Discuss the respective contributions of the scientific management Essay

Discuss the respective contributions of the scientific management approach and the human relations approach to managing people i - Essay Example However, human relations approach to managing people has not been able to totally replace the scientific management approach in all industries. In fact Richardson (1996) considers modern strategic management as the major problem causer in modern society rather than problem-solver. Richardson finds that scientific management is alive and used for strategic development in the highly competitive and productivity-conscious, organized world. Through time and motion studies it is possible to break down the work into simple tasks which could then enable the management to find the one best way to handle the task. Through this method it is possible to break down every step to the extent that it is possible to determine the amount of time that the worker could be allowed a break for drinking water. The workers then have to work like automated machines. Thus, to make the most effective use of human resources people have to be managed in this way. This principle of scientific management can ampl y be found in the way the fast food industry manages mass production based on the management principles of efficiency, calculability, predictability and control (Allan, Bamber, Timo, 2006). This sector is based on the classic Taylorist principles. Jobs are simplified, routinised and there is clear division of labor. ... There is practically no human relations approach in this sector even though they have developed the production system based on Taylorist principles. Taylor maintained that workers often performed tasks that were unnecessarily wasteful, hazardous and exhausting (Peck & Casey, 2004). Hence the work should be broken up into small parts and each step should be optimized. Taylor also suggested that the breaking up of the tasks should be done by talking with the workers of the ‘one best way’ (Peck & Casey, 2004) but in the fast food industry employee decision making and discretion have been totally eliminated; workers’ interactions are controlled by employers (Allan, Bamber, Timo, 2006). The fast food sector is thriving globally despite only partially adopting scientific management and not having human relations approach to managing people. A good team needs and informed, intelligent leader, according to Taylor (Darmody, 2007). Managers have the responsibility of motiva ting their employees and instructing them of the best way of performing the task. The aim is to attain efficiency and maximize productivity. Taylorism or the scientific management separates the labor process from the skills of workers. The jobs are simplified and routinised so that less skilled workers would be able to comfortably work on it and the management would be less dependent on skilled workforce. It also states that the conception and planning should be in the hands of the management while the shop floor is concerned only with the execution of predetermined plans. Decision making is centralized and every step of the labor process is controlled through formal rules and procedures. This is precisely what is happening even today not only in the fast food industry but even at the