Organizational Behavior on Henry Ford - Essay Example

This plays on what Gilbreth, a famous industrial/organizational psychologist, called time-and-motion theory. This is a way in which Ford was able to produce automobiles at an accelerated rate by giving everyone a designed task and forming the assembly line. Originally, Ford designed a static assembly line, but as his time-and-motion theory developed, he employed the use of a conveyor system to make a moving assembly line, which increases production. This also brought into the field of engineering psychology to see how to design this work environment so it was safe for workers but maximized efficiency.

This idea of production worked so well that it became fundamental during the world wars in order for the United States and other countries to produce military vehicles. In today’s society, we now operate on the concept of the automated assembly line in which we program machines to create the products allowing for work to continue on the assembly line almost 24/7. Many companies have taken the original idea of the assembly line and applied it to their business (Batechelor, 1994). Another way in which Ford was able to maximize production which was through the concept of interchangeable parts that helped make the assembly line run efficiently.

Prior to interchangeable parts, if something on the Model T was broken, an entirely new part would have to be created. The idea of creating multiple parts ensures that if a part breaks, there is an immediate identical part that can be used to replace it. This minimizes the skill level necessary to complete the repair decreases the amount of time required to accomplish this. This has made an impact now not only in the professional world but also as a general consumer behavior (Freeman & Soete, 2004).

Ford was a believer in the American Dream. In this respect, he was always trying to make sure that he kept job satisfaction high in order to keep turnovers low.