Daniel Nelson, in Frederick W. Taylor and the Rise of Scientific Management, explores and analyzes the techniques and innovations initiated by Taylor (1856-1915) and the impact he and they had on the transformation of American industry, with specific reference to the factory system, industrialization, productivity, management and labor. Nelson's aim is both to portray Taylor's contributions to the development of scientific management, and to show that Taylor was not the "developer of ruthless, dehumanizing, and simple-minded techniques to exploit industrial workers" (book jacket) that he is often described as being. The author aims to show that, to the contrary, he was an integral part of his era, trying at all times to streamline a system which made him as much as he made it.
The problem with Nelson's book is that it does not make the entire argument the author sets out to make. We certainly come away from this book deeply aware of Taylor's important and revolutionary contributions to the development of modern industry and management. However, it is undeniable that, whatever Taylor's intentions, he helped develop a realm which exploited workers and benefitted the rich elite of which he was a part. Taylor may not have been a ruthless man himself, but the industry he helped develop was ruthless in its mistreatment of the worker. Nelson is trying to manipulate the thought of the reader when he argues that we should measure Taylor's contributions only on the basis of "the essential relationship" of his professional career, namely "his interaction with contemporary business and managerial developments, particularly the growth of big business and 'systematic management'" (ix). It is up to the thoughtful reader to determine on what basis Taylor's career and contributions should be assessed, and not a biased author. It is disingenuous of the author to argue that Taylor's contributions to the development of industry and management "had lit...