The Advantages and Disadvantages of Scientific Management - Essay Example

Topic: Lecturer: Presentation: This paper discusses the advantages and disadvantages of scientific management in other words referred to as Tylorism, which is based on the work of F.W. Taylor by the end of the 19th century. Tylor was motivated by US President Theodore Roosevelt in his address to the governors of the White House (1904) prophetically remarked that, “The conservation of our national resources is only preliminary to the larger question of national efficiency…”. The principles of scientific management were adopted by organizations between 1910 and 1920 before it became outdated in the 1930s. Some organizations still use some scientific management principles. Introduction Scientific management is a multifaceted approach in an organization that is significant in the accomplishment of an organization’s mission. It is a result oriented management technique in contrast to the conventional way of focusing on activity time frame, financial plan as well as the laid out terms and conditions. Scientific management is focused on how to increase efficiency in production, reducing wastage of time and resources and application of empirical techniques in decision making. Organizations benefit from using scientific management especially through increased economic effectiveness and labor productivity. Nevertheless, some disadvantages might be experienced in the long-run, such as decreased employee satisfaction. Following are some advantages and disadvantages of applying the principles of scientific management in organizations. Advantages of Scientific Management Scientific management was focused on the application of innovative and better methods of production, waste reduction and efficiency in the production processes. Division of labor is clearly defined, with the management enhancing the skills of employees through training and development in their areas of specialization. Wages and rewards are pegged to the output and therefore employees work hard to increase their earnings, which translate to improved productivity (Bhatt, 2002). Davenport (1999) argues that the scientific management approach is based on the premise that the organizational goals can only be accomplished through enhancement of procedures in the workplace and providing the necessary resources for the task. Managers therefore tend to focus on enhancement of the capacity of personnel through provision of equipment and standardized procedures to accomplish tasks efficiently. The management approach reduces the cost per unit of production through consistency and effective supervision for better quality products. In the accomplishment of strategic objectives, scientific management puts the organization in a competitive advantage through optimal use of resources as well as making informed decisions (Hoyle, 2006). A competitive advantage is accomplished through a labor force that is strengthened by a culture of co-operation between the management and subordinates. All efforts are geared towards an end result that increases customer satisfaction (Cleland, 1995). A competitive position is maintained in the organization by maintaining reliable information flow. This is significant for the senior managers to deal with emerging problems before the project plan is adversely affected. The organizational teams are able to accomplish tasks with a clear vision regarding the expected outcome and hence understand their roles as well as how their actions are connected to the broader picture of the organizational goal (Begg and Ward, 2006). Duplication of roles in the organization is therefore avoided especially due to the presence of effective communication, which on the other hand increases enthusiasm in the workforce and hence improved output (Bhatt, 2002). Under scientific management, recruitment and selection are accomplished scientifically whereby the right candidate is selected for the exact position that he/she is competent in. This strategy minimizes time wasting since the new employee gets down to work immediately after selection. The work processes are highly systematized and workers follow laid down procedures hence minimizing stress in the workplace. Scientific management is significant in making strategic choices to support the projects that need immediate attention as well as those that can be implemented in future (Kemp, 2006). It integrates major organizational processes of strategic planning, tactical setting of organizational goals as well as the management of the business projects. It helps in the effective allocation of the scarce resources (Boddy & Buchanan, 1999). According to Fretty (2006), scientific management generates the view of projects in the organization as investments. This is significant for the accomplishment of the overall goal due to the fact that money is sacrificed to finance the organization’s business strategy, generally indicating that projects are investments that enhance the realization of strategic objectives (Roberts, 2009). Investments were viewed by Barker and Cole (2009) to be binding due to the fact that the initial outlay has to be recovered through accrued benefits. When projects are considered as investments, they bind the implementers to ensure that every action brings positive results to ensure that the eventual outcome is not affected (Nokes and Kelly, 2007). In other words, organizations use scientific management to increase accountability among the project implementation teams. Managing investments is focused on strategic objectives of organizations such as market share reduced cost of production, shareholder value as well as customer satisfaction among others. The time it takes or the resources required for such objectives to be accomplished are not as important as the outcome of the organizational objectives (Stutely, 2006). The eventual product is expected to improve organizational efficiency. The more customers are satisfied the higher the productivity. Accomplishment of the strategic objectives reflects the entirety of project development and financing (Harold, 2009). Scientific management helps to accomplish the desired improvements in an organization. It is significant in the avoidance of failure through perceiving the business needs in a strategic approach (Meredith and Mantel, 2009). Disadvantages of Scientific Management Scientific management may be abused to exploit workers as managers strive to maximize labor productivity. The practice is characterized by a high level of control of the human resources and the manner in which they undertake their organizational tasks regardless of their job satisfaction. The organizational strategies are focused on output rather than employee satisfaction (Robbins, 2004). In the long-run, a company applying scientific management may suffer from high employee turnover and hence increased recruitment costs and loss of skilled manpower. The management approach does not take in to consideration the significance of strategic human resource practices such as maintenance of a work-life balance, capacity building through further training, career and personal development. In other words, the strategy maintains high performance in the workplace through enhancing the operations of the systems in place. The method is focused on how to increase efficiency in production, reducing wastage of time and resources and application of empirical techniques in decision making rather than involving the employees in making critical decisions. The organization’s personnel are provided with a working framework which has to be adhered to otherwise the organizational operations will be disrupted. The method of performing each job in scientific management is definite and standard. Workers are not allowed to introduce new ideas in the workplace. The method leaves no room for creativity or problem solving through workers’ initiative in the workplace. Workers do not brainstorm to establish the best way to approach tasks (Meredith and Mantel, 2009). The planning function is separated from the implementing function hence feedback mechanisms may not be sufficient. Managers are the overall decision makers and they do not negotiate with the employees regarding the decisions made in the organization. Workers are presented with written guidelines that emerge from the deliberations of managers. Their opinions are not given much thought and therefore they are required to adjust themselves to fit in the work plan of the management (Hatch & Cunliffe, 2006). Each worker is assigned tasks and standards of performance established. This makes it difficult for employees to work in groups and hence the management approach may not be appropriate for management of teams or work groups. Moreover, people are placed in work processes as components of the entire system. They are viewed as machines hence disregard for the value of human capital in organizational productivity. There is also a tendency to over emphasize on the measurement of output without considerations of hard work (Harold, 2009). Conclusion Scientific management acts as a link between the tasks and the objectives for which the organization exists and is focused on increased efficiency and reduced wastage. It is significant in making the desired improvements in the organization. The management approach is significant in accomplishing the organization’s strategic objectives. Managers are able to adjust the implementation plan to match with the changes occurring in the operating environment. Duplication of roles is avoided as the management teams share roles. Organizations engaging in scientific management are able to develop strategic responses to cope with a dynamic operating environment. With regard to strategic human resource practices, scientific management is considered to be unresponsive. It may lead to overexploitation of workers in the name of maximizing labor productivity. Employees are disregarded in the decision making process and hence have no chance for creativity. The approach may not be appropriate for groups and teams. Workers are treated as machines in the production processes. References Barker, S. and Cole, R. 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