Why Despite Promotion of Employee Engagement, Organisations Still Want to Exert Tighter Control - Coursework Example

Name Class Unit Introduction Fredrick Taylor introduced scientific management (Taylorism) in the 20th century. The theory main focus was improvement of business through enhanced efficiency. Use of Taylorism enhanced production through standardisation of work and continuous improvement. The theory has divided work into subtasks that lead to job specialisation (Newman & Guy, 1998). The theory have been criticised due to poor employee motivation, dehumanising employee, punishing management and use of structured rules. The systematic approach used by Taylorism was interrupted by the rise of people-centred theories such as Industrial organisational psychology (Zuffo, 2011). The new theories empowered workers and utilised a more holistic approach to productivity and their working environment. Despite the rhetoric of employee engagement, organisations still use scientific management that helps them exert tighter control. This essay will critically evaluate why despite promotion of employee engagement, organisations still want to exert tighter control. Taylor scientific management principle is based on four main principles. The first principle is replacing the rule of thumb with scientific management. This involves basing pay and reward with employee output. The second principle is the scientific employee selection. Employees are selected scientifically, developed and trained. Employees are supposed to be specialised in their tasks. The third principle is based on monitoring employee performance. The management is supposed to monitor employee and ensure that they are efficient. The fourth principle is based on ensuring that management and workers tasks are separated (Newman & Guy, 1998). Managers are supposed to engage in planning and training while employees engage in tasks. Growth of Taylorism The scientific management theory has grown and is being applied in some modern organisation. The first successful use of Taylorism was in 20th century by Ford Motors (Newman & Guy, 1998). Through specialisation, the organisation was able to enhance productivity. Taylor’s method had its focus on hierarchical organisations where functional managers directed tasks to workers. Taylorism was criticised on dehumanising workers by treating them as machines (Koumparoulis & Vlachopoulioti, 2012). Dehumanising workers led to formation of unions to protect workers. The Rise of unionisation brought human factors in workforce management. Criticism of Taylorism brought the human centred management theories. In the 21st century, a lot of activities in the workplace are based on the Taylorism. Use of scientific management has changed the management systems. In most organisations, specialisation is common where tasks are assigned to those who have experience in them. Organisations still support division of labour that have helped in innovation and efficiency (Yang, Liu & Wang, 2013). In modern organisations, employees have been required to increase their knowledge in order to keep their work positions. Scientific management have been used by the modern organisation in solving problems (Trujillo, 2014). Organisations have been carrying out scientific surveys when venturing into a new market or making a product launch. Organisations collect information from the target market and uses scientific methods to analyse them. This helps in coming up with the most viable market. This has been encouraged by organisations with an aim of enhancing efficiency. Fredrick Taylor is considered as the founding father of management philosophy (Yang, Liu & Wang, 2013). His ideas have evolved to fit modern organisations. This can be explained by modern industries where employees are controlled by time clocks. His theory was based on a workplace that has maximum production and reduced ambiguity. The organisation using Taylorism have highly detailed work descriptions and employees are paid based on the output. Jobs are assigned based on the best fit. The main aim is increased production through efficiency and cutting the costs (Koumparoulis & Vlachopoulioti, 2012). To maximise production, workers are supposed to be taught how to work more efficiently. Selection of workers In modern organisations, employees are selected using scientific methods. This is based on Taylorism principle advocating for scientific selection and progressive development. The reason workers are being selected scientifically can be based on the fact that business success depends on the quality of workers (Sekiguchi, 2004). There is use of scientifically based tools such as interviews and tests that were supported by the scientific management theory. Organisations collect information about the candidate and evaluate it. Use of scientific approach to hiring ensures that the firm makes the most accurate hiring decision (Yang, Liu & Wang, 2013). The Scientific selection leads to more benefits to the organisation. An organisation can get the best talent that can perform the required task (Trujillo, 2014). Employee selection and evaluation are a central aspect of Taylorism. Selective hiring is common in most successful organisations. This is through ensuring that organisations have