NAME
TAPIWA KETAYI
STUDENT NO.
SU190594Q
FACULTY
COMMERCE
DEPARTMENT
ACCOUNTING
COURSE
MGMT385_HUMANRESOURCESMANAGEMENT
LECTURER
MARY Z MHLANGA
Assignment One(1)
Write short notes (5 pages) on the evolution of human resource management from:
a) The Craft Stage
b) Industrial era
c) Scientific Management era
d) Paternalistic era
e) Industrial Psychology era
f) Human Relations era
g) Human Resource Management
The history of human resources management stems back to a pre-industrial society and has
changed into a way to manage the satisfaction and productivity of employees. In this paper
we are going to look at the different stages HRM went through as it also adapted o changes in
human behaviour
a) The craft stage dates back from the early civilization up to around the 19th century
when industrial revolution came and in Western Europe it was comprising of small
shops owned by master artisans. These masters took in trainees or apprentices, most
of them stayed with them, and they would put them under training to keep a constant
supply of the workers. In England, an association of craftsman in a particular trade was
known as a guild .The guilds were responsible for supervision of apprentice training,
production methods and quality, and working conditions. Due to the closeness of the
master and apprentice, there was need for constant supervision of the task being
carried out. Their relationship was based on one giving orders to the other with
method of production being the main determinant of working conditions. The craft
system was best suited to domestic industry, which the master operated on his own
premises with his assistants residing and working in the same house.
b) The craft era was followed by the industrial era which began at the time of industrial
revolution. Master artisans and their apprentices and journeymen were replaced with
large factories that fundamentally changed the nature of work. Instead of highly
skilled masters teaching apprentices a trade, most production shifted into large
factories where the manufacture of a product using heavy machinery was divided up
between relatively unskilled workers. Unlike the craft system, work was very
specialized, where a complex task was broken down into a series of simpler ones. A
new class of employees emerged in the workplace in the form of managers. Unlike
under the craft system, managers were often not owners of the company. Some
managers had responsibility for supervising employees in their work task. The
employers were only interested to meet production targets rather than satisfy workers’
demands. As a result of the prevailing poor working conditions and low wage rates
the adversarial relationship between employers and labours was established. This led
to gradual evolution of systematic attention towards welfare of workers and laid the
foundations of the HRM.
c) The next era is associated with the man FW Taylor, who is known as the father of
scientific management. His principles focused on worker’s training, maintaining wage
uniformity, and attaining better productivity. Taylor’s scientific management
consisted of four principles mentioned as follows:
(i)
Adopt work methods based on scientific study of the tasks instead of rule of
thumb method.
(ii)
(ii) Scientific methods of selection, training, and development of each
employee.
(iii)
(iii) The managers should apply scientific management principles to plan the
work.
(iv)
(iv) Close supervision and detailed instructions to each worker in the
performance of specific task. This principle stresses on the fact that workers
should be capable of understanding the task they were doing.
The concept of scientific management advocated the payment of wages should be
linked to productivity where a differential piece rate system was also advocated to
provide an incentive to the employee. The principles of scientific management have
been challenged and criticised by trade unions, as well as social intellectuals.
d) Robert Owen in 20th century an industrialist, reformer adopted the approach “the
principal social and economic environments influence the physical, mental, and
psychological development of workers. Therefore, to increase productivity, it is
necessary to improve the conditions of employees by removing them from an adverse
environment by providing them more satisfactory living and working conditions” this
was later known as paternalistic or social responsibility era. Those industrialists who
adopted paternalistic approach offered several concessions and facilities to labour
force like reduced number of work hours, improved facilities at workplace, model
villages to workers, etc. All these practices led to the development of social welfare
aspect of labour management.
e) The study of industrial psychology originated in the United States in the early 1900s
through the work of psychologists Hugo Munsterberg and Walter Dill Scott (both of
whom were trained by German physiologist and psychologist Wilhelm Wundt), while
its practical application developed largely through the work of American industrial
engineer Frederick W. Taylor. It applies psychology to industrial organisations and
the workplace. It attempts to achieve organisations goals by improving the
performance and welfare of its employees. Industrial psychologist includes research
in job performance, job analysis, performance appraisal/management, compensation,
work motivation, job attitudes, work/life balance, organisational culture, leadership,
ethics, and technology in workplace, job design and human resource.
f) Human relations era followed and the main advocate of it was Elton Mayo and his
colleagues using the Hawthorne experiments. Studies showed show other stimuli,
unrelated to financial compensation and working conditions, could yield more
productive workers. Observations and findings of the experiments shifted the focus of
human resource from increasing worker’s productivity to increasing worker’s
efficiency through greater work satisfaction
g) The human resource management era recognised the fact that workers are unique in
their own ways with different need and wants. It was also recognised that each
employee is a unique and highly complex individual with different wants, needs and
values. Douglas McGregor Theory X and Theory Y, and Abraham Maslow’s Hierarch
of needs characterised this phase of HRM evolution. These behavioural scientists
believed that the managers should focus on employee’s motivation, management by
objective and inter-personal communication, instead of mechanist production. It
would make the worker more satisfied and productive. So, these theorists advocated
the need for scientific study of human relations aspect of organisation.
REFERENCES
Armstrong, M., & Taylor, S. (2014). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management
practice. Kogan Page Publishers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_relations_movement , Accessed 23 March 2022