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Critically Assess the Ways in Which F.W. Taylor's Scientific Management Theory Has Influenced Has Influenced Contemporary Management Practice

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Submitted By niks96
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Introduction
The principles of today's management goes back to the mid 1990's when an article named the “principles of scientific management” was published by Fredric Winslow Taylor who pioneered the term ‘scientific management’ in 1911. He defined scientific management as a study to increase productivity by methodologically studying the correlation between the individual and the task for the purpose of reconstructing and improving the work process (Jones and George, 2003).
In the 19th and 20th century working hours were long, intense and confined, which resulted in the workers performing their tasks slower (Brodner, 2007). These issues caught the attention of Fredrick Winslow Taylor who was from the industrial revolution era, which was previously characterized by mass production (Asyali and Bastug, 2014). His intention was to increase the efficiency of the workforce by scientifically studying how work was done and by improving each stage without wearing out the laborers (Ahlstorm, 2014).

Principles of scientific management
After conducting various experiments he derived 4 principles, which contributed to the various management practices upheld in the 20th century (Giannantonio and Hurley-Hanson, 2011). First, science not the rule of thumb. In the industrial revolution managers relied on their personal judgment to resolve issues also referred to as the rule of thumb but all such approaches by the managers would not be efficient. Taylor felt that to increase productivity the rule of thumb had to be removed and replaced with which can be formulated by looking at those methods which worked best and standardizing that method to be followed throughout the industry. Second, harmony not discord, Taylor believed that in order to co-exist in a harmonious relationship for a manager and workers, the organization should change the way they think. According to Taylor, a

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