also, in many industries where the setting up or changing of a machine is necessary before proceeding on a new job, assists and instructs the operator in this part of the work.

The instructor is responsible for seeing that the methods prescribed by the instruction cards are followed and for giving such help and instruction as may be required to the less skilled operators. As a matter of fact a great number of the operators require little if any assistance from the instructor as a regular thing, so that his attention is in a large measure confined to the newer operators or those who have difficulty in accomplishing their work in the time set. The instructors also act as the agents of the time study man-investigating failures to accomplish work in the time set, reporting any difficulties encountered calling for correction or adjustment, checking up the standard methods and conditions established to guard against retrogression.

The functional foremen previously referred to are primarily concerned with matters of production. It is their duty to see that the work is turned out in the time established and to see that any conditions which interfere with production are corrected. On the other hand it is equally important that the work produced shall be up to the required standard with respect to quality. It is obvious that people who are primarily interested in production will not be equally interested in quality and vice versa. Therefore it is the practice to have in each section of the plant a functional foreman known as the inspector, whose duty it is to see that the work turned out is up to the required standard of quality and who has no interest whatever in the speed with which it is done. The inspectors are in effect instructors in quality.

Good inspection prevents spoilage or bad work instead of detecting it. The customary method of inspection is, for the planning department, when a job is started to send a notice to the inspector advising him to that effect. The inspector goes at once to the work place, gives the operator such instruction or explanation as may be necessary and sees that the first piece or the first few pieces produced are correct. He returns from time to time during the process of the operation inspecting the work which has been completed since his last visit, so that by the time the job is finished he has inspected all of the work turned out. He then reports to the planning department the results of his

inspection, reporting any damaged or defective work and the nature of damage or defect. It must be borne in mind that the bonus, or the high rate in the case of differential piece work, is paid not only on condition that the work be accomplished in the time set, but that it shall also be in accordance with the requirements as to quality. The inspector is usually responsible directly to a head inspector who in turn is responsible to the Designing Department and has full authority to reject any work not up to the standards.

The repair boss under the scheme of functional foremanship is responsible for the condition of the machinery and appliances throughout the shop, for their being kept up to the standards which existed or were established at the time the elementary time studies were made and for guarding against breakdowns due to neglect. He also instructs the workmen in the proper care of their machines and sees that they are not damaged through carelessness or abuse. In a small shop the repair boss with occasional assistance may personally perform all of the duties in conjunction with this function, while in a large plant he may have a considerable organization including a repair shop of his own and may carry out his duties through rather an elaborate system such as the writer described in a paper presented a few years ago before the Taylor Society. In a large plant the repair boss might be dignified by the title of Superintendent of Maintenance. The feature of this work to be emphasized is that breakdowns and the necessities for emergency repairs should be prevented through adequate periodic inspection and adjustment of machines and appliances.

Happily the old idea that good management consisted in keeping down what was often erroneously termed "non-productive" expense is on the wane, as is its twin fallacy the belief that the payment of low wages was essential to low manufacturing cost, and with them are passing the objections of the manager of the old school to the newer and more effective way of doing things.

The absurdity of constructing a subway, an office building or building a machine for any purpose without complete engineering plans and specifications is today apparent even to the non-technical public. Yet it is within the memory of living men that a draughting room, an engineering department or a designing

department was regarded as "non-productive" and even undesirable, while today it is a recognized necessity; the planning department is steadily and rapidly coming to be generally regarded in the same light. With the planning and control of work as has been described taken care of in the planning department, the foremeneach specializing on a given function are enabled to devote their entire time to supervision of work in process, instructing and helping the workmen and straightening out with a minimum of delay and friction those things which will go wrong in spite of the best of planning. The workman benefits as a result of the better service he receives and is saved much time and annoyance in procuring the information he must have before proceeding with each new job, figuring out the method and getting together the tools and materials required.

Assuming that all workmen were of equal ability in these matters (which unfortunately is not the case) and that each workman were fully as competent as those selected men who under Scientific Management specialize upon the planning, still there would be a great advantage in doing it in the planning department where it is done in advance (instead of, as is inevitable in the shop, hastily at the start of the job or during its progress), in an environment better suited than that of the shop itself, and with all necessary and helpful data readily available. Furthermore while the planning is being done the workman and the machine are engaged in actually turning out product.

Under true Scientific Management through the planning department and the functional foremen in the shop every effort is made to place at the disposal of all workmen the best knowledge relating to the processes, to supplant loose opinion with demonstrated fact, to develop to the fullest degree the skill and intelligence of every workman, and to create conditions that will enable him easily to turn out much more work for the same expenditure of time and effort than would be possible under the old way of doing things. Thus he can make higher wages without increasing the cost, and through the elimination of annoyances and obstacles, be happier and healthier while doing it. Secretary Wilson expressed himself recently as follows in addressing a meeting of Governors and Mayors:

Employers and employees have a mutual interest—not an identical interest, mark you, but a mutual interest, in securing the largest amount of production

from a given amount of labor, having due regard to the health, safety, opportunities for rest, recreation and development of the workers; for if there is nothing produced, there will be nothing to divide; if there is a large amount produced, there will be a large amount to divide; and the interest of the employer and employee only diverge when it comes to a division of that which has been mutually produced, and if they are wise in their generation, when that divergence takes place, they will sit down around a council table and endeavor to work out the problem on as fully a just basis as the circumstances surrounding the industry will permit.

Sentiments such as this show a recognition of the needs of society and also indicate the need of a plan-definite, consistent and workable. Taylor years ago foresaw the needs, expressed the same truth, and devoted his life to the development of the plan to meet the needs which the writer has described.

IN

Influence of Executives

By H. L. GANTT

Consulting Engineer, New York City

N attempting to rate the influence of executives on production we must recognize the fact that under our present methods executives as a rule seem to favor that system of production which to the greatest possible extent relieves them of responsibility.

Throughout our whole system of production there is a tendency to blame the man lower down, rather than the man higher up, with the result that the man in the shop may be reprimanded, or even discharged, for an error in judgment which caused the loss of a few dollars, while the man at the top, making a similar error in judgment costing thousands of dollars, too frequently gets by without anybody's knowing that the loss was due to his failure.

The existence of such a condition is not only detrimental to the business system as a whole, but produces great hardships upon the workmen as individuals. It is not claimed that executives

in general desire to shirk their responsibility and place the blame on others, but our business methods are still dominated by the spirit of the past, which was, "the king can do no wrong," that is to say, if a man has the power to do a thing, it is right for him to do it, or, as he would put it, "he has a right to do it." The flaw in this reasoning is in the meaning of the word right. All will agree that no man has a right to do wrong; but we must understand more clearly what we mean by right and wrong. A bridge is right when it will carry the load for which it was designed, wrong when it will not. In an economic or a moral sense an action is right when it will advance the cause of humanity, and wrong when it will not; hence, it is stretching the meaning of the word to apply it to a question of fashions.

The Germans thought that which they expected would advance their cause was right, no matter what effect it had on other peoples. We fought to resist the application of this idea, and may always expect conflict when an attempt is made to assert a "right" to the detriment of others. It is not hinted that the business man intentionally does wrong by making a decision that will in