the right employees. Organisations attract a large pool of applicants and outline the critical skills needed. This is based on scientific management where specialisation is upheld. Interview questions are based on the skills that an organisation requires on a particular job (Sekiguchi, 2004). Even in the low paying jobs, employees are selected based on their skills. After selection, employees are trained in an ongoing process. Organisations believe that employees need to acquire new skills that make them more competitive in their role. An organisation that has been following scientific principles in hiring is McDonalds. McDonalds hires non-unionised employees’ mostly high school and college students (Ritzer, 2011). Despite the machine-like structure, the company employee fits perfectly. Modern organisations still uphold training for the employees based on Taylorism. Organisations have realised the importance of having knowledgeable and skilled workers (Pruijt, 2000). In high performing organisations, training is a core component. These are organisations that rely on employee skills and knowledge to resolve problems. Employee training has been a source of competitive advantage for the organisations. Training is a form of investment to an organisation (Trujillo, 2014). This has led to organisations investing a lot in training for their employees. Specialisation Use of scientific management has been used for quality in manufacturing processes. This is applied where manufactured parts are taken through quality product movement based on the part on part interchangeability. This happens in highly specialised plants such as car manufacturing lines. Organisations take the poorly manufactured parts through the quality control unit. In this section, all technical issues are resolved based on the requirements. Despite this, there is team focus that is used in lean manufacturing and quality management programmes. This leads to focus being shifted from individuals to the team. Companies such as Toyota utilises Taylorism in their management structure and tasks while at the same time encouraging teamwork (Pruijt, 2000). Bureaucracy Most of the modern organisations are operated with some level of bureaucracies. There are orderly relationships that have a specific routine. Bureaucracy is embedded in scientific management principles. This is through unity command, scalar chain and control. Some of the most successful organisation has high control on their workforce. An example is McDonalds which highly controls their workers. McDonald’s organisational structure is based on scientific management (Ritzer, 2011). Employees are highly specialised and trained. The organisation has excelled through a hierarchical structure that makes the managers and supervisors have strong control over employees. There is use of technology that ensures that workers are tightly controlled. Despite the tight control, McDonalds have been performing well in the market. The organisation has various ways of motivating the employees to ensure that they are more dedicated to their work (Ritzer, 2011). Use of hierarchical control in the organisation has succeeded due to nature of the business. Most of the employees at McDonalds are temporary hence they may not help much in decision-making. The company employs allot of students on vacation. This is a proof that exerting tighter control can work in modern organisations. The management does the decision making for the whole organisation globally. Reasons for use of Taylorism in modern organisations Taylorism has proved to be advantageous in some organisations. This is based on the type of organisation, type of tasks carried out and the nature of its workforce (Trujillo, 2014). Public organisations functions well through bureaucratic structure. Scientific management principles such as those used in MacDonalds works well in certain situation. When the task to be performed is straightforward, mechanisation can be applied. In McDonalds, tasks are clear cut and employees can easily perform them. The working environment is stable which ensures that the product being made is appropriate. According to Morgan (1997), employees at McDonalds have specialised roles. This implies that they perform the same task repeatedly. This makes it possible for mechanisation to work in the organisation. The reputation held by MacDonalds is based on mechanisation in all its franchise outlets to ensure that their products are uniform (Morgan, 1997). The company gives operating manuals to their franchisees to ensure uniformity in operations. Use of Taylorism in franchises has proved to be of great strategy in success. This is through centralised product design and development where implementation is decentralised. Scientific methods are used to determine the work to be carried out. These organisations use scientifically based selection and training for their employees and job evaluations (Sekiguchi, 2004). In organisations where precision and safety are the main concern, scientific management have proved to be very vital. This involves aircraft maintenance, surgical wards and military (Morgan, 1997). These are the organisation where there require a clear command structure and accountability. In some cases, mechanisation is carried out in