The Principles of Scientific Management Flashcards
Frederick Winslow Taylor · Public domain edition · 110 cards · 29 chapters
Frederick Winslow Taylor argues that management’s principal object should be maximum prosperity for both employer and employee, achieved through scientific study of work rather than rule-of-thumb methods. The deck covers his definitions, his analysis of soldiering and its causes, and his claims about output, cooperation, and systematic management.
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Chapter 1 · Question
What does Taylor say is the principal object of management?
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Chapter 1 · Answer
The principal object of management should be to secure maximum prosperity for the employer coupled with maximum prosperity for each employee. Taylor uses 'maximum prosperity' broadly: for the employer it means not only large dividends but development of every branch of the business to its highest excellence so prosperity is permanent; for the employee it means higher wages plus development to maximum efficiency and, when possible, work of the highest grade his natural abilities fit.
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Section 14 cards
What does Taylor say is the principal object of management?
The principal object of management should be to secure maximum prosperity for the employer coupled with maximum prosperity for each employee. Taylor uses 'maximum prosperity' broadly: for the employer it means not only large dividends but development of every branch of the business to its highest excellence so prosperity is permanent; for the employee it means higher wages plus development to maximum efficiency and, when possible, work of the highest grade his natural abilities fit.
Chapter 1
What does Taylor claim is the foundation of scientific management regarding employer and employee interests?
Taylor states scientific management rests on the firm conviction that the true interests of employer and employee are one and the same: prosperity for the employer cannot last for years unless accompanied by prosperity for the employee, and vice versa. He argues it is possible to give the workman high wages and the employer low labor cost. He notes most industrial organization is arranged for war rather than peace, with many on both sides believing interests are antagonistic.
Chapter 1
According to Taylor, what shift is needed from the past idea that 'Captains of industry are born, not made'?
Taylor says the past prevailing idea was that captains of industry are born, not made, and that if the right man were found, methods could be left to him. In the future, he argues, leaders must be trained right as well as born right, and no great man under the old personal management can hope to compete with ordinary men properly organized to cooperate efficiently. He states: in the past the man was first; in the future the system must be first.
Chapter 1
What three purposes does Taylor give for writing this paper?
Taylor lists three aims: first, to point out through simple illustrations the great loss the country suffers through inefficiency in daily acts; second, to convince the reader the remedy lies in systematic management rather than in searching for some unusual or extraordinary man; third, to prove the best management is a true science resting on clearly defined laws, rules, and principles, and that these principles apply to all human activities, from simplest individual acts to great corporations.
Chapter 1
Section 24 cards
According to Taylor, on what condition does maximum prosperity depend?
The author argues that maximum prosperity can exist only as the result of maximum productivity—when each man and each machine turns out the largest possible output. Otherwise, competition prevents employers from paying higher wages than competitors pay. He extends this from two competing companies to whole districts and nations, and says illustrations later in the paper will show companies paying 30 to 100 percent higher wages while earning large dividends.
Chapter 2
What does Taylor identify as the greatest evil afflicting working people?
The author asserts that "soldiering"—deliberately working slowly to avoid a full day's work—is almost universal in industrial establishments and widespread in the building trades. Called "hanging it out" in England and "ca canae" in Scotland, it is, he claims without fear of contradiction, the greatest evil with which working people of England and America are afflicted. He notes men often do only one-third to one-half of a proper day's work.
Chapter 2
What contrast does Taylor draw between sport and work?
Taylor observes that English and American workmen are the world's greatest sportsmen: in baseball or cricket a man strains every nerve for victory, and anyone who fails to give his all is branded a "quitter" and treated with contempt. Yet the same man returns to work and deliberately plans to do as little as he safely can—and would be abused by fellow workers for doing his best, more than if he had been a quitter in sport.
Chapter 2
What does Taylor say eliminating soldiering would achieve?
The author argues that eliminating soldiering would lower production costs, enlarge home and foreign markets, and let firms compete on more than even terms with rivals. It would remove a fundamental cause of dull times, lack of employment, and poverty—more permanently than current curative remedies—and would insure higher wages while making shorter working hours and better working and home conditions possible. He claims it would nearly double output per man and machine.
Chapter 2
Section 33 cards
What three causes of soldiering does Taylor identify in this chapter?
Taylor names three causes: first, the widespread workman's fallacy that increased output throws men out of work; second, defective management systems that make soldiering necessary for workmen to protect their own interests; third, inefficient rule-of-thumb methods still nearly universal in trades, which waste much of the workmen's effort. He argues scientific methods should replace rule-of-thumb practice.
Chapter 3
How does Taylor use the shoe industry to refute the output fallacy?
Taylor argues that machinery cut shoe labor costs, making shoes cheap enough that working-class people now buy one or two pairs yearly and wear them constantly, whereas formerly a workman bought one pair every five years and often went barefoot. Despite vastly increased output per workman, demand rose so much that relatively more men work in the shoe industry than ever before.
Chapter 3
What distinction does Taylor draw between natural and systematic soldiering?
Quoting his 1903 paper 'Shop Management,' Taylor says soldiering has two causes: natural soldiering, the instinct and tendency of men to take it easy, and systematic soldiering, arising from more intricate second thought and reasoning caused by relations with other men. He notes the common tendency to take it easy is greatly increased when men work together at a uniform day rate.
