5. Stag and line in business.—One firm which uses the distinction between staff and line officers is the Sherwin-Williams Paint Company. The principal office experts, such as Chief of Motor Power or Var nish Sales Department Manager, without having ex ecutive control, confine their attention to the working out of the best methods and the adoption of the best standards. The control is with the line or territorial managers. The company bolds that the technical man is doing his best work when he is showing another man how to do it. The specialist is particularly needed during the period when construction and in stallation are taking place. The salesmen in the field should be instructed so that they may meet ordinary business contingencies.
6. Functional type, the factory.—Under the older forms of management much depends upon the fore man's ability to grasp the larger problems of the man ager's policy. In arranging for the work of the fore man, it has been determined of late that the same pro cess shall be adopted in developing efficient specialists here as was done in the case of the common laborer. Each foreman, instead of having charge of a number of men performing many kinds of work, has now one thing to do. This was found necessary because cap able foremen with broader ability were difficult to find. Such general work demands of a foreman that he have a fair quota of brains, some general educa tion, fair phy'sical health, some technical knowledge and some manual dexterity. In common with all ad ministrative positions, his position calls for tact and judgment. He must have a knowledge of every part of the product; he must see that the workmen use their time for the best interests of the company. He must be a "hustler" himself and he must know how fast other men can work. His duties include the dis ciplining of the man, the 'settling of disputes between employes, and the adjusting of wages in case of ab sence, sickness and so on.
7. Functional method of diffi culty of getting men of the proper caliber to take charge of the departments has set managers to devis ing a method or organization which calls for less abil ity in any one foreman. Accordingly the functional method of organization is gradually supplanting the military method. In an organization of this kind, a man possessing three or four of the above qualifi cations can be trained to fill the position of a func tional foreman. He is required generally to do only two or three things, and in the larger shops only one thing. This does not mean that the same amount of ability, taking the shop as a whole, is not needed under the functional plan, but that it is organized differ ently. All the ability which is needed for planning is
concentrated in a planning department. Tbe shop foremen are no longer expected to do this planning. In a fairly large factory there will be four foremen in the planning department, and another set of four fore men will be constantly upon the floor of the shop, in structing and helping the men. This division of labor causes no confusion, for the workmen never see the foremen in the planning department. This illustrates how all the functions may be separated and, whereas the old system provided one foreman from whom a group of men took their orders, the newer method per mits any workman to have as many as eight bosses.
8. Foremen of the planning department and the shop.—The foremen in the planning department are (1) the route clerk, (2) the instruction-card man, (3) the cost clerk, (4) the time clerk. The dutieS of these men are fully treated in Chapter XII on plan ning in the factory. In the shop there are (1) the gang boss, (2) the speed boss, (3) the inspector, (4) the disciplinarian. These men can be selected without difficulty, and their training can be provided for if the manager has a clear idea of what he wants to accom plish.
The gang boss has no definite duties as such. He simply carries out such work as the planning depart ment assigns him.
The speed boss sees that the work is carried out ac cording to the schedule sent out by the planning room.
The inspector looks after the quality of thework as it comes from the machines. He mist be Ole to in struct the men as to the type and quality of workman ship required.
The disciplinarian settles all cases of insubordina tion, and passes judgment upon the disputes which arise between workmen and foremen.
There is a fifth boss in some factories, whose duty it is to keep the machines clean and in repair.
9. Unsystematized type of management.—In an unsystematized plant the chief characteristic of the management is the lack of a proper system of cost ac counts, and an inadequate method of keeping the ac counting information in good shape. In so far as every management must depend upon its cost and financial records in order to meet market competition, the unsystematized plant is at a distinct disadvantage. Inadequate cost records are the cause of many losses and failures. It is a frequent experience of certified public accountants, on being called in to examine books of account, to find that the firm is losing money.