specific areas only. This ensures that there is specialised attention in every task. Modern managers’ still exerts supervision and ensures that employees are carrying out the assigned tasks. Based on Taylor’s last principle, the clear division of work between management and workers is still evident in most organisations. Managers plan and supervise work while workers carry out the assigned tasks. Taylorism has helped organisations through enhanced efficiency leading to an increase in production (Pruijt, 2000). In some organisations, employees are paid based on their output. This encourages employees to increase their efforts. Employees who have high output are paid more hence making them motivated to work harder (Trujillo, 2014). Criticism Despite the continuous use of Taylorism in an organisation, they have been highly criticised. Taylorism has severe limitations. Organisations which use Taylorism have difficulty in adapting to changes leading to drastic results (Zuffo, 2011). An example is Toyota recall crisis. Toyota mechanistic management did not allow management in its overseas plants to make major decisions. This made them rely on centralised and bureaucratic management. When the incident that led to recall was identified, the management could not make an immediate decision without consulting the company headquarters in Japan. This made the issue escalate leading to recalls and fines (Heller & Darling, 2012). This is a major problem in a mechanised organisation where there is no ready response to emerging issues. Mechanistic structures do not support innovation. This is because they are based on predetermined outcomes and not innovation. Workers behave as machines to transform the input to output (Zuffo, 2011). Flexibility and need for creativity in most cases outweigh the importance of efficiency. Organisations such as Apple have adopted modern management theories that support creativity and innovation. Use of people-centred management theories have led to the creation of self-management teams. Teams have been a major organisation design. Teams have been used as a substitute for hierarchical control in the workplace (Pfeffer & Veiga, 1999). This makes responsibility and accountability to be shared among all employees. The outcome is a highly responsible workforce and removal of the hierarchical structure. Organisations that employ teamwork have been very successful. Conclusion Taylorism has continued thriving despite promotion of employee engagement based on people-centred management theories. Modern organisations still continue to exhibit elements of scientific management in their operations. Employee selection and development in modern organisations is based on scientific selection. Organisations require the right employees to perform specific tasks. This makes it prudent to select employees who are experienced in their areas of operations. Mechanisation is still evident in some of the most successful organisations. It’s evident that organisations such as McDonalds have been able to thrive through the use of mechanised structure. There is tight control on employees and all franchises follow instructions from management. The main cause for the continued use of Taylorism is based on the type of organisations, the nature of their workers and tasks. Military, public service, surgery wards and aircraft maintenance requires a mechanised structure due to their sensitive nature and need for control. From the essay, it is clear that Taylorism will continue being applied in modern organisations at different levels. This is despite the promotion of the people-centred management theories. References Heller, V. L., & Darling, J. R. 2012, “Anatomy of crisis management: Lessons from the infamous toyota case,” European Business Review, Vol.24, no.2.p. 151-168. Koumparoulis, D. N., & Vlachopoulioti, A. 2012, “The Evolution of Scientific Management,” Evolution, Vol.3, no.2.p.420-424. Morgan, G 1997, ‘Mechanization takes command: organizations as machines’ in Images of organization, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, California, pp.11-31. Newman, M. A., & Guy, M. E. 1998, “Taylor's triangle, Follett's web,” Administrative Theory & Praxis, Vol.20 , no.3, p.287-297. Pfeffer, J., & Veiga, J. F. 1999, “Putting people first for organizational success,” The Academy of Management Executive, 13(2), 37-48. Pruijt, H. 2000, “Repainting, modifying, smashing Taylorism,” Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol.13, no.5, p.439-451. Ritzer, G. 2011, ‘An introduction to McDonaldization’, The McDonaldization of society (6th ed.), SAGE/Pine Forge, Los Angeles, pp. 1-22. Sekiguchi, T. 2004, Person-organization fit and person-job fit in employee selection: A review of the literature. Osaka keidai ronshu, Vol.54, no.6, p.179-196. Trujillo, T. 2014, “The Modern Cult of Efficiency Intermediary Organizations and the New Scientific Management,” Educational Policy, Vol.28, no.2, p.207-232. Yang, C. X., Liu, H. M., & Wang, X. X. 2013, “Organization theories: From classical to modern,” Applied Sci, Vol.13, no.21, p.4470-4476. Zuffo, R. G. 2011, “Taylor is Dead, Hurray Taylor! The “Human Factor” in Scientific Management: Between Ethics, Scientific Psychology and Common Sense,” JBM, Vol. 23.no.1, p.21-38. Read More