HENRI FAYOL
Henri Fayol was born in 1841 of a family of the French petite bourgeoisie. He had his education as a student of the Lycee at Lyon and spent two years there. He then continued his educational life at the National School of Mines at St.Etienne, this year; he was the youngest student, of age seventeen. He was graduated at nineteen as a mining engineer. He was chosen as engineer to the Commentry group of pits of the Commentry-Fourchambault Company in 1860. He continued his extensive and successful business life with this responsibility. In 1918, he retired from working as Managing Director. He kept on being a Director of the Company until his death at his eighty-four in December, 1925.
Henri Fayol’s working life includes four periods. Firstly, from 1860 to 1872, although he was at a decision-maker position, he played a secondary role. He struggled for overcoming the risk of combustion of coal mining. Secondly, from 1872 to 1888, he worked as Director of a group of pits. In these years, he devoted himself to solve the geological problems of the area in relation with the life of pits for which he was responsible. As a result of these studies, he created his famous geological monograph on the Commentry coal measure which includes his theory of deltas which developed in three steps from 1886 to 1893. Thirdly, from 1888 to 1918, Fayol gad became the Managing Director of the group which is generally called Comambaut. He performed great efforts to discharge. As a distinctive of him, he always kept track of his main task and if unrelated to his duties, neglected anything else done in order to prevent him from executing his job. Lastly, in spite of his retirement and his old age, he did not give up working. He made great efforts to popularize his Theory of Administration of a consequence of his thirty years of amazing practical success. He was depicted by a pen portrait as always smiling, being friendly to anyone, having authority with young spirit that makes him eager to interest everything.
He carried out two major tasks in this period. The foundation of a Centre of Administrative Studies was the first. At this centre, weekly meetings, managed by Henri Fayol, held for several years which were arranged for respected people such as, writers, engineers and soldiers, officials, philosophers and industrialist. A large and authoritative literature developed from them. As early as 1918, a series of lectures on “Fayolisme” is organized by M.Carlioz at the School of Higher Commercial Studies. He was proposed to give lectures at the Ecole superieure de la Guerra. The second mission was that trying to convince the government to pay attention to principles of administration and he always believed the possibility of the accomplishment of the task.
Henri Fayol had played very important role in each these four periods. As a technical man, he accomplished national distinction for his work in mining engineering.
As a geologist, he suggested a new theory of the formation of coal-bearing strata and he confirmed it with a detailed study of the Commentry district which was rare as a piece of geological research. As a scientist turned industrial leader his success in both field was phenomenal. His detailed research days finished; however, he used the scientific methodology in every direction and gave confidence to those associated with him to do likewise. Finally, as a philosopher of administration and as a statesman he exerted influence, not less than Frederick Winslow Taylor in the U.S.A, on considering his own and many other European countries.
In the early stages of the popularity of his work attempts were made in order to characterize Fayal’s principles as in some way in competition or contrast with Taylor’s studies. However, he himself declared that he wanted to explain how false he found this antithesis.
Taylor’s and Fayol’s works were obviously different but together formed an attractive combination of quality. They both realized that the key to industrial achievement was the problem of personnel and its management at all levels. Scientific method was applied by both to this problem. That Taylor worked primarily on the operative level, from the bottom of the industrial hierarchy upwards, while Fayol focused on the Managing Director and worked downwards, it was just reflection of their different careers.
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