Chapter 3
Section 44 cards
What does Taylor call the greatest evil suffered by workmen and employers?
The author argues that while natural laziness is serious, the far greater evil is systematic soldiering—deliberately working slowly—which he claims is almost universal under ordinary management schemes. It results from workmen carefully studying what will promote their own best interests, and is done largely to keep employers ignorant of how fast work can be done.
Chapter 4
Why do employers' own knowledge of a fair day's work push men to soldier?
Taylor says employers fix a maximum daily sum they think right for each class of employee. Each workman learns this figure and realizes that if the employer becomes convinced he can do more, he will eventually be compelled to do it with little or no increase in pay. Employers' knowledge comes from hazy experience, casual observation, or records of quickest times.
Chapter 4
Under what conditions can day work largely break up soldiering?
Taylor says accurate records of each man's work and efficiency, wages raised as he improves, and discharge of those failing a standard (replaced by carefully selected men) can largely break up both natural loafing and systematic soldiering. But this only works when men are thoroughly convinced no piece work will be established, even in the remote future—nearly impossible when they believe piece work is practicable.
Chapter 4
What is Taylor's third cause of slow work, and his proposed remedy?
The third cause is rule-of-thumb methods: workmen learn by observing those around them, so there are many different ways (perhaps forty, fifty, or a hundred) of doing each act in each trade, and great variety in implements. Taylor argues that among these there is always one method and one implement quicker and better than the rest, and that motion and time study by a competent man yields great savings.
Chapter 4
Section 54 cards
According to Taylor, why can't the best-suited workman understand the science underlying his work?
The author asserts as a general principle that in almost all mechanic arts the science underlying each act is so great that the workman best suited to doing the work is incapable of fully understanding it without guidance and help from those working with or over him—whether through lack of education or insufficient mental capacity.
Chapter 5
What does Taylor say management must do for work to follow scientific laws?
The author argues management must take over and perform much of the work now left to the men, with almost every act of the workman preceded by preparatory acts of management. Each man should daily be taught by and receive friendly help from those over him, rather than being driven by bosses or left to his own unaided devices.
Chapter 5
What results does Taylor claim for the 50,000 workmen under scientific management?
The author claims at least 50,000 U.S. workmen are employed under this system, receiving 30 to 100 percent higher daily wages than similar men around them, while their companies are more prosperous than ever. Output per man and machine has on average doubled, and he says there has never been a single strike under the system.
Chapter 5
What does Taylor say readers mistake about scientific management?
The author argues scientific management fundamentally consists of broad general principles—a philosophy applicable in many ways—and that readers of descriptive papers have unfortunately mistaken the mechanism for the true essence. A description of any one best mechanism for applying the principles should not be confused with the principles themselves.
Chapter 5
Section 64 cards
What two things define the best type of ordinary management, per Taylor?
Taylor defines the best ordinary management as management in which the workmen give their best initiative and in return receive some special incentive from their employers. He calls this the management of "initiative and incentive," contrasting it with scientific management, or task management. Incentives may include promotion, higher wages, shorter hours, or better conditions, ideally joined with personal consideration and friendly contact.
Chapter 6
How does Taylor describe the state of work methods within each trade?
Taylor says that although methods have evolved through generations as a survival of the fittest ideas, there is hardly any element of any trade with uniform methods. Instead of one accepted standard, fifty or a hundred different ways of doing each element are in daily use, because methods are handed down by word of mouth or learned by observation rather than codified, analyzed, or described.
Chapter 6
What does Taylor claim about workmen's willingness to give their initiative?
Taylor states it is well within the mark to say that in nineteen out of twenty industrial establishments, workmen believe it is directly against their interests to give employers their best initiative. Rather than working hard for maximum output and quality, they deliberately work as slowly as they dare while trying to make superiors believe they are working fast.
Chapter 6
What does Taylor say managers must give workmen to obtain their initiative?
Taylor argues managers must offer a special incentive beyond what the average of the trade provides, such as hope of rapid promotion, higher wages through piece-work prices or bonuses, shorter hours, or better working conditions. Above all, this should be accompanied by personal consideration and friendly contact stemming from genuine interest in workers' welfare. He notes that under scientific management, the pay system is merely a subordinate element.
Chapter 6
Section 74 cards
What four new duties does scientific management assign to management?
The chapter groups them under four heads: first, develop a science for each element of a man's work, replacing rule-of-thumb; second, scientifically select, train, teach, and develop the workman; third, heartily cooperate with the men to insure work follows the developed science; fourth, an almost equal division of work and responsibility between management and workmen.
Chapter 7
How does scientific management divide responsibility compared with initiative and incentive?
Under initiative and incentive, each workman bears almost the entire responsibility for the general plan, each detail of his work, and often his implements, plus all physical labor. Under scientific management, the author argues there is an almost equal division: management takes over planning and all work for which it is better fitted, so fully one-half of the problem is up to management.
Chapter 7
What is the task idea and what bonus does it carry?
The author calls the task idea perhaps the most prominent single element of scientific management. Management plans each workman's work at least one day ahead, giving written instructions detailing the task, the means, and the exact time allowed. Success within the limit earns an addition of 30 to 100 percent to ordinary wages, and the pace is regulated to avoid injury to health.
