Question
Download Solution PDFComprehension
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:
Scientific management is a management theory that analyses and synthesises work flow. Its main objective is to improve economic efficiency, especially labour productivity. It is one of the earliest attempts to apply science to the design of management processes. Scientific management is also called Taylorism after its originator Frederick Winslow Taylor.
Taylor began developing his theory in the manufacturing industries in the US, particularly steel, during the 1880s and 1890s. Its influence peaked in the 1910s. Although Taylor died in 1915, scientific management continued to dominate until the 1920s, but it had to contend with a syncretism of opposing or contemporary ideas.
Midvale Steel Company, a great US ordnance manufacturer, was the birthplace of scientific management. Frederick W. Taylor began his career as a clerk at Midvale in 1877, but in 1880 he became foreman. Taylor was continually struck by the fact that his team members did not do even one-third of the work he thought was adequate in a day. Taylor decided to find out how long it should take people to perform each task scientifically, and in late 1882 he began implementing the first features of scientific management. Although scientific management as a specific theory or ideology fell into obsolescence in the 1930s, many of its themes remain important parts of industrial engineering and management today.
Which of the following is the birthplace of Scientific Management?
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)
Detailed Solution
Download Solution PDFThe correct answer is Midvale Steel Company
Key Points
- Midvale Steel Company is the birthplace of Scientific Management:
- The passage states that Midvale Steel Company was where Frederick W. Taylor first began implementing his ideas on Scientific Management in the early 1880s.
- This historical fact marks it as the origin of this influential management theory which emphasized measuring work scientifically to improve productivity.
- For financial enterprises, the legacy of Scientific Management still resonates today in the use of analytics, performance benchmarking, and operational efficiency strategies that ensure optimal resource utilization and productivity.
- By studying work processes scientifically, modern financial institutions can reduce overheads, improve turnaround times, and deliver services more efficiently — a principle rooted in Taylor's early experiments at Midvale.
Additional Information
- Bethlehem Steel Corporation:
- This was another company where Taylor worked later in his career, but it was not the birthplace of Scientific Management. His initial development of the theory occurred at Midvale Steel.
- In financial management, accurate attribution of historical methods ensures the right application of strategies in process optimization and business planning.
- Bethlehem Steel Incorporation:
- This is an incorrect variant of the name and not mentioned in the passage. It appears to be a distractor or a misnaming of Bethlehem Steel Corporation.
- Midvale Steel Corporation:
- This is an incorrect name; the correct term used in the passage is “Midvale Steel Company.” Even though it sounds similar, precision in naming is crucial in historical and academic contexts.
- In financial records or historical referencing, such mislabeling can lead to confusion or misinterpretation of legacy practices and their relevance to modern systems.