Management Process & Organizational behavior
ASSIGNMENT NO-2

Q1) Compare and contrast Taylor’s philosophy of management and Gilbreth Couple’s philosophy of management.
Answer
Frederick Winslow Taylor is regarded as the father of scientific management and was one of the first management consultants, and Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, are known as the ‘Gilbreth couple’.
The main basis on which the management philosophies of both Taylor and The Gilbreth Couple, can be compared and contrasted is their respective work on TIME AND MOTION STUDIES, while Taylor was more concerned with ‘saving time and energy’ and focused primarily on the “saving time” aspect and the standardization of tasks, his time studies had to work in unison with the motion studies of frank and Lillian Gilbreth who included the concept of ‘fatigue’ in the time and motion studies.
Time study developed in the direction of establishing standard times, while motion study evolved into a technique for improving work methods. The two techniques became integrated and refined into a widely accepted method applicable to the improvement and upgrading of work systems. This integrated approach to work system improvement is known as methods engineering, and it is applied today to industrial as well as service organizations, including banks, schools and hospitals.

THE OBJECTIVE OF CONDUCTING TIME AND MOTION STUDIES

The main objective of a time and motion study is to determine reliable time standards for the efficient and effective management of operations. Through the establishment of reliable and accurate time standards, companies can better define their capacity or output, thus increasing the efficiency of equipment and obtaining optimum utilization of the workforce.
Time standards can be used to investigate the difference between actual and standard performance and take appropriate action where necessary. It can also be used to facilitate job design as a basis for comparing different work methods, introducing sound production controls, designing an efficient workplace layout, and balancing between work schedules and available manpower. Other benefits include budgetary control, development of incentive plans, and ensuring that quality specifications are met.
According to Taylor, time study is a direct and continuous observation of a task, using a timekeeping device (e.g., decimal minute stopwatch, computer-assisted electronic stopwatch, and videotape camera) to record the time taken to accomplish a task and it is often used when: * there are repetitive work cycles of short to long duration, * wide variety of dissimilar work is performed, or * Process control elements constitute a part of the cycle.

The Gilbreths showed the importance of the total working environment by reducing unnecessary motions.
The Gilbreths's best known experiment involved bricklaying. Through carefully scrutinizing a bricklayer's job, Frank Gilbreth reduced the number of motions in laying a brick from 17 to about 5. Hence the bricklayer both increased productivity and decreased fatigue.[9]
The Gilbreths developed what they called therbligs ("therblig" being "Gilbreth" spelled almost backwards), a classification scheme comprising 17 basic hand motions

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