Chapter 7
Why must planning shift from the workman to management?
The author argues it would be physically impossible for a workman to work at his machine and at a desk at the same time, and that in most cases one type of man is needed to plan ahead and an entirely different type to execute. Scientific data require records, indexing, a room for books, and a desk for the planner.
Chapter 7
Section 84 cards
What four elements does Taylor say differentiate the new management from the old?
The chapter refers repeatedly to 'the four elements' that differentiate scientific management from the old management of initiative and incentive, but does not name them here. Taylor says he will not convince readers merely by announcing them; instead he promises to demonstrate their force through practical illustrations, starting with pig-iron handling and rising to more intricate mechanic arts.
Chapter 8
What daily tonnage did the Bethlehem pig-iron gang achieve, and what did Taylor calculate as a first-class day's work?
The gang of about 75 men, under an excellent former pig-iron handler as foreman, was loading about 12.5 long tons per man per day. After study, Taylor found a first-class handler ought to handle between 47 and 48 long tons daily. He says the figure seemed so large that they rechecked their work several times before being sure.
Chapter 8
What three conditions did Taylor set for raising the pig-iron loading rate to 47 tons?
Taylor states it was management's duty to see the 80,000 tons loaded at 47 tons per man per day instead of 12.5, and further to see this done without bringing on a strike, without any quarrel with the men, and with the men happier and better contented at the new rate than at the old.
Chapter 8
How did Taylor select the first workman for the pig-iron experiment?
Taylor says it is an inflexible rule to deal with only one man at a time, since each workman has special abilities and limitations. He watched the 75 men for three or four days, picked four who seemed physically able to handle 47 tons, studied their histories, character, habits and ambition, then chose one: a Pennsylvania Dutchman who trotted a mile home fresh and was building a house on $1.15 a day.
Chapter 8
Section 94 cards
What did Taylor tell Schmidt a 'high-priced man' must do all day?
Taylor told Schmidt that a high-priced man must do exactly as he is told from morning till night by the man standing over him: pick up a pig and walk when told, sit down and rest when told, with no back talk. Schmidt followed these instructions and loaded 47½ tons by 5:30 p.m.
Chapter 9
What wage increase did Schmidt earn under task work at Bethlehem?
Schmidt averaged a little more than $1.85 per day, compared with the $1.15 he had never exceeded before, which was the ruling wage rate in Bethlehem at the time. That is 60 percent higher wages than other men not on task work, and one man after another was trained to the same 47½-ton rate.
Chapter 9
Why did Taylor consider the rough talk appropriate for Schmidt?
The author argues the rough talk would be unkind if applied to an educated mechanic or even an intelligent laborer, but is appropriate for a man of Schmidt's mentally sluggish type. It is effective in fixing his attention on the high wages he wants and away from the work he would probably consider impossibly hard.
Chapter 9
What three of the four elements of scientific management does Taylor say the illustration shows?
Taylor says the illustration describes three of the four elements: first, the careful selection of the workman; second and third, the method of first inducing and then training and helping the workman to work according to the scientific method. He notes nothing has yet been said about the science of handling pig iron itself.
Chapter 9
Section 104 cards
How did workmen control output pace in the piece-work shop?
The workmen jointly planned how fast each job should be done and set a pace for each machine limited to about one-third of a good day's work. New workmen were told exactly how much to produce and, if they disobeyed, were driven out of the place by the men. The shop was effectively run by the workmen rather than the bosses.
Chapter 10
What tactic did workmen use against foremen who pushed for more output?
The men contrived ways to break or damage the machines they ran, making it look accidental or like normal wear, and blamed the foreman for overstraining them. Taylor says few foremen could withstand the combined pressure of all the men in the shop, and this shop's problem was complicated by running both day and night.
Chapter 10
What two advantages did Taylor say came from not being a working man's son?
First, the owners trusted his word over the machinists', so the Superintendent accepted that men were deliberately breaking machines and let him impose fines for repairs, paid to the mutual beneficial association. Second, because he did not live among the workmen, their social pressure—name-calling, abuse of family, threats—could not force him to conform.
Chapter 10
Why did Taylor tell workmen they were right to resist turning out more work?
He said that under the piece-work system they would earn no more wages than before yet be made to work harder, so as a truthful man he would fight more output in their place. This led him to seek a management change aligning workmen's and management's interests, later described in 'A Piece-Rate System' and 'Shop Management.'
Chapter 10
Section 114 cards
Why did Taylor want a scientific study of work time at Midvale?
The author argues the greatest obstacle to cooperation between workmen and management was management's ignorance of what constitutes a proper day's work. Though foreman, he believed the workmen's combined knowledge and skill was ten times his own. He got President William Sellers's permission to spend money on the study, though Sellers doubted it would yield much value.
Chapter 11
What did the first heavy-labor experiments conclude about foot-pounds and fatigue?
After translating each man's daily work into foot-pounds of energy, the experiments found no constant or uniform relation between energy exerted and tiring effect. A man might be tired out at one-eighth of a horse-power on some work, yet little tired by half a horse-power on others. They failed to find an accurate law, though valuable data on proper day's work was obtained.
Chapter 11
What was the goal of the heavy-labor experiments, as distinct from maximum output?
