This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Jones, O. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Scientific Management, Culture and Control: A First-Hand Account of Taylorism in Practice

Aston Business School, O.EJones{at}aston.ac.uk

In this article I examine the changes that occurred in a large domestic appliance factory over a 12 year period. The appointment of a new managing director was the catalyst for many innovations in the plant including the ending of PBR (payment by results) and the use of stopwatches by work study engineers (WSEs). Despite senior managerial efforts to change the organizational culture those employed in the work study department continued to exert considerable influence over factory design and work organization. In the article I present a first-hand account of the way in which individual identity and subjectivity contributed to a distinctive subculture. This masculine culture encouraged conflict with shopfloor workers even after the PBR scheme had been discontinued. Hence, the article focuses on the way in which the subjective experiences of a small group of WSEs influenced the organization of shopfloor work as well as relationships between workers and manager

Key Words: culture • identity • organizational control • scientific management • subjectivity

Human Relations, Vol. 53, No. 5, 631-653 (2000)
DOI: 10.1177/0018726700535002


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?