owner, control these regulations in order to create a positive dining experience for our customers.

Next, the Second group explains that management selects workers who are qualified to do the job. At Dairy Queen prospective employees fill out job applications so that the management knows before hiring anybody what their skills are. Then they choose who they think would be best and interview them to further weed out incompetent workers. Newly hired workers are initially in a “training” period for about two to three months where everything they need to know is demonstrated, and during which time they practice making products with the help of an experienced worker or a shift manager.

As the Third group states, the managers cooperate with the workers to insure that everything is being done the way they had intended, which is exactly what happens at Dairy Queen. On every shift, there is some type of management alongside the workers, supervising efficiency and accuracy, and offering encouragement to those who are less adept.

Lastly, the Fourth group of scientific management, in which the management and workers share responsibility appropriately and the management takes on the tasks that the workers are unable to do, applies to the way Dairy Queen is run. Although management is paid more money, they do the same job as the workers. They make blizzards and burgers and interact with customers, just as the other workers do, but they also take inventory for the store and do reports, which basically confirm that the registers have the correct amount of money in them, because they are more fit to do so.

Scientific management is definitely a solid foundation for a successful workplace, as demonstrated by the Dairy Queen example and the examples in Taylor’s books, and can improve anything that uses a different system.

3 comments:

Matt Carrick said...

I think you have the beginning of a good essay here. You lay out and elaborate the concepts well and in a way that makes them very clear. Then you apply them to a situation that a modern reader can relate to. That's all very good. But you don't make any argument of your own. You just tell us what Taylor said and then agree with him. Since you agree with Taylor's methods and his ideas, then maybe you could expand on them. Say "That is good, but this would be better."

Also I think your opening paragraph needs some revision. Your first sentence probably ought to be split up into two or three sentences. Also, before just throwing the term 'groupings' out there, since Taylor uses the word in a fairly specific manner, it might help to describe why he created them and what purpose they serve to his goal. I would say the same for his use of the term 'scientific'. The way that he uses the term is more specific than our contemporary use of it so just a sentence or two addressing that might be in order.

I think your post is very well written and well put together, I would just like to see more of it.

Charity said...

Okay, revised essay.






Frederick Winslow Taylor, author of “The Principles of Scientific Management,” explores the method of scientific management, while explaining the four steps involved, and provides more than enough examples of how it is used. He feels strongly that this technique can improve any workplace. Each step, according to Taylor, is a necessary duty, and can be summarized by the following:

First. They develop a science for each element of a man’s work, which replaces the old rule-of-thumb method.
Second. They scientifically select and then train, teach, and develop the workman, whereas in the past he chose his own work and trained himself as best he could.
Third. They heartily cooperate with the men so as to insure all of the work being done in accordance with the principles of the science which has been developed.
Fourth. There is an almost equal division of the work and the responsibility between the management and the workmen. The management take over all work for which they are better fitted than the workmen, while in the past almost all of the work and the greater part of the responsibility were thrown upon the men. (Taylor 15-16)

Scientific management, also referred to as “task management,” does not mean the same as the modern meaning of the word scientific (12). Taylor uses the word to mean structured and organized. In comparison to science, which is definite and constant, the results of scientific management will never change. This type of management is more than just Taylor’s theory. It applies to my own job experience. For the past two and a half years I have worked at Dairy Queen making ice cream cones, cheeseburgers, interacting with customers, etc. After reading Taylor’s book I realize that scientific management is much more efficient at my job than the “initiative and incentive” management, in which workers give their best initiative in an effort to be rewarded with some type of incentive (14).

The First duty of scientific management dictates the need for developing certain ways to do things. For example, at Dairy Queen, using the cash registers and drive-thru headsets, cooking burgers, and making ice cream cones are all to be done in a specific way. If they are not done properly, customers will not be satisfied, and equipment could possibly be damaged. The upper-management, such as shift managers and the store owner, control these regulations in order to create a positive dining experience for our customers.

Next, the Second duty explains that management selects workers who are qualified to do the job. At Dairy Queen prospective employees fill out job applications so that the management knows before hiring anybody what their skills are. Then they choose who they think would be best and interview them to further weed out incompetent workers. Newly hired workers are initially in a “training” period for about two to three months where everything they need to know is demonstrated, and during which time they practice making products with the help of an experienced worker or a shift manager.

As the Third duty states, the managers cooperate with the workers to insure that everything is being done the way they had intended, which is exactly what happens at Dairy Queen. On every shift, there is some type of management alongside the workers, supervising efficiency and accuracy, and offering encouragement to those who are less adept.

Lastly, the Fourth duty of scientific management, in which the management and workers share responsibility appropriately and the management takes on the tasks that the workers are unable to do, applies to the way Dairy Queen is run. Although management is paid more money, they do the same job as the workers. They make blizzards and burgers and interact with customers, just as the other workers do, but they also take inventory for the store and do reports, which basically confirm that the registers have the correct amount of money in them, because they are more fit to do so.

Scientific management is definitely a solid foundation for a successful workplace, as demonstrated by the Dairy Queen example and the examples in Taylor’s book, and can improve anything that uses a different system.

Adam Johns said...

Matt - ok feedback.

Charity - I'm not sure about your discussion of scientific management vs. science as such. While Taylor certainly believes that the behavior of workers under SM should never vary, that doesn't mean that the managers can't change what they want the workers to do - that's just an example of the subtle problems that your definition could get into.

Now, for the rest of the paper. By ignoring what Taylor means by "scientific" you're able to explain away any gap between what Dairy Queen does and what Taylor advocates. I'm not saying that you couldn't claim that DQ is scientifically managed - but you ignore any possible difficulties.

For instance, on what basis do you say "job application = scientific selection"? The way to go about answering this would be to go to Taylor's text and remind yourself of what *he* means by scientific management - e.g., picking the man of "the type of the ox," and verifying that he can move 40 tons of pig iron a day or whatever. Similarly, when you claim that "scientific" means "certain" you ignore, for instance, his emphasis on time-motion studies.

In short: you dodge Taylor more than engaging with him. This seems like it *should* work, but you aren't answering even the most obvious questions...