The experiments were not seeking the maximum work a man could do in a short spurt or for a few days. The endeavor was to learn what constituted a full day's work for a first-class man: the best day's work he could properly do year in and year out and still thrive under. Two first-class laborers were paid double wages and closely observed with a stop-watch.
Chapter 11
What law did Carl G. Barth discover about heavy labor?
The law is confined to work where a man's capacity is reached by being tired out, like a cart horse rather than a trotter. For each given pull or push on the arms, a workman can be under load only a definite percentage of the day. Handling 92-pound pig iron, a first-class man is under load 43 percent of the day; with 46-pound half-pigs, 58 percent.
Chapter 11
Section 124 cards
Why did Schmidt need a man standing over him to direct his rest?
The author argues that without direction, a worker eager for high wages would work so steadily that his muscles would get no rest for recuperation and he would be exhausted by 11 or 12 o'clock. A man who understood the law of heavy labor stood over him day after day until he acquired the habit of resting at proper intervals, letting him work at an even gait all day.
Chapter 12
What rest-to-load ratio did experiments indicate for a first-class pig-iron handler?
The footnote states that experiments indicated a first-class laborer suited to pig-iron handling could be under load only 42 percent of the day and must be free from load 58 percent of the day. This law underlies the claim that such a man could load 47 1/2 long tons per day.
Chapter 12
What mental type did Taylor say was required for pig-iron handling?
The author argues that one of the first requirements for a man fit to handle pig iron as a regular occupation is that he be so stupid and phlegmatic that he more nearly resembles an ox than any other type. A mentally alert and intelligent man is unsuited to such grinding monotony, and the suited workman cannot understand the science of the work.
Chapter 12
How many of the 75 pig-iron handlers could physically handle 47 1/2 tons per day?
Only about one man in eight of the gang of 75 was physically capable of handling 47 1/2 tons per day; the other seven out of eight were physically unable, despite the best intentions. The capable man was not a rare superior specimen but an ordinary man of the ox type, and the company had no difficulty finding all the suited men needed.
Chapter 12
Section 134 cards
Under the old 'initiative and incentive' management, why couldn't workmen properly select themselves?
The author argues that even if they grasped the need for high wages, they are not sufficiently intelligent to do so. Moreover, since their friends or brothers working alongside them would temporarily lose their jobs for being unsuited, the men would be entirely prevented from removing seven out of eight of their gang.
Chapter 13
Why does the author say sympathy for the seven of eight pig-iron handlers thrown out of work is wasted?
The author argues almost all of them were immediately given other jobs with the Bethlehem Steel Company. He claims their removal from pig-iron handling, for which they were unfit, was really a kindness, being the first step toward finding work they were fitted for, at which after proper training they could permanently and legitimately earn higher wages.
Chapter 13
What shovel load did experiments find gives a first-class man his biggest day's work?
Through experiments with two or three first-class shovelers paid extra wages for trustworthy work, gradually varying the load while observers recorded conditions for several weeks, it was found a first-class man does his biggest day's work with a shovel load of about 21 pounds. Loads of 24 or 18 pounds yielded less tonnage, though daily averages may vary 3 or 4 pounds either way.
Chapter 13
How did the 21-pound law change shovel practice at Bethlehem Steel Company?
Instead of each shoveler selecting and owning his own shovel, it became necessary to provide some 8 to 10 different kinds of shovels, each suited to a given material, plus a large tool room storing standardized implements like picks and crowbars. Each workman was issued a shovel holding 21 pounds of whatever material he handled: a small shovel for ore, a large one for ashes.
Chapter 13
Section 144 cards
What stop-watch studies made up the science of shoveling?
Thousands of stop-watch observations timed how quickly a laborer with the proper shovel pushes into the pile and draws out a loaded shovel, studied at the pile body, dirt bottom, wooden bottom, and iron bottom. Similar time studies measured swinging the shovel back and throwing the load for given horizontal distances and heights, across various combinations. With such data plus the law of endurance, the director could teach exact methods and set fair daily tasks.
Chapter 14
How did the pigeonhole paper system signal a workman's performance?
Each morning a workman took two papers from his numbered pigeonhole: one listing the tools to get and where to start, the other giving his previous day's history and earnings. Many were foreigners who could not read, but color told them: yellow meant he had failed his task and earned less than $1.85, warning only high-priced men stayed; white meant all was right.
Chapter 14
Under individualized management, what happened when a workman failed his task?
The author argues that instead of brutally discharging the man or cutting his wages for failing to make good at once, a competent teacher should be sent to show him how the work is best done, guide and encourage him, and study his possibilities. He is given time and help to become proficient at his present job, or shifted to another class of work better suited to him mentally or physically.
Chapter 14
What results did the third year of task work show at Bethlehem?
Yard laborers dropped from between 400 and 600 to about 140. Tons per man per day rose from 16 to 59, average daily earnings from $1.15 to $1.88, and cost per 2,240-lb ton fell from $0.072 to $0.033, including office, tool-room, and supervision expenses. Total saving that year was $36,417.69, later at $75,000–$80,000 yearly.
Chapter 14
Section 152 cards
Why did Bethlehem refuse to match Pittsburgh's 4 9/10 cents per ton for unloading ore?
