The Genesis of Modern Management: A Study of the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain

Studies of the industrial revolution often ignore the problems of the management of large works - these were new, since earlier examples of controlling large numbers of men, such as armies of the builders of the pyramids, did not have to show a profit. The main problems are seen to have occurred in the management of labour, and in the construction of account which would help arrive at correct decisions. The owner-managers of the day had little to go on, and had to be as innovative as in the better-known technical innovations field. Some leading entrepreneurs developed satisfactory solutions, but management continued to be considered an art rather than a science, with little systematized knowledge.