The modern American company is one in which managers oversee the activities of workers with managers responsible for the strategic planning associated with the long-term growth of the organization and the workers responsible for performing the day to-day tasks which ensure the success of the organization. Although managers generally cannot exist without workers, managers are typically paid better and perceived to have "better" jobs in the sense that they are white-collar rather than blue collar employees. Companies which deviate from this structure, such as those that eliminate first-line managers in favor of employee teams, are perceived as radically progressive and liberal in their organizational approach. Yet this status quo has existed for little more than 100 years and is a result of the Industrial Revolution. This research examines how the current hierarchy of control came into place and what the future holds for this type of organization.
Five sources will be used for this research, including two offering historical perspectives, one examining the role of scientific management (and its validity as a science), one which examines why individuals are motivated to work at all (and what benefits they derive from their efforts), and one which considers the effect of modern management on the culture as a whole. Taken together, these readings provide insight as to why the American workplace has assumed the shape it currently has, and how the workplace has shaped other facets of the culture.
The Industrial Revolution is largely responsible for the change in the American culture which took place at the end of the last century. The machines introduced by the Industrial Revolution made it possible to produce larger number of goods with a product uniformity which had previously been impossible. At the same time, the increased numbers of people in the workforce ensured that there was a market for those goods as wages were paid to...