At 3 2/10 cents per ton the Bethlehem laborers earned a little over $1.85 per man per day, already 60 percent above the ruling wage around Bethlehem. The chapter reports that experiments and close observation showed a wage increase up to 60 percent beyond usual pay makes men thriftier, better, more sober, and steadier, while much more than 60 percent tends to make many work irregularly and become shiftless, extravagant, and dissipated—so it does not do for most men to get rich too fast.
Chapter 15
What happened to the Bethlehem ore handlers who went to Pittsburgh, and why did they return?
Almost all took the advice to apply to the Pittsburgh works, but within about six weeks most were back at Bethlehem at the old 3 2/10 cents per ton. Patrick explained that he and Jimmy were put on a car with eight other men; when he urged a shirker to work, the man threatened to throw him off the car and the gang backed him, so they shoveled only when he did. Pay-days brought less money than at Bethlehem, and the boss refused them a car of their own, so they brought the gang back.
Chapter 15
Section 164 cards
Why did Pittsburgh managers fail to replicate the Bethlehem shoveling results?
The author states that Pittsburgh managers knew how the Bethlehem results were attained but were unwilling to take the small trouble and expense to plan ahead, assign a separate car to each shoveler, keep an individual record of each man's work, and pay him exactly what he earned. The author argues this shows management must do its share of cooperating with workmen.
Chapter 16
How did Gilbreth reduce bricklayer motions from eighteen to five?
The author identifies three methods: Gilbreth dispensed entirely with movements bricklayers believed necessary but which study showed useless; he introduced simple apparatus, such as an adjustable scaffold and brick packets, eliminating tiresome motions with help from a cheap laborer; and he taught bricklayers to make simple motions with both hands at once instead of completing right-hand then left-hand motions separately.
Chapter 16
What did Gilbreth's adjustable scaffold and brick packets accomplish?
The scaffold, with a table holding all materials, keeps bricks, mortar, man, and wall in proper relative positions and is adjusted as the wall rises by a specially detailed laborer, saving the bricklayer from stooping for each brick and trowel of mortar. Bricks are sorted and placed best edge up on wooden frames so the bricklayer avoids turning or examining each brick.
Chapter 16
What commercial results did Gilbreth report from his bricklaying methods?
The author reports that in a large brick building Gilbreth demonstrated the gains commercially: with union bricklayers on a twelve-inch factory wall with faced and ruled joints on both sides, his selected workmen averaged 350 bricks per man per hour after becoming skillful, versus 120 per man per hour by old methods in that region. Those who failed to profit from teaching were dropped, and proficient men received a substantial wage increase.
Chapter 16
Section 174 cards
Why couldn't a single bricklayer speed up before scientific management?
The author argues that even if individual bricklayers recognized wasteful motions, no one bricklayer could increase his speed alone, because several bricklayers work together in a row and the walls around a building must rise at the same rate. Nor does any workman have authority to make others cooperate. Only enforced standardization, enforced adoption of best implements, and enforced cooperation—enforced by management—can assure faster work.
Chapter 17
What four elements does Taylor say constitute the essence of scientific management?
First, management (not the workman) develops the science of the work, with rigid rules for each motion and standardized implements and conditions. Second, careful selection and training of workers into first-class men, eliminating those who refuse or cannot adopt the best methods. Third, bringing the first-class worker and the science together through constant management help and a large daily bonus. Fourth, an almost equal division of work and responsibility between workman and management.
Chapter 17
What did the bricklayers' union restrict output to, and how does Taylor characterize it?
In one foreign city the bricklayers' union restricted men to 275 bricks per day on city work and 375 per day for private owners. Taylor says members are probably sincere in believing the restriction benefits their trade, but he argues it should be plain that this deliberate loafing is almost criminal, since it raises workmen's families' rents and drives work and trade away from their city.
Chapter 17
Why does Taylor say the bicycle ball inspection case shows selection outweighing science?
Taylor says that while developing the science is usually the most important of the four elements, especially for intricate work, there are instances where scientific selection of the workman counts for more. He offers bicycle ball inspection: at the largest such factory, which ran eight to ten years on ordinary day work, over one hundred twenty girls inspecting hardened steel balls were 'old hands' skilled at the job before reorganization.
Chapter 17
Section 184 cards
Why did Taylor first shorten the inspectors' working hours?
A casual study showed that much of the ten and one-half hour day was spent idle because the working period was too long. Taylor argues hours should be planned so workers "work while they work" and "play while they play." The foreman persuaded girls they could do the same work in ten hours for the same pay, and all he interviewed agreed.
Chapter 18
What happened when the girls voted on shortening the workday?
Taylor had the foreman persuade inspectors that ten hours would match ten and one-half, and those interviewed agreed. Then, thinking he lacked tact, he held a vote, and the girls were unanimous that 10 1/2 hours was good enough and they wanted no innovation. The matter was settled until hours were later cut arbitrarily.
Chapter 18
What is a "personal coefficient" and why did it matter for inspectors?
University experiments measure it by timing how long a subject takes to respond to a suddenly shown letter. Those with quick perception and quick action have a low coefficient; slow ones have a high coefficient. Mr. Thompson recognized that bicycle ball inspectors most needed a low personal coefficient, plus endurance and industry.
