Taylor was one of the proponents of scientific management, which is defined as the use of scientific methods of research to determine the “one best way” to get a job done.

While working at Midvale Steel Company in Pennsylvania, Taylor was often shocked by workers’ inefficiencies, which motivated his interest in improving productivity by finding the “best method” to get jobs done. His work at Midvale led him to define four scientific guidelines for maximizing efficiency:

i. Develop one best way to do each job

ii. Scientifically select the best individual for the job

iii. Close co-operation between management and workers and implementation of incentives to ensure that the job was being carried out in the prescribed method

iv. Division of work equally between managers and workers so that activities such as planning, orga

A series of research studies in the late 1920’s also played a major part in the development of the human relations approach.

While Fayol and Taylor focused on practical problems of managing, Weber was more concerned with enterprise structure, ideally a bureaucratic structure. He focused on dividing organizations into hierarchies, establishing impersonal relationships, strong lines of authority and control and suggested that organizations develop detailed standard operating procedures for all tasks in order to attain goals efficiently. The level of control and coordination exhibited by Fayol and Weber’s administrative principles were very useful for managers as small businesses expanded into large corporations.

These practices have been developing in many well-run factories today. Analysis of basic work tasks, hiring the best worker for a job and incentives based on productivity are all principles of Scientific Management which are incorporated into modern organizations.

Mary Parker Follett and Chester Barnard stand out as two supporters of the human relations approach.

The human relations theorists felt that workers simply did not respond rationally to strict rules and chains of authority an

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