Reviewed by
Michael F. Pohlen
University of Delaware
This brief work is a selection of monographs taken from the Transactions of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers from the period 1885-1895. While the selections carry such heady titles as “The Engineer as an Economist” and “Gain-Sharing,” the six pieces would probably be classified under “cost accounting and cost improvement” in a contemporary book of essays.
The book is another of Alfred D. Chandler’s many contributions to the history of management in its broadest context and serves as a useful counter-reminder to those of us who are sometimes taken up with the development and refinement of our professional skills and theories.
The authors whose work Chandler has selected would be in-cluded under almost anyone’s list of Who’s Who in the development of management thought around the turn of the century: Henry R. Towne, Oberlin Smith, Henry Metcalf, Frederick A. Halsey and Frederick W. Taylor (in order of their appearance in the book).
The decade covered by the six pieces traces the development of certain managerial insights into the recording and use of cost in-formation and, perhaps even more important, the development of a written literature in the field. In the opening article, “The Engineer as an Economist,” Henry R. Towne calls for the creation of a new economic section within the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, citing the widespread interest in economic issues and the obvious need for a thorough airing of them in the profession. It is interesting to note that a later written discussion of Towne’s suggestion raises the danger of isolating those interested in such issues from the mainstream of the organization.
Two articles on cost accounting deal with the problems of valuation of physical equipment and the determination of real labor costs. One gets the distinct impression that the problems are still with us in much the same form, despite almost 100 years of analysis, in-vestigation, and countless hours and words devoted to the subjects.
The three final articles on wage payment provide another note on how far we have yet to go in the management of the labor force. Three positions on how labor productivity can be improved are pre-sented—profit sharing, payment of a premium when productivity exceeds a set rate, and a true piece-rate system.
At first reading, this reviewer questioned whether the lengthy and sometimes tedious discussion by a panel which followed several of the articles was necessary or whether the substitution of one or two more articles would have been better. Any number of names, e.g., Harrington Emerson, come to mind as additional contributors from the era. Upon reflection, however, Chandler’s tactic was well chosen. But for slight differences in vocabulary and grammatical style, the discussion might well be taking place in a 1981 meeting of management professionals concerned with costs.
In summary, the book places the reader into a simpler time, a time when managers, engineers and accountants talked to each other—and were often the same people. Perhaps that is Chand-ler’s real message.