Chapter 18
How did Taylor guard quality before pushing for more output?
Because paying for quantity risks deteriorating quality, Taylor first made slighting work detectable through over-inspection: trusted girls re-inspected lots whose identifying numbers were changed, and the chief inspector checked their work. Periodically the foreman prepared lots with counted perfect and defective balls to test honesty and accuracy.
Chapter 18
Section 194 cards
Why did Taylor's team schedule rest periods for the ball inspectors?
Close observation showed that after about an hour and a half of consecutive work the girls began to get nervous and evidently needed rest. Taylor argues it is wise to stop short of the point at which overstrain begins, so they received ten-minute recreation periods at the end of each hour and a quarter—two in the morning and two in the afternoon—during which they had to stop work and were encouraged to walk around and talk.
Chapter 19
What was the differential rate piece work system and what did it reward?
Each girl received a carefully measured daily task demanding a full day's work from a competent operative, plus a large premium or bonus for accomplishing it. Under this system pay increased in proportion to the quantity of output and still more in proportion to the accuracy of the work. Taylor reports the differential rate produced a large gain in quantity while also markedly improving quality.
Chapter 19
Why does Taylor argue profit-sharing and cooperation schemes are only mildly effective?
The author argues a reward must come soon after the work to stimulate men, since few can look forward more than a week or a month. He also claims personal ambition is a more powerful incentive than desire for the general welfare, and that misplaced drones who loaf and share profits drag better men down. He adds difficulties: equitable division of profits, and workmen willing to share profits but not losses.
Chapter 19
What final results did the changes produce for the girls and the company?
Thirty-five girls did the work formerly done by one hundred and twenty, with accuracy two-thirds greater than at the former slow speed. The girls averaged 80 to 100 percent higher wages, had hours cut from 10 1/2 to 8 1/2 with a Saturday half holiday and four recreation periods. The company got better quality, lower inspection cost, and friendly relations that made strikes impossible. Taylor credits careful scientific selection of girls as the single greatest element.
Chapter 19
Section 204 cards
Why does Taylor claim even high-priced mechanics need better-educated helpers?
The author argues that in higher classes of work the scientific laws are so intricate that the high-priced mechanic needs the cooperation of men better educated than himself even more than the cheap laborer does—both to find the laws and to select, develop, and train him to work according to them. This supports his proposition that the workman best suited to doing the work is incapable, through lack of education or insufficient mental capacity, of understanding the science underlying it.
Chapter 20
What did the superintendent doubt, and how was the claim tested?
At a company of about three hundred men making the same machine for ten to fifteen years, the superintendent was displeased and called it boasting when told task management could more than double output with the same men and machines. He then selected an average machine, run ten to twelve years by a first-class mechanic, and a careful record was made of times, speeds, and feeds before scientific management was applied to that one machine.
Chapter 20
What gains did the demonstration lathe show, and through what changes?
Using four elaborate slide-rules, the machine's pulling power, feeding capacity, and proper speeds were analyzed; countershaft and driving pulleys were changed to run it at proper speed, high-speed steel tools of proper shape were dressed and ground, and a special slide-rule indicated exact speeds and feeds. The gain ranged from two and a half times the speed in the slowest instance to nine times in the highest.
Chapter 20
What results did the shop achieve within three years?
Taylor reports that within three years output was more than doubled per man and per machine. Men were carefully selected and almost all promoted to a higher order of work, instructed by functional foremen, and able to earn higher wages than before—about 35 per cent more daily per man—while total wages for a given amount of work were lower. He stresses that changing the men's mental attitude comes only slowly, through object-lessons.
Chapter 20
Section 214 cards
Why could a slide-rule-equipped man outpace an experienced mechanic at machine work?
Because the art of cutting metals is a true science of great complexity. The scientifically equipped man understood its general laws, while the mechanic who ran a lathe year after year could not grasp or apply those laws without specialist help. The real problem—removing chips fast and making the piece smooth and true—is largely the same whatever the product.
Chapter 21
Why does the author argue workmen cannot develop scientific laws under initiative-and-incentive management?
The author argues workmen lack time and opportunity, since their days are spent doing manual work. Studying even a simple law, like time study, requires two men—one working while another times him. Also, a workman who discovered laws would likely keep them secret to do more work and earn higher wages.
Chapter 21
What did Taylor's metal-cutting experiments at Midvale Steel involve?
With permission from William Sellers, president of Midvale Steel Company, experiments began in fall 1880 to find the best tool angles, shapes, and cutting speeds for steel. A 66-inch vertical boring-mill was first used, cutting locomotive tires into chips. Experiments continued about 26 years across ten machines, with 30,000 to 50,000 recorded experiments and an estimated $150,000 to $200,000 spent.
Chapter 21
What motivated the long metal-cutting experiments, according to the author?
The author states the motive was not an abstract search for scientific knowledge but the practical need for exact information to help machinists do their work in the best way and quickest time. Under scientific management, management develops laws and teaches them impartially to workmen, and companies can afford the experiments because the results are so valuable.
Chapter 21
Section 224 cards
What two questions face every machinist doing metal-cutting work?
The chapter states that each time a machinist works a metal-cutting machine such as a lathe, planer, drill press, or milling machine, two questions arise: at what cutting speed shall the machine be run to finish quickest, and what feed shall be used. Though they sound simple, the author argues each answer involves an intricate mathematical problem with twelve independent variables.
Chapter 22
How many independent variables affect cutting speed, and which is most dramatic?
The chapter lists twelve independent variables affecting the answer, each with a stated ratio. The most dramatic is variable A, the quality of the metal: soft, low-carbon steel can be cut 100 times as fast as semi-hardened steel or chilled iron, a proportion of 1 to 100. Other variables include tool composition, shaving thickness, tool shape, cooling, depth of cut, and chatter.
Chapter 22
Why did investigating the twelve variables take 26 years?
The author explains the great difficulty lay in the problem containing so many variable elements. Each single experiment was lengthy because eleven variables had to be held constant and uniform while the effect of the twelfth was investigated. The chapter states that holding the eleven variables constant was far more difficult than investigating the twelfth element itself.
Chapter 22
How was the twelve-variable problem made usable for everyday machinists?
Mathematicians told Taylor that problems with twelve variables could only be solved by slow trial and error, and ordinary solution took two to six hours. After fifteen more years of searching, the slide-rule was developed at the Bethlehem Steel Company. With it, a good mechanic can solve one of these problems in under half a minute, whether or not he understands mathematics, making the experimental data practical for daily use.
Chapter 22
Section 233 cards
What three elements does the author say the useful results hinge mainly upon?
The author lists: (1) substituting a science for the individual judgment of the workman; (2) scientific selection and development of the workman, after each man has been studied, taught, trained, and experimented with, rather than letting workmen select themselves haphazardly; and (3) intimate cooperation of management with workmen, so both together follow the developed scientific laws, sharing almost equally in each task.
Chapter 23
What did early, imperfect laws of cutting metals accomplish before being refined?
The author argues the first laws were crude and only partially true, yet vastly better than no exact information or rule of thumb. Within a few months enough knowledge was gained to more than pay for the experimenting. Early standard tool types, though imperfect, were superior to common shapes and immediately increased machinists' speeds, later being superseded by better tools.
Chapter 23
What general conclusion does the footnote reach about using new knowledge?
The footnote says the experimenter often faces choosing between immediate practical use of attained knowledge and waiting for finality. Each case must be independently considered, but the general conclusion is that in most instances it is wise to put conclusions as soon as possible to the rigid test of practical use. The indispensable condition is full opportunity plus sufficient authority for a thorough, impartial trial, which is difficult to get.
Chapter 23
Section 244 cards
What five steps does Taylor give for developing a simple science of a trade?
Taylor lists five steps: select 10 or 15 especially skilful men, preferably from separate establishments; study each man's exact elementary motions and implements; time each movement with a stop-watch and pick the quickest way per element; eliminate false, slow, and useless movements; then combine the quickest and best movements and implements into one new method. This method replaces the 10 or 15 inferior series and becomes standard.
Chapter 24
How does scientific management treat implements, compared with the 'initiative and incentive' philosophy?
Under 'initiative and incentive,' each workman uses his own best judgment, producing wide variety in implement shapes and types. Scientific management instead investigates each rule-of-thumb modification, time-studies the speed attainable with each, and unites the good points of several into a single standard implement. This one implement is adopted in place of the many, and remains standard until motion and time study show a better one.
Chapter 24
What does Taylor claim about the difficulty of developing a science to replace rule of thumb?
The author argues it is in most cases by no means a formidable undertaking, since the science in most mechanic arts is far simpler than the science of cutting metals and can be developed by ordinary, every-day men without elaborate scientific training, often with just a stop-watch and ruled notebook. However, he adds that successfully using even the simplest improvement requires records, system, and cooperation where only individual effort existed before.
Chapter 24
What does Taylor say about the task idea and the law of motives?
Taylor says laws of human motive, though subject to more exceptions than laws about material things, unquestionably exist for a large majority of men and are valuable guides. The most important is the task idea's effect on efficiency; scientific management is often called 'task management.' He notes nothing is new in it, comparing it to a teacher setting a definite lesson, and says a workman works best given a definite task in a given time.
Chapter 24
Section 254 cards
What two elements does Taylor call the most important parts of scientific management's mechanism?
The task and the bonus. Taylor says these two elements are especially important because they are a climax, demanding almost all other elements of the mechanism before they can be used—such as a planning department, accurate time study, standardization of methods and implements, a routing system, and trained functional foremen.
Chapter 25
Under functional management, who replaces the old-fashioned single foreman?
Eight different men, each with special duties, acting as agents of the planning department and expert teachers in the shop. They include the inspector, gang boss, speed boss, repair boss, time clerk, route clerk, and disciplinarian. Chosen for knowledge and skill in their specialty, they can demonstrate the work themselves before the workman.
Chapter 25
How does Taylor answer the objection that scientific management makes workmen mere automatons?
The author argues the same objection applies to all modern subdivision of labor. He compares the workman to a modern surgeon: the surgeon receives minute supervision and standard implements, yet is not narrowed but freed to use originality rather than reinvent old things. Taylor argues the workman under scientific management has opportunities at least as good as working unaided.
Chapter 25
What written instructions do planning-department specialists prepare, and who ensures workmen follow them?
Specialists prepare detailed written instructions on the best way to do each piece of work, combining the work of several men—one on speeds and cutting tools, one on quickest motions, one on time-study timetables—all written on a single instruction card. Functional foremen then act as teachers to see that workmen both understand and carry out these instructions.
Chapter 25
Section 264 cards
What does Taylor say scientific management's essence consists of, as opposed to its mechanism?
The author argues scientific management in its essence is a philosophy combining four underlying principles: the development of a true science, the scientific selection of the workman, his scientific education and development, and intimate friendly cooperation between management and men. Elements like time study and functional foremanship are merely mechanism; used without the true philosophy, results are often disastrous.
Chapter 26
How does Taylor propose handling a workman's suggestion for improving methods or implements?
The author argues management should encourage suggestions. When a workman proposes an improvement, management should carefully analyze the new method and, if necessary, run experiments comparing its merit with the old standard. If markedly superior, it becomes the standard for the whole establishment; the workman gets full credit and a cash premium as reward for his ingenuity.
Chapter 26
Why does Taylor warn against changing too rapidly from old management to scientific management?
The author argues the great problem is a complete revolution in the mental attitude and habits of management and workmen, achievable only gradually through object-lessons and teaching. He warns the change takes two to three years in a simple establishment, sometimes four to five, and that rapid change without heeding warnings frequently causes serious troubles, sometimes strikes, followed by failure.
Chapter 26
How does Taylor recommend introducing changes to workmen at the start?
The author advises making the first changes affecting workmen exceedingly slowly, dealing with only one workman at a time. No further change should be made until that single man is thoroughly convinced the new method greatly benefits him; then others are tactfully changed over. After one-fourth to one-third of men have switched, progress can become very rapid due to a revolution in establishment opinion.
Chapter 26
Section 273 cards
What experience must a man have to direct the change to scientific management?
The author argues it is not enough to have managed an establishment already run under the new principles. The man directing the change, particularly in elaborate work, must have personal experience overcoming the special difficulties peculiar to the transition period from old to new management.
Chapter 27
What happened when able men rushed scientific management in a 3,000-4,000 man establishment?
They disregarded the author's warning that the change needed three to five years. Using time study as a club through old-style foremen, without training functional foremen to lead workers gradually, they drove men to harder work without much pay increase. Strikes followed, the men fell, and conditions ended worse than before.
Chapter 27
What does the author say about strikes under scientific management over thirty years?
The author states that during thirty years of introducing scientific management there has not been a single strike among those working in accordance with its principles, even during the critical transition period. If proper methods are used by experienced men, he argues there is absolutely no danger from strikes or other troubles.
Chapter 27
Section 284 cards
How does Taylor answer the claim that scientific management contains no new facts?
The author concedes it is very likely true that no new fact is brought to light. He argues scientific management does not require great invention or startling discoveries; instead it combines old knowledge collected, analyzed, grouped, and classified into laws and rules, plus a complete change in mental attitude on both sides and a new division of duties.
Chapter 28
What five elements summarize scientific management at the chapter's end?
The author summarizes scientific management as: science, not rule of thumb; harmony, not discord; cooperation, not individualism; maximum output in place of restricted output; and the development of each man to his greatest efficiency and prosperity. He presents this as a whole combination rather than any single element.
Chapter 28
Why does Taylor say the pig-iron handler is not an object for pity?
The author argues the handler is a common type, not an extraordinary man; his work tires him no more than a proper day's work (if overtired, the task was wrongly set); his output came from taught science, not his own initiative; and his 60 percent raise came from careful experiments, not arbitrary foreman judgment. So he merits congratulation.
Chapter 28
According to Taylor, how will scientific management be forced on employers and workers?
The author believes both sides will rebel at first: workers resenting interference with rule-of-thumb methods, management resenting new duties. In the end, the people—the third party—through enlightened public opinion will insist on justice for all three parties and force the new order on both employer and employee.
Chapter 28
Section 293 cards
What does Taylor claim scientific management will do to the fair day's work question?
Taylor claims that under scientific management, what constitutes a fair day's work will become a question for scientific investigation rather than a subject to be bargained and haggled over. He also says soldiering will cease because the object for soldiering will no longer exist, and higher wages will largely eliminate the wage question as a source of dispute.
Chapter 29
What benefits does Taylor predict for companies that adopt scientific management first?
Taylor predicts that the low cost of production accompanying a doubling of output will let adopting companies, especially early adopters, compete far better than before. This will enlarge their markets so their men have almost constant work even in dull times, and they will earn larger profits at all times, bringing increased prosperity and diminished poverty to the whole community.
Chapter 29
What does Taylor call the most important single element of the whole problem?
Taylor says the direct gain to all those working under the system is without doubt the most important single element. This includes each workman being systematically trained to his highest state of efficiency, taught to do a higher class of work than under old management, and acquiring a friendly mental attitude toward employers and working conditions instead of criticism and suspicious watchfulness.
Chapter 29
Source and licence
Text used: Project Gutenberg eBook #6435 (Public domain in the United States). Generated from the full text; cards paraphrase the source.
Version: Public domain edition. Retrieved 2026-10-26. Cards reviewed 2026-10-26.
These cards paraphrase the text for study. They are not a substitute for reading the book, and they do not reproduce long passages.
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